《Valkyrie Smash》
Chapter 1 Flowers At The Top Of A High Mountain.
Takane no hana. A Flowers at the top of a tall mountain. A Japanese idiom used when referring to something that is unattainable, out of reach, most of the time the love of a woman out of one''s league.
For a man, one of the worst things to go through is being in the presence of an attractive woman yet having no chance to do anything to her. Nothing unusual about wanting to bed beautiful women, that''s just how men are. But when such a desire is blocked one can only suffer in silence, unable to satisfy the urges raging inside.
One unfortunate man found himself in such position on a daily basis. His name was Sam Sanderson, a twenty six years old brilliant scientist, one of the few left on earth. Though he had great intellect beyond what a normal human is capable of, luck had it so that he''d be stuck doing a low level job in a small nearly abandoned military base. And as if that wasn''t the worst of it, what this job entails made his life a nightmare.
"Hey, are we done here?"
A female voice shook him out of his daze. Closing his eyes Sam let out a long sigh before looking up to find a pair of golden eyes ring at him.
Standing in front of him was a girl that looked like she barely hit fifteen, though looks were deceiving since she''s much, much younger than that. She was 4.6 feet tall, her long brown hair extending all the way to the back of her knees. Her spotless skin had an almond color, a tan she''d obtained after spending too much time under the sun.
"Now now, no need to be rude to the doctor." Said another from beside her.
Compared to the first this one looked much older, an adult in her mid twenties despite the age gap between the two being only a couple of years. The second one was two heads taller. Her form was much thicker and well endowed. No, that would be an understatement. Her breasts, for example, were so huge one could only wonder how she''s able to stand. She''d a beautiful face with green sparkling eyes and a sweet smile that never disappeared. Her golden hair was long as well, though unlike the other one she it only went down to her plump ass.
Looking at the two Sam couldn''t help but sigh. His eyes then went to third one standing nearby. She was a bit taller than the other two. Her most noticable feature would be the long raven hair tied into a ponytail. Her body was more normalpared the the other one, with full breasts and meaty ass. Adding to that her beautiful face, silent demeanor and the strong vibes she gave, she was the very picture of a super model who''d make regr appearances on some fashion magazines.
"The examination is already done." Said the first, her arms crossed as she continued to re. "He''s wasting our time daydreaming like that."
"I''m sure the doctor has a lot on his mind." Said the second with a wry smile.
"Do I care? I just want to go swimming already! These examinations are a waste anyways, not like we''re doing much here."
"Don''t say that. Making regr reports is part of our duties, you know."
Scene like this had became a regr urrence, and to the one forced to watch them it was nothing short of psychological torture.
Three beautiful women stood in front of him, all dressed in a leotard like tight suits that left very little to the imagination. Everything about them seemed designed to bring out the worst in any man''s heart. When faced with such outstanding beauties even the gayest man would turn straight.
However thereys the problem. No matter how much one desired any of them, no one was allowed a single touch. It wasn''t a matter of them being too good for anyone, or them being too prideful. It''s simply that they are too valuable to let any man use them as an outlet for his natural desires.
"Alright." Taking his eyes off the three Sam looked down at the tablet in his hands. "As usual, nothing out of the ordinary. You''re free to go."
"Finally!" The first raised her arms in celebration.
"Ah, Zero Three, the HQ sent a word back after thest report." He said, pouring cold water on her excitement. "They said to use the outdoor pool less often."
"EEEEEH!! But I don''t want to!"
"Well, I''m only the messenger."
"As for you, Nine. Refrain from consuming junk food as much as possible." He said, turning his sight to the blond one."
"Eh!? But why!? It''s not like I''ll get fat or-" Coming to a sudden stop, the blond one blushed and lowered her gaze.
"Um¡ well, I''ll try¡"
"The only one to cause no trouble is Zero Five, huh." Sam said, turning to thest of the three. "You two should learn a little from her. Anyways, you''re dismissed."
"You can keep your advice to yourself, old man." The first to go was the tanned one, Zero Three. Though she didn''t like beingpared to the much more disciplined Zero Five, her mood has gone much worse after she was ordered to stay away from the outdoor pool.
"Doctor, thank you for the hard work." The one he referred to as Nine bowed politely before taking her leave as well.
The only one remaining in the room were Sam and Zero Five. Expecting her to follow without saying a word as she usually does he turned his chair and went on with his work.
A minute passed as he typed his report and she had yet to leave. Another minute followed and he was starting to get worried.
"Doctor¡"
Sam was startled when she suddenly spoke. Turning around he put his sses back with shaking hands and smiled nervously.
"It''s unusual for you to speak without being addressed. Is something amiss, Zero Five?"
"No¡ well, yes¡"
Sam noticed the conflicted expression she showed as she pondered her answer. It was the first time her mask had fallen, he was sure he never saw her like this.
After a moment of hesitation the girl took a deep breath. She tried topose herself but failed in the end. The nervousness she showed was unusual as well. Not only was the way she acted out of character, to Sam who''s tasked with observing and keeping a close eye on her she seemed strangely¡ human.
The results of the examination showed nothing¡ he thought to himself, eyes still on the girl. Why is she acting so¡ strange?
A few seconds passed before she spoke again. With each word she word that came out of her mouth the strange feeling Sam got grew stronger.
"Doctor, there is a question that has been on my mind for sometime now." She said, her eyes going down.
"Ask away. It''s part of my job to answer any questions you might have."
Looking relieved for a moment, Zero Five raised her head and met Sam''s eyes. He had many spections in his mind, however never did he begin to imagine what she was about to say.
"Doctor, do you see me as a human?"
Chapter 2 WARNING: PLEASE DO NOT BANG THE MACHINES.
Somewhere around the end of 2025 the third world war started, however if didn''tst long. A new enemy had emerged forcing all sides to cooperate. Still that did little to dy the massacre.
Cmities. That''s the name they''ve been known with since their first appearance. Strange beasts with no set shape or form. They change and adapt to the surroundings, however everywhere they go death soon follows.
Humanity was driven to a corner. 50% were wiped out in a single month. Hope was lost, everyone had given up and prepared for the end, that''s when a savior emerged.
He called himself Odin. A mysterious man with unrivaled wisdom and intellect. Gathering what''s left of humanity he searched for a way to fight back. After many desperate battles and millions of lives lost, humanity was finally able to create weapons that could push back against the Cmities.
The Valkyries were androids capable of fighting against the strange monsters. In other words they were robots with human appearance equipped with highly advanced AI.
One of those AIs was now asking if Sam if sees it as a human and that terrified him to the core.
"What''re you saying, Zero Five?" He askedughing nervously.
The idea of AI gaining sentience and rebelling against humans was yed to the death and when the Valkyries first appeared many were quick to turn the conspiracy onto them.
"Well, since we do look like human and¡ our behaviors and interactions aren''t so different." The girl said, her gaze going down once more. "I''ve been wondering if we sometimes get mistaken for humans¡"
"... I see¡"
Odin was a genius but he was also a weird man. When he created the central processing units, the supeputer hosting the Valkyrie AI, for some reason he decided that the weapon it''d be nted into has to closely resemble humans.
Since Odin was the only one capable of creating said weapons he was allowed to make the final choices on how they looked. There shouldn''t have been any problem with something like that as long as the purpose behind it is achieved.
However one could see what''s wrong with that line of thought when looking at the final result. All of the shells ended up being beautiful women, everyst one of them. Oden had made the most powerful supeputers in the world then used it to create an army of attractive female robots. One can easily guess what his intentions were during the whole process.
"Listen, Zero Five." Sam rubbed his temples, smiling weakly as he spoke. "Never talk about such things again, understood?"
"Huh? But why?" The girl asked looking rather surprised.
"Well if people hear that they might think you''re going out of control, and that would lead to some really big trouble."
No matter how human they look, no matter how human like they behave, the fact that this "girl" and those like her are nothing more than robots doesn''t change.
Though the actual process is a well guarded secret, their bodies are manufactured in ab and their personalities are preprogrammed to suit the taste of their creator; Zero Three was the energetic tomboy who likes sports, Nine is the caring older sister everyone loves and Zero Five is the cool beauty who''s always silent.
Those characters are already set and can''t be changed, that''s why Zero Five''s behavior struck Sam as odd.
Maybe she was the shy character all along? He thought, not wanting to believe that he''s witnessing the start of another apocalypse.
"As for whether you''re mistaken for human or not, I don''t think that will happen." He said. "After all no woman is as beautiful as you are. Those unable to see the difference are just delusional."
"I¡ see¡" Having heard her answer, Zero Five bowed her head slightly. "Thank you for taking the time to answer my question. I''ll be taking my leave now."
She turned around and quickly strode to the door, her long ponytail swaying behind her. For a moment there Sam was able to catch a glimpse of her face. Her cheeks her a bit red. That in itself wasn''t strange, but when he thought that his previousment might have made her blush he felt his heart skip a beat.
Maybe she''s the shy type after all.
The Valkyries were all extremely attractive females. One look and any man would fall in love. Sam had the rare opportunity of working closely with them and though he had enjoyed it at first it soon turned out to be a nightmare.
After a while he realized that just looking wasn''t enough. He wanted to do things to them. He wanted to spread their legs and pump them full of his seed. He wanted to push them against the wall and bang them until his thing falls off. But no matter how much he wished to that desire is destined to go unfulfilled.
The Valkyries were all extremely attractive females but they are some of the most valuable military equipment humanity possessed as well. The way they were made didn''t change that fact, and if by any chance someone tried to use them as nothing more than highly advanced sex dolls they''d quickly get disposed.
One could argue that everything would be fin as long as no one finds out. There were no security cameras in hisb so he was free to do whatever he wanted, however those were the words of temptation ying with his mind and nothing more.
Sam knew as much because of his job. He is a major in the field of nanotechnology and his main role was to operate machines used to examine the Valkyries and perform the necessary repairs in case they got damaged.
The examinations are performed on a daily basis and the results are sent to the Human Resistance''s headquarters each time along with the data from the machines. Everything from the smallest scratch to what substance they came into contact with is recorded and if anything out of the ordinary is detected an investigation would beunched.
Before he took the job Sam was warned to never do as much as touch the Valkyries. He heard rumors about someone with the same job taking advantage of his position to enjoy himself. Though he only touched the weapons a few times thinking the evidence could be easily erased the fact that he did appeared in the examination results which led him to the military court. It''s said that the man hadmitted suicide while in prison while some say that Odin had used his inflicted to get him killed for daring to defile his creations.
There were many variations to this story and though it''s validity is questionable Sam was smart enough to not test his luck. That said, he wished the day he''d get relieved from his position woulde sooner. He was afraid the day he could no longer hold himself back would be the first to arrive.
After all he couldn''t see humanity defeating the Cmities any time soon.
Chapter 3 Love Triangle.
"Good morning."
Looking up from his tray, Sam was met with the beaming smile of a certain female coworker. He hadn''t noticed when she took her ce on the opposit side of the table, alerting him to the fact that he might be doing worse than he thought.
"Good morning, sergeant Kurokami." He said returning the greeting.
"You don''t seem to be doing well, doctor. Didn''t you get enough sleepst night?"
"... yes¡ you could say that."
Zero Five''s question ended up bothering him more that he thought despite having concluded that all of it was nothing but a misunderstanding.
As Zero Five had mentioned, the way those "girls" speak, behave and interact is no different from a normal human. If it weren''t for their outstanding looks they''d easily pass as normal humans, and even with that one might not notice the difference unless being informed beforehand.
Someone who knows nothing about them would probably think they''re just a bunch of cute girls. Sam thought as he bit into his toast. Especially Zero Three. She could easily pass as a normal high school student.
"Did something happen?" The woman sitting opposite to him asked.
"No, nothing in particr." Sam replied.
Obviously he had to be careful of who might learn of what happened.
The existence of Valkyries'' was met with fear and criticism ever since they''d been revealed to the public. Humanity had suffered a lot because of the cmities and no one wanted another apocalypse any time soon so all eyes were on the walking supeputers waiting for the moment they''d show any sign of rebellion.
That said, the human shapedputers still managed to gather a significant amount of support and most of them had their own fan clubs. The Resistance did well in marketing them as idols and their otherworldly appearance made it a big sess.
"Lack of sleep could affect your performance. We''re still at a military base and any mistake could be fatal." Said Kurokami. "You don''t have work in the morning, right? You should take this opportunity to get some rest."
"It''s nothing to worry about, I''ll be fine."
"If you say so. But please make sure to not push yourself too much."
Most of the time the three Valkyries are on standby in case the Cmities make an appearance. Once the clock hits eleven they''d put on their equipment and go out to perform other duties, patrolling the surroundings of the military base and practicing their maneuvers.
His job wouldn''t start until they return in the afternoon, which meant most of the time his mornings were free.
Normally one would one would use such opportunity to rest and rx before any emergency renders it impossible to do so. However Sam had his reasons for waking up early.
"Things have been quiet recently." She said. "Wish these days would continue."
"Indeed. Though the longer it does the more tense I get." Sam replied before sipping his coffee substitute.
"The calm before the storm, huh? Let''s hope nothing bad happens."
Kurokami Shizuru. A young woman of Asian descent a year younger than Sam. She styled her dark hair into a bob cut and wore big sses with a red frame. She was a bit on the short side, thin with curves in all the right ces. Compared to the Valkyries she might look below average, however if put against the other female soldiers her cuteness would shine.
Shizuru was a kind and caring person. The two of them became acquainted after transferring to this military base around the same time and ever since they''d been eating their meals together.
"Well, all we can do is enjoy the peace while we still can." Sam replied.
"Ah! Come to think of it, I''ve finished that book you lent me." Shizuru seemed to get excited all of a sudden. "To think the culprit was the mayor''s daughter all along."
"I see. Then I can assume it was to your liking?"
"Of course it was! The mystery was well developed and the writing was perfect. The characters were all likable too. The author must''ve been quite skilled."
"Indeed." Sam nodded remembering the book''s contents. "It''s a shame that they''d been lost to the war."
"Are there any other works by them? If possible I''d like to borrow more¡" Shizuru asked, her eyes showing a hint of sadness.
"I''ll check the libraryter. I was nning to get a few books for myself as well."
Due to the nature of his job Sam didn''t have many friends. Most envied the fact that he could get so close to the Valkyries, which were treated like the local goddesses of the base. He was shunned by most people with only Shizuru not caring about it all.
The only reason Sam bothered to leave his bed so early in the morning was so he could spend as much time with this woman as possible. Their posts and schedules werepletely different so the only time they get to meet is during mealtimes.
He does have romantic interests, obviously, but he wasn''t doing it for that. Shizuru was the only friend she had on this base, other than a certain troublesome someone. He wanted to keep that connection no matter what, but that''s also why he couldn''t make any moves on her.
"Talking about books again?"
Still, Sam knew that he couldn''t keep going like that. He wasn''t the only one who had feelings for the Asian girl and hispetition didn''t seem to have any of his problems.
Turning in the direction of the voice the two were met with an energetic greeting.
"Good morning you two!"
"Good morning, sergeant Clementine." Sam replied, holding back the urge to sigh.
Jordan Clementibr, a young man around Sam''s age as well, with brilliant orange hair that matched his outgoing personality.
Unlike the weak scientist who''s mostly skin on bones, Jordan was a part of the infantry and had the athletic body to go with it. His face was decent as well which led Sam to look like a malnourished orc if they''re put side by side.
"C''mon, I already told you to drop the formalities." Jordan said as he took a seat beside Shizuru. "We aren''t strangers anymore. Right, Shizuru?"
"Eh!? Well¡"
Anyone with two working eyes could see that Jordan was after Shizuru,
however the woman didn''t seem to like his approach that much.
"Anyways, sounds like you''ve found another interesting title. What''s it about?"
"A mystery where a bunch of men die." Said Sam in a dry monotone voice.
"Hahaha, that''s one funny way to summarize it." Jordan forced a weakugh, clearly catching on to Sam''s annoyance.
"It''s a mystery after all. You can''t talk about it without spoiling the whole thing."
"Then maybe I should read it as well."
The tension between the men was visible. For a while now Jordan had started joining them as they eat trying to get closer to Shizuru. Obviously Sam didn''t appreciate the third wheel but in the end he couldn''t just chase him away.
Unlike Sam, Jordan wasn''t afraid to flirt and didn''t spare much in his effort to get the girl even though his actions have yet to show any sess.
"So, Doctor." Jordan began and Sam grimaced. "Any new stories about the Valkyries?"
"Nothing, as usual." Said Sam. "As I''ve said before, just because I monitor their condition doesn''t mean I know more about them than anyone else."
"C''mon! You meet them every day, right? You should''ve learned one or two things by now."
This was one of Jordan''s strategies. Every now and then he would bring up the Valkyries, trying to lower Shizuru''s opinion of Sam by mentioning how he''s always with the more attractive idols.
"Or maybe¡" leaning in, Jordan said with a somewhat sinister smile. "Were you too busy feasting your eyes that you don''t remember anything else?"
"You know, everything loses its luster once you see it enough times." Said Sam, his eyes lowered into a cold re. "Nowadays it''s just tiring to deal with them."
"Ooh! That does make sense." Jordan said, ncing at Shizuru by his side. "Me on the other hand, I can never get tired of looking at a girl I like. You''d have a difficult time keeping a rtionship going with that attitude, Doctor."
"Humans and dolls are different things." Sam said, standing up and lifting his tray. "Well then, I need to get going."
"Ah! Look at the time!" Shizuru said looking at therge digital clock near the canteen''s entrance. "I need to get to my post!"
Before Jordan could say anything the girl picked her tray and ran away.
"Tche¡" the orange hair clicked his tongue as he watched her go. Once she was out of sight he turned to Sam, his attitude taking a 180¡ã turn.
"You just have to be around all the time." Said Jordan with a re. "How about you stop getting in my way?"
"I don''t know what you''re talking about." Sam shrugged the hostility like he did with everyone else. "Anyways. She sure doesn''t like being around you, huh?"
This wasn''t the first time Shizuru would take off the moment it seemed like she''d be alone with Jordan. It could be that the girl was quite perceptive, seeing through his act and choosing to keep her distance. That gave Sam some hope. At the very least she was fine with sitting alone with him, and that was a plus.
Unable to forge a reply, Jordan continued to re as Sam left feeling victory for the first time in a long while.
Chapter 4 You Call That A Disguise
After leaving Jordan seething with anger Sam felt somewhat refreshed as he headed for the library.
The base he was stationed in had many recreational facilities where soldiers could go to unwind, after all the stress of not knowing when the monsters would attack built quite fast.
One such facility was the library. In this day and age everyone preferred the much more convenient ebooks, however Sam took a liking to the good old paper and ink. After the Cmities ran rampant through the world a lot of libraries were destroyed and books were lost. The ones on the military bases are what''s still left intact, found by the soldiers who would bring back a few when they go out scavenging in the abandoned cities.
Sam entered the building and a smile immediately formed on his face. As usual, the entire ce was empty. Very few came here which made it the best ce to rx and read. For someone who had very few friends this was a sanctuary where one can hide from the unpleasantness of the Human Resistance''s military bases.
This is heaven! He thought as he took a deep breat enjoying the scent of peace.
The first thing in order was to find another book for Shizuru. He went to theputers ced near the entrance and searched the author''s name. A list appeared showing all the books that had been recovered.
"Alright then¡"
Picking a title at random he was about to go to its ce on the shelves to retrieve it, but as he got up he noticed someone entering the building, a Male soldier he didn''t recognize, though from the way he carried himself he didn''t seem to be that much into books.
Letting out a sigh Sam decided to ignore the stranger and went on with what he came for. First he got the book he had picked earlier, then he would go around checking random titles to see if anything sounds interesting, but the next moment he stopped in his tracks.
"Valkyrie¡ smash¡?"
Right beside the book he had just picked was a rather thin and small paperback with a strange title. He reached for it out of curiosity, checking the cover to see what it''s about.
To his surprise it was something printed rather recently which was strange in this world were scarce resources didn''t allow for such luxuries.
Sam quickly flipped through the pages and just as expected it was one of those eroticas where the main character gets his hands on the humanoid weapons and does what he wants to them.
It was obvious that such things would be made at some point. The Valkyries were treated as idols by a lot of people, and they were all extremely gorgeous women. He was sure fanfiction sites are flooded with this type of stories.
"Damn, this guy''s writing sucks."
Just from the few first pages alone Sam began to notice typos and spelling mistakes. The whole thing looked like something made by someone who''d learned a little bit of English and went directly to writing novels. From theck of editing Sam began to wonder if this was just one of those fanfics in print format. What he didn''t understand was why they''d do something like this for such a worthless work?
"This is disgusting¡" he said with a smile.
"What is?" Someone asked.
Startled by the voice Sam jumped away, almost losing his bnce and falling.
"Huh? N-Nine!? What are you doing here?" He said feeling blood draining from his face.
Standing in front of him was someone he had never expected to meet outside hisb; the blond haired Valkyrie Nine.
"Well¡" she started, shifting her gaze awkwardly. "I had some free time so¡"
"Aren''t you supposed to be on standby in case of an attack?" Sam asked.
"I got bored so I decided to take a walk."
Once again Sam found himself faced with another strange urrence. While they didn''t have feelings, being androids and all, the Valkyries had preprogrammed personalities that dectated how they''d behave. The patterns of their actions were predictable once one got enough time to observe them, and that''s what made it so strange when they diverge from what they usually do.
Going to the library wasn''t something Nine would do. Whenever she has free time she''d take care of a small garden beside the Valkyries'' residence or hide in her room, drinking tea and eating snacks. He''d never heard of her passing time in any other way.
So far she had never had an interest in books. Hering all the way here was a problem in more than one way.
"You know you can''t be moving around like this." Sam said while checking his surroundings. "What''ll you do if someone sees you?"
While they had ess to almost all parts of the base, the Valkyries were told to limit themselves to their own residence which was restricted to normal staff and soldiers. Celebrities walking around like they''re normal people would cause a lot of chaos that''d hinder the proper way the base worked.
"Don''t worry." Nine said, proudly puffing her enormous chest with her hands on her hips. "As you can see, I''ve made sure to disguise myself."
Sam stared at her for a few seconds trying to figure out what part of what she did could be considering as a disguise.
She wore one of the female military uniforms, most likely stolen as shown by how tight the chest area looked. Her long golden hair was made into one big braid and the final touch was the pair of sses on her face.
"Nine, you realize this won''t be fooling anyone, don''t you?"
He couldn''t believe someone could be so stupid, especially a superputer with a highly advanced AI capable of mimicking human behavior almost perfectly.
"Eh!? It won''t!?" The Valkyrie backed away looking utterly shocked.
"What did you expect?" Putting a hand on his forehead, Sam leaned against the bookcase. "Even if you change your clothes and hairstyles, people would still recognize you from a mile away from your silhouette alone."
After all such erotic body can''t be mistaken. Sam thought, his eyes on the gigantic breasts fighting to free themselves from the tight uniform.
"I¡ I see¡" Nine said with a nervous smile, her eyes sliding from one corner to the other. "G-d I made sure so stay out of sight, then¡"
"Really?"
With Sam''s suspicion filled eyes on her, the Valkyrie nodded repeatedly trying to convince him she was saying the truth.
"I stayed out of sight just in case the disguise doesn''t work. I''m positive no one saw me on the way here."
"If that''s the case then¡ it''s fine, I guess. Just make sure you don''t get caught."
After thinking about it for a moment Sam realized that there is nothing wrong with hering here as long as no one found out. Still it felt somewhat uneptable for a weapon such as her to be moving around unsupervised.
Still, I got to see something nice¡
The uniform Nine wore was a little small for her. It truly clung to her body emphasizing her curves, especially her huge melons and thick thighs which were covered in stockings.
If it weren''t for the restrictions that would lead to his death Sam would''ve taken her to some corner around here and did all sort of things to her. Just imagining it caused his wood to rise.
"Yay!"
Nine hopped in her ce with a joy filled expression. The movements of her bouncing chest were hypnotizing but thankfully they stopped as she noticed she''d been making too much noise.
"By the way, Doctor." Taking a step toward him, Nine leaned down peeking at the books in his hand. "What were you reading?"
Backing away, Sam hid the books behind his back. The first one was fine, but he couldn''t just tell her about the one where her kind get used as sex dolls even if she is incapable of understanding those things.
"They''re some mystery books I''ve been enjoying recently." He said. "What about you? If you came all the way here then you must have something you want to read, right?"
Though it''d be strange for her to suddenly start reading books, it''s not as if she''s incapable of doing so. Though since it''d be a problem if the data collected through reading affected their programming, the things Valkyries are allowed to collect data from were limited with anything that doesn''t meet certain criteria being censored or blocked. That meant even if she does pick a book and read it, depending on the contents she might not be able to decipher it at all, failing to understand it no matter how many times she tries.
Same goes for other media, be it sound or image. One way people could differentiate between humans and Valkyries is by asking certain questions which Valkyries wouldn''t be able to answer even if they''re told the answer beforehand.
"Well, I usuallye here because not many people are around." Said Nine with a beaming smile. She then put a hand in front of her face and whispered. "Howevertely I''ve found something interesting to watch."
Raising an eyebrow, Sam wondered what could it be that managed to catch the Valkyrie''s interest so much that she''d starteding here.
"Come, Doctor." Turning around, the blond Valkyrie waved for him to follow her. "I will show you."
Chapter 5 Well Yes, But Actually No.
Sam could only wonder where the beautiful Valkyrie was leading him. His heart pounded like crazy, his head ying fantasies he always dismissed as unrealistic.
Nine seemed to slow down after a while masking any sound her movements might create. He instinctively did the same and it looked like they were sneaking around. He soon understood the reason as the blond Valkyrie stopped behind one of the bookcases before carefully peeking her head.
A momentter she silently motioned for Sam to take a look himself. Careful not to touch the human like weapon he peeked around the corner and what he saw stunned him almost stopping his heart.
It was the male soldier who had entered after him earlier, however he wasn''t alone. A female soldier was there with him. She was on her knees, her head bobbing back and forth in front of the man''s bare crotch, something long sliding in and out of her mouth.
Suppressing the urge to jump away Sam slowly retreated. Turning to face Nine he noticed that she still had the innocent clueless look as if she didn''t realize what''s happening.
"We need to leave!" He whispered as quietly as possible.
"Eh!? But it''s just getting started!"
Ignoring the Valkyrie''s protest he slowly moved away from the area where the two soldiers were having their fun, he then asked Nine to show him the way she used to get to the library.
The two left the building through a backdoor hidden out of sight behind multiple bookcases. As the Valkyrie had said before, the rout she used really was out of sight. It was like a blind spot in the base out of the security camera''s range.
With something like this going unnoticed Sam began to feel that the base wasn''t as secure as they thought. If a stealth type Cmity sneaked its way through that part it could ughter everyst human stationed here and they wouldn''t be able to do anything against it.
d we''re in the more peaceful parts of the frontline. Sam thought as they entered the maintenance area where hisb was located. They were able to make it there without anyone seeing them and once he sat on his chair Sam let out a very long full of exhaustion sigh.
"Nine, what were you thinking¡?"
He wasn''t really looking for an answer. The Valkyrie led him to the site of a couple''s private time and showed him the scene as if it was just something interesting to watch.
Obviously Nine had no idea of what was happening back there nor did she know why Sam was suddenly much more stressed and exhausted than he was a few minutes ago.
"Umm¡ Is something wrong, Doctor?" She asked, her voice full of concern.
"Yes, something is wrong." Sam said, raising his head to gaze up at her. "What were you thinking? That wasn''t something for other people to see!"
"Eh? Well¡ does that apply to me as well?" She asked after a moment of thought, tilting her head a little. "I''m not a person, after all."
Sam was bbergasted by how correct and wrong her answer was at the same time, so much that he face palmed himself so hard that he caused his sses to bend.
"D-doctor! Are you okay!?" Nine took a step forward, her hands moving Round aimlessly as she tried to decide on something to do. Sam held a had up to stop her then put his damaged sses aside while massaging the bridge of his nose. A drop of blood trickled down showing that he went too far. He wiped it with some tissue before going on to resume the questioning.
"Just to be clear¡" preparing himself for the worst, Sam asked the question. "How far did you see?"
He was sure the words she used were tely I''ve found something interesting to watch'' and ''it''s just getting started'' which meant today wasn''t the first time she''d seen those two and as expected It was it was just bad.
"Well I usually watch till the end." Nine said, looking up as she tried to recall. "Most of the time they''d change positions and keep going for an hour so."
"... how many times did you see it?" At this point, Sam felt that the less he cared the better.
"Nine times. Not counting today and the first time I found them, since I wasn''t there from the start to finish."
Sam felt like everything he had ever believed in had just shattered into a million pieces. Nine, the gorgeous Valkyrie with the kind older sister character has turned into a pervert who enjoys watching other people doing the deed.
No, it would be more urate to say she was a pervert from the get go since it''s already programmed into her personality, though she doesn''t seem to get off on it and only sees it as something curious.
In the first ce, do Valkyries even experience those kinds of urges?
Odin was a strange man so it wasn''t easy to guess what he''d programmed into the AIs. As far as their shell goes, it seems to be a much simpler rendition of the human body. The Valkyries didn''t need to eat or drink, however they had parts that helped them process food and were programmed to eat meals regrly just like any other human being.
There was no doubt that Odin had made them with the right parts down there too, however there was no way of telling if they work the same way as the human counterpart and from the way Nine reacted to that scene he doubted that her underwear was any less cleaner than it was when she wore it for the first time.
"Listen very well, Nine." He began, letting out another sigh while collecting his thoughts. "It doesn''t matter if you''re human or a Valkyrie, what we saw there is something that people wouldn''t want to be seen. Not even through the lense of a camera. You can''t watch it as it happen or record it without permission. Understood?"
"Well¡"
"Some things are supposed to stay private because people don''t want others to see them, no matter who or how. Make sure to avoid such situations from now on."
"Um¡"
When she didn''t respond immediately he nced up at her once more. Probed by his gaze, Nine let her own thoughts out, shocking him with another obvious answer.
"They were in a public area so¡" she said, awkwardly scratching her cheek while looking away.
Sam facepalmed himself once more. She wasn''t exactly wrong, but she wasn''t right either. Those two were indeed in a public area, however they at least had the decency to hide somewhere away from the eyes of others.
People being careless doesn''t give others the right to peep on them while they''re getting it on.
"Just¡" feeling like he''d copse at any moment, Sam leaned on his desk trying to get his point through. "Make sure to leave the moment you find yourself in such situations¡ and without getting noticed."
"... Understood¡"
Though that was her answer the conflicted look on Nine''s beautiful face told him she''s far fromprehending the reason behind his instructions.
At the very least he was sure she wouldn''t do any more peeping. She didn''t need to understand why, everything would be fine as long as she doesn''t actively look for those things.
Checking his watch Sam opened the drawer of his desk and took a small case containing a spare pair of sses. He put them on and turned around, about to dismiss the Valkyrie who''s supposed to be preparing to go out on patrol. Before he could though his entire body froze seeing her face up close.
"Hey, Doctor." Nine whispered with a small smile, holding a hand up to hide her mouth. "If I''m not allowed to watch, how about the two of us do it instead?"
She looked at him with upturned eyes, a faint pink color on her cheeks. Her giant melons were about to touch him, but before that could happen the Valkyrie moved away. It was too early to feel relieved though as the next moment she slowly went down to her knees leaving Sam too shocked to react in any way.
"If my guess is correct, you need a male and a female for this, right?" She said. "I might not be a human, but I was made to resemble human females as much as possible."
Sam watched as her hand began to move, his mind failing to keep up with everything that''s happening to him right now.
"Good thing no one is around." She added with a giggle. "We won''t have to worry about anyone watching us~"
Time seemed to slow down. Sam begged his body to move, however no matter how much he tried it was just futile. The desk behind him prevented his retreat and seeing the blond Valkyrie on her knees in front of him caused his excitement to rage leading his little guy to build a tent as he stood. And then it happened.
"Ah! What''s this?" The Valkyrie said, her hand on Sam''s erection, slowly caressing it with curiosity filled eyes. "It''s¡ stiff¡ is this wha-"
Before she could say any more Sam managed to regain a hold on his senses and quickly moved away. He stumbled on his feet and fell to the floor. Not knowing if he was in the safe he quickly crawled all the way to the other side of the room.
His heart was beating so fast he feared it would jump out of his chest, though that onlysted for a few seconds. Panic hit in the next as he realized it wasn''t just a wet dream. This was reality and he had just made physical contact with a Valkyrie.
Raising a trembling finger he pointed at the surprised Nine, still on her knees in the same spot.
"W-what are you doing!!!?"
Chapter 6 The Forbidden Fruit.
Nine blinked repeatedly as she watched Sam point at her with a terrified expression. The usually calm and indifferent Doctor had lost hisposurepletely, his face so pale he might''ve seen death itself.
"D-Doctor?"
His reaction to her approach was so extreme that she failed to think of anything to say.
"W-w-what were you thinking!?" Sam asked, still on the floor. "Y-y-you aren''t supposed to do such things! No, you aren''t supposed to touch anyone to begin with! You know that''ll show in the results of your examination!!"
"Well¡"
"Aaaaah!! They''ll definitely me it on me!" Cradling his head, Sam began pulling on his hair thinking that his life was done. "I didn''t do anything! I always made sure to be careful¡ and yet¡"
"Um¡ I''m sorry, Doctor, I didn''t really¡"
Even though she tried to apologize, Nine''s words went over Sam''s head as he imagined the worst possible scenarioing to life, but that didn''tst for long. In his desperation he came to the realization that he might be in the clear after all.
He wasn''t the one who touched the Valkyrie; she was the one who touched him. Not only that but she also didn''t make direct contact with him. Her hand brushed the surface of his pants, and they were clean ones he''d worn that morning, meaning they barely had a drop of his sweat on them.
Even if the examination could notice that the Valkyrie had came into contact with an unknown material or substance, surely they wouldn''t bother to look into it, especially since she was the one to make contact with it using her palm and only for a couple of seconds.
It''s not my fault¡ it''s not my fucking fault!
He never saw iting. It was the first time a Valkyrie hade close enough to touch him. Even earlier in the library there was still a distance between them and not even their clothes touched.
The Valkyries are humanoid weapons with limbs capable of generating hundreds of tons of power. A single push from them could turn a human into pancakes so to avoid that they''d been programmed to always keep their distance from humans, restricted entirely from touching them in any way. Humans could touch the Valkyries however the Valkyries are incapable of doing the same, at least not intentionally. For that reason Nine cing her hand on his crutch wasn''t something that''s supposed to happen.
Something is wrong with them¡ those damned robots¡
Anger was overtaking Sam. Not only was he forced to endure the torture of watching them up close without getting to enjoy them, they were now actively causing problems for him. Sam was nearing his limit by the second. He wanted to retire as soon as possible.
Seeing how furious the doctor was the blond Valkyrie understood that what she had done was wrong. Bowing her head a little she tried her best to convey her sincerity as she apologized once more.
"I''m sorry, Doctor. I acted without giving much thought to what I was doing. I will make sure it will never happen again."
"And make sure no one hears about it as well!" Sam said, his anger having yet to die down.
"Understood¡"
A second passed, then another. The two were still on the floor, neither bothering to lift themselves. As the silence went on the blond Valkyrie decided to speak first. She had to know the reason behind the Doctor''s extreme reaction, otherwise she risked repeating such careless mistakes caused by her own ignorance.
"Doctor. If you don''t mind I hope you''d exin to me what I did that is wrong."
"What are you talking about?" Sam stopped for a moment, debating on whether to tell her it''s attempting to engage in sexual acts with him or the fact that she could''ve crushed his genitals. "It''s in your programming that you aren''t supposed to touch humans, there is nothing to exin about that!" Sam retorted.
Now that he thought about it again his private parts were in some serious danger with the Valkyrie''s hand on them even if it was for just a second.
"I''m not supposed to touch humans?" Tilting her head, Nine sounded a little confused as she asked. "Was there such a restriction?"
"Of course there is! You''re a walking war machine! You can literally squash a human with little effort!"
''Was there such a restriction?'' Sam recited Nine''s words again in his head. I mean, it''s not something they''re supposed to be actively aware of, but they can''t just bypass it even if they knew it''s there.
"I¡ understand your worries, Doctor. However as I''m sure you''re already aware that, if I was restricted from making physical contact with humans, I would never be able to do so no matter how hard I try."
The blond Valkyrie went and confirmed what he had in mind. Still he found it weird and outright unsettling that shecked that restriction. It meant that this entire time she was capable of touching him and the other humans on the base and they didn''t even know about it.
"Doctor, you still have yet to answer my first question." Nine said, her eyes showing a seriousness he never knew she was capable of. "I''m not restricted from touching humans. I understand why I might be prohibited from spying on others when they want to keep their affairs private, however that doesn''t exin your extreme reaction when I suggested that we engage in the same activity."
"I already told you." Slowly getting up to his feet, Sam let out an exasperating sigh. "You''re a powerful war machine. A frail human like me would break easily if you make any mistakes."
"Then all I need to do is to limit my power output, right?" Nine argued refusing to back down. "That at least is part of my programming. I''m incapable of physical harming humans in any way so there is nothing to be afraid of."
"I¡ I see¡"
Though it sounded usible, Sam had no way of confirming whether what she said was true or not so obviously he didn''t want to risk it. And that''s without mentioning the trouble he''d be in if the higher ups at the Resistance HQ find out about him touching a Valkyrie.
"I guess you wouldn''t understand unless I exin in detail, huh¡"
Sam wanted to go home. He wanted to go back to his room and throw himself on his bed, hoping everything would be back to the boring ordinary he was so used to. However this was his reality now.
Nine listened as he exined everything to her from the start. He told her about what the two soldiers were doing in the library, exined why he couldn''t do those things with her and why he''d be in very big trouble if anyone finds out that the two of them attempted to engage in those act.
The Valkyrie wouldn''t recieve any kind of punishment and all the me would fall on him. With that said Nine finally seemed to understand what was wrong with her earlier behavior.
"I''m sorry, Doctor." Bowing her head slightly, the Valkyrie apologized once again. "I''m truly sorry. My uniformed actions have caused you too much trouble. I''ll do my best so something like this will never happen again."
"And again, make sure to not let anyone hear about it." Sam repeated himself with a sigh. "I don''t even know if it''s safe to teach you those things."
With everything cleared Nine seemed to regain her bubbly kind aura as the smile returned to her lips. With furrowed brows she expressed how disappointed she was at how things are, sharing some of Sam''s feelings. Or so was what the AI decided to show, simting how a the Valkyrie would act if she was a real human.
"Too bad we are unable to do it." She said, referring to sexual activities without directly saying it. "I guess that shows the boundaries between us and humans."
"Indeed¡"
No one was as disappointed as Sam and he didn''t like to recieve sympathy for this particr topic, especially if it''s from the Valkyries themselves. He didn''t like the circumstances his job put him in, however the world won''t end just because he''s unable to do it with a bunch of robots. All he could do is endure.
"I really wanted to try doing those things." Said Nine as she stoor up. "It''s a shame but¡ nothing we can do about it."
Seeing that the time for the Valkyries'' scheduled patrols was approaching, Nine excused herself leaving Sam on his own still unable to fully process what had urred.
Feeling his head pulsating with a light pain he realized that the stress had made his exhaustion worse. Having a few more hours of free time before his job starts Sam decided to take a nap.
He had wished for the torture of his everyday life to go away but what he got in its ce was far worse. Recalling the way the blond Valkyrie kneeled in front of him he cursed the fate that hadnded him this job. The opportunity had presented itself to him but he could never take it. The forbidden fruit was dangled right in front of him but fortunately, or unfortunately depending on how one looked at it, Sam wasn''t so weak that he would easily fall for the temptation.
Chapter 7 Out On Patrol.
"You''rete, Nine! And what are you wearing!?"
Entering the changing room, Nine found her two fellow Valkyries waiting for her already in their battle suits. She''d had arrived right on time, however that didn''t stop Zero Three from voicing herints as she''s used to doing.
"Sorry about that, Three. The doctor had a few things he wanted to discuss that''s why¡"
"The old man?" The young looking Valkyrie frowned at the mention of their Doctor. "What does he want from us now? Couldn''t it wait till after the examination?"
"Well, we just happened to meet at the library, that''s all."
As she spoke, Nine removed the tight uniform she had on freeing her bosom and revealing the leotard like spandex she wore underneath.
She then turned to her locker, proceeding to attach her exoskeleton that was inside one part at a time on the shoulders, back, arms, hips then legs and feet. Once she was done she noticed that she''d yet to undo her braid, however seeing how convenient it was while changing she decided to keep it that way realizing it''d help her while on the move.
"Doctor¡ huh¡"
Zero Five''s quiet mutter didn''t go unnoticed by the other two. She usually only spoke when necessary so it took them by surprise when they heard her voice.
"He''s a curious person, isn''t he?" Zero Five asked emting the way a young girl would act when being bashful.
"Yes." Nine said with a beaming smile. "He''s one interesting human."
"Interesting? That old man?" Walking to the exit, Zero three came to a sudden stop turning to the other two with a disgust filled expression. "I''ve seen corpses livelier than him!"
"He is an adult after all." Said Nine as she walked past the her and into the next room. "Though apparently he''s supposed to be around my age. Well, the age I''m made to be, not my actual age."
"Doctor is twenty six." Said Zero Five following behind the other two. "He might not look like it but he''s still in his youth."
The floor below them began to move like a treadmill and the walls around them opened up with mechanical arms moving out. A few things were attached to the exoskeleton on each of the girls; small propellers on the feet and hips, chest pieces of different sizes for each of the three, wing like shoulder pads that pointed backwards, arm and leg guards¡ etc.
"He''s only twenty six!" Zero Three eximed. "I thought he was at least a hundred!"
"Humans usually don''t live that long, Zero Three." Said Zero Five. "Especially nowadays with the war and whatnot."
,m "He''s still so young yet he acts like a geezer. No wonder he always looks so miserable."
Holding her hand out, Zero Three caught the handle of arge box like case one of the mechanical arms moved in front of her.
"I think the Doctor is under a lot of pressure." Nine said as she took her own case which was a bitrger. "No matter how much we resemble humans in the end we''re still weapons. It''s only natural that he''d get stressed from being so close to us."
"Hah! I think the word you''re looking for is coward." Said Zero three.
"No, I don''t think that''s the case." Said Zero Five as she checked the long thin case in her hands before strapping it to her back just like the other two. "Unlike the other humans, Doctor doesn''t give us any special treatment. The way he behaves around us is no different from how he behaves around people."
"And how would you know?"
A blinding light poured into the room as the shutters at the front began lifting.
Walking outside the three found themselves on the usual runway. It was empty with no one outside, only a few drones moved about here and there taking care of their usual tasks. The sun was approaching the zenith and the heat apanied by the clicking sound of cicadas reminded everyone that it was the middle of summer.
"Come to think of it." Nine began, turning to nce at the shortest among them. "Doctor warned you not to use the outdoor pool often, right?"
"Yeah I don''t really get what''s the problem." Zero Three replied, standing apart from the others they stretched their limbs preparing for the takeoff.
"Isn''t it obvious?" Said Zero Five. "It might not be on the same level as humans, but the sun damages our skin nheless. It''s better to conserve resources by reducing what needs repairing as much as possible."
"Who cares? It''s barely noticeable so there is no point."
"Not ording to the headquarters."
With her argument instantly shut down, Zero Three turned on her propellers and took off into the sky. Seeing the way she acted caused Zero Five to sigh. Nine on the other hand only smiled as she started her propellers as well.
"What?" Noticing the blond one''s gaze on her, Zero Five asked with clear annoyance. Her long ponytail swayed as she began to float as well. A couple of secondster the two were flying through the sky at an easy pace.
"You seem a little talkative today, Zero Five." Nine said with her usual smile. "Usually you barely participate in small talk like today."
"Really?"
"Yes. At most you''d make a shortment, but that''s it."
A minute of silence passed as the two glided through the air. The world around them seemed to gradually change and at some point everything seemed to turn red. The grass covered ins, the rhins of an abandoned cities, the snow covered mountain peak. It was as if everything was being disyed with a red filter over it.
This was the Red District. The blood taintednds ravaged by the Cmities and the territory currently under their control.
Once they were in it seemed like Zero Three had slowed down so she would stay in their line of sight, because of that they didn''t feel the hurry to catch up with her.
"Actually, yesterday I asked Doctor if he sees me as a human."
When the conversation resumed what Zero Five said was so shocking that Nine lost her bnce for a moment.
[WHAT!!!?]
Going by the shout that came from theirmunication devices it seems that Zero Three was still keeping an ear on the conversation.
"And? What was his answer?" Nine asked getting dangerously close to Zero Five when they were still in the air.
"He said to never mention it again." The ck haired Valkyrie replied, the sigh that escaped her telling of her disappointment. "Apparently humans are scared of that question."
[They hate being grouped with us, that''s all.] Zero Three''s voice rang in their ears. [We''re just tools they made so they wouldn''t have to do the fighting.]
"I think they''re afraid of us hurting them." Nine said, turning to the right as she caught something in the corner of her eye.
"I don''t know about that." Zero Five''s cheeks began to redden as she remembered when he stated his reason. "He said I was too beautiful to be human."
Before they could react to thatst sentence the three Valkyries all turned in the same direction with hardened expressions.
[D ss cmity detected.] Said Zero Three. Being the closest to it she was the first to get a scan on the unidentified flying object.
It was arge cone like shape rotating around itself slowly as it flew at a steady pace. The Cmities had no set shape or form so there was no way to know how they fight. It''s one of the reasons humans were unable to do much against them at the beginning. All they could do was to take it down as fast as possible or observe it until they learn of a way to destroy it. The first option was always preferred.
"Keep your distance, Three. Don''t engage." Said Nine, taking the case off her back.
Pressing a switch on the handle she carried it with the case split into multiple blocks that shuffled repeatedly until they formed a new shape. In her hands Nine was now holding arge rifle with a long barrel that was almost as tall as her.
Still in the air the blond Valkyrie took her stance and prepared to shoot her shot. Her eyes quickly adjusted locking onto the target without the use of a scope. A moment passed as she waited for the bullet to charge and once it was ready she pulled the trigger. A ray of light shot out from the barrel heading straight toward the unidentified object exploding upon contact.
The Valkyries kept their eyes on the smoke cloud that had formed waiting to get a visual on the target. A few secondster the smoke dispersed showing the Cmity as it changed shape having surviving Nine''s attack without a scratch.
Chapter 8 Calamities.
Red lines spread across the cone shaped Cmity, a faint light glowing through them. It gradually grew in intensity until they all connected and once that happened the thing crumbled into diamond shaped pieces.
Though it might have appeared as if the monster had been destroyed, the Valkyries knew all too well that it isn''t the case. The pieces weren''t falling toward the ground. They all floated around a small orb the size of a football, moving one by one until they were aligned into their new position.
[I can see the core!] Zero Three said, prompting Nine to refocus her eyes and prepare her sniper rifle.
The pieces had formed two rings around the orb, the outer one spinning clockwise and the other in the opposite direction. It looked like an abstract take on the sun, another nonsensical form taken by one of humanity''s greatest enemies.
? [Back away, Three!]
Following Nine''s warning three light bullets shed through the sky before hitting the target causing another explosion. Zero Three used the opening to make some distance and equip her own weapon, a pair of des with shining green edges.
The long range shots did little damage to the monster. It moved the diamond shaped pieces just in time to intercept the bullets, blocking some and deflecting the others. When the shooting stopped the Cmity turned to face the source, but as it had its sights on the blond Valkyrie another one was already above it swinging down arge halberd with the orb at the center as her target.
Sadly the attack failed to reach its mark as more of the diamond shaped pieces moved in to block it. Zero Three rushed in swinging both of her des but she got blocked as well, however for that one moment most of the pieces were upied which gave Nine the opening she needed to snipe the core from afar.
The Cmity had more than enough pieces to block all the bullets, however it failed to notice the forth one which was hidden behind the third allowing it to slip past the diamond shaped pieces and pierce through the orb at its center.
Suddenly the force moving the pieces disappeared and the Cmity came crumbling toward the red ins bellow.
"D ss aren''t much of a challenge, huh." Zero Three muttered while watching the dead monster fall. "They can''t even hide their cores properly."
Just then she noticed something twinkle near the ground. If she was a second toote it she would''ve been takenpletely off guard. Crossing her arms in front of her chest the youngest Valkyrie prepared for the impact, a momentter something collided with her.
Another cone shaped cmity. Its sharp tip was stopped by a green hexagon panel.
Zero three had charged her protective force field to its full capacity, even so the cmity was pushing her back which was not a good sign and so was the appearance of two cmities with the same form.
"This might be an C ss, maybe even a B¡" Said Nine, her anxious expression speaking volumes of the severity of the situation. "You two, keep your guard up!"
Zero Five moved to support Zero Three, however another one of the cone shaped Cmities shot up at her. She barely avoided a direct hit but that left her too busy to provide Three with help.
[Three, twenty degrees to the left please.]
Doing as told, Zero Three found herself facing Nine''s direction. The cone was still pushing against her forcd field so it rotated as well leaving its back wide open to the blond Valkyrie who found no trouble shooting the core even in that form. As expected the base of the cone was the least protected with the core being closer to it than the sharp tip.
The cone froze and gravity did its thing, leaving the young Valkyrie free to go help herrade.
Her mistake was assuming there are no more enemies, because of that she she was toote at noticing thence shooting towar her from her blind spot. Its speed far exceeded that of the other three, even Nine who was observing the situation from afar didn''t see iting.
Thence collided with Zero Three''s force field, however since she was focused on the ofensidlve trying to help Zero Five thence tore through the green panel and managed to pierce her skin.
[THREE!]
"Don''t worry." Gritting her teeth, the young Valkyrie turned to engage the new Cmity. "It''s just a surface wound!"
An enemy capable of piercing through the Valkyries'' defensive force field was really bad news. It split into many diamond shaped pieces then formed the same abstract sun, although muchrger and with three rings instead of two.
Another cone appeared from the red ins below. The one Zero Five was fughting retreated, each of the cones took a spot beside therger Cmity before shifting forms as well.
"This doesn''t look good." Said Zero Three, grimacing.
The rings made by the diamond shaped pieces began spinning faster while the cores shone with a brilliant red light.
The Cmities turned to face the injured Zero Three, the light they emitted growing in intensity. A bullet pierced through one of the cores shutting it down but before the other two could be stopped beams of light shot out bending at impossibly sharp angles as they surrounded the young Valkyrie from all direction.
[THREE!!!]
Chapter 9 Keep Your Advice To Yourself.
Not an hour after Nine left theb, Sam recieved an emergency notification on his phone. He quickly returned to his post and waited. A few minutester two drones entered carrying a coffin like transparent pod with Zero Three inside.
It was the worst condition he had seen a Valkyrie in ever since he started his job. Her skin was burned all over and her long hair was damaged. The exoskeleton she wore was damaged and almost nothing was left of the suit she wore forbat.
But those things weren''t what told of how critical her condition is. The young Valkyrie was unconscious. As a walkingputer her shell being damaged shouldn''t have affected the operation of her central processor. If that part got damaged then she might be as good as dead.
"What happened?" Sam asked, turning to the door where the other two stood.
While they were in a much better condition, just by looking at the state of their equipment and clothes he realize that they had a really tough battle.
"We had a run in with a B ss Cmity." Said Nine, a shadow cast over her face. "We failed to measure its true potential and¡"
The results were clear to the eye. Sam knew about the protective force field the Valkyries used inbat. It was a weightless invisible armor that protected their bodies and could withstand nuclear explosions. The fact that they sustained damage despite having it means that the Cmity this time wasn''t something to scoff about.
"Please be at ease, Doctor." Zero Five came forward intending to reassure him. "We''ve managed to neutralize the threat and made sure no other Cmities were in the area."
"I see¡"
Although he tried not to care, the event gave Sam a really ominous feeling. But now wasn''t the time to be worrying about it. He needed to prepare for Zero Three''s treatment.
"You two can go clean yourselves and change." He said as he waved them away. "We can fix you during the usual examination. For now I need to deal with this."
Sam''sck of concern for their condition caused Nine to frown, though the change in her expression went unnoticed as he had his back to her. Once they left the room he immediately got to work grabbing the tablet that was ced on his desk.
"This doesn''t look good¡"
It was obvious just from looking, but when he checked the results of the rough check up done by the drones he realized things might be worse than he thought.
It was weak but the sensors had detected gamma radiation on her skin. If she hadn''t been put into that pod he''d have been in quite the danger right now.
"Well, her central processor is safe at least." That was good news. It meant that although she was unconscious at the moment she''d be able to function normally as long as her shell is restored to its normal state.
Sliding his fingers on the screen he gave the drones a list of instruction. First they are to move to the next room where the devices used for the examination were kept, once they''re there he wouldn''t have to worry about the radiations killing him. Next they are to remove the damaged exoskeleton andbat suit and sealing them in special boxes. Once that''s done the unconscious Zero Three would be left stark naked, however he didn''t really care about that right now.
While the drones where doing their work Sam went and prepared the examination device for a more thorough reparation process.
The device is called Eir. Simply put it was arge container made out of transparent ss like material. Sam instructed the drones to ce Zero Three inside it. When the mechanical arms let go of her she was left floating in a standing position as if suspended in the air by an invisible force. Once the container was sealed, several holes opened at its base and from them a strange green liquid began to fill the interior.
The liquid was a mixture of manyponents, however the most important of all were the billions of nano machines it contained which allowed for moreplex procedures than what can be done by other means.
Putting the tablet aside Sam pulled his chair and sat down at his desk. In front of him were several monitors linked to theputer controlling Eir.
"Let''s start by cleaning the wounds¡"
Going through the more detailed data gathered by Eir, Sam began typing on the keyboard entering a list ofmands. It was impossible to tell if something was happening just by looking, however the nano machines were already on the move removing all foreign bodies from the Valkyrie''s damaged shell and cleaning the contamination as well.
At the same time a more thorough examination was being done to determine the real extent of the damage. Eir was the only device capable of performing internal scans on the humanoid weapons so it was only now that Sam was able to confirm that not much damage had been done beyond what appears on the surface.
About fifteen minutes had passed and everything was going well. Sam let himself rx for a moment and as he did Zero Five and Nine came back after cleaning themselves and changing their clothes.
"Alright then." He said. "You two didn''t suffer much damage so there is nothing to worry about. You''ll be free to go once the usual examination is done."
The two went to their own containers and waited for the process to start. Soon enough they were submerged in a green liquid themselves, howeverpared to the one Zero Three was in theirs were clearer and much less viscous.
"Alright then." Checking if there was anything he had overlooked, Sam sat back and let the machines do their work.
~¡ó~
A few hourster Zero Three opened her eyes. Noticing the green filter from which she saw the world made her realize where she was. Letting out a sigh she looked down at her body to see if the restoration process was already done.
The sight wasn''t a pleasant one, not in the least. The new skin was pure white andcked the tan she''d gained over time. Because of that she looked like some really bad patchwork and one could easily tell where she got hit.
[I see you''re awake.]
As she cursed the mess her body was in she heard a voice speak to her, although weakened by the liquid surrounding her.
[The process is done and you''re back to normal.] She recognized the voice as that of the Doctor. [I guess it''s alright if youe out.]
The green liquid slowly drained from the container. One would expect it to cling to the skin because of its viciousness, however when it was gone not a single drop was left on Zero Three. She still felt a bit sticky though, but that was nothing a bath couldn''t fix.
The problem was the mess that had befallen her body. She''d need a long sunbath to get it back to what it was. But with the warning she received about the outdoor pool she was sure that guy wouldn''t stop the nagging till she''d lose her mind.
When she entered the other room she found the Doctor standing by the door with a big towel in his hands. Taking it from him she felt somewhat embarrassed that he saw her like that. Naked with nothing to hide her private parts.
Of course the concept of shame wasn''t something walkingputer gave much thought to, however her programming dictated that she must act a certain way when a male sees her without clothes.
"How are you feeling?" Sam asked, doing his best to keep his eyes off her.
"What do you think?" Zero Three said sounding a bit annoyed.
Turning around, Sam walked over to his desk and threw himself onto the chair.
"You got hit pretty badly. It''s actually surprising that you managed to survive."
"Hah! Of course I would!" Putting a hand on her chest she proudly sung her own praises. "I''m a Valkyrie, the greatest weapon to ever grace your miserable pathetic world! Unlike you weak and useless humans a single Cmity will never be enough to take me down!"
"Ah, yeah yeah, just make sure to keep the damage you sustain to a minimum." Sam''s disinterested tone seemed to trigger Zero Three a little, however he wasn''t about to start caring now. He was way too tired for that. "Remember that we only have the three of you in this base. We can''t afford to have you out of it for nine hours every time you get hurt."
"Wha-"
Hearing how much she had spent in the container the young Valkyrie finally understood how much damage she had really sustained. It was enough to force her central processor to shut down, that should''ve been enough for her to know.
"Well, I was just taken by surprise this time." She said attempting to shrug the topic off. "I doubt this will ever happen again."
"Oh it will." Sam replied. "If you continue to disregard the warnings and keep being so reckless. This isn''t some game you y, there are lives on the line here."
Sam didn''t understand. The character the Valkyries y are nothing but a program designed to make them seem more human, it shouldn''t have an effect on their abilities and decision making duringbat. Zero Three being the rebellious little brat shouldn''t impact her performance on the battlefield, even so she still got herself hurt to that extent.
Even if he were to consider the strength of the Cmity the girls faced they should''ve been able topose a better course of actions, one that didn''t end with one of them that badly hurt.
As Sam pondered over the questions he failed to notice as the girl''s body trembled in front of him.
"Then why don''t you go fight them yourself?"
The moment his brain processed those words, a shiver ran through Sam''s whole body.
"All you humans do isin. You nag and nag and nag all while hiding at the back where it''s safe. How about you go out and fight those things for a change?"
"Zero Three¡ you¡"
"Ah! But you can''t!" Looking at him with eyes so cold he could feel the temperature dropping, the young Valkyrie smiled a sadistic smile as she reminded him of the reality of their world. "You''re all weak pathetic bags of flesh. Especially you, old man. Though in your case it''s nothing but bones."
Turning to the door Zero Three went to take her leave.
"Keep your advice to yourself next time. I don''t need you to tell me how I should fight."
Chapter 10 Report.
Once Zero Three had left theb, Sam just sat there staring nkly at the wall. The words said by the Valkyrie were shocking and took time to process, when he was done the terror he felt multiplied ten folds.
The young Valkyrie always had somewhat of a sharp tongue however this was the first time she had gone this far. He felt the contempt in her voice. Her dissatisfaction with the current state was clear.
That''s it¡ Sam thought, turning to theputer to start working on his report. Something definitely is wrong with them! There is no way that was normal!
If there was a sign that an AI was about to go out of control then it would be when it starts looking down on humans while showing signs of contempt toward the way they use them.
Zero Three refused to take his advice believing she knew better, and though that was indeed true, the way she delivered it was worrying.
As he wrote his report Sam made sure to mention the strange behaviors the Valkyries were showing. Of course he remembered to change a few things about what happened with Nine, however repeatedly stressed out how the walking weapons were acting out of the ordinary.
Once he was done he pressed send and got up, gathered his things and left theb. He didn''t know how the Resistance''s headquarters will react to his report. At best they''d send some recements as they worked on resetting the other three. At worst the three Valkyries would be destroyed to avoid any futureplications.
Better safe than sorry¡ Sam thought, feeling a hint of guilt in his heart.
~¡ó~
After thinking everything more thoroughly Sam began to doubt about whether sending that report was really a good idea. What he failed to ount for was that it wouldn''t be strange for the higher ups to pin the me on him, saying his ipetence is what caused all of it, but that wasn''t what bothered him the most.
With each passing second the guilt he felt was growing. What if the HQ takes his report seriously and decide that the three were a threat?
Once that happens it is guaranteed that those three would cease to exist as they are.
He remembered Nine''s warm smile, Zero Five''s blushing face. Even Zero Three who did nothing but annoy him, the thought of her existence being erased made him feel bad.
Maybe I shouldn''t have done it after all¡
"Doctor? Is something wrong?"
Hearing a voice addressing him Sam looked up. It was sergeant Kurokami Shizuru, the raven haired Asian woman he usually eats his meals together with.
The fact that he doesn''t remember when he had made it to the cafeteria, let alone when she arrived, told him of how much stressed and tired he really was. Dealing with the human like weapons really puts a heavy toll on one''s mind.
"Nothing." Sam answered, poking a small piece of vegetables with his fork. "I''m just¡ a little tired, that''s all."
"You didn''t get much rest since yesterday, huh?" Pausing for a moment, Shizuru then added. "I''ve heard about what happened. Is Unit Zero Three alright?"
"Yes¡ the restoration process finished without a problem. She should have no trouble doing her duties as usual."
"I see¡"
For a couple of minutes the two ate their food silently. As if tired of pretending, Shizuro let out a long sigh, showing how stressed she was as well.
"You''re worried about it too, huh?" Sam asked.
"You could say that." She replied. "We''ve been on high alert in case another Cmity shows up, however it appears there was no need to."
"Those things keep popping up out if nowhere." Sam said, gritting his teeth.
"It''s quite stressful. I''ve been staring at the radar for hours and now my neck hurts¡" Shizuru replied, rubbing her left shoulder looking quite bothered.
The two sighed at the same time, their fatigue bing more apparent. Shizuru nced over the cafeteria. Normally it would be crowded by this time, however none of the tables were full right now.
A Cmity appearing in their area, which is supposedly one of the safest parts of the frontlines, was bad on its own, however when the news about Zero Three getting severely injured spread fear soon followed and most couldn''t bring themselves to eat.
It was impossible to find someone who didn''t have a horror story about how they had suffered greatly due to the Cmities. Just hearing that one hade so close to the base put them on edge.
"Well, I guess it''s our fault for for getting toox." Sam said.
"Yep. We should consider ourselves lucky that the damage was limited to just one Valkyrie."
It would''ve been a nightmare if all three of them returned in same state as Zero Three. The base would''ve been defenseless until new units arrive, and until that timees the weak useless humans would be left to fend for themselves.
This time it was just a B ss Cmity, but if the next one was any stronger then there would be no hope for then
The two finished their meal in silence. To Sam''s surprise Jordan never came to bother them. Maybe even a pushy guy like him knows when it''s not a good time to be a pain in the neck.
Sam decided to go back to his room to get some eye shut. He didn''t know if he would be able to but he had to at least try. He told Shizuru that he''d give her the book he''d brought for her in the morning. Not that she''d be able to read it in those circumstances anyway.
Once he reached his room he took a shower, brushed his teeth and went to bed. As expected he was unable to sleep. Zero Three''s words kept repeating in his head again and again not allowing him a moment of rest.
''Then why don''t you go fight them yourself?''
''All you humans do isin.''
''You''re all weak pathetic bags of flesh. Especially you, old man. Though in your case it''s nothing but bones.''
''Keep your advice to yourself next time.''
"Am I really that skinny?" He murmured quietly, still unable to take the words out of his mind.
It sounded like the young Valkyrie was tired of being told how she should fight, or maybe fighting at all. The more he thought about it the more stupid he felt for telling her to be more careful.
The Valkyries were created to fight the Cmities. Their personalities don''t matter all that much when ites to battle, that side is handled by a different part of their programming.
"Maybe I should apologize to her¡"
Even after deciding that he was still unable to sleep. He got up and turned the light on. The first thing that caught his attention were the two books he had brought with him that morning.
He picked the one titled Valkyrie Smash and smiled despite himself before opening it and flipping through the pages.
It was bad. He had read most of it as he waited for Zero Three''s treatment to be done and as expected it was really bad.
Putting aside all the typos, grammatical errors and misspellings, the plot itself was nothing but a detailed script for some porn.
The protagonist of the story was a man in his thirties and is a part of the maintenance crew tasked with taking care of the weapons the Valkyries use. That alone told him that the author knew nothing about how the military bases are run.
At the start of the book he''d have a few interactions with the beautiful human like weapons then, using theirck of experience with humans, he manages to trick them into performing sexual acts with him. The Valkyries who had learned what pleasure was fell in love with the protagonist and from there their secret rtionship somehow continued without anyone finding out.
The whole book felt like it was nothing but the sexual fantasies of some horny teenage, however despite it being that bad Sam found himself reading through it again. The reason is simple; it was just pure dumb fun.
Going through it again he felt a smile creep on his face. He read through the first few chapters, intending to stop after a few pages, but soon he found himself flipping through them in a quick pace. Something about the book had caught his attention so he went back to the start and began reading it again.
"This is¡"
Chapter 11 So It Was True All Along.
Noticing something strange about the book, Sam went back and started reading from the beginning. He took out a notebook and a pen then started writing something down.
The books had many typos, grammatical errors and misspellings, however something stood out about those mistakes. The words always had one capital letter at the center. Sam found it odd so he decided to check and indeed every error had the same thing. Sam wrote down each of the letters and one by one. It took him some time but he was finally done.
He had expected to find some kind of secret message by the end, however what he was left with were a series of seemingly random letters.
His first thought was that it''s some kind of code, however he found no clue on how to crack it.
At that point his sleepiness waspletely gone and all he could think of was the strange sequence of letters. He went through the book again trying to find some kind of clue but had no luck.
He was about to give up, it all looked like one big waste of time, but then a sh of inspiration hit him.
Maybe the plot itself had some kind of clue? With that said Sam went over the book once more. The heroines of the book were named Thirty and Thirty one, two fictional units that didn''t exist in real life. Throughout the book the protagonist has sex with each one exactly eight times. It didn''t seem strange at first but Sam soon realized it was what he was looking for.
Thirty and Thirty one were the hexadecimal representation of 0 and 1. That was the only exnation for the two being named that way. Sam tried converting the series of letters from hexadecimal to text however he was met with more nonsense.
When that led to a dead end he started to wonder if the code was actually written in binary. He tried taking the letters and turning them into numbers ording to their order in the alphabets, those who fell into an odd number were 0s and the even numbers were 1s.
Once he was done he found himself starring at a wall of ones and zeros that looked like some random baloney that shes onputer screens in some sci-fi movies.
Dividing the sequence into eight digit parts he then proceeded to convert them from binary to text. A smile formed on Sam''s face as he looked at the final results.
It was an easy enough code that he managed to solve it in a few hours on his own even though he didn''t know much about secret codes.
The hidden message wasn''t something one would expect given how inurate the depiction of the military base in the book was. It was a series ofmends written in the programmingnguage used in Eir.
"Guess there is no way I''ll be able to sleep now¡"
Sam had no idea what thosemands did but he wasn''t about to wait till morning to find out. The chance of them causing him trouble was present, however his curiosity overruled his judgment and he found himself changing and about to leave for hisb.
~¡ó~
It was the dead of the night so not many people were out. In fact, beside those on night watch, everyone else were trying to get some sleep after the stressful day they''d been through.
The base was eerily silent. The dimly lit grounds made Sam feel like he was in an abandoned city after the end of the world. Even a grown man like him was afraid of something jumping out of the shadows to take his life and in a world were strange monsters roamed nothing guaranteed that it will never happen.
Sam arrived at hisb and immediately got to work. He turned on the terminal he uses when examining the Valkyries, he then opened amand window and started writing what he had discovered from the book.
Just as he was about press enter he stopped himself to rethink his actions.
Was he really sure it is okay to do something like this? Operating Eir is his specialty, his job, however he never learned about such series ofmends and didn''t know what it would do.
He doubted it''d do something to damage the device though. Anyone knowledge enough to know about it wouldn''t be so stupid as to try to render it unusable, and Odin, the guy who made it, wouldn''t add something in it that would result in that.
It''s probably some Easter egg that crazy guy put in¡
When tasked with making weapons to fight the Cmities Odin went and created an army of beautiful women. Sam was sure the genius had fun doing that and for that reason he imagined him hiding some stuff in his other creations to surprise those curious enough to dig deeper.
"Well, thinking about it won''t get me anywhere¡"
Normally Sam wouldn''t be so stupid as to go ahead with something like that. His cautious self should''ve warned him against it however exhaustion was affecting his judgment and cognitive abilities and because of that he pressed the button despite his worries.
Themands were executed and a new window appeared. It had three folders in it named Eir, Valkyrie and Freyja. While the first two weren''t so surprising to see, Sam had never heard anything about the third folder. His curiosity peaked and he went to click on it. Inside were four files; Blue Prints, Unit BHTCNA05, Unit BHGTDWM9 and BHSFAB03.
Sam recognized the names of thest three. They were the full names of the Valkyries he had been responsible for ever since he started his job in this base. Sam was tempted to click on them, however what drew his attention even more was the first file with the name Blue Prints.
"Don''t tell me¡"
Swallowing audibly he clicked on the file and opened it. It was aption of documents with the title Project Freyja at the top. He began scrolling down slowly, carefully reading every line of text, carefully analyzing every picture he came past. His eyes slowly widened as he realized what he was looking at.
Those were the blue prints of the Valkyries. Or to be more urate, they''re the ns detailing the creation process of the shells hosting the central processors which in turn host the AI programs dubbed the Valkyries.
Sam couldn''t help but slowly back away. If those are the real deal then he had just stumbled upon one of the most protected military secrets to date. Something like that would sell for billions as it would allow anyone to create the humanoid weapons. If anyone learns that he did it wouldn''t be surprising if he just disappeared one day without a trace.
That said, he wasn''t about to let it go now that he had discovered it. Most likely it''s already toote, he can no longer pretend that he didn''t see anything.
"Damn¡ even if I know how to, it''s impossible to get the materials to make one¡"
Hours passed as he went through the document. Little by little he began to understand how those human like weapons were created, what makes them tick and how they''re able to hold their ground against the Cmities.
Everything Sam knew before was either something he had read on the official papers released to the public, heard from others in the field or stuff he had deduced on his own from working with those three. While most of it wasn''t exactly incorrect, the info he found in that file were much more detailed and exined a lot of things.
One question a lot of people had asked was why the Valkyries had to been made in the form of a human female. As Sam read through the document he soon arrived at the answer to that.
"Project Freyja aims to create artificial wombs to help repopte earth once the crisis has ended¡"
It was a note at the very end of the documents, written by Odin himself. In it he spoke about how those in power feared the poption decline brought by the massacres the Cmitiesmitted. They expected the numbers of humans to be much lower once the war ends which would make it very difficult to for humanity to go back to what it once was.
To help with that they asked him to create artificial wombs to lessen the burden of pregnancy on the surviving female poption and help recover the numbers of humans as fast as possible.
Sam couldn''t help but break into a fit ofughter once he reached that point.
Odin who was working on the Valkyrie AI at the time saw that request as the perfect opportunity to execute a n he most likely had since the very start.
Why settle on just an a digital version of the woman of your dreams when you can make her real? Why settle for an artificial womb when you can create the whole body?
,m Every single person knew what Odin''s intentions were when creating the human like weapons, however that note just proved it and Sam couldn''t help butugh.
What the genius of a man and the savior of humanity wanted all along was to make the women he fantasized about real, and in order to achieve that he had the surviving human poption provide him with everything he needed to do so.
Project Freyja is the n to create not artificial wombs but artificial women, ones that can rece the originals in many ways, including being sexual and romantic partners.
"So it was true all along¡ hahaha¡"
Chapter 12 Dream.
"Doctor¡ we can no longer¡"
"We were made for this, Doctor¡"
"I know you want to¡ Doctor~"
Sam couldn''t believe what his eyes were seeing. In front of him were the three Valkyries, Zero Three, Zero Five and Nine. They all looked down at him with flushed faces and moist eyes, their mouths releasing hot breaths each time they tried to speak a word.
He didn''t know when it happened, but at some point all their clothes were gone. He had seen them many times in the thin leotard like battle suits, however with the exception of Zero three, he never got to see them naked before.
"What are you staring at, pervert?" Zero Three said as she approached him from the left. Her face was bright red. He had never seen her get so embarrassed before. She looked so cute his heart almost stopped.
"Doctor¡" Zero Five came front the right. She pushed her ample chest onto his arm and turning his face toward her. "I want you to look at me¡" closing her eyes, she
Puckered her lips as if asking for a kiss.
"Fufufu¡ we can finally do it, right, Doctor?"
Nine was kneeling between his legs, smiling as she undid his belt. "No need to hold back anymore. Let it all out¡"
The blond Valkyrie released his tool then buried it between her giant marshmallows.
Sam felt that he was about to finish right then and there. The situation was beyond his understanding, he didn''t know what led to all of them being there.
Trying toprehend what was happening to him he started to look around. All his excitement suddenly died as he realized what was really going on.
Ah, this must be a dream¡ he thought as his mood suddenly soured.
His first clue should''ve been the naked Valkyries giving him looks full of sensuality. However he didn''t figure it out until he noticed that they were in his room and on his bed.
"Doctor?"
Not long after he did he came to the realization Sam felt himselfing back to his senses and his eyes began to open. What greeted him was the sight of Zero Five, this time however she was wearing the usual leotard like blue suit, not that it made her figure look any less alluring.
She was leaning down as she called for him, her cheeks slightly red. He remembered the dream he was having before waking up and that causes his wood to rise.
The reason behind that dream was most likely what he had readst night. Project Freyja. Tasked with creating artificial wombs to help repopte earth, Odin decided it would be better if he created artificial females instead. He had already programmed the Valkyrie AIs with personalities to his liking, he then created bodies to suit the characters he had in mind.
It was unclear whether the genius already had his way before letting the military have them, but one thing for sure was that the human like weapons had a purpose other than to fight for humanity''s sake.
"Ah, Zero Five¡ did I fall asleep in theb?" Sam said as he looked around, doing his best to keep hisposure.
"It seems so." Zero Five said as she took a step back.
He had spentst night going through the files he had discovered but apparently at some point exhaustion caught up to him and caused him to copse.
Thankfully theputer''s power saving feature was set so that it would turn off after a while. He wasn''t sure how the Valkyries would react if they saw what he had discovered but it would be for the best if no one finds out.
"Were are the other two?" Sam asked, not seeing the blond or the short one.
"They will be here soon." Zero Five said. "They had an argument earlier and are trying to settle it beforeing here. It seems Nine is really angry about something Zero Three had said."
Nine? Angry? Sam couldn''t imagine that happening. He always took her for the bubbly caring older sister with a smile that never left her face. He was sure her angry expression would be more cute than terrifying. Just then he remembered something he had read in her file and that caused a smile to creep on his face without him noticing.
"Doctor?" Zero Five looked at him as if to ask what''s with the smile.
"Is something wrong?" He asked, forcing his expression back to normal.
Sam got up from his chair and stretched his limbs. Sleeping in a ce like this was pure torture. His body was aching all over.
"Wait¡"
As if his brain had finally booted up, he turned to look at the Valkyrie then at his wrist watch. It was already 15:00 and the Valkyries had returned from their daily patrol.
Sam felt his heart sink as he realized his blunder. He had stayed awake throughout the night even though he was alreadycking sleep, that led to him copsing. Because of that he had missed two important things; the breakfast and lunch he usually has with Shizuru.
The door opened as he began to panic and forced him to hide his emotions. The one who came in was Zero Three and the moment their eyes met she turned away with a "hmph."
Nine soon followed. It only took a nce to know something was off about her even though she still had her usual smile on.
Zero Five said those two had an argument. Putting aside the absurdity of two AIs arguing and getting angry at each other, Sam couldn''t begin to imagine what might''ve caused that.
Well, that can wait for now. He thought as he let out a big yawn. I''ll apologize to Shizuruter on. Not that I need to. It isn''t like we have some agreement about those meetings.
"I''ll go wash my face and get some coffee." Sam said as he headed for the door. "Sorry but could you wait for a few minutes?"
Chapter 13 Experiment 01. (Part One)
Once Sam returned to theb it was time for the usual examination. On the surface the three were clean without a single injury, meaning they didn''t run into a cmity like they did the other day. An initial scan had already been performed to make sure there had been contamination. The process itself was nothing but a routine check up just in case they missed something and to send the report the Resistance HQ requested.
"Alright." Sam said as he put his extrarge coffee cup on a nearby table. "Sorry for the wait. Let''s get this done with."
"Tsk¡"
For some reason Zero Three clicked her tongue, prompting everyone to look at her. She turned away looking annoyed but said nothing which was rather unusual.
Normally she would berate me for wasting their time¡
Sam guessed it had something to do with the argument she had with Nine. He was curious about what the blond Valkyrie said that made the young one seal her sharp tongue, but he chose to leave it for another time.
Those two are in a bad mood so¡ he thought, ncing at the three one by one while working the tablet in his hands. Guess that leaves Zero five.
"Everything is ready. You can go in now."
With Sam giving them the go, the three Valkyries went to the next room and each entered the device they usually use. As they floated inside them the transparent containers closed and once they were sealed the viscous green liquid began to fill the interior. Their legs were submerged first then soon their torsos and once it got to their necks the Valkyries closed their eyes and entered a state of slumber.
Well, two of them did, at least.
"Um¡ Doctor, is there some problem?" Zero five asked, turning left and right after noticing that she is the only one whose container had yet to close.
"Ah, don''t worry, Zero five." Sam said, looking at her from behind the one sided ss wall. "There is something I wanted to discuss with you first. Do you minding here?"
Although confused, the Valkyrie with the long ponytail went back to where the Doctor was. She stood in her usual spot and asked the obvious question.
"Doctor, wouldn''t it be more efficient if you asked me earlier?" She said, ncing at the two in the other room, floating in the green liquid with their eyes closed. "Or you could have waited until after the examination."
Sam looked at her for a few seconds then averted his gaze. While she wasn''t exactly wrong, Sam had a reason for going through things in the order he did. Coughing into his fist a few times, he turned to the Valkyrie with a serious look and answered her question.
"The reason I did this is because I don''t want anyone to know about it." He turned to nce at the two in the next room then went on. "For the time being it would be for the better if the only ones who aware of it are you and me, Zero Five."
The Valkyrie was silent for a moment, unable to guess what it is that required such secrecy. Only one thing came to mind, and what Sam said next was the confirmation she needed.
"It''s about the time you asked me if I saw you as a human." Sam said.
Hearing that only seemed to to further confuse Zero Five. The Doctor had told her to never mention the topic again yet here he was bringing it up. She wondered if she was in some kind of trouble, regretting the time she had asked that question.
"I have been thinking about it for a while now." Sam said. "It is a big philosophical question. What makes us human? Why can''t you, someone who looks like us and has cognitive abilities on a simr level, be considered human?"
Zero Five could only stare nkly at Sam, after all he seemed to have misunderstood her question even though she had already exined herself. She wanted to know if people sometimes mistook them for humans, and if she could blend in normal society without anyone noticing.
That question was born from the way Sam treated the three of them. The Valkyries only interacted with a few other humans butpared to them Sam was the only one who acted the same way as he would when interacting with people, which led to her wondering if he is unable to see the difference.
Zero Five had no desire to be recognized as a human. In fact her programming prevented her from cultivating such desires. However it seems that didn''t stop humans from doing so, whether it was out of moral obligation or fear.
"After letting it bother me for the past two days I came to the conclusion that I didn''t know enough topletely dismiss the idea." Sam said. "That''s why I want to do a little experiment."
"An¡ experiment?" The Valkyrie tilted her head as she repeated the word.
"Yes." Sam said with a nod. "In order to make up my mind, I need to gather more information, and to do so I need your help in this experiment."
Zero Five stayed silent for a few seconds before nodding. She didn''t see any problem with her assisting him so she was quick to agree.
"If it is something within my power then I don''t mind." She said, showing a rare smile Sam had never seen before.
It made him hesitate a little, but he didn''te this far just to stop now.
"Then let''s start with something simple." He said, pausing for a few seconds. "At the moment all I have is sound and visual information. In order to get a more urate image what i need are those gathered through my other senses, such as touch, smell and taste."
"I¡ see¡" the Valkyrie replied, sounding as confused as before.
"To do that I need¡ I need to make physical contact with you." Getting over the first hurdle, Sam went on. "Are you okay with that?"
It was then when Zero Five realized for the first time that she had never touched any human before. It wasn''t something out of the ordinary but the fact that it didn''t happen seemed rather strange.
For reasons she didn''t understand she started to feel nervous, however logic told her that there was no problem with her agreeing to his request. And so she did.
Sam watched as the Valkyrie started fidgeting nervously, giving him shy nces before nodding.
Odin, you really are a genius. Sam thought, carefully observing the cute way Zero Five acted, which was programmed into her for this kind of situation.
San slowly walked over to her until only one step separated them. The Valkyrie lowered her head, unable to look him in the eyes. She didn''t know it herself but her face was already red. The artificial heart in her chest was beating at a pace far quicker than what she was used to making her feel a bit scared.
As she waited for the moment his hand would fall on her skin, Sam went behind her and began running his fingers through her long ponytail.
"Hm¡ though it''s far silkier, this feels no different from normal hair." He said.
It felt no different from normal hair. Obviously it''s not, however Sam could tell it''s not the same as the synthetic hair used in wigs. He couldn''t believe Odin went to so much rouble just for the details.
ncing behind her to see what he was doing, Zero Five saw Sam take a few strands and bring them closer to his face.
"This scent¡ it''s no different from normal shampoo." Sam said after taking a few whiffs.
Turning around quickly, the Valkyrie answered in a flustered voice.
"Well, we use the same product as other soldiers¡ I think¡"
"I see¡"
She didn''t know why but seeing him sniff her like that made her feel wierd, although she didn''t really mind it. What bothered her the most was how hot her face was getting and her rising heart rate. The only time she had experienced such phenomena was when fighting the cmities, however unlike those time she didn''t feel ufortable.
For a moment Sam had all his focus on the silky ck hair in his hand. He knew the Valkyrie were offered the same stuff as other female soldiers, but he thought that they''d at the very least get some special care products just for them, since they aren''t exactly normal soldiers.
Letting go of the long ponytail, Sam decided to move to the next step. He had already crossed the line so he had nothing to worry about, but that didn''t prevent his hands from shaking.
Chapter 14 Experiment 01. (Part Two)
When Sam ced his hands on her shoulders, Zero Five''s body jolted a little. He had expected such a reaction and moved slowly, carefully, doing his best to make her rx.
He gently caressed her exposed skin, its softness amazed his mind. Sam didn''t touch every woman out there but he knew for sure the smoothness he was feeling right now was unmatched.
Just like her hair, Zero Five''s skin was simr to a human''s. The warmthing from it felt natural, the temperature of her body slowly rising from excitement. He couldn''t help but think, once again, how amazing Odin is for managing to create something like this. The man didn''t joke when he said he would recreate the entire female body. Actually he went even beyond that as no real women would be this beautiful naturally.
No doubt he thought that, since he''s doing it anyway, he might as well make them better in every way. And since he intended to use them to rece women as romantic and sexual partners, Sam was sure that doing it with the Valkyries would be as good as it could get.
I need to calm down. Sam thought, noticing his growing excitement. One step at a time. Who knows what kind of mess this would create. I need to stay patient.
He had only touched her shoulders so far yet his whole body is demanding he spreads her legs already. But Sam knew rushing things wouldn''t get him anywhere. The time he had was limited and there is only so much he could do before it runs out.
Moving on to the next step, he grabbed Zero Five''s shoulders and pulled her toward him. Surprised by the suddenness of his action the Valkyrie looked behind her, only to turn away blushing when she saw the Doctor''s face so close to hers.
The cuteness of her reaction warmed Sam''s heart. He always thought of her as the cool beauty who is never fazed by anything, but what he was seeing now confirmed what he had read in her file the previous night.
In the personality section, Zero Five was described as an extremely shy girl. She doesn''t know how to start conversations and is bad at keeping them going. The way she carries herself causes people to think she''s just a quiet and serious person, but in reality she''s just bad with people and the only way to see through her stoic act is to get close enough to be her partner.
Does this mean we are that close? Sam though as he felt her back on his chest. Well, the only one who would be able to do this is someone she''d date, if she was a normal human.
Sam was just a little taller than her. Though he was a bit skinny, his body was toned enough to show the contrast between him and the Valkyrie''s feminine form.
As he looked from over her shoulder his target came into sight. Though they weren''t as big as Nine''s, Zero Five''s breasts wererger than those of the average woman and since they werepressed into her tight battle suit, he was sure they''re even bigger once they get outside.
Sam''s hands had stopped shaking for a while now so he had no trouble reaching for them.
Same as before Zero Five''s body tensed up when a part of her got touched for the first time. Sam carefully moved his hands on the surface until she calmed down. When he heard the sensual hot breaths she was leaking he allowed his fingers to slowly dig into the soft buns.
"Ah!"
Listening to the Valkyrie''s excited gasps, Sam carefully massaged her chest making sure to enjoy every moment of it, the softness didn''t betray his imagination.
Looking from afar one would think they were just balloons full of air, but Sam now knows that isn''t the case. They were as thick as one would expect from a woman''s breasts. When he lifted them from below he learned how heavy they actually were. ording to the blue prints, they are even capable of producing milk.
He wanted to free them from the tight suit so he could feel them better, so he could get a taste, however he decided to leave it to another time. After all fondling them like this felt good in its own way.
"Ah~.... ha~hh¡ mmn¡ aahhnn!"
Zero Five''s moans grew lowder each time he put more strength into his hands. He watched the shape of her chest change as he squeezed it, knowing he could keep doing this all day and not get tired. Sadly time didn''t allow for that. He decided to move on to the next thing he wanted to try so with a final squeeze he slowly let go of the giant melons and moved his hands away.
Sam allowed a few seconds for Zero Five catch her breath. She turned to look at him, her face flushed, her eyes hazy and almost closed. Her expression was so alluring he almost had his heart stolen. Sam began to fear that, if he isn''t careful enough with his experiments, he might end up falling for the Valkyries for real. Many already did and they never got to see them up close. He had to keep his mind straight and remind himself that this wasn''t a real woman he was dealing with.
"D-doctor¡" Zero Five spoke, stopping to take a deep breath before asking. "Are we¡ are we done with the experiment?"
Sam stared at her for a few seconds enjoying the way she looked at him. Smiling, he then ced his hands on her shoulders and turned her around before pulling her into his embrace once more. "No." He said, feeling the warmth of her chest as it got pressed against his. "Not yet."
His hands moved on to the next item on the list, starting to y with the Valkyrie''s bottom hills. From the way Zero five reacted, it seems that part of her is much more sensitive. She started to pull on his shirt, resting her head on his shoulder as her voice grew louder.
It seemed like she was about to climax at any point now, but Sam didn''t want to end it, he felt that he didn''t have everything he needed yet. Rxing his hands a little, he thought about what he should do next, and when Zero Five looked up to see why he stopped, the idea came to him right away.
Without hesitation he brought his face closer to hers and joined their lips.
Zero Five''s eyes went wide for a moment, but then she closed them and turned herself in to the sensation.
Separating only for a moment, Sam began kissing her again. Not long after he got his tongue involved, pushing it inside her mouth and tangling it with hers all the while ying with her ass.
When he finally let go of her, Zero Five seemed to have lost her senses, staring nkly in a drunken state. A couple of secondster she snapped back to reality and her face flushed with shame.
Sam leaned in and kissed her one more time. He then let go of her and stepped away.
"Is it¡ is it over?" Zero Five asked, holding a hand to her burning chest.
"Yes. This should do for today." Sam said with a nod. "Now, we better start your examination. Remember, we don''t want anyone to learn about this."
The examination wasn''t on a timer so it wouldn''t end until he does something on his side. Though that meant they could go on for a while longer, Sam was worried that the other Valkyries would wake up and think something was off. For no one to notice what he had done he needed to be careful to release all of them at the same time.
Zero Five looked a bit disappointed, but thatsted for only a second. She seen regained her calm expression, though her cheeks were still a bit red. Nodding once she turned to walk toward the other room. Once her container was sealed and the viscous green liquid enveloped her, Sam sat down in front of the terminal and cracked his knuckles.
This is the part where the real work begins.
Chapter 15 This Changes Everything.
Among the folders Sam found using themand list from the book, one had something that wouldpletely change his life.
It contained hundreds of files each with a date in the name, each date had three copies, one for every Valkyrie on the base.
Sam immediately recognized the file names. They were the same as the ones on examination data files he usually sends out with his reports, though those were unreadable, requiring a specific program to open them which he didn''t have ess to.
The ones he was looking at were different. When he clicked on thest one, which belonged to Zero Three, it opened in an application he never saw on the terminal before. It seemed like a text editing software, though what''s more note worthy was the text it was editing.
At first it looked like random lines of code, but when he hovered the mouse cursor over it few lines were selected at the same time as if they were grouped together.
Clicking on them summoned a new window. It showed an image of a simple female shaped silhouette painted in ck with only one circr red spot on the left nk. Beside it were a few lines of text and just by reading them Sam understood everything about the files.
Zero Three had suffered many injuries in herst outing so thetest file was quite long. Each group of lines detailed what spot got damaged, what kind of damage it was, how long it took to clean and restore, how much energy and resources went into it.
The file also confirmed what Sam had already known about the device''s capabilities. It listed all the foreign substances Zero Three hade into contact with since thest examination, which included things from theponents of the juice she drank to the chemicals in the shampoo she used. It even listed everyst micro organism in the pool water the Valkyrie swims in, naming everyst germ that touched her skin or entered her body.
Sam was amazed by how much Eir is able to find out. Even though it was something in his field of studies, he could never imagine how he would go about creating something so precise andplex.
The folder named after it contained the data it collected. Each one had the results of the examination done on the date in its name and served as a more detailed report than the one he''s forced to write each day.
As he went through the lines of code, Sam started to wonder what made those files different from the ones he''s used to, beside that they can be opened, that is. It was then when he he noticed that there is a list of options on the top left corner of the file, one just like what you might find in a text editing software.
To his surprise the files weren''t read only. He is able to edit, add and delete the lines allowing him to alter the results of the examination.
Sam couldn''t believe what he was seeing.
He went down to one of the files from a year ago, the time when he had just started his job as the Valkyrie''s doctor. Picking one and opening it, he went though the contents quickly. It didn''t contain much, meaning that particr day was a peaceful one.
After a moment of uncertainty he went ahead and started messing with the file. It was from an old examination so no one would notice. Probably. He deleted the lines showing a few things the Valkyrie had eaten. He could guess that it belonged to Nine just by the fact that they were all snacks. Once he erased a few, he went to save the file. Beneath the save option was one that said ''create encrypted copy''. When he clicked on it a window appeared asking him to choose where in the terminal storage he wanted it to be ced and the default location, to his surprise, was the folder containing the files he''s supposed to send out. The created file couldn''t be opened because it was encrypted, most likely the tools to remove the encryption are only avable in the Resistance''s headquarters where the file would be sent.
It was impossible for him to check the content, however since it was a duplicate and a file by the same name already exists in that folder, causing a "(1)" to appear beside the new one, Sam was sure the edits he made were saved.
Moments after learning those things the idea struck him. He could finally do it. He could do it with the Valkyries and get away with it.
Suddenly the whole world seemed to change for Sam. He had suffered for well over a year, forced to meet with those other worldly creations every day, unable to to even touch them.
But that had changed now. He could finally do it and he wouldn''t have to be afraid of the people at the top finding out.
No¡ this is far too convenient¡
even through all his excitement, Sam managed get his thoughts in order rather quickly. His eyes turned to the book who led him all the way to this discovery, Valkyrie Smash.
The book was clearly made just to deliver the secret code. Even if someone found it and somehow cracked the code, the only ones who would be able to figure out its purpose are those who have my position, which makes it useless in the hands of most people.
The book was randomly ced in the library and I just so happened to find it. If it was intended for me, whoever ced it there did a really poor job at delivering it.
Sam still had many more questions, the answer of which he couldn''t even begin to imagine. The main one was why would anyone want to leak such important information? What''s their goal?
The most likely culprit would be Odin, but Sam had a feeling the man would want to keep such things a secret, all so no one could put their hands on his creations and get away with it.
Whoever it is, Sam feared that they''re watching his actions, waiting for him to use the knowledge he obtained from the book. The entire thing might be just a trap designed to get him into trouble, though that most likely isn''t the case. After all there are much less troublesome ways to ruin his life than such an borate n.
But even with that said, it was a far too great an opportunity for him to dismiss based on mere spection. The book had opened a door for him and on the other side was something he always desired. For the time being it looked like he could satisfy himself and get away with it, that''s all he needed to know.
The intentions of whoever made the book will reveal themselvester. Even if harming him might be the goal, Sam decided to take the gamble. Mainly because he couldn''t see himself sitting on this power and doing nothing with it.
Chapter 16 Erasing The Evidence.
Once Zero Five got inside Eir, Sam sat down and patiently waited for the examination process to be done.
Since she was thest one to enter it''s only natural that the other two would be done before her, which would''ve proven to be quite the problem. Thankfully until Sam enters the releasemand for all three devices on the terminal on his side the Valkyries would be stuck inside in a state of slumber. If they alle out at the same time it would be much less suspicious.
A few minutes pass and the examination ends. Stepping out of her container, Zero Three walked to the first room while stretching. She then turned to Sam with predictableints.
"Hey, old man. That took much longer than usual, didn''t it?" She said, turning to look at the clock on the wall. "Can you not waste my precious time like this?"
"Ah, sorry about that." Sam said, giving them the excuse he had prepared just in case. "I dozed off for a few minutes."
"Tsk. This is why humans-"
"Three~"
Suddenly the young Valkyrie seemed to freeze in her ce. Nine was looking her way, the smile she wore was nothing like the one Sam was used to. It sent the chills down his spine and it seems Zero Three felt the same.
"I''m sorry, Doctor." Nine said, a wry smile recing the scary one. "We know you are working hard for our sake. Please make sure to get proper rest so your health doesn''t suffer."
"... y-yeah¡"
It was the first time Sam had seen her like that. When someone who''s usually all smiles and positive energy gets angry, they be really scary. Add to that the fact that she''s a super-bot and the bad feeling only grows stronger.
So what Zero Five said about them arguing was true¡
Sam nced over at the Valkyrie with the long ponytail. Their eyes met for a moment and she averted her gaze, cheeks blushing red. Her adorable actions were getting to his heart so he decided to let them go before anything happens.
"Alright." He said after clearing his throat. "Nothing out of the usual today. You are free to leave."
"Finally!" As usual Zero Three was the first to leave. Nine followed after apologizing for the young one''s behavior and Zero five was thest, although it seemed like she had something to say.
Once he was alone it was time to write the usual report, but before that he had something very important to do. Something that will most likely be a part of his daily routine from now on.
Entering themand list from the book he summoned the window with the three secret folders. He went directly to the one named Eir and clicked on thetest file that had been created, the one belonging to Zero Five.
As expected the file contained many more lines than usual. He went through them one by one and once he was done it was time for the editing.
The file contained detailed records of every time Sam had touched Zero five. Ever time he caressed her shoulders, every time he squeezed her ass and breasts. One line even mentioned when he ran his fingers through her hair.
Unlike in Zero Three''s file from the day before, The spots marked on the silhouette representing Zero Five were colored blue. Sam guessed that it has something to do with the amount of damage and the needed repairs in each case.
Blue must mean it''s safe, even so it still gets recorded¡
Even ces where they didn''t make direct contact due to clothes were recorded. Eir didn''t leave out a single detail.
Taking a deep breath, Sam went to the beginning and began deleting the lines that told of what he did to Zero Five. The process went quickly and he soon arrived at thest few. Those were about a substance Zero Five had swallow earlier. It wasposed of 99% water plus some otherponents like electrolytes, mucus and human white blood cells among other things.
Sam began to remember the passionate kiss he shared with the Valkyrie. At that time he felt like all the suffering he went through in the past year was worth it. He enjoyed every second of it and the thought of getting to do it again filled him with excitement.
But seriously¡ Sam thought as he deleted the line telling of how Zero five had swallowed his saliva. That thing sure doesn''t know some stuff are better left out.
Having deleted all the suspicious lines, Sam went through the file once again. Just to be safe he did so one more time while looking at an older report to see if he missed something.
When that was done he went to the folder where the encrypted files are saved and deleted the one automatically created by the terminal before saving the new one.
Alright¡ only one more thing¡
Once he was done writing his daily report he attached the encrypted files and was about to click send. The uneasiness he felt was to be expected. Still, it wasn''t like he could go back even if he wanted to. Sending the email proved to require quite a bit of courage and once he did he was forced to experience the uneasiness of not knowing whether his n will seed or not.
Chapter 17 Nothing Would Make Me Happier.
I''m 99% sure that whoever checks the reports won''t notice anything, but¡
Just as he leaned on the back of his chair trying to rx, Sam heard the door to theb opening. The oneing in was none other than the Valkyrie with the long ponytail.
Now that her job for the day was done she had changed into her uniform, or to be more urate she wore it over her battle suit in case an emergency happens. It was a ck sailor uniform with long sleeves and a grey scarf. The skirt went halfway down her thighs and the ck tights she wore underneath enhanced the allure of her long legs.
Rather than a military uniform what the Valkyrie wore was more like a cosy. It looked fascinated, yes, but Sam couldn''t shake the feeling that something like that wasn''t appropriate for the world they were in. The design spoke about the taste of the designer and knowing who he was Sam found it only natural that they turned out like this.
As he looked her up and down, Sam''s eyes met those of Zero Five leading to her turning away with cheeks flushed red. He wanted to thank Odin for letting him experience something like this, but the genius of a man would probably lose it if he hears about what happened to his precious doll.
"Is something wrong, Zero Five?" Sam asked, feeling a smile creep on his face.
"Well¡ um¡"
The Valkyrie was lost for words, twiddling her fingers as she tried toe up with something to say. The dedication put into the character was admirable. If he didn''t already know, Sam would''ve never suspected that the woman standing in front of him was actually a robot.
"That''s right!" She said as if she had just remembered, but her voice slowly died near the end. "I wanted to ask about the¡ results¡"
"Come again?"
"It''s¡ about the experiment¡" her face seemed to grow redder with each word she says. "I wanted to know if¡ if you learned something¡"
"Ah, I guess you would be curious huh. It involves you, after all." Sam said as he got up. "But first, let me ask you one question, Zero Five."
"Yes?"
"Do you wish to be seen as a human?" Sam asked something he had thought about repeatedly beforeing up with his n. "If, hypothetically, let''s say I decided to recognize you as a human. What would you do?"
The flustered expression the Valkyrie had slowly faded and she turned to look at Sam. She stared at him for a few seconds before lowering her gaze as if contemting his question. A couple of minutester she finally looked up and gave her answer.
"Nothing." Zero Five said matter of factly. "Even if you do recognize me as a human, Doctor, it won''t change the fact that I am a Valkyrie, a weapon created to fight the Cmities and to defend humanity."
There was no change in her tone as she said all of it. It was as if she wholeheartedly believes in every word, but the reality is that statement was most likely an answer preprogrammed into her kind, one that can''t be changed.
"Right¡" Sam said, slightly relieved after hearing that.
Now that he has found a way to ovee the obstacles stopping him from enjoying the three female shaped weapons he took the time to feast his eyes on Zero Five''s beauty to his heart''s content.
Though it made him want to indulge himself a little more, Sam realizes the importance of taking things slowly, one step at a time. He has to be careful with each one all so he could safely enjoy the fruits of hisbor without fear.
Noticing that she had grown ufortable under his gaze, Sam decided to give Zero Five the answer she was looking for. He had expected her question from the start, of course, and because of that he already had an answer prepared.
"Now, to answer your question." Pushing himself off the chair Sam Stood up and walked toward the Valkyrie. "To tell you the truth, I learned quite a lot."
He stopped just a step away from her then extended his hand and gently caressed her right cheek as she looked down trying to hide her bashfulness.
"Your hair and skin don''t just look like those of a human, they also feel the same." Sam said. "Though it would be very difficult to find a human who''s as perfect as you are."
Zero five felt the heat go up to the tip of her ears. Her embarrassment was growing and she had no idea why recieving praise for her outward appearance would result in that.
"Let''s see¡ I learned that your chest is too heavy. If you were a normal human it would surely have caused you a lot of shoulder and back pain. Also, your body has some fat in all the right ces, though I don''t know if it''s really fat." Stopping for a moment, Sam then added one more thing. "Lastly, I learned that your saliva isn''t poisonous." That was a lie. He had already read that in the blue prints, otherwise he wouldn''t have risked kissing her at all.
The spit created by the Valkyries wasn''t identical to that of humans, however it was close enough, and none of theponents were a risk to his health.
"I see¡" Zero Five nodded before looking up shing a rare smile. "Doctor is amazing, to be able to learn all of that from just a little physical contact."
"... this much is nothing¡" closing his eyes, Sam cursed his heart for skipping a beat just now. "I need to perform many more experiments before I can have a definite answer."
"There are more experiments!!?"
Zero Five''s eyes widened, her back straightening as if she was hit with a surprise.
"O-of course¡" startled by her sudden reaction, Sam unintentionally retreated his hand. "There is a lot more to learn, after all."
For a moment he thought that the Valkyrie was bothered by what he did to her, that she felt happy now that it came to an end and was worried that there is more. He was too busy enjoying himself and never considered how she felt at any point. The thought of him making her ufortable didn''t cross his mind.
His fears disappear when she looked up at him with determination in her eyes, her cheeks flushing even further as she spoke.
"Then please feel free to use me again." Zero five said, cing a hand on her ample chest. "If I''m able to be of help to you, Doctor, nothing would make me happier!"
The deration made Sam''s eyes go wide. Defying his expectations, the Valkyrie had offered herself for his experimentation. Obviously she had no idea of how one could interpret what she said, however the way she looked at him made her intentions clear.
It was then that Sam came to a sudden realization.
Wait, did I actually make it? Sam thought, remembering what he read in Zero Five''s Valkyrie file. Is she already mine?
Chapter 18 Even If Its Not For The Experiment.
Among the three files Sam had discovered through themands from the book, the one named Valkyrie was the mostplex and difficult toprehend. Well, at least the first file.
Just like the one in the Freyja folder, the first file was a blue print titled ''Project Valkyrie''. It went through the process of creating the central processor housing the Valkyrie AI and how to program one.
Sam was a major in the field of nanotechnology however even with that he found it impossible to keep up with what he was reading. After giving up halfway through he still came out with a better understand of the supeputers, once again realizing what a technological miracle they are.
The simrities with the file in the Freyja folder didn''t stop there. After reading through the way the hardware is created, the first thing that followed were the thoughts of Odin as he came up with the idea for his invention.
Apparently the Valkyries were never intended to be a military project at the start. Dissatisfied with the reality of female nature, the genius decided to create the perfect AI partner, or partners, to satisfy his craving for love. Same as before he had to rely on military funding his projects, which is why he had to make them useful for war. One would think it''s the other way around but apparently the Valkyrie AI is supposed to be a romantic partner first and a weapons operation system second. Sam couldn''t help but facepalm himself when he learned that humanity''s most advanced military AI is actually just an secondary function to a girlfriend simtor. But something like that is to be expected. The one making those things is Odin after all.
Anyways, Odin who didn''t like the way real women operated decided to make AI partners to serve as his lovers. With that said it was obvious that he wouldn''t be making their personalities hyper realistic, otherwise it would defeat the purpose.
They had to be to his liking, checking every box on his list. To achieve that he went and modeled them after fictional characters from the entertainment and media he always had an interest in, Japanese anime, manga and games.
That''s right. Humanity''s hope, the genius whose creations keep the race going, the mysterious individual whose efforts pushed back the Cmities. That Odin, is a fucking weeb.
The giant tits should''ve been a dead give away¡ was what Sam thought when reading the documents. Of course many had suspected such a thing when the Valkyries were revealed, however there was no way to confirm it with the man himself never making a public appearance.
Now that he knows the truth Sam felt the respect he held for the man drop. That said, he didn''t really fault him for it. In the end the man saved what''s left of humanity. The least they could do is let him have his desires.
Well, I guess he isn''t the only one benefiting from them¡
Sam looked at the blushing Zero Five. Her maiden like behavior was something missing from most women nowadays, even before the Cmities appeared.
It''s clear that she was made to match certain preferences, something she has no control over and is one of the things that separate her from human females. And that''s what makes her so appealing.
One of the main reasons for her existence is to satisfy a man''s cravings. It would be dehumanizing to force such a concept on real women but it wouldn''t matter if it''s an artificial one.
In the Valkyrie file with her name Zero Five was described as a shy girl who doesn''t show much emotion and appears cold to the public in her attempt to look normal. It was clearly stated that the only way to see through the act and get her to show her true character is to be someone she''s romantically interested in, or, to be more precise, for that person to be her master. She''s an IA created to serve as a lover so the only one she would show affection to would be someone with that status.
Since he got her to drop her cold act and behave in a way she doesn''t show other people, not to mention how she asked him to continue their intimate interactions,
Sam was sure that the Valkyrie had chosen to be with him. She chose him to be her master.
Is this even possible? Sam thought, his eyes locked on with Zero Five''s.
He thought that all the Valkyries that had been created so far were made so that only Odin could be their master. Knowing the reason he made them for, the thought of the genius allowing other people to get them never urred to Sam.
Come to think of it¡ Sam held his chin in thought. If no one beside Odin is allowed to be their master, would she have allowed me to fondle her earlier? Even if touching gets a pass, wouldn''t kissing her be a no go?
In his excitement to finally get to have a taste of the gorgeous female weapon, Sam had failed to give the matter more thought. If Odin had implemented something in her so she would react violently to other men, his life would''ve ended without him knowing.
Guess that man isn''t as easy to read as he seems.
"Doctor?"
Apparently Sam had been in deep thoughts for quite some time which prompted Zero Five to shake him out of it. Looking at her again, the idea of trying to confirm whether his hypothesis was true came to mind.
? Without much hesitation he approach the Valkyrie and put his lips on hers. He waited until her stiff body rxed before separating, then with a smile he asked.
"Even if it''s not for the experiment, do you think we should do these things from time to time?"
The Valkyrie stared at him for a few seconds, eyes wide open. Her blushing intensified until her entire face was tomato red. Lowering her gaze she said nothing and simply nodded. That was all the confirmation Sam needed, and with her still in his arms, the two continued to make out for a few more minutes before deciding it was time for them to head out.
Chapter 19 Take A Hint.
Once he had his fill of Zero Five''s lips Sam gave the Valkyrie a few instructions then returned to his room and took a long shower. While at it he decided to empty his reserves a little, believing it to be thest time he would ever have to rely on his right hand for something like that.
When he was finally done he started to feel his hunger. Skipping two meals proved to be too much for him. Thankfully the time he usually eats dinner at was approaching so he decided to head for the cafeteria.
"I wonder what''s on the menu today."
Sam was in quite the good mood, even with the fear of his deeds being discovered poking at the back of his mind. He didn''t care that much anymore, after all the Valkyrie named Zero Five now belonged to him.
Well, technically she still is the Resistance''s property.
As he walked the rumors he heard before getting his job came to mind. The one about someone with his position abusing it to have fun with the Valkyries.
Could it be that he got eliminated because he seeded in bing the master of one of the Valkyries?
It wasn''t difficult to imagine the military not wanting just anyone to get that power, even if it''s Odin. That could be the reason why they warn those who work closely with the weapons and eliminate anyone who oversteps their boundaries.
But¡ does the military even know about such things?
It all depended on Odin and how much he had told them. They should already know about the robots serving as artificial wombs as well. It''s difficult to imagine that part going unexined. From there they could guess that the AI has the ability to serve as a romantic partner, but that alone isn''t enough of a hint about its deeper secrets. It''s not like the Valkyrie announce who their master is.
Well, I still have a lot to learn myself.
As that thought crossed his mind Sam entered the cafeteria and picked a tray. Tonight''s dinner was mashed potatoes and roasted chicken as the main dish, some vegetable soup, tofu sd and some pudding for desert.
Once he got his food the first thing Sam did was look for a free table, but as he did he saw a familiar face waving at him.
"Good afternoon, sergeant Kurokami." Sam said as he arrived at the table.
"This is a strange urrence." Shizuru said with a smile. "Usually you would be the first to arrive."
"I''m sure I arrived a little earlier than usual so it''s more strange to see you here." Sam replied returning the smile.
"Indeed. I managed to finish work a little earlier today so I thought I should get my food before a certain someone ruins my appetite."
Sam knew exactly who she was referring to, though usually she wouldn''t be so harsh when mentioning him.
"Did something happen?" He asked. The smile on Shizuru''s face suddenly disappeared.
A couple of seconds pass and she lets out a long sigh before putting some of the sd in her mouth.
"Doctor¡" as she spoke, the female sergeant''s mood seemed to have changed for the worse. "Where have you been this morning?"
"Ah, it seems I copsed in theb while working." Sam said. "Guess pulling another all nighter when I was already exhausted was too much."
The Asian girl looked up at him with wide eyes.
"Are you okay!!?"
? "Yeah, it was just exhaustion, that''s all." Sam replied.
Shizuru seemed relieved for a moment, but soon she began to sulk again.
"I already warned you, that you wouldn''t be able to function properly without good rest." She said as she fixed her sses back to their ce.
"Yes, and I understand." Sam said, poking some of the chicken with his fork. "It''s just that I had something important to take care of, that''s all."
Something important indeed. He was too busy making a life changing discovery that would make his life much easier from today onward. But he wasn''t about to tell her that, obviously. That secret isn''t something he would ever share with anyone.
When neither followed up with anything the two continued eathing their food silently for a while.
"Did something happen while I wasn''t around, sergeant?" Sam asked, deciding to address the elephant in the room.
"Make a guess." Shizuru said, bringing the fork to her mouth.
Sam kept his silence for a few seconds then turned to look around him. He already had an idea of what''s wrong.
"I don''t see sergeant Jordan."
"Well, after what happened¡" letting out a long sigh, Shizuru then followed. "I doubt he would be approaching me any time soon."
"Did you finally reject him properly?" Sam asked.
"It wasn''t easy, really." Shizuru replied. "He didn''t take it nicely."
"I can see that happening."
It all took ce during lunch when Sam was passed out in theb. Jordan approached Shizuru as usual, but seeing that Sam wasn''t there for the second time that day he started badmouthing him more and more in an attempt to make himself look good.
Unable to take it anymore Shizuru snapped at him saying she was trying to polite before and that she''s done putting up with him. Making it clear that she had no interest in him at all, she then went and told him to stay away from her unless he wanted a report to be filed against him.
Everything happened publicly and many were there to witness it. Jordan was furious and started throwing insults like a kid. He then left while promising that she would regret rejecting him very soon.
"Who would''ve thought you''re capable of such things." Sam said once the story was finished.
"Even I have my limits." Shizuru replied.
"I only assumed it before but¡ you really don''t like him, huh?"
"Well, he just isn''t my type. And his inability to take the hint is infuriating."
"Oh he did take the hint." Swallowing thest bite of his meal, Sam moved on to the desert and picked the cup of pudding. "He just didn''t give up."
"I hope he doesn''t do anything foolish."
The two finished their meal uninterrupted for the first time in a while. Since she didn''t have to leave abruptly, Sam offered to walk Shizuru back to the female dorms before going back to his room.
As they walked, a strange atmosphere began to surround the two. Sam felt nervous for some reason, but then he noticed that the Asian girl seemed to be on edge as well. As they approached the point where they would be going their separate ways, Shizuru came to a stop.
"Is something wrong?" Sam asked, ncing around them trying to see if anything is amiss.
"Um, well¡" struggling to speak at first, the girl Cleared her throat with a cough then looked directly at Sam. "Doctor. You are currently single, right?"
Chapter 20 Proposition.
"You are currently single, right?"
The question took Sam off guard and for a moment he didn''t know how to answer.
"Yes. I''m surprised you figured it out." He replied sarcastically, trying to hide his nervousness.
Though it would be easy to jump at conclusions, Sam was careful not to let himself do so. The intent behind the question might seem clear at first, however he feared the possibility of it being just misunderstanding.
Unless the girl confirms it herself, he didn''t want to make assumptions.
"Well I guessed that you wouldn''t be eating with me if you had a girlfriend." Shizuru replied, having taken what he said seriously.
"The same goes for you, doesn''t it?" Sam asked. "Rejecting Jordan would''ve been much easier if you were dating someone."
"Exactly. That''s why I have a proposition." Looking him straight in the eyes, Shizuru''s cheeks took on a faint pink color as she spoke. "How about we start dating?"
When his suspicion was confirmed Sam''s eyes were lowered into a sharp re instead of going wide, but that onlysted for a moment. Hoping the girls didn''t notice it he tried following with an obvious questiong.
"Sergeant Kurokami, where did thise from all of a sudden?"
It''s not that he wasn''t happy about it. The woman he''s been interested in for quite a while was now suggesting that they start dating. However something felt off about it.
"Well we''re both single and¡ well¡"
Thest words didn''t reach Sam''s ears. Shizuru began fidgeting, her head lowered as she felt her face heating. It seemed like she didn''t know what she was saying before and the embarrassment just caught up with her when Sam asked her that question.
After a few seconds of silence he figured that the conversation would probably take a while so he invited her to a small park on the base where they sat awkwardly on a bench for a while.
"When you didn''t show up for breakfast¡" finally getting over her bashful, Shizuru began talking. "I realized for the first time that we never had agreed to meet during meals."
Sam said nothing. He was aware of that fact, obviously, after all she was the reason he always made sure to eat at a specific time. What he didn''t consider was that the girl would be bothered if he missed one of the meals.
"It felt a bit lonely and made me think, what will happen if we stop eating together?"
"..."
"That''s why I suggested that we¡ that we start dating." Shizuru exined. "We can set time for when we meet and¡ tell each other when we can''t be there. So we wouldn''t wait for nothing."
"... I see¡" Sam said, but he knew as well as she did that such a reason was far too weak for them to start a rtionship. "We can do those things even if we aren''t dating though."
"Well, being in a rtionship would solve a lot of out problems and¡ I also want to¡ I also want to spend more time with you¡"
"Huh?"
Turning to his right, Sam found the Asian girl staring at him with sparkling eyes, her cheeks flushed red.
"We don''t know if this peace willst." She said, inching closer to him little by little. "Shouldn''t we try to experience a normal rtionship while we still can?"
Seeing the intensity in her eyes Sam Couldn''t help backing away.
Isn''t this what I wanted all along? Why am I hesitating?
Just then Zero Five''s face shed in his head and everything became clear at that moment.
Kurokami Shizuru was an attractive young woman, however whenpared to the gorgeous creations that are the Valkyries she suddenly bes average at best. To Sam who now has the opportunity to enjoy something made to surpass the original he no longer felt excited at the thought of getting a human partner. And that didn''t sit well with him.
"Ipletely agree with you, sergeant Kurokami." Sam said with a nod. "Though I have to say, even if we don''t know how much time we have, won''t being hasty about such matters backfire on uster on?"
He was sure that a big part of it is so she could reject people like Jordan, because of that he couldnt help but think it wouldn''t work out between them and didn''t feel like taking her offer seriously.
"Doctor, could it be that you don''t see me as a potential partner?" Turning away from him, Shizuru asked.
"That''s not..." Sam spoke, getting the feeling that he was messing up. "Wait, shouldn''t I be the one asking that question?"
Sam knew very well what it means for a guy to get friend zoned. Too well, in fact. Because of that he never thought their rtionship would develop beyond being acquaintances or friends, just because the girl never showed any sign of having romantic interest in him.
"Well,pared to Jordan you''re far better." Shizuru said. "You''re always calm, you aren''t very talkative and most importantly you like reading as much as I do!"
"Is¡ that so¡"
Finding it hard to believe that such things could be considered attractive, Sam''s replycked enthusiasm.
"You might not know this but you rank pretty high on the list of potential husbands for many of the female staff."
"Seriously?"
"Well, the list focuses too much on your job and ie so¡"
"Yeah, I think I get it¡"
Basically he was a safe bet for marriage. They didn''t really care about being in a romantic rtionship with him, they just want to exploit him for his resources.
"Ah! But I''m not like that!" Shizuru quickly added. "I seriously want to get to know you better, Doctor. I want us to spend more time together and¡"
Once again, as if realize what she said a bit toote, the girl''s face flushed red.
"I thought I didn''t think of you that way but¡" covering her face with both hands she spoke in low voice. "Maybe I do after all¡"
Even if she didn''t say it directly, her words so far could easily be interpreted as a love confession. Sam''s mood soured a little. He wanted to feel happy about it. He really did. But after what Zero five said when offering herself for his experiments, Shizuru''s words seemed a bit dull.
Even if the two of them started dating, he felt that he wouldn''t be able to love her properly all while enjoying the three weapons in secret. That said, Sam had no reason to reject her. It would be too suspicious for him to do so. Not only would it ruin their friendship, it would draw unnecessary attention to him.
Wait, maybe I can use this to my advantage¡
Chapter 21 Bad Timing.
If he excluded the Valkyries, Shizuru was the woman he wanted the most. If they''re talking about a potential partner then she''s at the top of the list.
By dating her not only would he have better coverup for what he does to the weapons, he would also secure someone to be with when the wares to an end.
Sam wasn''t such an idiot that he would think that his y time with the Valkyries would go on forever. As soon as the war ends the weapons would definitely get collected and to make use of their secondary function as artificial wombs they most likely would end up as y things for the wealthy and he would never get the chance to touch them again.
"Um¡ well¡" coughing a little to clear his throat, Sam then gave his answer. "I will be in your care from now on, I guess."
Hearing that, Shizuru''s eyes slowly went wide as she turned to look at him.
"Really?" She asked. "Are you sure you''re okay with that?"
"Well, I would be an idiot if I don''t ept." Feeling a bit embarrassed Sam looked away and scratched the tip of his nose.
"I can''t believe it!" Barely able to contain her excitement, Shizuru stood up. "To think just asking would be enough!"
"You say that as if asking is the easy part." Sam replied.
"Does this mean we are a couple now?" The girl asked.
"Well, yeah. Starting now, I guess."
Sitting back on the bench, Shizuru giggled a little before going silent. She was clearly in a good mood; her smile was more radiant than usual, her profile all the more beautiful. Sam felt his heart skip a beat.
The feeling he had moments earlier was now gone and he no longer felt that his rtionship with the Valkyries would be a problem. Even if her appearance isn''t on pare with the perfect walking weapons, in Sam''s heart Shizuru was now on the same level as them.
As he watched her humming tk herself the girl Suddenly turned to him looking a bit confused.
"What do you think couples usually do, beside, you know¡"
"Even if you ask me¡"
Everything happened so abruptly that they didn''t really know what to do.
"We can''t really go on dates here. Guess those romance novels won''t be of any help to us." She added with a sigh.
"Well, we can-
Just then Sam felt how phone vibrate in his pocket. He took it out and checked the notifications, his mood taking a swing for the worst in less than a second.
"Is something wrong?" Seeing the change in his expression, Shizuru asked.
"Yeah, it''s nothing important." Sam said, his annoyed expression betraying him. "Still, I have to take care of it."
The timing couldn''t have been worse. He had just obtained a girlfriend yet that message decided that now was tbe right time to arrive.
"... I see¡" Shizuru said, looking a bit down. "Well, we can always contin-"
Before she could finish the sentence her mouth was suddenly sealed. Shizuru was frozen still.
Sam''s movements took her by surprise allowing him to steal a kiss before she could react. After a few seconds he finally backed away leaving the girl stunned by what had just urred.
"C''mon." Sam said, turning away to hide his expression. "I will walk you back first."
"... um¡"
Saying nothing, ths two of them got up and headed back to the dorms. The kiss had helped better his mood and as they walked Sam could only think of one thing.
That wasn''t so bad¡
~¡ó~
Today, the 25th of July 2035, was the best day in Sam Sanderson''s life. He discovered a way to have fun with the Valkyries, got to enjoy making out with one of them and he started dating the woman he had his eyes on.
All he had to do was go back to his room for the night and it would''ve been perfect. He just needed to ce his head on the pillow and fall asleep, that way the day would''ve beenplete.
Sadly that message came.
It was a summoning from the base''smander and while he had reasons to fear it, more than the average soldier, Sam knew what it''s most likely about and that only served to drag his mood into the ground.
Once he walked Shizuru back he went to the administration building and stood in front of themander''s office for a couple of minutes fighting urge to just leave. He took a deep breath then knocked on the door. When no answer came he twisted the knob and went in.
"Ugh¡"
The first thing that hit him was the stench of alcohol. It was so unbearable that he went directly to the window and opened it. Once he let some fresh air in he turned to look at the desk where a mountain of whiskey bottles were stacked, along with some vodka here and there.
As if woken up by the cold night breeze cleaning the air inside the room something emerged from between the alcohol bottles.
Long silky white hair, a tall figure with an ample bosom, round ass and slender legs. The uniform she wore was blue in color, the four stripes on her shoulders telling of the position she held.
The woman slowly opened her eyes. Red irises slowly turned in Sam''s directions. If anyone else had witnessed that scene they would surely think they saw a goddess, however by now her looks no longer had an effect on Sam.
"Doctaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!" The woman cried as she threw herself into his arms. "He left me, Doctor! He actually left me!"
"Yeah yeah, that''s horrible, I can''t believe it."
Sam''s voice was monotonecking all emotion. Even though he was being hugged by a crying gorgeous woman, his heart was as calm as monk meditating at the top of a mountain.
Alice Schneider. The colonel in charge of the the forty sixth military base located at the far end of the frontier around what was once known as South Africa. She was a woman of unparalleled beautypeting even with the Valkyries themselves. The sess she had achieved in a short amount of time was record breaking earning her the reputation of the iron maiden who would stop at nothing to achieve her goal.
That woman was now crying her eyes out on Sam''s chest and with this happening more times than he could count he no longer felt anything when it does.
"He said¡ he said that he found someone else!!"
Sam listened to the same story once more. Her fiance had broken the engagement, again. His reason being that she''s always away for work and that he could no longer put up with it, deciding to find a woman who wouldn''t prioritize her career over him.
This was the fifth time it happened. And the reason was the same in each one. Being responsible for a military base meant that Alice had to be present at all times, and with he forty sixth base being the furthest from any human settlement it meant the time she gets to spend with her now ex fiance was far too limited.
It was the curse of sess and being a woman who had just reached her thirties Alice felt it more than anyone else. Her desperate search for a marriage partner always seemed to end with failure. And each time that happens Sam is forced tofort her after she drawns herself in alcohol trying to ease the pain of being left alone.
I wonder how she would react if I told her I got a girlfriend. Sam thought as he gently patted Alice''s hair. It would be really funny if she killed herself because of that.
Chapter 22 Too Deep Into The Zone.
"He cheated on me!!!" Alice cried, clenching Sam''s shirt as he slowly patted her head. "He cheated and didn''t even feel bad about it!!!"
Alice was Sam''s childhood friend. The neighbor''s daughter he had yed with when they were kids. Despite being five years older than him the two spent quite a lot of time together. Obviously that led to him harboring one big crush on her, however she never noticed his feelings, always treating him as her cute little brother.
Eventually his feelings for her died. Cremated then scattered in the wind. He gave up right after she got her second fiancee a few years ago, realizing that she would never see him as a man no matter what he does.
But thereys the problem. Alice sees Sam as her little brother so she has no trouble throwing herself at him. When the alcohol brings out the crybaby inside her she always relies on him to get over it.
This is torture¡
Just like his job so far, Sam is forced to endure the torture of having a beautiful woman so close to him but still being unable to do anything to her. The crush he had did die, of course, but his instincts as a man will never go and he still gets aroused when she is in his arms like that.
The two of them sat on the couch with Alice leaning on his right side. She had taken her shoes off and snuggled close to him, sobbing as he gently rubbed her back.
Any sane person would think they''re a couple if they saw them like this, however the truth is that poor Sam was so deep into the friendzone that she never saw anything wrong with acting this way in front of him.
"Hey, Doctor, tell me¡" Alice spoke, her tears having eased a bit. "What should I do?"
"Even if you ask me¡" Sam let out a long sigh. "Also, I already told you to stop calling me that. I have a name, you know."
"Eeeeh!? But I like calling you Doctor! You''re a Doctor, aren''t you, Doctor?"
"Now you''re talking nonsense¡"
At some point Sam noticed that everyone had started to refer to him as Doctor. While it does describe his position as the Valkyries'' physician, the reality was that it''s just nickname the other soldiers gave him because of his appearance.
Sam never leaves his room without the whiteb coat on his back, add to that the sses he wore, his silent attitude andcold demeanor and he looked like the stereotypical scientist one would see in movies and TV shows.
In the forty sixth military base Sam was a sergeant, much like Kurokami Shizuru, however everyone referred to him by Doctor and when Alice heard about it she started calling him by that as well.
"Who cares about that!" Alice suddenly snapped, going into her angry drunk phase without a warning. "What I want to know is why I always end up alone! Why can''t I lock a husband already!!! All my friend have kids! And I''m here trapped in this boring wastnd!!!"
"I don''t want to sound harsh but¡" looking away for a moment, Sam spilled a bucket of cold water on her. "You did this to yourself, you know."
"WHAT!?" Alice looked up at him, her red eyes all the more terrifying when she res.
"Well, you should''ve known that a job like this isn''t suitable or someone looking to get married, especially for women." Sam exined. "First of all, long distance rtionships don''t work. You''re always busy, and most men wouldn''t like that. Second, your standards are way too high. Your sess makes it so that the only men that interest you are those at the top of the top, and all of them have options so they won''t put up with you."
That''s right. No matter how beautiful Alice is, she is still human. Beside her looks, she has nothing that other women don''t have. A man with status and wealth would definitely choose a much younger woman who would be much less of a headache than Ms. Colonel over here.
"D-Doctaaaaaa!!!" Switching back to a sad drunk, Alice began bawling her eyes once more. "You''re too cruel! How can you do this to me!!!?"
"Uh, no, you did this to yourself." Sam replied, looking down at her as she buries her head into his chest.
"Is there no hope for me? Why is the world so cruel!?"
The world is cruel, alright. He thought, wishing this headache would end soon. Why do I have to endure all of this?
The answer was quite simple. Even though Alice had broke his heart and never even noticed it Sam could never abandon her. He simply owed her too much. Even his current job was something she got for him. Even if she is like this right now, Alice is a capable woman with connections that reached far and wide. The least he could do in return for the many times she had helped him was to put up with her when she is in this state.
"Tell me, Doctor¡ what should I do?"
The moment she asked that question Sam breathed in relief. It was finallying to an end.
"You could start by lowering your standards." He said. "How about you try dating someone from the base?"
"Don''t be an idiot." Alice said, ber voice growing quiet. "There is no way¡ I would¡ date¡ a subordinate¡"
"Well, suit yourself. You''re the one running out of time here."
"Docta¡ so cruel¡"
A few seconds of silence pass and weak breathing sounds were heard. Once again Sam let out a long sigh d that it had finallye to an end.
He looked down at the woman resting on his chest. Even after passing out drunk she still looked like a model posing for a photoshoot.
For the first time in a long while Sam began to feel his heart throbbing while watching her as she slept of his chest. The silky white hair, the slender body with rich bosom and plump ass. The innocence of her sleeping sleeping face.
Well, I already have a beautiful girlfriend so¡
Stepping on his heart, Sam decided it was time to leave. He picked the sleeping beauty and walked toward a corner of the office where a door was located. It led to a small room with a closet and a bed on which he ced the woman, staying behind for a few seconds to watch her as she slept.
If only did she realize how he felt for her long ago, maybe everything about this would''ve been different. She wouldn''t have to worry about marriage and he wouldn''t have to suffer so much helping her get over broken rtionships.
No¡ that''s not it¡
Chapter 23 Maybe I Should Just...
Sam put a halt to his thoughts, reminding himself that it was all his fault.
He didn''t have the courage to confess to her. Alice never saw him as a man yet he refused to do anything about it, continuing to orbit around her all while his resentment built up each time she picked another guy over him.
Now that his feelings for her died only self pity was left and the idea that he might have a chance once she gets rejected cause him to feel disgusted by his own mindset.
I can''t help but wonder¡ Sam thought, reaching with his hand to brush a few strands away from her face. What could I have done to make you notice me?
Alice was a strong and capable woman, only men at the top of human society were able to catch her interest. Sam was nowhere near that level,cking everything from wealth, status and looks. If he had confessed to her back then, she would probably have shut him down so badly he would never have recovered from it. Not much has changed since then either.
"Look at you, sleeping peacefully even while I''m still around." Sam whisper, his eyes still locked on the sleeping Alice. "Am I so worthless that you never considered me as a danger?"
Anger was building up in his heart. This was supposed to be the perfect day. He got to enjoy one of the Valkyries and the woman he was interested in asked him out. He wished he had ignored that message. If he did then maybe he wouldn''t have had to go through all of this. And it was all her fault.
"Maybe I should just ra.pe you." He said. "Would you start seeing me as a man then?"
The sleeping beauty offered no response, obviously, and though he never had a drop of alcohol Sam was starting to act weirdly. He reached with both his hands and unbuttoned her shirt. His actionscked hesitation, even when he was fully aware that he''s about tomit a crime. She wore a ck sports bra underneath, something unexpected of a woman of her type.
ncing up Sam checked if the woman was still asleep, however the moment he saw her face as she slept peacefully all the dark thoughts suddenly disappeared.
What am I doing?...
Sam gritted his teeth. Even when she''s helplessly lying in front of him he is still unable to do anything. The resentment he felt swelled inside, but it wasn''t directed toward Alice, she has done nothing wrong.
The only one at fault was Sam himself. His cowardice was his fault and his alone, the only one to me here is himself. Alice was innocent, she owed him nothing and he realized that.
In fact he was the one oweing her a lot. More than he could count. He would never be able to pay his debt no matter how much he tries yet here he was about to harm her just to satisfy the anger boiling inside him.
Did I really get over her? Sam thought, doubts about his own feelings resurfacing.
Letting out a long sigh he fixed her shirt and stood up to leave, but before he did he turned to take one more look at her sleeping face.
This was supposed to be a perfect day. He got to kiss a Valkyrie, then the woman he was interested in. Alice sending him that message ruined it all and once he leaves that room it could never be fixed.
Sam didn''t want it to end like that. He didn''t want his past failures to be the thing that ruins his present and future. If there is one thing he could do to avoid that fate, he had to do it or go to bed full of regret.
As he stared at the sleeping beauty, her rosy lips came into sight. They looked strangely glossy as if they were inviting him in. Before reason could get a chance at stopping him, Sam leaned down and kissed Alice. It onlysted for a second, the stench of alcohol ruining it all. But once it was done he felt the weight on his shoulders dropping and his anger fading away.
"I will let you go with this much." Sam said as he stepped away. "But only this time, understand?"
Obviously, no answer came from the sleeping beauty. His heart was beating faster with each second and as his excitement grew he finally retreated fearing what he might do if he stayed in that room any longer.
The day might not be perfect, thest couple of ours were nothing but a pain. Still, if he had to describe it Sam could confidently say it was one of the best
~¡ó~
A few seconds pass after Sam left themander''s office, Alice''s eyes suddenly snapped open and she quickly lifted herself up. She stared at the entrance to her bedroom for a while, then, once her hazy mind confirmed that everything that had just urred wasn''t a dream, her face blossomed into a brilliant shade of red.
"Eh? Eh!? Eeeeeeeeeh!!!!?"
She held her burning cheeks in both hands and tried her best to understand what happened.
She drank until her head started spinning, summoned Sam so she wouldn''t suffer alone, cried andined until she was too tired to go on, then pretended to be asleep so he would put her in bed because she was toozy to get up herself.
This wasn''t the first time it happened. So far everything went the same as it did for the few dozens times she tried to wash away her sorrows using alcohol. But what happened afterwards was the anomaly.
"Was he about to¡"
Usually Sam would leave as soon he puts her in bed. She heard himin once or twice, however most of the time he just gets out as if he couldn''t wait to do so.
''Maybe I should just **** you.''
The words rang in Alice''s head. This time was different from the others. Sam tried to strip her and even though he decided to stop it was clear he intended to do a lot more than that. Then, just when the danger seemed to have passed, she felt his lips fall on hers.
Alice was in shock. It came out of nowhere, she never even considered the possibility of something of this nature happening. The only reason she continued to pretend being asleep was that the shock froze her leaving her unable to react.
Sam was like a little brother to her, she still remembers seeing him as a baby sleeping in his mother''s arms. That innocent child was about to assault her a few minutes ago. Alice started trembling from both horror and embarrassment.
''Am I so worthless that you never considered me as a danger''
''Would you start seeing me as a man then?''
Remembering what he said, Alice began to notice the huge blunder she had made. Sam was a man now. An adult male just like any of the others. He was no longer the little brother she used to y with. And the same goes for her. She''s now an adult female, even so she has been inviting him to meet in private without considering the implications.
Suddenly all the times the two of them hugged and cuddled shed through her mind, the ones from when Sam was a teenager being especially clear.
Alice took her pillow, buried her face in it and screamed until she lost her voice. Even after that her embarrassment was still going strong.
Now that I think about it he seemed strangely upset whenever I told him about my engagements. Alice though, reminiscing about the times she forced him to celebrate with her. Was he jealous, perhaps?
That one kiss was enough to sober her up and for the rest of the night Alice couldn''t stop herself from thinking about him.
Sam didn''t know it himself but that night he had finally achieved a goal he had long since given up on. He finally made Alice recognize him as a man.
Chapter 24 Dating In A Military Base.
Morning came and Sam woke up feeling rather refreshed. Remembering the events from the previous night he couldn''t help but let a giant grin creep on his face.
Somehow he had managed to get a kiss from three of the most attractive women on his list. And that wasn''t all of it.
A new life had opened its doors for him. He managed to obtain a cute girlfriend, one of the Valkyries is now his ything and the other two will soon follow. Before he knew it Sam already had a harem of his own. His only regret was that he can''t make Alice a part of it, but he knew that would be asking for too much.
I wonder who I should y with today. He was in such a good mood that he started humming to himself while showering. Guess I will give Nine a try. I have been looking forward to banging her ever since I saw her for the first time.
He started to recall the time she kneeled in front of him preparing to give him a blow job. That thought alone was enough to make him hard and his excitement only grew from there.
I need to calm down¡
Taking a deep breath he forced the lewd thoughts out of his mind and wore his usual calm and stoic mask. No matter how happy he was Sam knew it would be for the best if he didn''t let it show. Coming out of the shower he heard a beep from his phone. Shizuru had sent him a message saying she''ll wait for him at the spot they parted inst night.
Despite his efforts Sam began to grin once more. He quickly wore his clothes, put on his sses andb coat then left his room. The meeting spot wasn''t that far away and soon enough he was able to spot the short Asian girl. It seems she saw him as well, waving in his direction with a big smile on her face.
"Good morning, Doctor."
"Sergeant Kurokami. Good morning."
Shizuru''s radiant smile was even more brilliant this morning. After silently staring at each other for a few seconds she suddenly looked away, her embarrassment evident by the red color reaching the tips of her ears.
"Shall we head to the cafeteria?" Sam asked, enjoying the sight of his bashful girlfriend to the fullest.
"Yes. Let''s".
The two turned around and began to walk. The silent was a bit awkward but enjoyable nevertheless. Sam had dated a few women back in college but this was the first time he felt so much fun.
"Ah! By the way." Breaking the ice, Shizuru brought up something she was waiting to tell him about. "Apparently the military has some rules about intimate rtionships among soldiers."
"Really?" Sam raised an eyebrow.
"Yes. Well, most are what one would expect in a professional workspace. Something about public morals and such."
"I see¡"
"To summarize everything, those in a rtionship aren''t allowed to show it in public. They must treat everyone with the same professionalism."
"Hmm¡ that means we just have to go about things the same as we did so far, right?" Sam said.
"I don''t really see a problem with that."
The two reached their destination and got their food. It was early in the morning so there weren''t that many soldiers around. Sam''s favorite table was empty so they walked over to right away, but before they sat down an idea popped into Sam''s head.
"Sergeant Kurokami. Can you move to the other seat?"
"Huh? Y-yes! No problem!"
Instead of sitting across from each other, Sam asked Shizuru to sit at the edge of the table while he took the chair beside her. With the wall on her left and Sam on her right, Shizuru had nothing to worry about even if a certain someone decides to show up. Or so were Sam''s thoughts.
About to bite into his toast he noticed that his cute girlfriend was looking at him from the corner of her eye.
"Is something wrong?" He asked.
"N-nothing!" Picking up her cup she blew over the steaming hot milk then took a sip.
Sam didn''t let it bother him and turned his focus to his food. A few minutester he began to feel that something was strange. Whenever someone new enters they look in his direction and their eyes would go wide. Some continued to stare for a few seconds before going to get their food, others didn''t look away even after taking their seats.
"Is it just me or¡Are we getting more attention than usual?" Sam said, taking a sip of his coffee substitute.
"Well¡ it''s to be expected¡" as she spoke, Shizuru refused to look up from her tray. When he turned to look Sam noticed the steam rising from her head making him realize that he might''ve done something to embarrass her.
"Could it be¡" looking around the room, Sam noticed that they were the center of attention and most of those present were looking their way. "Did they already find out about us?"
Being the subject of scrutiny ever since he started his job at this base, Sam had developed a habit of sitting with his back turned to the rest of the crowd. By doing so he avoided looking at anyone while eating his meals, but now that he changed the angle he was forced to notice things he didn''t see before.
"Eh!? You don''t know!!?" Shizuru turned to him with a look of surprise.
"Know what?"
It wasn''t the first time the two of them sat at that table. The only difference was that Sam had changed his seat. For a moment he thought that it might be something else, however turns out he was right on the spot.
"Um¡ you see, corner seats like these are usually taken by couples." As she spoke, Shizuru was fidgeting a little as she did her best to not cover her face with both hands. "Whenever a duo sits in a ce like this, it''s as if they''re telling the others to leave them alone."
"Hmm¡ but, we sat here many times before, didn''t we?" Sam asked. Even if he was used to ignoring the crowd he was sure that people never gave them those looks before. Also, a certain someone joined them quite frequently. If such rules really existed then no one would''ve bothered them before
"Well, when you take that seat instead of the one you''re used to, it''s as if you''re dering that I''m your girlfriend now."
"Is that so¡"
His intentions might have been different but in the end the results he got were far better than he had expected. And as if to confirm his conclusion, Jordan entered the cafeteria a couple of minutester and froze when he spotted them. Sam had to fight the urge to smirk but he must''ve failed to suppress his smile as the orange haired man stormed out soon after their eyes met.
Chapter 25 Apology.
Though a lot has changed in one day the way Sam spends his time wasn''t affected all that much. Shizuru still has to go to her post and the Valkyries were busy doing their own thing so he had free time all the way till the afternoon.
He decided to drop by the library as usual, picking a book and reading through it to pass time. Doing so reminded him that he has yet to give Shizuru the book he had brought for her. It hadpletely escaped his mind after he discovered that crime against literature called Valkyrie Smash.
To his disappointment unlike that time Nine didn''t show up at the library. He hoped that he could lead her to theb where he would start another experiment of his, but apparently today wasn''t it.
On a separate note the male and female soldiers he and Nine peeped on that time still came to the library to have their fun. After thinking about it for a while Sam realized that they didn''t have much of a choice as the rooms in the dorms were shared among the soldiers and only a select few had rooms of their own.
Sam was one of those lucky few. His position as the Valkyries'' physislcian gave him a slightly higher status than the other soldiers so he enjoyed a few privileges the others didn''t have.
The forty sixth base was too far from most human settlements which led to only the most nessary resources being transported there. Being in a rtively safe part of the front line it wouldn''t be strange for it to be abandoned at some point to conserve resources which means building bigger constructions would only be a waste.
Once the frontline is advanced and morend is reimed there might be some efforts to restore one of the nearby abandoned cities, but until then the soldiers stationed at the forty sixth base are forced to withstand the boring cramped lifestyle.
After a while Sam headed to hisb making sure to get a cup of coffee on his way. He still had a lot of free time so he decided to spend it reading more of the Valkyries'' Blue prints.
Just when he turned on the terminal he noticed someone peeking into the room.
"Zero Three?"
Realizing she had been caught the young Valkyrie tried to hide a few secondster she made her way inside looking rather embarrassed.
"Is something wrong?" Sam asked.
The girl stood in her ce fidgeting a little. It was clear that she had something to say but was too embarrassed to do so.
"Um¡ there is something¡ I wanted to talk to you about¡"
After much struggle she finally managed to squeeze out those words, however it seemed that she would need a lot more time to go on.
"Good timing." Sam said as he pulled a chair from the corner of the room. "I also have something to talk about."
He offered the seat to Zero Three who looked rather surprised then sat across from her.
Sam took a few moments to appreciate the Valkyries cuteness. She wore the same cosy like uniform as Zero Five, however unlike the much more mature and well endowed Valkyrie Zero Three was smaller and less developed making her look a lot more like a schoolgirl.
When thinking about it that way Sam felt a little bad about wanting to have his way with her. He couldn''t deny the fact that she was designed to be under eighteen.
Sam wasn''t so keen onmitting that kind of crime no matter how appealing he thinks she is, however in the end he convinced himself that she''s nothing more than a well made robot, it would be pointless to try and apply social constructs to her.
Not to mention, no matter how much he waits she would never grow up into an adult. She will always look like a sixteen year old girl even a hundred years from now.
Weebs sure have no moralpass. Sam thought as he remembered what Odin took as a reference when creating the walking weapons. Well, maybe we should be d he didn''t go any lower than this.
"First of all, I want to apologize for what I said the other day." Sam said, watching as the girl''s eyes slowly widened. "As an average human, I''m not very knowledgeable about fighting the Cmities. You, a Valkyrie who''s been made for that purpose, must be aware of the best actions to be taken on the field. It was pretty presumptuous of me to speak on the matter when you''re more of an expert than I am."
Not seen his apologying panic started to show on Zero Three''s face. He didn''t know why she came but it was an opportunity he didn''t want to waste. After all among the three Valkyries she would be the one most difficult to capture.
"Um, well, as long as you understand¡" the young Valkyrie said, unable to look him in the eyes. "I¡ also came to apologize. I realized I have been too harsh that time so¡ sorry¡"
In her Valkyrie file on top of being an energetic athletic girl Zero Three was described as a tsundere; someone with a harsh personality that has difficulty showing their true emotions. It stated that the process in which one wins her over is slow and takes a significant amount of time. She would eventually warm up to the one she chooses to be her master before starting to show affection toward him.
In order to achieve his goal of getting to y with all three Valkyries Sam realized that he would have to invest s lot of time into the short one.
There are no shortcuts to take as well since the file made it clear that any type of rash advances could damage the rtionship one has with Zero Three.
Now that I think about it, Zero Five was way too easy.
Sam didn''t really know how he managed to capture the Valkyrie with the ponytail. She had just fallen into his hands when he attempted his experiments. The same couldn''t be done with Zero Three. She''s clearly moreplicated and won''t just choose anyone.
Thankfully since he''s pretty much the only one the Valkyries interact with Sam didn''t have anypetition to be afraid of. All he needed to do was to slowly work on his rtionship with her until she eventually recognizes him as her master. And to do so the first thing he needs is to fix their rtionship and show the Valkyrie that he cares about her.
"Three¡" getting up from his chair, Sam knelt before the Valkyrie and looked up at her. "I might have worded it the wrong way before, but I really wish that you would be more careful out there."
The girl looked at him with wavering eyes. Seeing the seriousness in his expression she couldn''t bring herself to argue back. She hung her head in silence waiting for him to finish his speech, however the words that followed were different from what she had in mind.
"That day, when I saw you being carried inside on a stretcher, it really pained my heart."
Despite his questionable intentions at the moment, Sam''s words had some truth to them. One simply can''t avoid feeling ufortable seeing the mutted body of a young girl. The fact that they were sending what looked like a helpless girl to a merciless battlefield felt morally wrong even if she has the ability to rip an adult man apart with her bare hands.
"Three, I want you to return home safely each time." Sam said, reaching out and taking the Valkyries'' hand into his. "If it was up to me I wouldn''t send you out at all, however we have no choice but to rely on you. That''s why I want you to promise me one thing."
Waiting until she looked him in the eyes, Sam told her his wish.
"Primise me that you won''t do anything careless, and that you''ll always make it back."
For a few seconds Zero Three didn''t know how to respond. She looked rather conflicted, her eyes moving from one corner to the other as she bit her lower lip. Having reached her conclusion after a while, the Valkyrie closed her eyes and took a deep breath. When she opened them Sam somehow felt her determination as she dered with a smile.
"I will do my best!"
Chapter 26 Reply.
Soon after Zero Three left Sam went back to what he was doing, however the moment he turned on the terminal he noticed something strange.
It was an email notification. The only reason he would see one on the terminal used to operate Eir is if the Resistance HQ has questions about his reports. That thought alone caused him to panic and he quickly moved to open it.
A quick read made him realize that although he was in the safe at the moment, he wasn''t exactly out of trouble.
The message was a reply to the report be made the other day when Zero Three got injured. In it he expressed his concern over the Valkyries'' recent strange behavior, like how Zero Five asked him if he sees her as a human or how Zero Three seemed to look down on them.
The reply he received was unexpected. Whoever wrote it questioned Sam''spetence as the Valkyries'' physician telling him to stop watching sci-fi movies.
They said hecked basic knowledge about the humanoid weapons, which isn''t exactly wrong as his main job is to operate Eir. He didn''t really need to know much about the Valkyries to do so.
What''s wrong with this guy? Sam thought. He''s being quite rude.
The reply went on to address the concerns he had, however their answers were quite vague, probably because they didn''t have ess to the Valkyrie files. They told him that he had nothing to worry about unless the weapons start talking in anguage that doesn''t exist or stop speaking at all.
He remembered reading something about that in the Valkyrie Project blue prints. There were a number of restrictions put in ce that made sure the AI''s base program doesn''t change. He didn''t know if it was 100% safe, however if the weapons were really going out of
control they would probably show more malfunctions instead of asking philosophical questions.
As for when Nine touched him, the reply stated that there are no restrictions preventing the Valkyries from touching people. Staff are usually prohibited from making physical contact, however there is nothing preventing Valkyries themselves from doing so.
Of course there are restrictions preventing them from using their destructive power on humans, and if they were really malfunctioning then he wouldn''t be alive to tell the tale.
Sam realized how rash he was in sending that report. Back then he didn''t know anything about the three weapons so when they started acting out of the ordinary he just panicked. Now that he got his hands on Valkyrie Smash and learned their secrets he felt stupid for thinking that those three were about to start another apocalypse.
It wouldn''t be funny if a bunch of sex bots decided to revolt against humans.
Sam could onlyugh at the idea. Thankfully his report wasn''t taken seriously. They also didn''t seem to notice anything strange about the other reports, which means he got away with what he did to Zero Five.
That said, the fact that they sent a reply meant they were reading his reports. Even if he was in the clear at the moment, he had a feeling that he should take things at a slower pace, one experiment at a time.
When he was done with the email Sam noticed that it was time for lunch, which means another date with his Shizuru.
~¡ó~
"You seem to be in a really good mood, Three."
It was noon and the three Valkyries were outside doing their usual patrol. As they flew through the sky Nine noticed that the youngest among them wasn''t as grumpy as she was the day before and decided to ask right away.
Things were somewhat awkward between the two. When she heard of what Zero Three had said to their Doctor, Nine got mad for the first time since ever. She demanded that the young one apologizes, however she refused and the two lf them had a fight.
That didn''t stop Nine from asking though. She seemed to get over her anger far quicker than one might think.
"Hm? Well¡" normally Zero Three wouldn''t answer such a question honestly, however she was in an especially good mood that day. "Actually I went to see the old man earlier."
"Oh! And? Did you apologize?"
"Well, I intended to but¡" smiling wryly, the young Valkyrie followed. "For some reason he ended up apologizing first."
"Eh!? Why?" Nine didn''t understand.
"Just so you know, I did apologize afterwards." Three decided to make that part clear before her fellow Valkyrie misunderstood. "Apparently he realized that telling us to be careful when fighting was stupid, since we know that better than anyone."
"R-right¡"
As weapons made in order to fight the Cmities, the Valkyries are able to discern the best course of action based on the data collected in real time. Even if their main function is something entirely different, the AI''sbat capabilities are the best they could be. It takes a great level of ignorance to think that anyone would know how to fight the monsters better than them.
That said, there is nothing that could be done if the enemy surpasses their capabilities. Even if they''re humanity''s strongest weapons there is a limit to what they can do.
"... What Five said before¡" Zero Three spoke, her expression clouding a little. "I think I get it now¡"
The Valkyries were weapons created to fight the Cmities. They might look and act like humans, but in the end they''re nothing more than AI loaded into a human shaped shell.
[Doctor is a nice person isn''t he?] Zero Five''s voice came from their telmunication devices.
She was handling the scouting today so she was flying ahead of the other two.
"I think he''s just an idiot." Said Zero Three, letting out an exasperated sigh. "Treating us like humans, worrying about our safety. Only an idiot would do things like that."
"Well, I wouldn''t deny that he''s a bit on the wierd side." Nine said. She then shifted her attention to something else, looking down at the red fields below them. "That aside, don''t you think we can recapture this area soon?"
"Now that you said it¡ but we had that attack just the other day, right?" Said Zero Three. "Doesnt that reset our count?"
[It''s the first Cmity we faced in months.] Zero Five replied. [If we go on for another week without any attacks, we could ask themander to see if we can get permission to cleanse the area.]
"It would be great if we can rebuild one of the cities." A bright smile spread on Zero Three''s face as she considered the possibility. "Maybe then we could get to have some fun instead of being trapped in that boring base."
"Even if we get the humans to build a settlement nearby, I can''t imagine the higher ups giving us permission to go there." Nine said, smiling wryly.
[Humans can be cruel sometimes.]
The three sighed, remembering how most humans see them.
Chapter 27 Experiment 02. (Part One)
The Valkyries finished their work without any incidents. It was another peaceful day, something that had been the ordinary with very few Cmities showing in the area guarded by the forty sixth Resistance base.
Returning home the first thing the three weapons would do is go through the daily examination. Even if they encountered nothing during their outing it was their duty to undergo the procedure just in case the initial scan performed upon their return had missed something.
"I see you''ve faced no problems today." Sam said as he checked the tablet in his hand.
"Nothing out of the ordinary." Nine said, but then her eyes went wide as she remembered something important. "Ah! We managed to reach a new city this time."
"This one was still intact!" Zero Three said, sharing Nine''s enthusiasm. "There isn''t a single building destroyed! It''s as if the Cmities never touched it!"
"It''s quite rare-" what Sam found more amusing was that the young Valkyrie was talking to him normally instead of expressing her annoyance at everything he does. "Though I''ve heard of such a thing before. Apparently ces that were evacuated entirely before the Cmities arrived are always left intact."
"Really?" Zero Three asked.
"Yes. As you already know, the Cmities only target humans. Apparently they don''t bother with anything else. Though we still don''t know why they paint everything red."
The red substance covering most of the territories under the Cmities'' rule was a mystery. A closer inspection revealed that it''sposed mainly of something closely resembling a virus which only affected humans.
At the moment there was no way to fight it once it infected someone, and because it did nothing to other living creatures it was decided to consider it as another type of Cmity.
"Hey, how long would it take go get the city back to what it was?" The young Valkyrie asked, looking at Sam with eyes eyes filled with excitement.
"Sadly, I can''t say for sure." Sam replied, feeling a little bad for stepping on her hopes. "It''s rtively peaceful around here so one would think it''s the best ce to rebuild, however it''s still too far from the other settlements and the resistance doesn''t have enough resources to allocate to this area."
"Is that so¡"
"That said, we might be able to convince the HQ to send over a Cleanser. If we retrieve enough farnd and prove its usefulness it would only be a matter of time before normal civilians move here."
At the moment there are only a few Valkyries who have the power to remove the red virus. Those are called Cleansers and the only time they get deployed is when the Cmities get pushed back and the Resistance regains morend. Their only job is topletely eradicate the red virus to make thend habitable for humans.
"So theck of Cmities alone isn''t enough?" Zero five asked.
"Even if everything has been peaceful, well, except for the other day, we are still in the frontline. Until we''repletely sure everything is safe we can''t risk bringing civilians here."
Noticing that the three weapons didn''t seem too happy about what he said, Sam decided to move on telling them to get into Eir.
Each Valkyrie entered her container and soon enough the viscous green liquid filled them. However one had yet to close.
"Nine, could youe here for a moment."
When she heard the Doctor call her, Nine got nervous thinking something wasn''t right.
Leaving her container she went back to the previous room where the man was waiting for her. Standing in her usual spot she began by asking if she did anything wrong.
"No, I just had a few questions." Sam said as he walked over to her. "It''s about Zero Three."
"Ah! Did she perhaps say more mean things to you?" The blond Valkyrie asked.
"The opposite, actually. She apologized earlier this morning. I suspected that it had something to do with the fight you two had."
"Yes, the other day she just started badmouthing Doctor out of nowhere. When I asked her what''s wrong she told us about the conversation you had with her." As she spoke, Nine looked rather infuriated. "Even though Doctor just wants the best for us. I can''t believe she would be so rude to you."
"Well, she already apologized. I doubt she would discard her sharp tongue any time soon, but don''t be too hard on her. That''s just the way she is."
"I see¡"
Feeling that the conversation hade to an end Nine expected the man to tell her to return to her container, however what happened next came as aplete surprise.
"E-eh!? D-Doctor!!?"
Without a warning Sam reached out with his right hand and grabbed one of her breasts. A momentter he was squeezing the second one as well.
"Doctor! What are you doing!?" Looking up from the hands ying with her chest, Nine tried to question Sam worried that he had just gotten them both in some really big trouble. "You are forbidden from touching us, remember? Won''t we get in trouble because of this?"
Taking his focus off the giant melons for a moment, Sam looked the blond Valkyrie in the eyes.
"You don''t have to worry about that." He said. "I''ve learned that, as your physician, I''m given some permissions others don''t have."
"I-is that so¡"
Nine found it difficult to believe. She looked down at Sam''s hands. It was weird to have him touch her like that, however soon she found herself enjoying the sensation. A smile spread on her lips and a momentter something clicked in her mind.
"Doctor! Does that mean we can try that?"
Sam knew what she was referring to right away. He smiled back at her as if to confirm her guess, he then brought his face close to her stole her lips without hesitation.
For a moment Nine was frozen still, however in the next she learned the pleasure of kissing and began to desire more and more. Sam didn''t hold back using his tongue right from the get go. Before he knew it the Valkyrie already had her arms around his neck, her chest pressed t against his.
A minute or so passed before the two separated, however that didn''tst as the Valkyrie pulled him in and started kissing again. He could get his fill making out with her at another time though. Intending to use what little they have right now for something else, Sam pushed the Valkyrie away and as she pouted he exined to her what''s going on.
"Today we will be doing an experiment. We don''t have a lot of time so¡" Sam said, holding the Valkyrie by the shoulders to prevent her from suddenly jumping on him. "How about we try what we saw that time in the library?"
The moment he mentioned it Nine''s eyes widened and her excitement spiked. Not wasting any second she immediately went down to her knees. In front of her face was Sam''s crotch, arge bulge having formed on it.
Chapter 28 Experiment 02. (Part Two)
Sam was already hard after getting to y with Nine''s gigantic breasts, however when he saw her on her knees in front of him his excitement reached new levels and he immediately unbuckled his pants.
The Valkyrie watched, eyes filled with anticipation as the Doctor finally revealed his tool. She wasn''t an expert on human anatomy, especially the male side, so she didn''t know how important size was. With that said, when shepared Sam''s with the only other tool she saw thus far, the one belonging to the soldier they peeped on in the library, Nine was surprized to see such a significant difference.
"So this is Doctor''s male part¡" She said, leaning forward a little to get a closer look. "Does the shape differ between individuals? Though it''s much thicker than that of the soldiers we saw the other day, I would say yours is a bit shorter, Doctor."
Sam felt a heavy hit to his chest causing him to recoil. The blond Valkyrie clearly had no idea what she was talking about, however hearing her say his rod is small did hurt quite a bit.
Wait, I''m pretty sure it''s not that small¡ Sam thought, looking down at his own penis. I would say it''s¡ average¡
He tried to rationalize what Nine said as just an observation. Also, she did mention that his was much thicker so it wasn''t like hepletely lost thepetition.
"Nine, it''s rude toment on the size of a man''s organ." He said with a forced smile.
"Ah! Sorry! I didn''t really know¡" Nine replied with a flustered voice.
Annoyed and getting tired of the wait Sam inched closer to the Valkyrie, cing his tool right in front of her lips.
"You don''t have to be concerned about its shape or size." Sam said, staring down at Nine with half lid eyes. "After all mine will be the only one you''ll ever experience."
The blond Valkyrie looked at him with wide eyes, seemingly a bit shocked. A momentter however a smile spread on her face as her expression became more coquettish.
"Yes, of course!" She said, her hand moving to touch the fully erect rod. "Doctor is the only one I can do this with, after all." She began to slowly stroke before wrapping her delicate fingers around it. "I just have to follow the same steps as that female soldier, correct?"
"... yes¡" Sam said, his entire body having frozen for a moment when he felt her grip.
"Then¡"
Moving her eyes down to the target, Nine moved it up a little and ced it on her lips, then, without much hesitation, she gobbled the entire thing in one go.
Sam felt a spark move up his spine, his whole body stiffening. It had taken him byplete surprise. He had never expected that the first thing she would do to be deepthroating his entire tool in one go.
It took quite a bit of concentration to not ejacte right then and there, and just when he started to feel the warmth of her mouth Nine moved back, her lips sliding on the shaft as she slowly took his thing out.
Taking it in her hand once more, she began stroking it up and down, the saliva covering it acting as a lub.
"How does it feel, Doctor~?" Nine spoke, smiling as if she already knew how he felt.
"Y-yeah¡ it feels good¡ keep going¡"
"Then~?"
Same as before, Nine didn''t hesitate when bringing the rod to her mouth. She began from the base, slowly running her tongue along the shaft all the way to the tip where she would stop to suck on it a little.
The way she gasped for air spoke of her arousal. Her movements were slow and precise, almost as if she already knew what''s she doing. When she said she would follow the same steps as that female soldier Sam didn''t have enough time to think it through. What Nine did was imitate the actions of a much experienced woman, because of that she ended up skipping the part where she has to learn stuff making it seem as if she knew what she was doing even though it was her first time touching a penis.
"Hah¡ mmn¡ ha~~h~?"
Either way, Sam couldn''t deny how incredible it felt. A Valkyrie was licking and sucking his rod as if it was the most delicious thing she had ever tasted. Watching that beautiful creation from above, the pleasure he was experiencing was magnified and he soon found himself about to climax.
As if catching on to that the Nine went down sucking on his balls while tightening her grip, moving her hand faster and faster. A momentter white fluid erupted from the tip, shooting up before sttering all over Nine''s face.
"Ha~~?"
Letting out an extremely sensual sigh, Nine backed away an looked up at Sam with a smile.
"That was¡ incredible¡" Sam said, looking down the see the Valkyrie''s sullied face. "You''re really good at this, Nine."
"Is that so~?" She said, her smile deepening. "I''m d you enjoyed it, Doctor~?"
As she remembers the female soldier would usually stop for a while once the white fluides out. Though she did the same the Valkyrie didn''t know much about it so she just decided to ask.
"By the way, Doctor." She said, shifting her attention back to his rod which had shrunken a little after releasing his load. "What is this white liquid? It smells strange but¡ I don''t think it''s urine¡"
"That''s¡" it was a bit awkward to exin. For a woman who had just gave oral sex to not know what it was, Sam found it quite wierd. "It''s sperm. The male seed."
"Ah! So this is what causes females to get pregnant?" Nine said, sping her hand together in realization.
"Yes, that''s correct."
Not much time had passed but Sam''s tool was already rearing to go. Noticing that Nine gasped before smiling. She was already aware of what that meant.
Not waiting for Sam''s permission she began working her tongue cleaning the sticky stuff leaking from the tip. She then stopped for a moment to swallow, gazing at the penis which was now covered in ayer of saliva instead.
Moving on to the next step she remembered, Nine shoved the whole thing inside her mouth before slowly taking most of it out. She then began bobbing her head back and forth pushing the thick rod all the way to the back of her throat.
Nine waspletely engrossed into the act, so much that she had failed to notice the leak in her groin. Before long the penis began to twitch again and the next moment another eruption urred with everything being released inside her mouth as Sam held her head in ce while thrusting his hips forward.
Left with no other option the Valkyrie gulped down everyst drop. A few secondster Sam finall began to rx letting go of her head and backing away.
"Sorry, I couldn''t help myself." He apologized, seeing her hold a hand to cover her mouth, a difficult expression on her face.
Sam didn''t really feel bad about finishing like that. Quite the opposite, in fact. He quite enjoyed ejacting directly inside her mouth and nned on doing it whenever possible. However the Valkyrie herself didn''t seem to like it that much, or so he thought until she regained her coquettish smile a couple of secondster.
"That was close¡" she said, cing a hand on her chest as she heaved a satisfied sigh. "I almost spit it out by mistake."
Hearing that, Sam couldn''t help but smile.
Chapter 29 Experiment 02. (Part Three)
When checking Nine''s Valkyrie file Sam was surprised to find nothing that could help him be her master. No hint was provided in the personality section.
She was described as the big sister type who cares for those around her. The file said that she would definitely make a good mother and wife, however it never mentioned anything about how to make her into one.
Sam had no idea on how to go about making her his ything, however he didn''t have to think too hard about it, after all she had already came to him once with the intention to partake in erotic acts.
"Doctor~?" Nine said, panting with as she smiled at Sam. "Does it feel good~?"
"A-ah, yes, really¡ really good¡"
"I see¡"
The Valkyrie was still on her knees, this time using her giant breasts to service the Doctor who was sitting on his chair, his pants having fallen off.
"But honestly, to think there are so many ways to stimte the male organ." She said, bringing her attention down to his crotch which was hidden underneath her chest. "Those two in the library didn''t do this even once."
"Probably¡ because she didn''t have a chest¡ like yours¡"
Sam was having a difficult time keeping his thoughts together. Though she was still wearing her tightbat suit, the softness of her marshmallows was still mind numbing.
? "Now that you said it¡"
Nine''s chest was way toorgepared to that of the average female human. Most of the Valkyries had oversized breasts, however she was one among the few who had such aical size that couldn''t possibly work normally.
They are so big that Sam''s rod waspletely buried between them. Nine had to lift them from below due to their sheer size which took a considerable amount of effort, however seeing Sam''s reaction increased her excitement and she was trying her best to make him cum once again.
It wasn''t before long that the sticky white fluid erupted and after a couple of seconds it began filling her cleavage.
"A lot came out this time too~?"
That was the third one, however Sam didn''t feel satisfied yet. After unloading that much his reserves should''ve been empty making it difficult to go on, however for some reason his rod was already preparing for the next round less than a minute after he finished.
Sam stood up and pushed the chair away. Nine noticed his spear and knew it was already time for the forth round. This time however she didn''t have to do much herself.
Sam reached out with both hands and grabbed her gigantic milkers, their shape having changed a little as her nipples seemed to have hardened. He gave them a good squeeze then pressed them together, he then proceeded to slowly insert his hard cock between them.
Watching him carefully Nine straightened her back so that she would be at a more optimal height. She remembered seeing something like this back in the library, although a bit different. And as if to confirm her guess Sam began moving his hips at a pace that quickly increased.
The Valkyrie didn''t understand why but it felt different from when she was the one moving. Her heart was beating much faster and a certain part of her felt awfully itchy. Before she knew it her hand had slid between her thighs. It was then when she noticed how wet her crotch area was.
Nevertheless she began massaging herher and the next moment her nerves were suddenly flooded with a feeling she had never experienced before.
"Ahh~? ahh~? mhaah~? ahhAAAHHHHH~~?!!!"
Her fingers moved in ordance to Sam''s pace and with ast thrust the two of them climaxed at the same time.
Sam held on to Nine''s breasts as his rod pumped his sticky white substance between them. Nine was panting uncontrobly, her mind a bit hazy after experiencing that kind of pleasure for the first time.
"Haa~~h~?¡"
Pulling her hand from between her legs, Nine looked at how drenched it was. Sam, having pulled his thing out, backed away to catch his breath. When he let go of the giant marshmallows the sticky liquid trapped between them flowed down her stomach and onto her thighs. It wasn''t his intention but the Valkyrie was now covered in his semen from head to toe.
"I see you came as well¡" Sam said, noticing her stained hand.
Nine tilted her head at him, not understanding what she was talking about.
"Um¡ how do you exin this¡" Sam stopped to think. It was another thing one usually didn''t need to exin so it was difficult to do so, but he tried his best anyways using what he already knew. "Remember how your muscles tensed up this entire time, especially around your¡ well, down there¡" he said, pointing at herher. Nine followed him with her eyes which widened the next moment as if she understood what he meant. "Cumming is when that tention gets released. It''s also called climaxing."
"... it felt¡ so~ go~od?" Nine said, looking down at her soiled body.
"Is that so?"
It was impossible to know if the Valkyries actually felt sexual pleasure, as they aren''t exactly human. However ording to the Frejya file they were all made to be the best sexual partners. Their bodies are programmed to react the same way a normal female would, which meant that at the very least they should be able to recognize how they''re supposed to feel when experiencing the right stimtion.
That was what made them so different from the average sex doll. Doing it with the Valkyries would surely feel like doing it with a real woman, although many times better.
Excited to move on to the main dish, Sam turned to look at the terminal and the reality immediately hit him.
"Let''s end it at this today." He said, his shoulders slumping.
They have already ran out of time.
"Eh!!?" Nine looked up with a start, her expression turning sour. "But we have yet to-"
"Let''s leave it to another time. You still have to go through your examination."
"Then how about we continue after?"
Sam stopped to give it some thought. He took a towel he had prepared beforehand and gave it to the blond Valkyrie. He then used another one to clean his thing.
"No, it would be for the best if we leave it to another day."
After ejacting four times it was inevitable that he would go into sage mode. The idea of going on after the examination was appealing, however he had something else in mind for when he would eventually cross the line with Nine.
First he needed a bed. He wanted their first time to be somewhat special so doing it in theb felt a bitcking. He wanted to go at it for a while without having to worry about time so it would be ideal if they could meet at night. That said he had no idea on how to go about achieving that. It would be impossible to sneak her into his room without anyone noticing, and humans were prohibited from entering the Valkyrie''s quarters so he couldn''t go there himself.
Maybe I should just ask her toe here after dinner time¡ Sam thought as he considered his options. In the end he decided to worry about itter.
"... understood¡" Nine said and began to sulk. She used the towel to wipe herself then returned it to Sam who threw it in a bag immediately.
As she walked to her container Sam reminded her to keep what they did a secret just in case. The examination ended a few minutester and the three Valkyries left like usual as if nothing had happened. Sam moved on to editing the examination results, erasing anything suspicious from Nine''s file as well as Zero Five''s since they continued to make out after yesterday''s report was sent.
With that the second experiment came to an end.
Chapter 30 Good News And Bad News.
Once the examination was done and the report was sent, Sam''s day went on as usual, except for him having to stop by his room to shower and change his clothes.
He spent the afternoon reading a book then met with Shizuru for dinner. Alice didn''t call him that night, which he thought was odd, however he doubted that she wouldmit suicide just because her engagement was broken so he he went to bed without checking on her.
After a night of sound slumber morning soon came. Same as the day before he went through his routine, ate breakfast with his girlfriend then went to the library. Everything had been normal until that point. Just when he sat down with his book, however, he noticed a certain orange head enter the library.
"Sergeant Clementine. Fancy seeing you here." Sam said, his voice full of sarcasm.
"We need to talk." Jordan said, ring down at him while desperately trying to hide his anger.
"Take a seat then."
Seeing how rxed Sam was, with his eyes still on the book even when being talked to, only served to fuel Jordan''s hate. Nevertheless he pulled one of the chairs and sat down facing the Doctor.
"I''ll get straight to the point." The orange head spoke. "How did you two get together?"
"For a moment I thought you were going to threaten me into breaking up with her."
"I''m not that petty." Jordan said. "I know when to give up."
"Then you should''ve done so much earlier." Sam said, looking up from the book. "You should''ve known from the start that she wasn''t interested yet you continued to persist."
"She was single so there was always a hope."
"I see. Well, I wouldn''t fault you for that." Sam said. "In fact I should be thanking you. If it weren''t for your actions I would''ve never got my chance."
"... what?"
"Everything you did made me look better inparison, and if you didn''t annoy her so much she wouldn''t have agreed to dating me."
Jordan stared at Sam for a few seconds, seemingly dumbfounded. Then, a momentter after he processed everything carefully he snapped, standing up and mming his hands on the table.
"You bastard!"
"What are you getting angry about?" Sam said, returning the re. "After doing all of that to make me look bad, you think you have any right toin? You''re an adult for god''s sake, learn to behave like one."
Jordan had no response. After growling for a few seconds he turned around and stormed out of the library. Sam let out a long sigh and put his book down.
"What an idiot." He said, taking his sses off before massaging the bridge of his nose.
As if to add on to his annoyance he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. Taking it out he saw that he had received a message from none other than the base''smander.
"Damn it¡"
He didn''t have much to do at the moment but he still found it annoying to have to deal with his weeping childhood friend.
Returning the book he was reading to its ce he left for the administration building and soon enough he was standing in front of themander''s office. He knocked on the door just in case and to his surprise he received a response.
"Come in."
Going by the tone of her voice Sam didn''t need to see the woman to know she wasn''t in the same state as that night.
Well, it''s the middle of the day after all. Sam thought as he twisted the door handle. Even if she''d lost her fiance she wouldn''t dare drink while on duty.
When Sam entered he saw Alice sitting behind her desk looking over a stack of papers. She was sober, as he had guessed. The way she focused told him the contents of what she was reading were quite important.
"Sergeant Sanderson, you''re already here." Alice said, taking her eyes off the papers for a moment.
"The fact that you bothered to use my name, am I right to assume this is an official meeting?"
"Take a seat."
The way she coldly ignored his statement gave Sam a bad feeling. Taking a deep breath he walked to one of the chairs in front of her desk and sat down.
"Word came from the HQ that our Valkyrie physician sent a wierd report." Alice said, each word oozing seriousness. "It said that the weapons were acting strangely. Now, Sergeant Sanderson, why am I hearing about this only now?"
"Um¡ I actually forgot that I sent it¡" Sam replied with a nervous smile. "Oh! But you don''t have to worry. Turns out it''s all just a mistake on my part."
"Well you would''ve known if you reported to me first instead of informing the headquarter!" mming her hands on the table, the white haired woman stood up and pointed a finger at the Doctor. "Do you even realizeh the amount of shame you''ve caused me by sending such a report!!? I was the one who rmended you for this job!!! Anything you say or do will reflect directly on me!!!"
The report made it sound as if the Valkyries were gaining sentience and oveing their programs, which is something that could only happen in science fiction movies and novels. the people at the HQ probably had a goodugh reading the report that implied the AI were going out of control.
Sam was stunned. He had never seen Alice so agitated. Still, a moment of thought allowed him to get a better grasp on the situation and how to respond. ring back at the base''smander, Sam shut down her argument right away.
"Ma''am, you know the details of my job, right?"
"Hm?"
"I''m tasked with operation Eir, performing the examinations and sending the reports to the Resistance HQ. Unless you specifically order it, delivering such information to you isn''t my responsibility."
"What are you-"
"If it bothered you so much I could let you check the reports before sending them them out." Sam interrupted with a sigh. "However you have to understand that this wasn''t a part of my responsibilities before so you have no right toing to me about it now."
"Well, that''s not exactly wrong¡"
An awkward moment of silence passed as the two spoke nothing to each other. Sam understood that he was a bit rash when sending that report, however no one could fault him for it; he was dealing with highly advanced AI loaded into weapons that could break humans with bi effort. The worst case scenario was too easy to imagine.
That said, Alice wasn''t wrong to tell him that he should''ve checked with her first before informing the HQ. She is his superiors and deserved to know what''s going on in the base she''s responsible for.
"Did something happen?" Sam asked, seeing the difficult expression on Alice''s face.
It''s clear that she''s on edge, so much that she yelled at him a couple of minutes ago. It was too early for her to get over the broken engagement so the way she''s acting was out of ce.
Alice''s eyes swam from one corner to the other and after pondering it over for a while she finally decided to tell him.
"The formal announcement will be made tomorrow anyway." She said, closing her eyes and letting out a long sigh. "We''ve finally managed to reim western Europe."
Sam''s eyes went wide only to be lowered in the next.
"Why are you talking as if it''s not good news."
"That''s because¡" pausing for a moment, themander looked him in the eyes and delivered the news in a dry shaking voice. "We lost the second resistance base, along with the seven Valkyries stationed there."
Chapter 31 Ragnarok Heralds.
"We lost¡ the second base?"
Sam was speechless. The shock from the news he had just heard was just too much.
"Surely you''ve seen footage of it before, right?" Alice said. "J?rmungandr."
"The giant sea serpent¡"
"Yes. Three days ago it suddenly left the north Antic ocean and invaded France. The second base was preparing for such an attack for years, with seven Valkyries being stationed there, however after a ruthless battle they were all wiped out."
"But you said-"
"J?rmungandr was heavily damaged." Themander interrupted. "Reinforcements arrivedte but they were able to finish it off."
Sam had to take a few seconds to let the news sink in. J?rmungandr was one of the monstrosities called the Ragnarok Heralds. They were the five S ss Cmities that brought the end of the world, erasing entire countries in a single night killing billions soon after their appearance.
Those existences had the ability to wipe the clean of humans. The only reason humanity survived was that, after their first emergence, the Heralds stepped back and did nothing giving the Resistance a chance to form.
Taking one down was a big win for humanity, however the thought of those logic defying monsters being on the move again rang countless rm bells in the heads of those still sane enough to understand the implications.
"What about the rest?" Sam asked, his voice slightly shaking.
"The other four didn''t change their movement pattern neither before not after J?rmungandr." Alice said, sounding awfully relieved. "We are still safe for the time being, however just like with the second base we don''t know for sure. It would be idiotic to think things will stay the way they are."
The forty sixth base is located in what once was called south Africa. The region didn''t have many Cmities lurking around and the base didn''t experience any direct attacks ever since it was established.
In addition to that they were as far away from the Heralds as one could be. Nevertheless, the way Cmities operated and the patterns of their actions were a mystery; no one knew where and when they will make their next move.
J?rmungandr was the sole reason why western Europe was empty for a long while. Now that it has been defeated the Resistance has finally reimed two continents reshaping the frontline so it would epass the entire western coastline of both Europe and Africa. It was a really big win.
That said, losing seven Valkyries was a really heavy blow to humanity. The weapons weren''t something that could be mass produced on demand and it took quite some time for a new batch toe out. Seven of them being destroyed along the second Resistance base will leave a scar that wouldn''t heal for quite a while.
"Seven are gone, huh¡" Sam lowered his gaze as he thought, bringing out a mental map of the current locations of the Ragnarok Heralds.
Fenrir and Niddhog are still in the same areas in Russia and east Asia while Jotnar and Fafnir resided in south and north America respectively.
Theter two weren''t much of a concern at the moment as the sea stood in their way, though no one knows whether it''s actually blocking them or they just don''t want to cross it yet. It''s one of the reasons each of the bases along the western African coast have at least three Valkyries.
Fenrir and Niddhog are a much bigger headache since their territories are directly connected to the ones controlled by humans. The bases on that side of the frontline have up to ten Valkyries and are situated close to each other in preparation for when the monstrosities resume the war.
"I would say seven is a cheap price to pay for such a victory." Alice said, crossing her fingers with her elbows on the desk. "Though the amount of human casualties leaves much to be desired, what concerns me isn''t our losses."
Sam could only raise an eyebrow at her statement, not understanding where she was going with that. The white haired woman gazed at him for a while before sighing. She then closed her eyes and exined.
"Four of the seven Valkyries in the second base are from the same generation as Zero Three." She said, observing Sam''s reaction carefully. "Having read the report you sent out, something immediately caught my attention."
Zero Three wasn''t just the youngest Valkyrie in terms of appearance. She was also from thetest generation that had been produced two years ago. One of the characteristics members of this generation shared was their more realistic proportions in addition to all of them looking and acting like teenage girls.
"You said she has been especially rude in recent days." Alice looked at the paper with the report before ncing up at the doctor. "To tell you the truth, during myst visit to the headquarters I heard rumors of this happening in other bases where those units were stationed. The second was one of them."
"That¡ doesn''t sound very good¡" Sammented, the feeling he got when Zero Three lost her temper that timeing back much stronger.
"It''s said that they''re just behaving ording to their personalities, and that alone shouldn''t affect theirbat abilities, however many share your concern that they have been crossing the line recently. Now that four of them have been lost it''s only a matter of time before fingers get pointed at the others."
"Well, the reply I received made it sound like I''m the crazy one."
Sam looked back on everything that had happened. The small argument he had with the young Valkyrie scared him quite a bit, it also led to her having a fight with Nine who rarely ever gets angry. But the two have reconciled afterwards so he had concluded that it was just the young one being a little rebellious.
"Though I understand where you''reing from, I don''t think there is any problem with the Valkyries." Sam said, recalling Zero Three''s determination as she promised him that she would survive. "Yesterday Zero Three came and apologized for what she said. I think we just don''t know how to interact with the AI''s properly. Odin created them a certain way for a reason so maybe the way we treat them is reflected in how they behave around us."
A hint of annoyance appeared on Alice''s face as she leaned on the back of her seat.
"Odin, huh. I don''t know what that idiot was thinking when making those weapons. I mean, couldn''t he make them more efficient instead of¡ that?"
"Well, it''s difficult to guess what goes on in the mind of a genius."
Sam couldn''t help but roll his eyes at his own statement, same as what Alice just did. Everyone knew why the Valkyries were created that way. There was no need to read the secret files to make a guess.
"Anyways, even if it''s just a rumor we can''t just ignore the potential danger we might find ourselves in." Straightening her back, themander took a paper and slid it toward the doctor. "That''s why I have a little job for you."
Reading through the document Sam''s eyes slowly widened. He then ced a hand on his mouth fearing the smile that started to form on his face. It seems that his luck has yet to run out.
Chapter 32 New Mission.
"You''re raising the level of my security clearance?" Sam said, doing his best to hide his true reaction.
"In this base at least." Alice said with a smile. "I want you to keep an eye on the weapons and make sure they aren''t showing any wierd signs."
"Aren''t you being too paranoid? I don''t think they would be able to function normally if there is a bug in their AI."
"Well, this is just a safety precaution. We don''t want anything catching us by surprise."
"Not that we could do much even if we knew." Sam replied, following it with a sigh.
It''s not like they could just rece the Valkyries that lose control. Looking at the AI blue prints it would be aplete disaster if the restrictions ced on the weapons are broken. They would stop functioning entirely and since each one is unique and no backups exist they would have to build a new one from the ground up if they want a recement.
"I''m already aware that you have a lot of free time." Taking another piece of paper, themander held it up for him to see. "I''m not ordering you to spend every waking hour monitoring them, however I would appreciate it if you check on them until they go out on their patrol."
The paper contained Sam''s schedule which puts him on standby for almost the entire day with the examination being the only duty he had to take care of. With that much free time on his hands he had no excuse. Not that he wanted to anyway.
The increased security clearance means that he can now enter the Valkyries'' quarters, one of the most restricted areas on any of the Resistance''s military bases. It was a section that only themander could enter as far as he is aware, with only rumors about what goes on in there circting among the soldiers.
One thing he could be sure of is that the quarters contained bedrooms for each of the Valkyries. Bedrooms mean beds, and there is one thing he wanted to do on them and it''s not sleeping.
Sam began to feel that something odd was going on with his life. No one person could have this much luck. Just when he thought that he would need a ce where he could peacefully enjoy banging the three weapons themander calls and gives him the keys to their rooms. It''s almost as if the whole thing is scripted. Maybe some kind of hidden camera prank aiming to expose his deeds. Or it could be an borate n to ruin his reputation.
Well, I guess I already did that¡
He had already done things he wouldn''t normally get away with. If there really is someone out there watching and waiting for him to do something he isn''t supposed to do then they should already have all the evidence they need to destroy him by now.
This was just another incredible stroke of luck, one that he nned to exploit as much as possible.
But Sam wasn''t an idiot. He wouldn''t jump at the opportunity just because it was presented to him. Alice should already know that he hated his job. It wouldn''t make sense for him to suddenly ept this new mission without pushing back against it.
"Do I really have to do this?" He said, pretending to grimace. "You know I don''t really like interacting with those things, right?"
"Well, we don''t have much of a choice." Themander said. "You''re the only one whose job concerns them so it''s only natural that you have to be the one to do it."
"This will be a major pain¡"
On the inside Sam was dancing. He was already starting to contemte which of the Valkyries would be the first.
"You really don''t like being around them, huh?" Alicemented. "I heard they''re really popr. To think you actually aren''t a fan of theirs."
"Admiring them from afar is one thing." Sam let out an exasperated sigh. "But working with them isn''t as good as it might sound."
"Really?"
"You might not know this since you''re a woman, ma''am, but being subjugated to the temptation on a daily basis isn''t good for one''s mental health."
"Are you saying that¡ you want to sleep with the weapons?" Alice asked with a nervous smile.
"I would be lying if I said I don''t." Sam said, his expression unchanging. "I''m still a man, you know."
"I¡ see¡"
It was only after a few seconds that Sam realized what he just did. Putting aside how creepy it sounded, he had told Alice directly that he was a normal man that has the same thoughts and urges as anyone born with a penis. It was something he wanted to do ever since he realized he had a crush on her but was never able to. To think he would one day just blurt it out in a formal conversation when she''s acting as his superior.
Looking up to confirm Alice''s reaction he realized that he had really done it. The white haired woman was looking away, her face flushing red. His statement reminded her of what happened after he took her to bed the other night and she couldn''t stop her professional mask from falling off.
"Um¡ right¡ I guess you really are a man¡" Alice said, sounding rather flustered. "I guess I¡ sometimes forget about that¡"
Sensing the awkwardness spreading Sam decided it was time to leave. But before he does that he needed to confirm his duties.
"So, all I have to do is check on the weapons from time to time and report to you if I find anything wierd?"
"Hm? Ah! Y-yes! That''s right!"
"Well, I better get going then." Sam said as he got up. "I want to get lunch before they return from their patrol."
"I see¡" taking a deep breath, themander tried to calm herself. "Well, I will be looking forward to your reports."
For some reason the hurry Sam was in to leave made Alice feel a hint of anger. She watched as he reached the door but just when he was about to open it she was surprised to see him stop.
"By the way, Alice." Sam turned around, His eyes carefully studying Alice''s reaction and expression. "How are you feeling?"
Blinking at him repeatedly the white haired woman tilted her head and asked.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, usually when your engagement gets broken you would cry about it for a week." Sam said recalling the half a dozen times it had already happened. "You didn''t call me yesterday so I was starting to get worried."
Once again the only thing Alice could think of was what had happened that night. However seeing the concern on Sam''s face washed away her embarrassment allowing her to respond normally.
"You dont have to worry about that." She said, her lips curving into a warm smile. "I''m over it already."
"Really?" Her response caused him to raise an eyebrow, however if she was hiding the truth then she was doing it pretty well.
"Really." Alice said, waving her hand as if shooing him away. "Now, you better get going. Weren''t you in a hurry a moment ago?"
"Well¡ if you say you''re fine then¡"
Sam still had some doubts but decided to trust what she said. Once he closed the door to themander''s office Alice was finally able to rx.
She let herself slump over her desk pushing the piles of papers aside. The conversation they had yed in her mind on repeat. She was sure she was doing just fine until he started talking about sleeping with the weapons. At that point the mask hiding her true feelings slipped off and the embarrassment she had been suppressing resurfaced.
Alice was sure Sam doesn''t know that she knows what he did the other night, however it was clear that he felt something was off which is why he decided to end the conversation right then and there.
"But¡ he really is a man, huh¡" Alice said, the image of her childhood friend appearing in her mind. "Does that mean he wants to¡"
Chapter 33 Investigation.
While Sam was having his meeting with themander the three Valkyries departed for their usual patrol. Today they were aiming to go beyond the city they found the day before expanding their range further to make sure no Cmities were lurking in the vicinity.
"Hey, how about we stop by the city for a bit?" Zero Three asked, her eyes sparkling with excitement.
[You know we can''t do that, Three.] Nine''s voice came from themunication device sounding somewhat tired.
[We should focus on our mission.] Zero Five added. [Also, there isn''t much to do in the city since it''s painted in red. We can''t take anything back with us.]
Today the young Valkyrie was the one responsible for scouting and recon. Nine was a sniper so she always stays at the back, that meant Zero Five and Zero Three had to take turns leading the advance.
"I mean, we dont really have to bring anything back." Three said, her cheeks puffed. "We can just check things then leave them there."
[Well, there is no problem with that, but¡] Nine was hesitant to give her approval.
The Valkyries had an invisible force field that, when active, prevented outsideponents from sticking to their bodies, which meant they don''t have to worry about carrying the virus back with them to the base.
The same can''t be said for anything else though. Unless a Valkyrie with the power to purifyes and cleanse everything it would be really dangerous to bring anything from the red areas back to the base.
"This is no fun." The young Valkyrie began to sulk. "We can''t go to the city now and we can''t after the humanse to live in it. Why do they get to do the fun stuff when we are the ones doing all the work?"
[Now now. You know it''s not up to us to decide such things.] Nine said.
[Maybe we should search the city once more.] Zero five spoke.
,m [Five?]
[We only did a quick checkst time. I believe a more thorough investigation is in order to avoid any surprises.]
"As expected from Five!" Three eximed, having regained her excitement instantly. "We will be passing by every day so it would be for the better to make sure nothing is hiding there!"
[Well, if you say so¡] seeing the logic in their arguments, Nine decided to give up. She is the one staying at the back after all. If they miss something and it sneaks on them from behind she would be the one forced to deal it.
The three weapons hastened their pace so that they would have enough time to investigate the city properly.
[Three. Stay put till we get there.] Zero Five instructed.
Once they reached the destination the young Valkyriended near the center. ording to the old maps the city was called Pretoria, apparently one of the three capitals of the nation that was once called South Africa.
Overtaken by curiosity Zero three did some research of her own when they returned to the base the day before and learned a lot of things about the city, like how it was known for being an academic city housing multiple universities and research centers. It also hosted a certain important sports event at some point before the Cmities appeared.
"To think two million people used to live here¡"
The ce was empty. Abandoned. It was the exact definition of a ghost city. Seeing it like this made it difficult to believe so many humans used to live there.
"I wonder how they managed to evacuate all of them in time." Nine said as shended a small distance behind.
"It is indeed strange¡" Zero Five said, her feet touching the paved road. "Such a mass exodus should''ve left more¡ chaos¡"
It''s been nearly a decade since the Cmities wrecked havoc on the, even so the streets of this city were strangely clean and organized. There are signs of neglect andck of maintenance, however for a ce that was abandoned in a panic it looked strangely in order.
"Rather than being evacuated." Five said, her eyes scanning the surroundings. "It feels like everyone just disappeared into thin air¡"
"Now now, if that was the case then we would''ve known already." Nine said, leisurely walking ahead. "Don''t tell me you''re starting to believe in those ult stuff humans keep inventing despite scientific advancements?"
"We are fighting unknown enemies with powers beyond our imagination. We can''t say for sure whether such Cmities exist or not."
"Their size and shape might differ but at most they all use the same beam attack." Nine said. "Besides, what would a cmity gain from keeping a city intact while massacring humans?"
The ponytailed Valkyrie offered no response. Nine only smiled at her and added.
"If a Cmity really did something here then we should be able to find some signs soon."
"... right¡"
Suddenly the two turned their heads to the left having heard a strange noise. Turns out it was just the young Valkyrie opening the shutters of a store on the roadside.
"Three! What are you doing!?" Nine called, panic hitting right away.
"Investigating!" Zero Three replied in a cheerful voice.
"You aren''t supposed to touch anything!"
"C''mon! What''s the worst that can happen?"
Ignoring Nine''s protest the young Valkyrie broke the door and went inside. The weapons had no way of knowing whether the owners of the store are alive or not, however since this was inside Cmity territory no one wouldin if a few things were touched or destroyed.
"Ooooaah!!!" A cry came from the inside prompting the other two to follow the young Valkyrie. When they reached her they noticed that she was holding what looks like a shirt staring at it with sparkling eyes.
"This is so cool!!!" Three eximed, holding the piece of clothes yo for the other two to see.
It had a strange design of a man holding a microphone, the words "never gonna give you up" where written around him.
"I wonder if this was some kind of celebrity." Nine asked, having forgotten all about how startled she was a moment ago after noticing that they were incident a clothing store.
"Hey! What do you say we try some of these on?" Three asked, her enthusiasm practically spilling out.
"No." The other two answered in unison.
"We would be here the entire day if this goes on any further." Five said.
"Besides¡" looking down on her own chest, Nine added with a wry smile. "I doubt there is anything that would fit me."
Zero Three looked at the blond Valkyrie''s giant melons then down at her own t like a cutting board chest. Suddenly all the excitement she had leaked out and her mood took a turn for the worse.
"Yeah¡ let''s get out of here¡"
As the other two wondered what caused the sudden mood swing, Zero Three tossed the shirt and stepped out of the store heaving a long sigh. She held both hands to the small bumps on her chest and tried to feel their softness for herself.
"Well, this makes swimming easier but¡"
When seeing the exaggerated sizes of her fellow weapons, the young Valkyrie couldn''t help but wonder. As she thought about the reason she was given such a form she noticed something moving in the corner of her eye.
"... it can''t be¡"
It was only for a fraction of a second however she was sure her eyes had detected something. And the weirdest part of it all was the way it looked. Whatever it was that thing had a human silhouette.
Chapter 34 Glitch.
"Nine, Five. I''ve detected something."
The moment they heard the young Valkyrie''s voice the other two exited the shop as well. Each of them took her case in hand and transformed it into a weapon while carefully surveying the surroundings.
They didn''t bother asking whether she was mistaken or not. Same as everything else their eyes were superior to those of humans and if one of them said that she had detected something then something was definitely there.
"What direction?" Asked Zero Five.
"Thirty meters to the east, behind the corner of that building." Zero Three replied.
"Should we check from a higher altitude?" Nine asked.
"That would be for the best." Five replied. "The buildings create way too many blind spots. It will be much easier to detect an attack if it''sing from one direction."
When it came to fighting Cmities the cement jungle only served to obstruct the vision of the humanoid weapons. The buildings weren''t even that good as hiding spot. Destroying them was the easiest feat Cmities are able to achieve.
"I''ll keep an eye from the ground." Said Zero Three, her duel des at the ready.
"Be careful."
The three spread their wings and activated their propellers. Nine and Zero Five took off to the sky while Zero three stayed at a low altitude hovering just above the paved road. She moved slowly, her eyes carefully scanning the surroundings preparing for any sudden motion.
Scanning for thermal signs was useless as the red paint caused an interference using the heat it constantly releases. All they can do use sound and vision to try and detect motion. A couple of minutes pass and nothing was found. That led to the three being on a much higher alert.
"This is strange¡" Zero Three said, activating her propellers and joining the other two up in the sky.
"We are most definitely dealing with a Cmity but¡" Nine spoke, her eyes moving around restlessly.
"This is the first time one didn''t attack on sight¡" the young Valkyrie added.
Cmities are unique existences with no two alike. They might share some simr traits but each one of them has its own appearance and fighting style. With that said it wouldn''t be strange for one of them to be sneakier in its approach, the problem is that something like this has never happened before.
"Guess we will need to drag it out." Zero Five said, tapping the surface of the gauntlet on her left arm causing a blue screen to appear on it.
"Wait! What are you doing!!?" Three said, having understood where things were going.
"The enemy this time is clearly different from anything we have seen so far." Five replied. "If it keeps hiding like this then our only choice is to destroy the city along with it."
"No! I mean, I get what you''re saying, but no! You can''t destroy the city!"
The young Valkyrie was starting to panic. She understood that blowing up the entire settlement is the best choice they have for an enemy that persists on hiding, however at the same time she still wants to keep everything intact.
This ce was their best chance at getting a popted human city in the region. Zero Three still held on to the hope that, if humans came to live there, she might get permission to go out and have some fun experiencing what life outside the military base is like.
"Three, it doesn''t really matter whether the city is intact or not." Five said. "There are too many variables that decide whether humans will want to live here or not."
"Remember what Doctor said? First we have to prove that there is a value to this ce in order to get humans to invest resources in it." Nine said.
"Yeah, I get it, but¡"
Destroying the entire city just to get rid of one cmity which has yet to even attack? Anyone would say that''s a bit excessive.
"I''m summoning the proton canon." Zero Five said, waiting to see if there is any more objections. When Zero Three said nothing she tapped her gauntlet and sent the order.
"Wait, I think I''m seeing something." Nine said as she looked through the scope of her sniper rifle like weapon. "Huh¡ wierd¡"
The other two followed her line of sight and focused their eyes. Soon enough they understood their fellow Valkyrie''s confusion. They did detect motion, however even though they''re able to see quite far everything still came out unfocused and blurry.
"Let''s get a closer look." With her weapon in hand Zero Five took the lead as the three went down.
The closer they got to their target the more confusing things got and once only a few meters separated them from it they no longer knew what to think anymore.
The reason things looked blurry from afar is because what they were looking at, whatever it is, wasn''t clear.
It looked like a glitching image of the ck silhouette of a man, with the entire thing made out of squares and rectangles that blinked in and out of existence.
The appearance didn''t matter though. What the Valkyries found more abnormal was the fact that the thing didn''t attack them even after they came that close to it. There is no questioning the fact that it''s a Cmity, and though it was somewhat believable that those monsters could use the environment to their advantage, hiding and waiting for the right moment to strike, seeing how one revealed itself yet didn''t attack was a first.
"It''s doing something." Three said.
The glitching silhouette stood there for a moment before it began to move. However it didn''t head in the Valkyries'' direction. It moved its legs walking away at a steady pace showing no reaction toward their presence.
"There is another one." Nine said, pointing with the barrel of her rifle.
A few meters down the road was another glitching silhouette. This one looked somewhat different. It was difficult to tell at first but when it started moving they realized it was the same humanoid silhouette but from a profile view.
"Are they¡ crossing the road?" Zero Three murmured, noticing that both silhouettes were traversing a crosswalk.
"There is more." Five warned.
Another silhouette appeared. This time it was in front of one of the shops and seemed to be in a sitting position, although it had nothing to sit on.
Nine turned to the left just in time to notice another silhouette appear. It was as if the squares and rectangles making it just blinked into existence slowly creating the form of a human.
More and more silhouettes appeared one after the other until the roads became filled with them. The Valkyries immediately got off the ground to avoiding into contact with any of them and observed the situation from a higher altitude.
The strange glitching silhouettes were moving with no set pattern. Some walked, others sat on air chairs, a few were floating on the paved road with their arms extended.
The scene didn''t make much sense, however after a couple of seconds the blond Valkyrie realized something, taking in the scene once more before saying
"Are those¡ people?"
Chapter 35 Why Would A Calamity...
"Are those¡ people?"
When Nine said it something suddenly clicked in their heads. Another look at the strange glitching silhouettes revealed a much clearer vision of the actions they were performing.
Even though the city is deserted, the silhouettes were acting the way people would if things were normal. Some were walking around, stopping to check traffic lights even if they aren''t working, others were sitting in front of restaurants and cafes even though they''re close with no tables or chairs outside. The ones floating around are obviously driving invisible vehicles like cars and bikes.
"This is really strange¡" Zero Three murmured. "Why would a cmity¡"
"I doubt those things are the main body." Said Zero Five, carefully analyzing the scene. "Otherwise they wouldn''t ignore our presence like this."
"Still¡ wouldn''t that mean the Cmity is purposefully hiding from us?" Nine said. "That doesn''t change the severity of the situation¡"
"I would say it''s worse. For now it doesn''t seem like those things are bait, but the likelyhood that the enemy is hiding somewhere close by waiting for the right opportunity is high." ncing at herrades, Zero Five instructed. "You two, be on guard."
There was no need for her to bother with telling them as all three kept their eyes open for any sudden change. They hovered close to each other, covering for the others'' blind spots as they tried to find where the Cmity was hiding.
Time passed and nothing happened. The streets below were getting busier as more and more silhouettes moved around. Seeing that their outing was taking longer than usual today Zero Five sent a quick report back to the base.
As the matter has yet to be solved the Valkyries couldn''t just retreat. Zero Three was getting tired of all the wait and seeing the sun setting in the west she began to get more and more annoyed.
"We can always draw it out by destroying the city." Said Five.
"I''m starting to consider that." Three replied.
Usually by this time she would be swimming in the pool. Seeing that her fun time was being taken she began to reconsider the value of the city.
"I wonder if Doctor is worried." Nine let out a sigh. She had nned to spend the afternoon trying more things with him, however it doesn''t seem like she would be able to.
Hering the doctor being mentioned caused Zero Five to lose concentration for a second. Her cheeks flushed red as she remembered the experiment they performed. As Sam had told her to act normally till he summons her again she had no choice but to wait, however for some reason the Valkyrie with the ponytail felt like doing those things him right now and began to wonder whether she should ask him once they return.
"The old man, huh¡ he must be freaking out right now." Zero Three said with a giggle.
The time for their examination had long since passed and with them not returning before then it was easy to imagine Sam stressing over it.
"No, the Doctor should''ve been informed already." Zero Five cleared her thoughts and returned her focus to the task at hand. "I have already sent a report, remember?"
"I can see that being the cause of his worries. Now he would be wondering whether the battle was going well for us or not." The young Valkyrie said, and as if that made them realize something the other two tensed up.
"Should I shoot one of them and see what happens?" Nine pointed her gun at the silhouettes below as she spoke. Her voice sounded a bit flustered.
"Do it." Five agreed instantly, her face a bit red as well.
They both had one thought in mind. It was a tiring day and they had been out the entire time. Even if they didn''t go through a particrly tough battle, they were sure the doctor would indulge them a little if they asked for a reward.
It was a conclusion both Five and Nine reached at the same time, however since neither knew what the other was thinking they were both getting excited about spending the afternoon experimenting with the Doctor.
Nine pointed her sniper rifle at one of the silhouettes walking down the road. The other two focused all their senses preparing in case anything happens.
A loud bang resounded through the city as a light bullet shot out piercing the glitching silhouette. The atmosphere around them seemed to change at that moment.
The silhouette Nine had targeted fell to the ground. It appeared to dissolve turning into arge puddle of blinking squares and rectangles. The other silhouettes seemed to turn in its direction having noticed that one of them was destroyed. The next moment they all shifted in the Valkyrie''s direction having ignored them all along.
"We should''ve done this from the start." As she said that, Zero Three grinned while preparing her duel des.
"Let''s get this done with and head back." Nine added, preparing to shoot once again.
They all thought the battle was about to start, however instead of a monster jumping out from its hideout or the silhouettes merging to create the real form of the cmity something unexpected happened.
The silhouettes suddenly disappeared without a trace, even the one Nine had shot a few seconds ago. The streets were back to their empty state, same as they were when the three arrived for the first time.
Feeling the oddity of the situation the three didn''t let their guard down. As they waited for the enemy''s counter attack, the sky suddenly went dark as if a ck veil was spread over their heads.
Chapter 36 Eye Of Creation.
The world was suddenly engulfed in darkness.
The sun was setting so it shouldn''t have been a surprise, however looking at the sky it was easy to guess nothing about what''s happening was natural. For starters it was way too sudden, then there is the fact that no stars could be seen above them.
A loud boom resounded as the Valkyries activated their propellers and took off from the scene. It was the right course of action in this situation. Whatever it is that caused the sudden change it wasrge enough to cover the entire city. With them inside its domain their odds were far too low and a tactical retreat was in order.
"So it was a trap after all." Nine said, her eyes glowing slightly as she used night vision to scan the surroundings.
"Five! Tell me the proton canon is ready!" Zero Three cried, whipping her head left and right nervously.
"It''s just outside the city." Said Zero Five, doing her best to stay calm.
With the speed they were flying at it should''ve taken them less than a minute to reach the outskirts, though before that could happen another sudden change urred.
The streets below them began to glow a bright purple color as if they were neon lights that had been turned on. A secondter the same light appeared from above, only this time it was a singlerge arc.
The three Valkyries nced behind them just in time to see the arc move. It split in the middle, turning into two thinner lines that slowly separated from each other. More lines formed as the first two separated and soon after a new shape began to form.
"... An¡ eye?" Nine said, having stopped to stare at the strange shape above.
"NINE!!" Zero Five shouted, noticing that the blond Valkyrie had halted.
Just then the pupil of the giant single eye moved as if noticing the weapons'' presence. A pir of purple light fell from above missing Nine by a hairs breadth, however the next moment it moved at a speed beyond the Valkyries'' ability to react.
The purple light enveloped the three for a single second before disappearing and the three Valkyries came out unscathed. As they looked at themselves trying to see if there are any changes Zero Thee said something the other two agreed with.
"I have a bad feeling about this."
No sooner than the words came out of her mouth a number of squares and rectangles blinked into existence. Unlike the ones from before these were much smaller and in greater numbers, because of that the silhouette they formed looked much clearer.
One nce was enough for them to see the resemnce. The silhouette had the outline of a really curvy woman with arge ass, wide hips and thick thighs. A side view showed its giant chest as well. The new purple glitching silhouette was clearly modeled after Nine.
As if that wasn''t enough of a proof the equipment the Valkyrie wore began to take shape as well ending with what was clearly a rough version of Nine''s sniper rifle, and as if to confirm their thoughts the silhouette pointed the long barrel at the blond Valkyrie.
"NINE!!"
Zero Five''s shout was drawned by the sound of a massive explosion as the silhouette shot what was more of a canon stpared to the light bullets Nine''s weapon releases.
The blond Valkyrie moved out of the way just in time to avoid the st which collided with one of the buildings a momentter erasing it in arge explosion.
The silhouette wasted no time, aiming its weapon and preparing to shoot once more. Before it could a pair of des pierced its right shoulder cutting right through it in a diagonal line all the way to its left nk. Split in half, the silhouette shattered into millions of pieces before blinking out of existence.
"Let''s move!" Zero Three yelled. "This thing didn''t have our force field, but who knows if the next one will be the same!"
The young Valkyrie had disposed of the silhouette quite easily, feeling no resistance as her des cut through it. Even E ss Cmities weren''t as fragile, which led to the same conclusion as before; the silhouettes aren''t the main body.
Noticing the purple squares blinking into existence in multiple locations the three Valkyries took off at top speed.
"This is an A ss, huh?" Nine asked.
"If it''s capable of creating an indefinite number of those things then it would be an S ss." Said Zero Five, her brows knitted in a deep frown.
"Seriously!?" Zero Three eximed, her expression full of doubt, fear and most importantly annoyance.
Even as they spoke more and more silhouettes were appearing left and right. It took about ten seconds for each one topletely form and by that time the three Valkyries would''ve put quite a long distance between them, however the moment they started to move it was clear which one was faster.
The silhouettes were weightless allowing them to elerate much faster which made little sense considering the fire power they packed. The ones modeled after Nine pointed their rifles and shot beams of light in the Valkyries'' direction. At the same time the new ones, modeled after Zero Five and Zero Three, spread their wings andunched themselves at an incredible speed chasing after the three weapons.
As if avoiding the purple beams wasn''t enough, they now had to fend against the ded weapons the silhouettes attacked them with. Seeing the power behind the sts Nine''s clones used made them expect the same from the others, however it seems those using physical attacks weren''t as strong since their weapons shattered the moment they made contact with the Valkyries'' force field. The problem was their great numbers. Even if they didn''t cause much damage all they had to do is hinder the Valkyries'' movements enough for the ranged silhouettes to aim at them.
"Keep moving!" Five instructed, cleaving one of the enemies using her halberd.
More and more were appearing everywhere. The likelihood of their opponent being an S ss sounded more realistic now. ncing above them, the Valkyrie with the ponytail red at the giant eye in the sky.
"Nine!" She called,ing to a sudden stop. "We will cover for you so shoot that thing!"
"Alright!"
The blond Valkyrie was already aiming her rifle by the time Five finished her order. One of the silhouettes took that opportunity to swing at her while another one shot a beam of light in her direction, however the other Valkyries moved to intercept them with Zero Three shing with her clone while Zero Five charged her force field to it''s full output and blocked the purple beam.
Trusting that herrades would do their part Nine smiled, fixing her target with a re before pressing the trigger.
A blue bullet shot out toward the sky, however before it could travel far enough one of the silhouette moved blocking its way getting pierced right through. As one of them wasn''t enough to stop it more and more jumped in getting destroyed one after the other until the bullet lost its velocity.
Twenty silhouettes were destroyed but seeing as more and more were appearing the Valkyries couldn''t call it progress.
"At least we know were to aim!" Zero Zhree didn''t stop, flying around and whittling down the enemies'' numbers without pause.
"Nine, keep shooting!" Zero Five said, putting all her focus on blocking the ranged shots. "Don''t give them time to recover!"
"Understood!"
Nine squeezed the trigger shooting bullets in quick session. The silhouettes prioritized covering for the giant eye, and with each bullet destroying twenty of them they soon had to focus on intercepting them instead of attacking.
Things were looking good, the strange glitching figures where almostpletely gone. Just when the Valkyries thought their victory was near another pir of light suddenly fell on them.
"Oh no¡" Nine muttered, her eyes going wide as she realized what had just happened. Snapping out of her daze she quickly returned to shooting at the giant eye, however even with no silhouettes in her way the bullets still didn''t seem to reach the target.
Looking through the scope of her sniper rifle she realized that a number of squares had appeared just before the giant eye forming a pair of hands. More followed and before long three new silhouettes appeared.
"We need to get out of here." Nine said, her voice devoid of any emotions.
One look was enough to tell her that the new creations werepletely different from the previous ones. The three that stopped her bullets had a much more defined shape with nearly no glitching parts. She could no longer call them silhouettes as well. They were all detailed copies of Zero Five with the only differences being their hallow eyes and faintly glowing purple color.
It was clear that those three were much sturdier than the previous version and guessing what caused that change wasn''t a difficult task.
The three no longer questioned that they were facing an S ss Cmity.
.. ..-. / -.-- --- ..- / .- .-. . / .-. . .- -.. .. -. --. / - .... .. ... / .-- .-. .. - . / -.-- . ... / .. -. / - .... . / -.-. --- -- -- . -. - ...
Chapter 37 Proton Canon.
With the three Zero Five clones in the way, Nine had no hope of shooting the giant eye.
The purple light that washed over them performed some sort of scan copying the abilities of the Valkyries and incorporating them into the creations.
The new versions were able to stop Nine''s bullets, and looking at the pose they took as they did so, they might even be capable of using the force field to its full potential.
"Five!" Zero Three shouted, igniting her propellers and spreading her wings. "Get the cannon! We will slow them down!"
The young Valkyrie was quick to deduce the right course of action. If they want to win against this Cmity they needed to do so before it gets aplete reading on their abilities.
Three new clones appeared, this time they were modeled after Nine. Hiding behind Five''s clones they pointed their rifles and fired. The bullets came out as thinser beams that were much faster than Nine''s bullets, however Zero Three dodged them easily without lowering her speed.
Back to her senses the blond Valkyrie began providing cover fire, ncing at Zero Five telling her to go and leave things there to them.
Five was hesitant for a few seconds before turning around and taking off at top speed.
Up near the giant purple eye Zero Three was about to engage with the clones. Seeing their hollow eyes and expressionless faces up close was quite disturbing, however that feeling was pushed aside as she charged her protective force field, spreading it to her equipment enhancing its capabilities.
One of the clones came forward to block her way, however for some reason it didn''t equip Zero Five''s halberd, reaching out with both hands instead.
"NOT GONNA WORK!"
The young Valkyrie shouted as a maniacal smirk spread across her face. Stopping her propellers for a second she spun around herself avoiding the clone''s hands before swinging her dual swords.
The energy des, enhanced with Three''s force field, struck the clone in the neck slicing through it like melting butter.
No cries of pain or agonized screams came from the clone. It remained expressionless even as its upper half got separated from the lower one. Seeing that distracted three for a fraction of a second, however her propellers ignited once more as she moved away letting three thinser beams prate the clone in her stead.
Nine''s clones had their guns pointed at her. The young Valkyrie ignored the explosion behind her as she moved to the next target. As expected, the clones modeled after Zero Five focused on defense while those modeled after Nine stayed at the back and used ranged attack. While cutting the former, Zero Three felt much more resistance than she did when destroying the previous versions, even if it wasn''t enough to stop her des.
The two clones on the defensive were quickly disposed of, however new ones began to appear, some a bit smaller than the others equipped with a sword in each hand. Seeing them ticked Three off, but she kept her eyes on the ranged clones and let Nine handle the rest.
"I''m starting to believe that eye doesn''t have such a good memory." Three said, slicing another ponytailed clone. "Those things have very limited abilities."
[Your observation is correct.] Nine voice came from themunication device. [Their numbers have dwindledpared to before as well. It might be that the Cmity has to limit their numbers in order to create the detailed copies.]
The clones focused on a single set of moves, either blocking or attacking. Those made after Five as she covered for Nine were much sturdier but didn''t deal any damage, while those modeled after Three and Nine were capable of dealing damage butcked sturdiness.
"Hey, doesn''t that mean it would be really bad if it limits their numbers even further?"
Just as the young Valkyrie asked that question, the eye in the sky moved. Knowing what''sing she turned to the left and sted off at maximum speed, a momentter the purple pir of light came down.
Three managed to avoid being scanned, but the pir wasn''t stopping chasing after her and refusing to give up the chase.
[Nine, get them while you can!]
Hearing her voice, the blond Valkyrie resumed firing taking out her clones one by one. The light pir didn''t bother with her as the patterns of her attacks didn''t change. The only problem was Zero Five''s clones who quickly formed to stop any bullets from reaching the eye.
"If I knew this was going to happen I would''ve brought the second set." Nine said, letting out a sigh as she looked down at her sniper rifle.
[Nothing we can do about that.] Zero Three''s voice rang in her ears. [Those things consume way too much energy. The humans dont have enough resources to allow us to use them frequently.]
Still being chased by the light pir, Zero Three was losing patience. She nced in the direction Zero Five flew in wondering when she would be back, it was then that she noticed a faint glint in the distance.
"Nine! Let''s clear a path!!" The young Valkyrie took a sharp turn, still managing to avoid the light pir somehow.
elerating once more she closed in on the clones then held her swords over her head turning herself into a flying spear that pierced right though the clones.
Picking up on what she meant Nine stopped bothering with the aim and shot bullets in quick session forcing the guards to move far from each other letting Zero Three pick them one by one.
Such aplicated maneuver led to the pir catching up and the young Valkyrie got swallowed by the light. However that didn''t really matter as their ace in the hole had arrived and was ready to go.
A short distance away from the location of the battle Zero Five was on the paved roads preparing to activate her special weapon. Her equipment was different from before having changed to a more bulky armor designed to provide her with enough weight to withstand the recoil from the weapon she was about to use.
Her legs were fixed to the asphalt and a tail like mechanical arm extended from her back holding her in ce. On her right shoulder she held a cylindrical object three times her size from which multiple tubes extended connecting with arge vehicle parked a short distance away.
"Chargingplete." Zero Five said, looking at a screen showing a zoom in on the purple eye. Seeing Zero Three getting out of the way, every part of her body tensed as she spoke the word. "Fire."
Pressing the trigger, a loud boom shook the entire city as a blue beam shot toward the sky. The buildings turned orange before melting as the blue light passed between them.
Zero Five had her force field at its full output but still found it hard to withstand the heat. The ground around her turned into a pool ofva in a matter of nanoseconds, even so she did her best to not lose bnce until the target was destroyed.
Seeing the blue beam heading its way the giant eye conjured thousands of hands forming a shield to protect itself. It didn''t have the time to form entire clones so it opted to createyers of the sturdiest part ording to the previous scan, but sadly that would never be enough.
Theyers of intertwined hands melted away in a second and the beam passed through prating the giant eye at the center of its pupil. There was no explosion or resistance. No sounds were heard. After a couple of seconds the ck veil covering the city shattered and the star filled sky above it was revealed.
.- ... / - .... . / ... - --- .-. -.-- / -.. . ...- . .-.. --- .--. ... / .. / .--. .-.. .- -. / - --- / .-. . .-.. . .- ... . / ... --- -- . / --- ..-. / - .... . / -.. . - .- .. .-.. ... / - .... .- - / -.. --- -. .----. - / -- .- -.- . / .. - / .. -. - --- / - .... . / -.-. .... .- .--. - . .-. ... .-.-.- / -... ..- - / .. - / .-- --- ..- .-.. -.. -. .----. - / -... . / ..-. ..- -. / - --- / .--- ..- ... - / --. .. ...- . / - .... . -- / .- .-- .- -.-- / .-.. .. -.- . / - .... .- - .-.-.-
Chapter 38 A Tough Battle.
Cracks spread through the ck veil starting from the giant eye which had been prated by the st from Zero Five''s Proton Canon. A momentter it shattered, pieces falling one after the other revealing the stars above.
[We won¡]
Zero Three''s quiet whisper reached the ears of the other two causing their lips to curve into smiles.
"WE WON!!!"
The young Valkyrie shouted, her excitement exuding as she threw her weapons into the air causing them to return to the form of a case.
"That was a tough battle." Nine said, cing a hand on her bosom and letting out a relieved sight.
"You two did well." Zero Five said.
With the Cmity destroyed there was no need for her to stay in the heavy armor. Unable to bear the heat anymore she released herself, put on her standard equipment then moved away from the canon allowing it to cool down.
"Any injuries?" The ponytailed Valkyrie asked.
"I''m fine." Nine answered, turning around and heading in Five''s direction at a leisure pace.
"Those things weren''t much." Zero Three puffed her chest proudly but then added "well, it would''ve been a problem if this went on any longer."
The giant eye was able to create clones of the Valkyries, and though it had to bnce the quality and quantity the thought of those things bing even more detailed scared the three weapons.
For example, if Zero Five''s attack failed and the Cmity got a scan of her along with the Proton Canon, it would be their loss as nothing they do could bring them victory in the face of multiple opponents with that kind of fire power.
"Well, we won, that''s all that matters."
[EEEEEEEHH!!!!]
Nine held a hand to her ear startled by Zero Three''s response to herment.
"W-what''s wrong!?"
[The City!!!]
Looking around them the Valkyries noticed that the buildings began to fade, parts of them turning into purple squares and rectangles before blinking out of existence.
"It can''t be¡" Zero Five muttered, her eyes lowered in thought.
"The city¡ was it created by the Cmity?" Nine asked the question, carefully observing the surroundings.
Suddenly the horror they felt fighting the clones returned, only this time it was ten folds stronger. They watched was the city slowly disintegrating, some buildings disappearing entirely while others turned into ruins.
The giant eye had recreated the entire city to an almost perfect copy of what it used to look back in the day. The amount of consistency and details ced into thendscape was frightening. The Valkyries could only shake at the thought of all those resources being suddenly relocated to creating the clones they had to fight.
"Maybe it co-"
Just as she was about to tell the others something she had hypothesized, Zero Five''s voice was suddenly cut as she felt a sharp pain causing her whole body to stiffen. Still in the air she forced her head to turn around and what she saw made her realize that they had let their guard down.
A short energy de was stabbed into her back passing all the way through to the other side. The hand grasping its hilt was small attached to a thin arm extending from a simrly slim body. Another look showed that everything from below the chest area was missing.
Brown hair fluttered in the wind, parts of it turning into squares that blinked in and out of existence. Zero Five stared at the clone with wide open eyes. No longer was it the purple vague replication. Putting aside it''s missing parts, that thing was apletely identical copy of the young Valkyrie down to thest strand of hair.
The clone slowly lifted its head and looked the Valkyrie in the eyes. Then, as if mocking everything they did to achieve their victory, the thing smiled before moving it''s right arm stabbing the other sword into Zero Five''s back.
[FIVE!!!]
The Valkyrie heard the calls of herrades however she did not respond.
Though she heard the calls of herrades the Valkyrie was unable to respond. As her systems went haywire from all the damage, Zero Five continued to stare at the smiling clone as it slowly disappeared.
The des piercing her body soon followed and the moment thest particle faded away she came tumbling down to the ground, her bodypletely motionless.
~¡ó~
Flipping to the next page of the book in his left hand Sam reached for the cup on his dest. He brought it to his mouth intending to take a sip just to realize that its contents were already gone.
Heaving a tired sigh he closed the book and stood up from his chair. A nce at the clock on the wall told him it was already 20:00.
Having received the Valkyries'' report he had prepared for the worst skipping dinner as he waited for their return. His gut told him nothing good woulde from a monster that''s good at hiding, and as if to confirm that the rm rang from his phone informing him it was time for work.
Picking up his tablet the Doctor tapped a few things checking the initial scan performed at thending zone. The results showed that none of the weapons were contaminated, however one of them was heavily injured.
"This doesn''t look good¡"
A few secondster the doors slid open as the drones carrying the injured Zero Five entered the examination room.
"Doctor!"
"Calm down. I''m already at it."
More detailed results were showing up, however he didn''t need to look at them to know how bad the situation is.
The damage was much worse than what Zero Three had sustained thest time. Zero Five was stabbed in two different locations, and though none of the coreponents were touched, a part of her spine was destroyed.
"Old man¡ I¡ I¡"
ncing beside him Sam saw the young Valkyrie looking up at him with eyes full of tears. He cursed Odin in his heart, asking why he had to go so far if he just wanted some sex dolls.
"Don''t worry." Sam said, bringing his attention back to the tablet in his hand. "It''s nothing we can''t repair. She should be as good as new the next day."
From the looks of it nine hours wouldn''t be enough though. After all this isn''t just surface level damage.
"I¡ see¡" the young Valkyrie said, her voice fading as her head went down.
"... was it that strong?" Sam asked, turning his sight to the blond one.
"... yes¡ it was¡"
Except for the ponytailed Valkyrie the othertwo seemed rtively unharmed. Seeing that Sam couldn''t help but wonder.
What the hell happened out there?
.. ..-. / ... .... . / .-- .- ... / .- / .... ..- -- .- -. --..-- / - .... . / .- .-. . .- ... / --.. . .-. --- / ..-. .. ...- . / .-- .- ... / ... - .- -... -... . -.. / .. -. / .-- --- ..- .-.. -.. / -... . / - .... . / ..- .--. .--. . .-. / ... . -.-. - .. --- -. / --- ..-. / - .... . / .-.. .- - .. ... ... .. -- ..- ... / -.. --- .-. ... .. / .- -. -.. / - .... . / . .-. . -.-. - --- .-. / ... .--. .. -. .- . .-.-.- / - .... . / --- .-. --. .- -. ... / - .... .- - / .-- --- ..- .-.. -.. .----. ...- . / -... . . -. / -.. .- -- .- --. . -.. / - .... . / -- --- ... - / .- .-. . / .... . .-. / .-.. . ..-. - / -.- .. -.. -. . -.-- --..-- / .--. .- -. -.-. .-. . .- ... / .- -. -.. / - .... . / .-. .. --. .... - / ... .. -.. . / --- ..-. / .... . .-. / .. -. - . ... - .. -. . ...
Chapter 39 Cheer Up.
Sam opened his eyes at the sound of his phone''s rm. Lifting himself up he stretched his arms while yawning, only to slump forward a momentter.
"I feel like shit¡" he said, rubbing his eyes before grabbing his sses.
Same as thest time one of the Valkyries got injured he spent the night in hisb. Falling asleep on the desk wasn''t thatfortable of an experience leaving him with a stiff neck that probably won''t go away for the next few days.
Cursing his luck he picked up his tablet and gave it a look, standing up and heading to the one way ss wall. On the other side one of Eir''s containers was still full of the green liquid with the naked body of a young woman submerged in it.
Sam didn''t feel any arousal seeing Zero Five like that. And how could he? She still had two gashes in her abdomin, and although he could no longer see the other side through them he couldn''t help but grimace when faced with the wound.
"This really is taking too long¡"
Just as he muttered those words Sam heard the door open. He nced behind him expecting to see Nine showing up however it turned out to be the brown haired petite Valkyrie Zero Three.
"Good morning." Sam said. "Came to check on her?"
The young Valkyrie said nothing, only nodding once before returning her gaze to the ss wall.
"As you can see, there is quite a bit left." He stopped for a moment, carefully picking his words befor speaking them. "The good news is that the process is what''s taking so long. Her recovery is guaranteed so there is nothing to worry about."
"... I see¡"
The curt reply was disheartening. Sam wished she would say something like ''I already know that!'' Or ''I don''t need you to tell me!'' However it seems he has yet to grasp Zero Three''s personality that well.
As he pondered over the matter he began to recall the cause behind her gloominess. ording to Nine the three Valkyries havee into contact with an S ss cmity, which was terrifying on its own, however what made it all the more dangerous was its ability to create replicas of the things it scans.
Apparently on itsst breath the Cmity created a perfect replica of Zero Three and used it to attack Five who had her guard down thinking the battle was over. The young Valkyrie med herself for that, saying she allowed the monster to scan her as she used her full power leading to the replica being able to prate Zero Five''s protective force field.
"Are you still upset about what happened?" Sam asked, feeling the awkwardness of the situation.
The young Valkyrie remained silent for a while before replying in a barely audible voice.
"It''s my fault this happened."
Sam couldn''t help but sigh. Forget scoring points to be her master, he had no idea on how he should go about dealing with her when she''s like this. Trying to make her fall for him was simply impossible.
His only experience with sad women came from Alice, but unlike the drunk crying mess of amander Zero Three was doing her best to stayposed, although her usually cheerful and energetic demeanor was gone.
After thinking it through for a few seconds he decided to repeat something he had told her the day before.
"As I already told you, if you didn''t draw the enemy''s attention like that it would''ve noticed Zero Five much earlier. And you know how bad the situation would''ve been in that case, right?"
"But¡"
"If there is someone at fault here it would be Five for letting her guard down even when you had yet to confirm that the enemy waspletely gone."
As they had described it, the city was still in the process of disintegrating when Five got attacked. That should''ve been their warning to stay on guard until everyst particle had disappeared.
That said, putting the me on the victim didn''t seem to do any good to Zero Three''s mood making Sam realize he had been bit too harsh.
"Well, if you consider what would''ve happened if you failed this time I would say you did pretty well." After careful considerationhe lifted his hand and ced it on the Valkyrie''s head. "Good job."
Zero Three didn''t reply, only nodding her head slightly. A couple of secondster Sam retracted his hand, however he couldn''t avoid the awkward silence that followed. As the two stood there looking at the ss wall, Sam received a notification that saved him at the right moment.
It was a message from Shizuru asking if she should wait for him. Just then he remembered that the rm he had set earlier was for when the time for breakfast came. He hadn''t eaten anything since yesterday''s lunch and his stomach made sure to remind him of it.
"Guess I should get something to eat for now." Sam said as he turned away. "What about you?"
Zero Three looked up with a start, her eyes showing a hint of surprise. She made a show of thinking about it for a couple of seconds but then seemed to realize that she had .misunderstood what he meant.
"I think I will stay here and watch over Five." She said, forcing a weak smile on.
"... alright then¡"
Wondering what the reason behind her reaction was, Sam turned around and walked to his desk. The moment he ced the tablet down something clicked in his mind and he felt like he understood what the Valkyrie wants right now.
"How about youe along?" Sam decided to test his guess.
As expected, the young Valkyrie seemed to regain some of her energy as she turned to look at him, a faint red coloring her cheeks.
"Can I?" She asked with a small smile.
"Of course." Sam replied. "There is no rule against youing to our side, as long as you don''t cause any trouble."
"I won''t!" Zero Three replied, barely able to contain her excitement.
Seeing her mood change for the better caused a smile to appear on Sam''s face. He quickly brushed it off then gave one more instruction.
"Remember to keep physical contact with the soldiers to a minimum." He said, addressing one of the things they needed to keep an open eye on. "And make sure to never mention anything about our conversations, understood?"
"Understood!"
Hearing the young Valkyrie''s cheerful reply, Sam nodded to himself then turned to the door.
"Alright, let''s get going."
.. -. ... - . .- -.. / --- ..-. / .... . .-. / -.-. --- -- -... .- - / ... ..- .. - --..-- / --.. . .-. --- / - .... .-. . . / ..- ... ..- .- .-.. .-.. -.-- / .-- . .- .-. ... / .- / --- -. . / .--. .. . -.-. . / ... .--. --- .-. - ... / ... .-- .. -- ... ..- .. - / ..- -. -.. . .-. / .... . .-. / ..- -. .. ..-. --- .-. -- / ... --- / ... .... . / -.-. --- ..- .-.. -.. / --. --- / - --- / - .... . / .--. --- --- .-.. / .- - / .- -. -.-- / - .. -- . .-.-.-
Chapter 40 How Is It Any Different?
Shizuru stood near the intersection between the male and female dormitories. It has be a part of her routine to wait there for the Doctor, who was now her boyfriend.
Eating meals together was one of the few things they could do as a couple, even though there isn''t much of a difference from when they had yet to start dating. Because of that she wanted to make sure they don''t miss each other, setting up a time for them to meet as well as send a message to confirm it with her boyfriend.
Her coworkers pressed her for details soon after the news broke. Apparently they expected her to end up with Jordan at some point, because of that they were shocked to hear she went for the gloomy introverted Doctor instead.
"How pitiful." She muttered, sighing as she recalled all the gossip. "Not that I expected them to understand."
To the other female soldiers, Jordan was the more obvious choice. He was the more attractive male ording to them, however Shizuru didn''t care much about what they thought. Although she didn''t say it out loud, the entire time she only thought of how superficial their tastes were.
"Sorry for keeping you waiting."
Suddenly a familiar voice shook Shizuru out of her thoughts. She quickly put a smile on and turned to face her boyfriend, however the moment she saw who it was standing behind him she froze in her ce.
Having predicted her reaction Sam cleared his throat and nced behind him.
"Zero Three, this is sergeant Kurokami, she will be apanying us today."
He then turned to face his girlfriend and did the same introduction.
"Sergeant Kurokami, I''m sure you already know who Zero Three is. Please get along with her."
The young Valkyrie came forward and said in an energetic tone as she saluted with a smile.
"I''m the independent humanoid anti Cmity weapon, Valkyrie unit BHSFAB03. You can call me Zero Three."
Still stunned, Shizuru stared at the Valkyrie for a couple of seconds before noticing how nervous she was despite the radiant aura she emitted. Straightening her back and saluting as well, the Asian girl returned the smile and spoke.
"I''m Sergeant Kurokami Shizuru from the second monitoring and surveince division. It is very nice to make your acquaintance."
"Likewise!" Zero Three replied, her smile more radiant than ever.
Sam was surprised by the ease in which the young Valkyrie handled the situation. For someone who rarely ever interacted with humans she sure is managing to act normally. Then again she was programmed for things like this. The same logic as humans couldn''t be applied to her.
No, I dont think I have seen her this cheerful before¡
As the thought crossed his mind he noticed that his girlfriend was giving him a questioning look. Stopping the sigh he was about to release he turned to Zero Three and told her he needed a moment to talk with the sergeant.
"Um, Doctor¡ can you exin, please?" Shizuru asked, having moving a few steps away from the Valkyrie.
Sam nced behind him for a moment before speaking.
"You have heard the news, right?" He asked.
"Yes, obviously." Shizuru said, following his line of sight and ncing at the humanoid weapon.
"She has been a little depressed after the battle." Sam said, turning to Shizuru with his usual calm expression. "I decided to invite her to eat with us to see if we could help cheer her up."
"Depressed?" Shizuru gave a doubtful look, as if what she heard was outright ridiculous. "Is that even possible?"
Sam could no longer hold back the sigh, scratching theback of his head as he tried toe up with a way to exin without outing himself.
"I don''t know if she''s really experiencing the feeling but¡" as he spoke, Sam found himself getting surprised by his own line of thoughts. "Does it matter?"
"What?"
Shizuru''s confusion seemed to grow after hearing his statement. Obviously Sam only thought of the Valkyries as what they are;puter programs loaded into an android. The level ofplexity distinguishes them from mere machines, however same as everyone he knew they weren''t humans.
That said, when he neither confirmed or denied that the Valkyries are capable of experiencing human emotions he began to doubt his own beliefs. After all emotions weren''t something that can be proven or quantified.
"Even if it''s just something chosen by their AI, the Valkyries are made so they would show the same reactions as human under the same circumstances."
The Valkyrie Project file exined that the AIs are capable of analyzing their surroundings at hyper speeds and selecting the right actions and emotions to emte in reaction to that. The precision in which they can do it is incredible making it seem no different from what happens with humans.
Of course reactions to horrifying and disturbing stuff are very limited allowing the Valkyries to fearlessly dive into situations that would drive normal humans mad. Without that it would be impossible for them to effectively operate as weapons.
"What I want to say is¡" sighing once more, Sam told his girlfriend the conclusion he had arrived to. "It doesn''t matter what she is. If we do something to try and cheer her up she would definitely react the same way as any human."
The only thing that came out of giving this matter such serious thought was Sam hating the topic more and more. At the very least Shizuru seemed to catch on to what he meant, resolving herself to help him with this task.
"Are you done?" Seeing the two walking over to her, the young Valkyrie asked if their little discussion came to an end.
"Yes." Shizuru said, approaching Zero Three while doing her best to act normal. "We better get going before all the tables get filled."
"We better hurry, then!"
The three headed for the cafeteria with the girls leading the way as Sam followed closely behind. Watching as the two chatted away, the Doctor couldn''t help but dive deeper into his previous thoughts.
The Valkyries analyze their surroundings then determine the correct actions, expressions and tone of voice to emte under the right circumstances. If one were to disregard the notion that it''s all an emtion, how is the way AI does it any different from what the human brain does, which could be could be boiled down to electrochemical signals?
.-- .... .. .-.. . / ... .- -- / .- -. -.. / ... .... .. --.. ..- .-. ..- / .-- . .-. . / - .- .-.. -.- .. -. --. --..-- / --.. . .-. --- / - .... .-. . . / -- .- -.. . / . -.-- . / -.-. --- -. - .- -.-. - / .-- .. - .... / .- / ..-. . -- .- .-.. . / ... --- .-.. -.. .. . .-. / .--. .- ... ... .. -. --. / -... -.-- .-.-.- / .-- .... . -. / ... .... . / .-- .- ...- . -.. / .- - / .... . .-. / .-- .. - .... / .- / ... -- .. .-.. . / - .... . / ..-. . -- .- .-.. . / ... --- .-.. -.. .. . .-. / .- .-.. -- --- ... - / -.. .. . -.. .-.-.-
Chapter 41 Idol.
As expected seeing the young Valkyrie walking around the base drew a lot of eyes.
Sam tried to not let it bother him, however it was only a matter of time before the crowd got on his nerves.
Zero Three didn''t seem to mind the stares, or to more precise, she was too distracted to notice any of the onlookers. Shizuru handled most of the talking sparing Sam some of the hostility directed at them by the other soldiers.
The three stood in line to get their food, something Zero Three found quite exciting for some reason. Then when she saw that the cafeteria operated in a buffet system where each person served themselves she became nervous, getting overwhelmed by the number of choices even though the menu for breakfasts was quite short.
"If things here are different here then how are things done in your quarters?" Shizuru asked the moment they took their seats.
Zero Three sat near the wall with Shizuru beside her while Sam took the seat facing them. They had decided on this arrangement beforehand to avoid any misunderstandings.
"Well, we have a dining hall with many tables, but not as many as this." Zero Three said. "Our food is always brought to us by a drone so we don''t get to choose."
"Is that so¡" Shizuru replied, ncing over at Sam.
"Is the food any different?" He asked before biting into his toast.
"Hm¡ doesn''t seem so." The young Valkyrie looked down at her tray. It had a croissant, some toast and jam, a small fruit sd and a cup of hot milk. Though she had a lot of options to choose from, in the end she decided to go with what she''s familiar with.
"That''s unexpected." Sam looked at her with a start. "I always thought they give you special treatment over there."
On this base they''re something akin to a VIP after all. It never crossed his mind that they might be eating the same food as the average soldier.
"Well, it''s not like we need to eat." Zero Three said, spreading some jam on her toast then biting into it.
"Now that you said it¡" Shizuru''s eyes slowly went wide. "If you can live without food then why do you eat?"
"Cause it''s tasty." The Valkyrie replied while chewing.
"Swallow before you speak." Sam said with a sigh.
Obviously since they''re basically robots the Valkyries didn''t have any need for food, but since they''re programmed to behave as closely to humans as possible eating and drinking regrly was something they are forced to do.
That much was what the public were allowed to know. Having read the blue prints Sam knew that there is more to it than just mimicking human behavior.
The Valkyries are more than just weapons. They have been made to serve as artificial wombs as well. Though they didn''t have a need for the food themselves the nutrients it contained could be used to nourish the child in case they''re carrying one.
Otherwise everything gets disintegrated then disposed of the same way humans dispose of waste.
Robots using the toilet isn''t something I wanted to think about while eating.
"Hmm¡ but this does taste somewhat different¡" Zero Three said, looking down at the toast in her hand.
"Is it worse?" Sam asked.
"What? No! That''s not what I meant!"
For some reason the young Valkyrie began blushing. She quickly chomped on the toast finishing it before reaching for her cup. With the milk still steaming hot she ended up burning her tongue a little. It was an amusing scene to watch putting a smile on both Sam and Shizuru''s faces.
"W-what I meant to say is!" Coughing a little in an attempt to hide her embarrassment, the young Valkyrie told them what she thought. "There are a lot of people here. The atmosphere feels more joyous. I guess I enjoy food a lot more if I''m eating with someone."
Is she trying to say the more the merrier? Sam thought.
"Nine would be really jealous when she hears about this." Zero Three said, causing Sam to choke on his coffee.
"Come to think of it¡" he said, quickly wiping the coffee he had spilled with a paper napkin. "Does the three of you usually eat together?"
"Yes." Zero Three said, a hint of sadness in her smile. "Last night''s dinner was a bit gloomy though. Five wasn''t much of a talker but without her around it was tough to say anything."
"I see¡"
"Excuse me!"
The conversation was suddenly interrupted by the appearance of a new party. Sam turned around to check, seeing a female soldier standing close to their table and looking his way. She held a white cardboard close to her chest and what looked like a marker in her right hand. He searched his memories but couldn''t recall who she was, meaning they never interacted before.
Sam nced at Shizuru and saw her confusion. He guessed that the two weren''t acquainted. Shifting back to the stranger he stered a polite fake smile and asked.
"May I help you with something?"
The female soldier appeared somewhat surprised by Sam''s response, taking a step back despite herself. A momentter she seemed to gather the courage to speak.
"I w-wanted to ask if I can get an autograph!"
By that point Sam had already guessed her intentions. He was expecting something like this when he invited Zero Three, but now that it was happening he was suddenly struck with a sense of unease.
That said, he couldn''t just shoo the woman away so he turned to the young Valkyrie. With all eyes on her Zero Three blinked repeatedly then pointed at herself and asked.
"Me?"
"Y-yes! If possible¡" the female soldier said, a huge smile spreading on her lips as if she just had a delightful experience.
Zero Three nced at Sam with an expression of nervousness. He simply shrugged at her then said it was her decision to make.
"I guess it''s fine¡"
When the young Valkyrie voiced her approval, she was stunned to see the female soldier positively beaming with sparkles in her eyes.
After getting the cardboard from her, Zero Three asked for the soldier''s name then wrote a dedication and signed it.
"Thank you very much!"
Happiness could be felt from the female soldier as she hugged the cardboard. The other soldiers, having watched the interaction from start to finish, went into a frenzy before storming out of the cafeteria. A couple of minutester they returned, gathering around Sam and the others holding things they wanted to get signed.
While some brought notebooks and papers, others had shirts and hoodies with them, most of which were merchandise depicting the young Valkyrie.
Sam tried to calm them down reminding them that physical contact is absolutely prohibited. They all red at him, hatred oozing from their eyes, but when he said that there is time for everyone they all calmed down and organized in a single file.
And just like that Zero Three spent the next two hours giving autographs while Sam and Shizuru kept watch.
Soon enough everyone dispersed, being forced to return to their posts.
Shizuru had to leave as well so Sam and Zero Three headed back for theb.
"That was¡ wild¡" the Valkyrie said, her shoulders slumped over as she heaved a tired sigh. "I never expected to go through this at all."
"Do you understand why you''re told to not wonder into the rest of the base?"
"Yeah¡ I think." Looking up at him, Zero Three asked a question that had been on her mind for a while. "I thought humans only saw us as tools and weapons, that''s why I never expected to be treated like that."
"Well, you could say you''re something like a idol here." Sam said, bringing a cup to his mouth and enjoying the aroma of the coffee substitute.
"Is that why they have all those things with my face on them?" Three tilted her head slightly as she asked.
"Yes. Though I don''t know where they got them."
Sam was as surprised when he saw the merch. He had no idea where they got those things, but that might be another result of his introverted personality andck of interactions with his fellow soldiers.
"Humans sure are strange." Zero Three said, looking down at the cup of iced coffee in her hands. "To think they would treat a weapon as an idol."
A slight smile touched her lips and a faint rosy color tainted her cheeks. It was clear just from looking that she enjoyed the whole experience, even though sheined about it a littld.
"Well, if we weren''t at war it wouldn''t have been strange for you to be an idol." Sam said. "You''re this cute, after all."
Odin had created the Valkyries to be as attractive as they can be. If the Cmities never appeared he would probably have had an easier time getting the funds he needed just by selling the idea of the Valkyries to entertainmentpanies. Idols, pop stars, actresses, models, he would''ve been abillionaire just by capitalizing on their appearance.
"Hmph! I-I already know that much!"
Hearing Zero Three''s flustered voice, Sam looked up to find her blushing to the tips of her ears. Wondering what caused her to react like that, he remembered what he had just said a moment ago. He didn''t give it much thought at the time but apparently just calling her cute earned him quite a few points.
... . . .. -. --. / .... .. -- / ..- .--. / -.-. .-.. --- ... . / ..-. --- .-. / - .... . / ..-. .. .-. ... - / - .. -- . --..-- / - .... . / ..-. . -- .- .-.. . / ... --- .-.. -.. .. . .-. / .-- .- ... / ... .... --- -.-. -.- . -.. / -... -.-- / .... --- .-- / .... .- -. -.. ... --- -- . / ... .- -- / .- -.-. - ..- .- .-.. .-.. -.-- / .. ...
Chapter 42 Im Just Curious.
Zero Five''s treatment went on for far longer than expected, which forced Zero Three to leave for her duties.
With just Nine apanying her, the two were ordered to not move too far from the base.
Two Valkyries weren''t by any means weak, but after the incidents from the day before it would be too reckless to let them do the usual, especially with one of their teammates still recovering.
Time passed and the Valkyries returned. Zero Five was still recovering, leading to Zero Three getting depressed once more. She asked why it was taking so long, and why Eir is incapable of determining the amount of time it would take.
Sam exined that the device provides a rough estimate of how long it will take, however some things happen on the microscopic level that might result in that estimate being extended. The damaged parts are basically being 3D printed using nano machines, but due to theplexity of the Valkyries'' bodies some mistakes are bound to happen.
"Doctor~" before they started the daily examination, Nine approached Sam with what he could only describe as a terrifying smile. "What is this I hear about you inviting Three for a meal?"
Sam nced at the young Valkyrie who turned away and pretended to be clueless before running to the examination room.
During their little outing Nine noticed that Zero Three''s mood had improved. She guessed that it had something to do with the young Valkyrie not being around for breakfast, but what she didn''t expect was that Sam had invited her to eat with him and his colleagues.
Zero Three didn''t hold back when bragging about her experience, only realizing that doing so fueled the blond one''s jealousy even further.
"Nine, you''re supposed to be the mature one." Sam said with a sigh, cing his hands on her shoulders and pushing her away. "I''m sure you already understand what led to that."
"Even if you say that¡" Nine turned away and puffed her cheeks. "You were angry at me for going to the library where very few people go, but then you turn around and take Three to a crowded ce. I thought we weren''t supposed to make too much contact with the soldiers."
"Well¡"
"And it''s not like I was doing just fine. I want to beforted too!"
Unable to argue with what she said, Sam sighed in defeat. "I get it already. Next time I will invite you instead. Are you satisfied?"
Sam could already see how the situation will develop. Now that he had brought one of the Valkyries with him the soldiers will definitely ask him to do the same with other two. Refusing would be way more troublesome so he would have no choicee but to go along with it.
Sam began to feel that he had identally turned himself into the Valkyries'' manager instead of their physician. Just organizing their outing to the public will definitely be far more stressful than his actual job.
"No, that won''t be enough."
Sam turned to the blond Valkyrie, looking at her with icy cold eyes. He didn''t like the sound of it, a weapon trying to emotionally manipte him into doing things.
Nine wasn''t fazed by Sam''s re. With her usual smile she slowly moved forward until her chest began pressing against his. As she looked up at him, her right hand began gently caressing his crotch area. Soon enough her smile deepened as she felt the bulge forming.
"I want to perform another experiment, Doctor~?"
Sam quickly nced at the door to the examination room then at the one sided ss wall. Zero Three was already waiting at her container so he didn''t have to worry about her peeking on them.
Turning back to the blond Valkyrie, he looked her in the eyes for a few seconds before stealing her lips. Afraid that the young Valkyrie would get suspicious if they took too long he cut the kiss short.
"I will let you know when the timees." Sam said, pushing Nine away with a solemn expression.
The blond Valkyrie licked her lips then smiled at him.
"Don''t make me wait too long~?" She said before heading to the examination room.
When the door closed behind her Sam looked down at his pants and let out a tired sigh.
"Patience." He said, pressing a few keys on the keyboard on his desk. "I already got the security clearance. There is no need to rush, I can do it whenever I want."
Watching the green liquid fill the ss containers, Sam wondered when it would be a good time to visit Nine''s bedroom.
A couple of minutester he heard a beeping sounding from Eir''s terminal. With theck of sleep slowly drawing him toward the dreamnd he turned to check what it was about. What he saw shook him awake immediately and he whipped his head in the direction of the examination room before turning to the terminal again and pressing a few keys.
Nine''s treatment was done so he went and emptied her container. A few secondster she opened her eyes and began looking around. Realizing where she was she heaved a sigh and came out.
"Good morning." Sam said, holding out arge bath towel for the Valkyrie to cover her naked body with.
"Good morning, Doctor." Zero Five said in her usual calm voice. "The fact that I''m here means we won the battle. Correct?"
"Yes." Sam said. "You let your guard down far too early. Better stay careful next time."
"Understood."
Unlike Zero Three, Five took the advice he gave her without showing the least bit of displeasure. The way they react to such things was also programmed into them. Being easy to predict shows that in the end they aren''t really human.
No¡ Sam thought, remembering the question he had asked himself earlier. Humans aren''t that difficult to read either, and their actions are as predictable. I can''t really say those weapons are that different.
"Doctor?"
Sam jolted back to reality having heard Zero Five''s voice. It seems that he had been spacing out for a few seconds.
"Alright. Why don''t you go take a quick shower before those twoe out?" Sam said, attempting to shake the wierd thoughts out of his mind. "They have been worried sick about you."
For a moment Zero Five''s eyes widened a little, followed by a smile and a slight blush.
"... I see¡" she said before turning to leave.
~¡ó~
"Fiiiiivee!!!" Zero Three cried, running toward the ponytailed Valkyrie with outstretched arm.
"Hold it." Five stopped her with a single finger, pressing it against the young Valkyrie''s forehead. "You need to shower first."
Not long after Zero Five returned to the Lab the other two were done with their examination. Noticing that her container was empty they rushed out finding her having a chat with the doctor.
Though Zero Three tried to go for a hug, Five denied her because of the stickiness left behind from Eir''s green liquid. She had just showered and changed into new clothes so she wanted to stay clean for the time being.
"I''m d to see you up again, Five." Nine said, her smile warm and soothing.
"Yes. Thank you." Five replied. "Doctor had briefed me about what happened after I passed out, but I want to hear more directly from you two."
"Alright then. We will go have a quick shower thene back." Nine said as she pushed the young Valkyrie toward the door. "I bet you want to hear about what Doctor did with Three~?"
A few momentster the door closed and when it did Zero Five turned to Sam with eyes devoid of light.
"Not you too." Sam said with an exasperated sigh.
"What do you mean, Doctor?" Tilting her head a little, Zero Five spoke with an expressionless face. "I''m just curious about what you did with Zero Three."
For some reason Sam felt like he was in some mortal danger so he quickly exined what had transpired.
"I see¡" Five said after hearing the story. "I guess I should thank you for always taking care of her."
"Well, it''s not much." Sam replied, happy that she didn''t seem as jealous as Nine, or so he thought
"But¡ I expect that you would do the same for us as well. Right?" Zero Five asked.
"O-of course."
He was already beginning to regret inviting Zero Three back then. He did it because he felt bad seeing her feelings down, but at the time he didn''t expect that the other two would feel jealous of the young one receiving some special treatment.
At this rate he feared what would happen once he starts banging them. Would it end up the same as it would if they were humans? The level of headache it could bring made Sam hesitate to go forward with his ns.
Just as those thoughts went through his head he felt something wrap around his waist then a soft feeling press gainst him.
"Doctor is really Nice." Five said, resting her head on his chest and closing her eyes.
".... Zero Five?" Sam looked down at the Valkyriesurprised that she hugged him without a warning.
"... can I stay like this¡ just a little?"
She was acting strangely however Sam was unable to guess the reason behind it. He did make sure to instruct her to not get physical with him unless he gave his permission, and she didn''t seem to be the kind to ignore such instructions. He was worried about the other Valkyriesing back and finding them like that as well and that caused him to panic a little.
After a couple of seconds Sam started to feel that the ponytailed Valkyrie didn''t n on letting go of him for a while. Hoping it would speed up the process a little, he returned the hug and slowly patter her head. He wasn''t able to see her expression from where he was, however at that moment the Valkyrie''s lips curved into a satisfied smile.
Chapter 43 Fanclub.
Right around dinner time Sam was feeling rather exhausted. He was looking forward to going back to his room and getting some rest, but first he had to meet with Shizuru so they could have dinner.
Same as with lunch, the cafeteria was crowded more than usual. A lot of people started gathering there after hearing about what happened at breakfast. Sam hated how people he never talked to before were approaching him and asking questions. The worst of it was those asking when will be the next time he brings the Valkyries with him?
Sam had to keep a good grip on his nerves as he risked snapping every time someone came to him with a variation of that. He told them that it''s not something he ns on doing often, and that it all depends on if the Valkyries feel like it.
While what happened improved his image among the soldiers a little, the opposite was showing as well. Some imed that he was trying to keep the Valkyries all for himself, which looked like a childish tantrum thrown by those jealous of his position. Little did they know that what they used him of was actually happening.
At any rate, with the hatred directed at him being magnified as time passes someone decided to step in and help him with the situation.
"This is sergeant Melissa Ranford." Shizuru spoke with a smile, introducing a female soldier who sat on the opposite side of the table facing Sam.
She was a slender and tall woman in theter half of her twenties with long natural red hair. Her face wasn''t much to speak of whenpared to Shizuru or the Valkyries, however Sam could say she was attractive enough. Her sharp green eyes red daggers at him as she crossed her arms and leaned on the back of her chair. It appeared like she was there to pick a fight with him.
"And? May I ask what she wants?" Sam said, keeping his cool as he sipped his coffee.
"Sergeant Ranford is the president of the forty sixth base''s Valkyrie fanclub." Shizuru said. "She was hoping to discuss a few things with you."
"Valkyrie fanclub?" Sam raised an eyebrow. "It''s actually real?"
"Of course it is." Melissa spoke, her re growing sharper. "There is one in each military base. Ours isn''t an exception."
"This is the first time I hear about this." Sam replied, unfazed by the way she looked at him. "Well, I expected it to exist in one form or another."
The Valkyries were all beautiful females, it''s to be expected that they would amass some kind of following among the public. Sam knew from the get go that a lot of soldiers were their fans, what he didn''t expect was that they would be organized enough to form a club.
You''re supposed to be humanity''sst hope! The soldiers fighting to end the reign of Cmities! Thinking that to himself, Sam let out a sigh.
"So? How may qI help you?" Sam asked. "You don''t n on asking me to set up a way for you to meet the weapons, right?"
"You sure are perceptive." Melissa said. "But sadly, that''s not what I am here. If we wanted to organize such events we would''ve gone to themander. Well, we tried and got rejected."
"Then why are you bothering with me?"
For a moment Sam thought it was strange that their request was denied. There is nothing harmful about letting the soldiers meet their idols, and the Valkyries are on standby most of the time so it wasn''t like it would interfere with their job.
Don''t tell me they submitted the request while Alice was going through a breakup¡ Sam thought. She might''ve redirected some of her anger onto them.
"I''m sure you have heard about it already." Melissa said. "The news about J?rmungandr being defeated."
"Did they make the announcement already?" Sam asked, ncing over at Shizuru. Seeing that his girlfriend''s eyes were wide in shock, he understood that most people have yet to hear the news.
"I have my own sources." Melissa said with a shrug. "Anyways, like pretty much every ce with living humans our base ns to hold a big celebration. we were wondering if you could invite the gode-... I mean the Valkyries. It wouldn''t make much sense to keep them out of this."
Having predicted that it woulde to this, Sam leaned on the back of his chair, took off his sses and massaged the bridge of his nose.
"Shouldn''t you be taking this to themander?" He spoke, not bothering to hide the annoyance in his voice.
"Oh! But this isn''t that kind of event." The red head replied. "We are just celebrating humanity''s first big victory. Our Valkyries aren''t the center of this event, we will still hold it even if they don''t show up."
Looking at the red head for a couple of seconds, Sam stopped to think things through. He had no reason to go along with her request, however he also had no excuse to refuse her. Actually rejecting her would most likely lead to him bing the arch nemesis of their club, if he isn''t already.
Even if he doesn''t care what others thought of him, Sam realized that he could use this opportunity to lessen the headache they''re causing him. It wouldn''t hurt to get in their good side and all he has to do is invite the Valkyries who would definitely be overjoyed by the idea, though that in itself might cause the most trouble.
Having made his decision he looked up at Melissa and spoke.
"First of all, you need a new source. If you don''t even know what happens on this base then your club is meaningless."
"... what?" Melissa lowered her gaze, sensing that he knew something even she has yet to find out.
"When do you n on making your little celebration?" Sam asked.
"A couple of days after the announcement."
"Alright then." Sam said, sipping from his cup and noticing that the coffee was getting cold.
His eyes wondered around the cafeteria. It was almost empty with everyone having left after seeing that none of the weapons were there. With no one around to eavesdrop on them, he spoke in low voice that only the two women sitting at his table could hear.
"I''m sure this club of yours has at least one person who tracks the weapon''s movements, right?"
"Yes¡" Melissa replied, having no clue where this was going.
"Then you must know that one of them was damaged yesterday." Sam leaned forward, picking his cup and pretending to sip from it.
By now the red haired woman had already guessed that the Doctor was about to reveal some information even her sources have yet to obtain.
"I heard that they had an encounter with a strong Cmity yesterday, and that they returnedter than usual." Melissa said. "I also heard that only two were seen leaving the base today."
"Yes. The three had discovered a cmity hiding in the city they found the day before. The battle resulted in Zero Five receiving some really bad injuries that took almost an entire day to repair."
"... I see¡" Melissa was fighting the urge to get up and m her hands on the table. That alone was some really big news. Most of the soldiers wouldn''t know about what the Valkyries go through until an official announcement is made, and those usually don''t include if the weapons were damaged or not.
"The Cmity they fought. ording to the data they collected there is a big chance that it might be registered as an S ss."
The red head shot up from her seat and mmed her hands on the table.
"WHAT DID YOU SAY!!?" She shouted in his face, but he kept staring at her with an unchanging expression. A hint of embarrassment showed on the woman''s face as she sat back down but it disappeared the moment she turned to ask Sam for details.
"Are you saying we defeated an S ss?"
"Well, from what I''ve heard they managed to catch it by surprise and finish it off before it could use all of its powers."
If the giant eye had used the resources that went into recreating the city then the likelyhood of iting out on top was quite high. Thankfully it underestimated the three Valkyries and ended up getting destroyed by the proton canon.
Only five S ss Cmities have been registered so far. It was still unclear whether the giant eye will be given the S rank, seeing that it was destroyed before causing any major losses, however the reality is that it had the potential to be on the same level as the Ragnarok Heralds.
Even if it isn''t given the S ss title, it would still go down history as one of the strongest and most terrifying Cmities.
"I see¡" Melissa muttered, her eyes wide with shock. A minuteter she looked up at Sam with a knowing smile "I think I get what you''re trying to say."
If they''re going to celebrate something then it should be their own victory. The forty sixth base had just defeated a powerful Cmity on their own. That was as good of a reason for celebration as the defeat of one of the Ragnarok Heralds.
Chapter 44 Unexpected Guest.
"That was exhausting¡" Sam said, hunching forward unable to keep his back straight.
"It sure was." Said Shizuru with a giggle.
The two had finished their discussion with Melissa, the president of the forty sixth base''s Valkyrie fanclub, and were now heading to their rooms to get some rest.
It took far longer than any of them had wanted, and having had to deal with everything that happened throughout the day on top ofcking sleep Sam was just done. All he wanted was to go to his bed and sleep sixteen hours straight.
Still, even with his eagerness to meet the sand man, Sam chose a longer route so he could spend a little more time with his girlfriend. They didn''t get much time for themselves all day so this was the bare minimum he had to do.
The base was brightly lit but the stars above were still visible. They passed through the small park where they kissed for the first time. The silence was overwhelming, only the rustling of leaves could be heard.
"Sorry for dragging you into this." Sam spoke, feeling it was a good time to apologize.
"No, it was a wonderful experience, I would say." Shizuru replied. "It''s as if I''ve discovered another side of you."
"Really?" Sam raised an eyebrow at her statement, but the Asian girl only smiled.
"Despite how you look, you''re a really kind person, Doctor."
"What do you mean despite how I look? Is there a problem with my appearance?" Sam asked jokingly.
"Well, you always look tired and grumpy. And you tend iste yourself from others."
"Aren''t we the same in that aspect? The istion part, I mean."
"I still interact with the other soldiers frequently, you know. Especially those in the same team as me."
Turns out Shizuru wasn''t as much of an introvert as she lets on.
"Hmm¡ so, even though you have other acquaintances and friends you can spend time with, you alwayse to eat with me." Sam said teasingly. "I see how it is."
"Well, you wouldn''t have noticed me otherwise." Shizuru replied, a mischievous smile ying on her lips. "What about you, then? I would believe it''s a coincidence if it was just lunch and dinner, but how do you exin breakfast? You always made sure to show up even when you need rest."
"Well, isn''t that obvious?"
Shizuru felt herself getting pulled into the darkness. It happened so suddenly she didn''t understand what was going on. When her eyes opened she saw Sam''s face close to hers. With the feeling of a tree against her back as well she could easily tell what kind of situation they were in.
"I was looking for the right opportunity."
Saying those words, Sam leaned in and ced his lips on hers. Shizuru was startled at first but then closed her eyes and submitted herself.
After a while their lips parted. Shizuru looked down despite herself, attempting to hide her bashfulness. Sam had yet to have his fill so he kissed her again, this time taking much longer than before.
"... so¡ does that mean you were after me all along?" Shizuru asked.
"I don''t know when it happened." Sam said. "One day I just realized I had a thing for you."
"Really?" She looked up at him, her eyelids lowered. "And why didn''t you say anything until now?"
"Well, I was going to, eventually." Sam replied. He felt that they were going into dangerous territories so he made sure to choose his words carefully. "Eating with you was one of the few good things in my life at the moment, I was afraid I would lose that if I made the wrong choice."
"Still, keeping me waiting for so long. Doctor sure is slow when ites to those things."
"Well, I won''t deny that." Sam replied.
"Were you so busy ying with the weapons that you failed to notice the hints I gave you?"
"Wha-"
Before he could argue herst statement, a bright white light was suddenly projected on them.
"What''s going on here?"
The two heard a voice, but with their eyes blinded they could only see two ck silhouettes a few meters away.
"What in the world is going on here!?" A voice asked.
"Oh no! Sergeant Ranly! It seems we have identally happened upon a couple while they were having a private moment!" Another followed. "To think we would be so careless that we ended up intruding on a couple while on patrolpletely by ident!"
The two didn''t even attempt to hide it. They were purposefully trying to, and seeding at, ruining the mood. Sam let out a sigh and shook his head. First they envy him for working with the Valkyries, and now for having a girlfriend. He doubted the day they would leave him alone will evere.
"Ooooh! Isn''t that the Doctor!" One of the soldiers said. "Come to think of it I heard he started dating that Asian chick from the monitoring division!"
"Seriously!?" The other added. "Leave some for us man!"
Sam turned to re in their direction. He couldn''t see their faces because of the light, however with his increased security clearance essing the patrol schedules will be an easy task.
Those two dared to ruin his time with his lover. Sam promised in his heart that he will make them pay.
"Well, we better get going!" One of the soldiers said, turning the light in a different direction.
"Oh! But don''t go doing anything naughty out here! You know, public morals and all!"
The two soldiers walked away, not bothering to hide theirughter. Sam let out a sigh, and so did Shizuru. The two stared at each other for a moment then began giggling in the next. After a while they came to a stop. Sam leaned in and kissed his girlfriend once more, but this time he decided to cut it short just in case those bastards were still around.
"I really am the luckiest man in this base, huh?" He said jokingly.
"Because you have me, or because you have the Valkyries?" Shizuru asked with a mischievous smile.
"Because I make them all seethe in anger just by existing."
The twoughed it a little then decided to call it a night. Sam wanted to invite Shizuru to his room so they could continue what they started, however after taking one step he realized that he was quickly nearing his limit.
~¡ó~
Having escorted Shizuru to the female dormitory, Sam sluggishly walked to his room. He would change his clothes, brush his teeth then drop onto his bed. That was what he nned on doing at the very least, however when he walked over to the closet something on his bed entered his vision.
Long white hair, pale white skin and a slender body. Sam rubbed his eyes a few times, thinking his exhausted mind was ying tricks on him.
After all there is no way such an angel would be sleeping on his bed, right?
A minute passed, then a second. Finally deciding to ept reality, Sam crouched down and reached with his hand about to shake the sleeping beauty.
"Wake up, Alice."
He took out his phone and checked if she had sent him any messages, but there were none. She didn''t have the stench of alcohol on her so she most likely didn''t wonder there while drunk. This was the first time she came over so the situation was far too unusual.
Sam was in no shape to deal with his childhood friend''s sorrows. He wanted to sleep, but he didn''t need much brain power to realize that, with her being here, it won''t be happening any time soon.
"C''mon, Alice, wake up already!"
With very little patience left he shook her again, this time a little rougher. Thankfully he didn''t need to do much more as the long white eyshes slowly parted.
"... Doc¡ tor¡?"
"Yeah, the Doctor who''s exhausted because he had to work overnight but can''t rest with you on his bed."
A few seconds pass and Alice finally began to get a read on the situation around her. Her eyes shot open and she quickly lifted herself, her face heating up to the point she felt like it would fall off.
"S-S-Sam! This is¡ I just¡" She stammered, her hands moving erratically.
"Yeah yeah, you came here and fell asleep while waiting." Sam waved his hand dismissively. "How did you get in anyways?"
Seeing how annoyed he looked Alice quickly regained herposure. Her eyes slowly swam to the lower left corner as she answered his question with a nervous smile.
"Well, I''m themander, you know. I can enter any ce on this base."
Sam realized the stupidity of his question right away. The rooms on the base used digital locks that can only be unlocked using the upant''s ID. Themander, the person with the highest level security clearance, has the ability to enter any room on the base she runs. All she has to do is swipe her ID and the door will just open to her.
"Alice, I''m seriously exhausted right now." Sam said, supporting his wobbling head with a hand.
46 61 69 72 79 20 74 61 6C 65 20 43 37 37 0A
Chapter 45 Final Attempt. (Part One)
"Alice, I''m seriously exhausted right now. If it''s not urgent then please leave it for another time."
Seeing how bad his condition was, Alice realized that she chose the wrong time to visit. There was no reason behind it, Really. She just felt like spending some time with her childhood friend that''s all.
That''s right. Themander thought. I definitely didn''te here expecting anything!
After what happened thest time she had himfort her, Alice was very hesitant to contact Sam. The kiss she received from him made her forget all about her broken engagement and ever since he was the only man on her mind.
Today she finally gathered the courage to go see him herself. She hoped that he would make a move while they were alone in his room, and that things would develop from there. Sadly seeing Sam''s condition she could tell that the likelihood of anything urring was nonexistent.
"I understand." Alice said with a weak smile. "Let''s leave it for another time."
As she was about to stand, Sam let out a sigh, scratching the back of his head furiously.
"Listen, Alice, I''m sure you''re going through a lot, but you can''t just pop up whenever you feel like it." Sam said. "You are themander of this base. It would be bad for both our reputations if wierd rumors begin to spread."
"Well, that''s logical, I guess." Alice said. "I will make sure to be careful."
"You must keep in mind that I have my own life as well. I almost invited Shizuru over earlier. What do you think would''ve happened if she saw you on my bed?"
"That''s¡" Alice suddenly went stiff, turning to Sam with a questioning look. "Shizuru?"
"Hm? Oh! Yeah, I forgot to tell you, didn''t I?"Sam spoke, wondering what made him forget something so important. "Her name is Shizuru Kurokami. We transferred here around the same time and were hanging out together ever since. Recently we decided to start dating and it''s been working out pretty well."
Unbeknownst to her, Alice stumbled a step backwards.
"Y-you have a girlfriend¡?"
"Of course I do." Sam replied,her reaction irritating him. "What? Did you expect me to be a loser who would never find anyone?"
"N-no! That''s not what I meant!" Alice''s voice was shaking. An ufortable feeling was slowly growing through her heart. "I mean, I know you had girlfriends before but¡"
I thought you didn''t have anyone right now¡ Alice thought, her eyes bing moist. If you had someon then why¡ why did you kiss me back then¡?
Noticing that the emotions she was doing her best to suppress were going out of control, Alice turned around intending to leave before Sam notices.
"Well, I guess I was just surprised. You need to rest now, right? You can tell me everything another time so¡ I will be going now."
With heavy steps and a heart that threatened to stop, the white haired woman headed for the door.
What was I even thinking? What did Ie here for?
Her thoughts began to run wild, mocking her for everthinking that she still has a chance. She ignored him all this time and now that her youth is fading and other men got to have her first she still had the audacity to think he might give her a chance.
I''m an idiot¡ I''m such an idiot!
As she reached for the door knob, fighting the tears that were about to overflow, Alice felt something grasp her arm forcing her to stop.
Knowing the state her face was in at the moment she didn''t want anyone to see her, especially him.
"Um¡ Sam, I think it''s better if I leave now. You don''t want any misunderstandings, right?"
Though she did her best to act normally, the trembling in her voice was hard to miss. Sam who wasn''t in the mood to deal with her usual emotional bullshit just yanked her toward him and before she knew it she was in his arms.
A moment of silence passed.
As she realized what was happening Alice felt that she had to push him away, however her body refused to move. It had grown used to the warmth of his embrace, so much that every part of her rxes when he is holding her.
"Um¡ Sam, I¡ don''t know what you''re thinking but¡ don''t you-"
"Oh shut up!" Sam interrupted, his tone telling of how annoyed he was. "You never cared before so why would you care now?"
Even though he spoke as if he couldn''t stand her sight, the arms wrapped around her and the hand slowly caressing her hair were as gentle as ever.
Now that I think about it¡ the only one who has ever held me like this was him¡
"Seriously. I know you''re a woman but¡" Sam sighed, trying to reign in his anger. "You need to get a better grip on your emotions. You''re this base''smander, you know."
Unable to hold back anymore, Alice let her tears silently fall.
~¡ó~
"Here." Sam said, handing a cup steaming ck coffee.
"Thanks." Alice said epting it gratefully. Bringing it close to her face she blew on it a little before taking a sip.
The taste was as bitter as it could get. She was used to drinking it like this all the time, however after crying her eyes out she felt like having something sweet for a change.
She was rather ashamed of her behavior, however her heart was finally at peace. Sam''s embrace never failed to ease her aching heart. She wondered why she never realized it before even though the same had happened dozens of times.
"You feeling better?" Sam asked, casually taking a seat beside her.
And just like that Alice''s heart almost jumped out of her chest, this time beating faster than ever before. The two were on his bed right now. She didn''t pay it much mind while crying on his chest, but now that she thinks about it they had been in a somewhat dangerous area for a quite while.
No, it''s not like that. Alice thought, taking a sip of her coffee. Just because he hugged me a little doesn''t mean we will suddenly start doing things. I mean, it''s not like this is the first time this happened. And he has a girlfriend now too. There is no way he would do anything.
''Maybe I should just ra.pe you''
"Alice?"
"Eh? Ah! Sorry! I was just spacing out for a moment!"
Remembering the words he spoke that night, Alice froze for just a moment.
N-no, I''m just overthinking it. There is no way¡ she tried to shake the idea out of her head but to no avail I need to calm down. Think of something else!
"B-by the way!" Her mind was rather chaotic at the moment so she could think of only one thing to ask. "What''s your girlfriend like?"
"What''s she like? Hmm¡" Sam closed his eyes and thought for a moment before answering. "She is a petite Asian girl a year or two younger than me. She has short ck hair and a small face withrge eyes. The way she speaks and act is simply cute. Her smile is one of the few things that make life here bearable."
"... you sure made it sound like she''s perfect."
"Well, she might not be but I would say she''s close." Sam said before taking a sip from his cup. "I will introduce her to youter. You will see for yourself."
"I will look forward to it, then."
For some reason the negative emotions she released a couple of minutes ago began to graduallyreturn. She didn''t understand why but hearing him talk about another woman like that made her heart ache.
No, Sam is right. I can''t keep going like this. I need to be mature about this.
Alice understood that she had no right to feel jealous of the girl named Shizuru. She had her chance and never took it. It was only a matter of time before someone with better eyes came along and swept him away.
"But¡ I guess I can''t really help it." Alice muttered, smiling wryly.
"Did you say something?" Sam asked.
Taking a deep breath, Alice decided it''s time to put an end to this mess. It was nice when itsted, however the two of them were never fated to be together.
"Hey, Sam¡" but before going through with it, the white haired woman decided to make a final attempt. "You used to have a crush on me, right?"
Alice was a fighter. She never let anything get in her way, always doing her best to achieve sess, romance was the only thing she failed at. She felt a little guilty for doing this to the girl named Shizuru, but that wasn''t enough to stop her. She didn''t like the idea of giving up without a fight.
"Yeah, at some point." Sam said after a short moment of silence.
Although she had braced herself for his answer, when he spoke it so nonchntly she felt like a bucket of cold water was spilled on her head. It wasn''t even close to the reaction she expected him to have when faced with such question.
"But, well, that was a long time ago. We are grown ups now, we can''t let the past keep binding us."
"... yeah, I guess that makes sense." Alice said while forcing herself to smile.
Well, of course he''s over it. She thought, taking another sip from her cup. As she stared at the surface of the ck liquid she began to feel something wasn''t right about what he said.
If that was the case then why did he¡
Chapter 46 Final Attempt. (Part Two)
"It''s somewhat funny that you only noticed after so long." Sam let out a shortugh. "To be honest, with how dense you are I never expected that you would notice before I die."
"Well, if you just told me then things might have been different now." She said, turning away withpuffed cheeks.
"I can''t argue with that."
The two nced at each other for a moment then a secondter they burst intoughter.
"So, anyways, I''m really curious. How did you find out?"
Putting his cup away, Sam stretched his limbs feeling his mind being forced awake by the power of caffeine. He had some during his conversation with Melissa earlier but its effects had worn out soon after. Now that he had another cup however he felt that he wouldn''t be able to sleep for another hour or two.
Noticing that Alice was taking way too long to answer he turned to ask why. He was surprised to see her facepletely red, blushing to the tips of her ears. It was a truly wonderful sight. Contrasted by her pure white hair, her flushed skin looked all the more alluring. Seeing her like that awakened something dormant in Sam''s heart.
"Um¡ actually¡" Alice kept her gaze down unable to look him in the eyes. It was the most she could do considering what she was about to say. "I only noticed recently¡ after you kissed me that time¡"
Sam was confused for a second but then his eyes went wide followed with blood draining from his face.
"You¡ you were awake¡?"
Alice only nodded. That alone had all the answers he needed. Suddenly the memories from that night resurfaced. Everything he did, everything he said. One horrific realization after the other almost made his heart stop.
"Alice¡"
Sam didn''t know what to say. His mind went nk as he finally came face to face with the consequences of his actions. He betrayed the trust she put in him, nothing he says could fix the mess he created with his own hands.
"Alice, I won''t try to exin myself and you can hate me if you want, but I just want you to know I''m really sorry. Sorry for taking advantage of you."
That was a lie. He didn''t feel sorry, he never regretted doing what he did. What scared him the most at the moment was what the white haired woman would do now that she knows. She has every right to hate him and if it''s her desire he would suffer any punishment of her choosing, but the thought that he had ruined their rtionship for no logical reason scared him the most.
"N-no need to apologize."
Noticing how pale he got, Alice became even more flustered herself. She put her coffee cup aside, afraid that she would drop it by ident. She then balled her her fists on herp, staring at them as she did her best to not die of embarrassment.
"Of course it''s still a crime to take advantage of a woman like that. But in the end you stopped before crossing the line and I''m willing to overlook it."
"Alice¡"
"Also, part of it is still my fault. Even when considering our rtionship, Sam is still a man. It was careless of me to act like that when we were alone."
Though he wanted to tell her that ming the victim was wrong, Sam''s focus was directed elsewhere, freezing his mind on another part of what she said.
"I never saw iting, you know." While Sam''s mind was busy trying to understand what''s going on, Alice continued to gather her courage, doing her best to convey her feelings and desires. "But thanks to that I was able to forget about the broken engagement."
Normally it would''ve taken her days or even weeks to recover from a break up, however Sam''s bold move upied her mind making him the only one she could think of.
"I started to wonder if you had feelings for me." She giggled a little, remembering the thoughts that led her to his room. "Silly me. I even came here thinking something might happen. Turns out I was just living in my own fantasy."
Having said everything she could think of, Alice fell silent as she waited. She wasn''t sure what Sam''s response would be, it could go either way. However that didn''t matter to her anymore. No matter what his answer would be she promised herself that she would ept it and go on living the way she always did.
No¡ as the wait grew longer, Alice began to have second thoughts. If he says he doesn''t see me that way anymore, I don''t think I could go on living¡ he is the reason I made it so far, if we can no longer be together¡
"Alice."
Hearing her name, Alice prepared herself and turned to face the man. She expected to see a stern look, or a troubled one, however what met her was neither of those as she felt something press on her lips.
Sam stole a kiss from her throwing her mind into chaos, but as she began to understand what that action meant her face flushed red once more and all the negative thoughts and worries she had before vanished.
cing his hand on her side, Sam pulled her into his embrace, making sure to not let go of her lips all the while.
"Sam¡"
Alice opened her eyes slightly, the man in front of her looked different from what she remembers. Nothing had changed about his appearance or expression, he was still the same Sam she always knew. It was her feelings that had changed, and seeing him this close made her heart beat abnormally fast.
Sam pulled Alice''s body moving her onto hisp and without hesitation he stole her lips again. Alice wrapped her arms around his neck, closing her eyes and allowing herself to enjoy the kiss.
This is¡ different¡ It''s nothing like any kiss I had before¡ is it because of Sam? Is it because he shares my feelings?
As the thoughts ran through her mind, Alice began to feel jealousy toward to female soldier who got to be his girlfriend.
No, I shouldn''t be thinking like that. I''m the one wronging her right now.
As he caressed her long white hair, enjoying the smooth silky feeling, his hands went down to Alice''s bottom, moving along her hips to her thighs. Arriving at the hem of her miniskirt, Sam pushed his thumbs inside then pulled it all the way up revealing the soft meat buns covered in the thinyer of her stockings and processed to sink his fingers into them.
"Ahn~?!"
Alice''s whole body trembled forcing a surprised moan out of her, however her lips were sealed once again the next moment. The sensation had jolted her mind awake causing the sliver of reason and rationality she had left to fill her heart with guilt.
"... Alice?"
As he indulged himself in the softness of the gorgeous white haired woman, amazed with how close it was to the Valkyries'' perfection, Sam was suddenly pushed back as Alice retreated.
"Sam¡ I''m sorry¡" she said, her face cast down out of shame. "We can''t keep doing this¡ it''s unfair to the girl you''re dating¡"
Though she was determined to fight for him not that long ago, Alice was suddenly reminded of herst fiancee and how he left her for another woman. When she went to see him thest time she found that he had escaped with his new lover, leaving only a letter behind in their empty apartment telling her of what led to him making that decision.
I don''t want to be that kind of woman¡ Alice thought, her shoulders slightly quivering. Stealing someone''s lover, breaking their hearts, I can''t be like that¡
Remembering the pain she felt from the betrayal, Alice couldn''t bring herself to subjugate another woman to that kind of experience. She didn''t wish for others to suffer because she chose her own happiness over theirs.
Sam said nothing for a while, the silence increasing the tension in the room. A few secondster she felt him cing his hands on her shoulders, and as she waited for his voice to reach her, the scene around her abruptly changed as her body was thrown forcefully yanked aside.
"You really are cruel, Alice¡"
As she recovered from the impact, Alice slowly opened her eyes to find Sam looking down on her while sheid down on the bed.
"If you keep ying with my feelings like that I might grow to hate you, you know."
"That''s not what I-"
Before she could refute his im, Sam leaned in and kissed her once more. She tried to push him away but he grabbed her arms and held them in ce. He forced her mouth open and twined their tongue, the slightly bitter taste of coffee slowly faded as their saliva mixed together and as she felt her mouth being invaded Alice could no longer resist the feeling and her body began to rx, only then did Sam let go of her.
"You came to a man''s room at night expecting something to happen, right?"
Alice''s mind became hazy after experiencing such passionate kiss. As she looked up at him her brilliant red eyes seemed to ask for more despite what she previously said and Sam was about to give her just that.
"I won''t allow you to run now."
Chapter 47 Dont Stop Now.
Chapter 47 Don''t Stop Now.
"I won''t allow you to run."
Hearing those words, Alice''s heart skipped a beat and before her mind could form a response her lips were taken once more.
It can''t be helped¡ she thought to herself. I tried to stop him, but he made it clear that he won''t. If anyone is at fault then it''s him.
Though she tried to ease her guilt by putting the me on Sam, the white haired beauty was still aware that what they were doing is wrong. It''s just that she had lost the will to resist and her desire for love was overtaking her rationality.
Sam separated their mouth a whileter. Looking down at the beautiful woman on his bed he couldn''t help but smile. He had dreamed of this situation many times and it''s finally here. Noticing the way he looked at her Alice was filled with shame and couldn''t help but shift her gaze away.
p"You''re so cute, Alice." Sam said, going down for one more kiss. This time however he chose her forehead instead.
Alice was confused for a moment, having expected him to go for her lips like before. She understood a momentter as Sam backed away from her.
He reached for her skirt, undoing the zipper and side buttons holding it in ce before pulling it off then throwing it on the floor.
Alice watched in silence as he removed her clothes one by one, her heart beating so fast she feared it would jump out of her. She felt especially nervous when only her underwear was left, but a few secondster it was gone as well leaving her stark naked.
Sam undressed as well, leaving only his boxers on. Alice noticed the huge bulge in his crotch causing her to shudder in excitement.
"As I thought." Sam spoke as he looked down at the naked woman on his bed. "You really are the most beautiful woman I know."
His words caused Alice to blush further, moving her hands to cover her private parts.
"D-don''t stare¡" she said in a hushed voice.
Seeing how embarrassed she was, Sam''s rod twitched signaling for him to hurry up and remove the seal, however he couldn''t help but stare trying to burn the beautiful figur into his memory before doing anything else.
Not long after he felt an unbearable desire for Alice''s lips which had swollen a little bing red as an indication of her arousal.
"Ahh~?!"
Alice couldn''t help but gasp as Sam''s hand touched her abdomen. He gently stroked it in a circr motion, watching as she squirmed in reaction.
"Alice¡"
Leaning in for a kiss, he continued to gently caress her body, massaging it until she began to rx. His hand eventually found it''s way to her inner thighs, going up he then arrived at herher.
"Mmmnhh~?!"
With the hand covering it moved out of the way nothing stood between Sam and Alice''s secret flesh. He listened to the muffled moans as he slowly slid his fingers on entrance, which had long since be soaking wet. Alice''s legs rubbed together as he continued the teasing, however when he decided to insert his middle finger into it her whole body suddenly went stiff releasing a transparent tide showering Sam''s hand with her love juices.
"Mnuuuhhhhhhhhhh~~?!!!"
Realizing what had just happened Sam waited until Alice rxed then lifted himself and checked his hand. A secondter he nced down and let out a shortugh.
"Haha, we have barely started and you came already?"
Overwhelmed by shame Alice could only cover her face with both hands.
"Uuu¡"
"Even though Alice is an experienced woman." As he spoke, Sam wiped his palm on the bed sheet. He was enjoying how embarrassed Alice looked so he decided to tease her some more. "Or could it be that your previous fiances weren''t any good?"
"That''s-"
Just as she was about to say something in return, Alice felt her entire body forcefully bend. Looking through the gap between her fingers she learned that Sam had ced his hands behind her knees then pushed them all the way up to her shoulders then-
"Wha-"
Before she could react he split them wide apart revealing her soaked pussy.
"It''s this bad already." Sam said teasingly, but the reality is that he was surprised by the shape and color of her secret flesh. Alice was already in her thirties and had gone through multiple engagements so he expected it to look much worse, however with an almost closed opening and the healthy pink color it was easy to tell that it had barely been used.
"N-nooo¡. Don''t¡.. Don''t look¡.."
Alice pleaded with him, the shame and embarrassment tormenting her, however Sam wasn''t about to stop. No, in fact he had yet to even start.
Holding her legs in ce, he leaned down bringing his face closer to her honey pot, and just when she began to wonder what he was doing Sam took out his tongue and began licking herbia.
"Aaahhhhnnnn~?!!!!"
Alice''s back arched as she felt the foreign sensation for the first time. Sam didn''t stop working his tongue, licking the sweet and sour love juices that flowed out trying to savor the odd vor.
Ripples of sexual excitement were spreading across Alice''s body. Noticing that Sam wasn''t looking at her she stopped covering her face and instead tried to suppress the sweet moans leaking from her, but that was utterly useless as he began invading her entrance.
"Ahh¡. Mmmn¡ mnm¡. Hnaah~?!"
She struggled to understand how he was able to make feel such excitement with his tongue alone, but as she started to enjoy it more and more Sam came to a sudden stop.
Since she was about to climax Alice felt a bit annoyed that the stimtion had ceased. Looking up at her partner with furrowed brows, she was once again faced with the same teasing smile as before.
"So, Alice, are you enjoying yourself?" Sam said with a smirk.
He expected her to cover her face again or look away in shame, however to his surprise the white haired beauty only averted her gaze a little then said with pouted cheeks.
"D-don''t stop now¡"
Her reaction took him off guard causing his heart to skip a beat. The smile returned to his face a secondter, this time containing none of the yfulness from before.
"Alright then." Sam said, deciding it was time to get serious.
Alice watched in anticipation, however Sam didn''t move back in to continue licking her honey pot but instead began caressing it with his hand, then, without a warning, he inserted both his middle and ring fingers into her hole.
"Ahh ah aaaaaaahhhhhhh!!!"
Sam pushed in as deep as he could before beginning to move his hand, thrusting in and out while curling his fingers as if trying to spread her love meat open.
"Nuuaahhh!! Haah¡. I''m¡. Haahh¡. I''m cumming!.... I''m¡.!!!!!"
Reaching her limit, Alice climaxed releasing another shower of the transparent fluid.
Chapter 48 Normal Woman.
Sam waited until the transparent fluid stopped flooding before taking his finger out of her hole. He then let go of her legs allowing her body to stretch.
He checked to see how Alice was doing. He found her in a daze, panting with her tongue slightly sticking out.
Hey, if this much is enough to make you orgazm then what will you do when we get to the real deal?
Thinking that to himself, Sam shook his head slightly with a wry smile. He wiped his hand then invited himself to her lips, tangling their tongues before kissing her.
"Ha~~h~?"
Alice heaved a sigh full of sensuality, her unfocused eyes looking at Sam.
"Hey now, Alice, you can''t let yourself be like this from a little forey." Sam said in a gentle voice as he stretched on his side beside her.
"I-it can''t¡ haahh¡. It can''t be helped¡" Alice said, the red color on her cheeks getting brighter. "It''s been too long since I did this."
"Really?" Sam asked.
"Yes! A-and it''s¡ it''s not like I''m that experienced, you know!" She added, what he said earlier had bothered her this entire time. "I never told you this, but¡ I only did it once with each of them¡"
"I see¡"
Sam found it a bit strange, but the more he thought about it the more it made sense, well, at least a little. Alice is a big shot in the military, and so is her father. She had both their reputations to preserve so she couldn''t just sleep with anyone. She only ever moved in with her fiances, and with her being busy most of the time they probably didn''t have the time to have their fun.
That said, only once with each of them? Is that even possible? Or could it be that she forced them to wait till they get married then gave in at some point? That wouldn''t make sense as well. If it was just the first or second time then it would be usible, however five times in a row? That seemed unlikely. Unless¡
"Alice¡ could it be¡" Sam spoke, his expression turning serious. "Did they leave soon after you slept with them?"
Alice stayed silent for a while before nodding.
"Sam, did it ever ur to you that I resembled the Valkyries?"
Sam swallowed audibly then replied with a nod.
"Then you should understand what led to those engagements in the first ce." Alice''s gaze be distant as she recalled the men that had approached her. "Seeing my white hair and red eyes they all had this weird expectation of me. Then they learn that I''m just a normal woman and lose interest. I guess you could say they get disillusioned."
Just like everyone else Sam had always been curious about Alice''s hair and eyes, though since they had been together for as long as he could remember he had gotten used to it very early on. ording to her father what caused the strange colors was a rare gene present in their family''s DNA. The chances of it manifesting was almost nonexistent but sometimes it would manifest itself. Apparently some of their ancestors had the same features.
The conversation had taken an unexpected turn leading to the mood they had before being ruined. Noticing the shadow looming deep in Alice''s eyes, Sam began to curse himself for not revealing his true feelings for her much earlier.
If he did them maybe she wouldn''t have had to go through such painful experiences.
"I''m really an idiot¡" Sam murmured before lifting himself and getting off the bed.
Alice watched him silently. She was afraid. Now that he had heard her story and the details she hid even from him she feared that he would have second thoughts about being with her, but her worries were unnecessary as she saw him reach for his underwear before removing it.
When he turned to face her Alice reflexively turned away however she kept steeling nces at his meat pir which was hard and ready to go.
Sam climbed back onto the bed, spreading Alice''s legs once more and positioning himself between them. He then took his his tool and ced it at the entrance of her womanly hole.
,m Feeling the throbbing hot rod that was about to invade her, Alice''s eyes went wide all of a sudden as she remembered something very important.
"W-w-wait! Sam! What are you doing!?"
"Hm?" Sam turned his sight to the white haired woman, lookingat her with half closed eyes. "What?"
"Aren''t you¡ aren''t you forgetting something?" She asked, doing her best to keep eye contact. "We''re still in the base, and you know the rules when ites to such things."
Sam immediately understood what she was referring to. As soldiers stationed in one of the Resistance''s military bases everyone has to abide by some rules, like the one telling the soldiers to be professional while on duty, and the other one which states that those engaging in sexual activities must always make sure to use protection to avoid unnecessary pregnancies.
Humans were a scarce resource these days, so much that women had to be drafted as well. The Resistance has to put everyst soldier to good use, which means they can''t afford maternity leave for those careless enough to get pregnant in a warzone.
Among the necessities given to each soldier every month was a pack of condoms. More can be obtained from the supply store near the cafeteria so there was no excuse for not using them.
Sam was sure he had quite a few stashed somewhere, however he didn''t feel like looking for one, not to mention he has ns of his own.
Sam suddenly moved his cock, firmly rubbing it against Alice''s flesh trench.
"Hyauuh!!!"
Alice threw her head back sharply. Having suddenly been subjugated to strong stimtion, her vaginal hole contracted squirting some of the transparent love juice.
"Ah, ahh¡ S-Sam¡. What are you¡."
"Alice, I won''t pretend that it doesn''t bother me." As he spoke, Sam slowly rubbed his meat pole against her slit. "It took you so long to realize I have feelings for you, and in the meantime you had slept with five other men."
"Ahh, ah... that''s¡.. ahhnn~?!!!"
"It''s not your fault, I know that, but if we''re going to do this then you have to go along with whatever I say."
Stopping his movements, Sam leaned in on Alice looking at her with a serious expression.
"I will train your body so my cock will be the only thing it remembers, and when I''m done with that¡" closing in on her left side he whispered in her ear. "I''ll impregnate you with my child and make you mine forever."
Before Alice could even process those words, Sam thrust his hips prating her deepest part.
Chapter 49 I Dont Care.
Sam rammed his rock hard rod deep into Alice''s vagina, however a momentter his whole body went stiff forcing him to realize that doing so might''ve been a mistake.
Alice''s flesh hole was way too tight. Though his thing had slid in without a problem her vaginal walls were pressing on it with such a force that it felt like they were intent on crushing him.
Every muscle in Sam''s body contracted as he did his best to not ejacte right then and there. Fearing that his efforts might be in vain he slowly pulled back until most of his rod was out, he then thrust it in with the same force once again.
"Hyaaaahhhh~?!!!"
Sam repeated the process, going slow at first then gradually increasing his speed. He leaned with all his weight on Alice mercilessly pounding his hips against her as she yelped coquettish moans while digging her nails into his back.
"Ahh~?!! Hahh, ahh¡. S¡. Sam¡. Gen¡. tle¡.. ple¡.ase¡. Slow¡.. hyaaaahnn~?!!!!"
She tried pleading with him to go easy on her, however the intense pleasure they were experiencing prevented Alice from forming coherent words and Sam from focusing on anything beside stopping his dick from exploding.
"Ahh, ah¡.. huaahh¡. Mnn¡ haahnn~?!!"
Alice''s inside felt different from that of any woman he had slept with before. It was especially tight and densely covered in flesh bumps in all directions to the point that he could even tell with his meat rod. They stimted him by rubbing the ns and stroking the shaft pushing him toward the bring of ejaction each time he moved.
"Haahh, ah¡. S-Sam¡. I''m¡ nghnn¡.."
Feeling her vaginal walls pressing on him even stronger than before Sam realized that Alice was about to orgasm. Thrusting his cock into her deepest part he released his restraints and a violent torrent flooded out into Alice.
"Aaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!"
As the burning hot semen filled her inside, Alice body twitched while hugging Sam tightly.
"It''s¡ haah¡. Sam''s¡. Seed¡. Hahh¡. Is filling me¡. Hahhnn~?"
"Haaahhh" Sam exhaled in satisfaction. Strength left his body for a few seconds leaving him unable to move andying on top of Alice.
It was the first time he had experienced such a feeling. It was stronger and much more intense making even the time he lost his virginity seem like nothing inparison.
As their breathing became steady again Sam slowly lifted himself up. He looked down at Alice who had been drowned in pleasure she had never experienced before. The white haired beauty gazed up at him, her red eyes filled with affection, and as if invited by them Sam went down and kissed her lips.
"Jeez, Sam¡" Alice spoke, still gasping for air. "Don''t you¡ haah¡ know how¡. Haahh¡. To be gentle¡.?"
"Sorry¡" as he spoke, Sam moved some of the white strands aside before slowly caressing her cheek. "Alice is just way too beautiful. And your pussy feels extremely good."
"I-idiot! D-don''t say it like that!" Shifting her gaze away from embarrassment, Alice then added. "And take it out already. You¡ you released way too much¡"
"Ah, sorry about that."
Doing as she said, Sam pulled his meat pir which had shrunken back to its normal size. With the only thing blocking the entrance removed, white fluid began oozing out of Alice''s womanly hole. Seeing it caused her to shudder in fear and she turned to the one responsible andined.
"Look at what you did! You know how dangerous this is, right!? What will you do if I get pregnant!!?"
Sam was dumbfounded, staring at Alice with wide open eyes. Regaining his calm a momentter he shut her up with a kiss and didn''t let go until she stopped resisting.
"Didn''t I make myself clear, Alice?" Sam said, his face still close to hers. "I''ll make you mine and impregnate you with my child."
"B-but¡ we can''t¡." Alice looked away shyly, unable to look him in the eyes. "I have responsibilities, and... the Cmities are still around."
"I don''t care." Sam replied insanely.
"Wha-"
"I want a daughter, Alice." Stopping for a moment, he shook his head once and followed. "No, one wouldn''t be enough. Three? Or maybe five? The sooner we start the more we can make."
For a moment Alice thought he was joking, however looking at his expression she understood that he was beingpletely serious.
"You¡ you want them all to be girls?" She asked, deciding to y along with what he''s saying. "Aren''t you supposed to want more boys?"
The impression that men always want their kids to be boys was deeply ingrained in society, however while there were reasons behind it in the past they had changed at some point in the recent few decades. Raising a girl became more difficult and a father had a lot to fear seeing how wretched society had became, and that''s without counting the disasters brought forth by the Cmities. One would be much more at ease if they had a son instead, or so Alice thought, however Sam''s goals were beyond her understanding.
"Our daughters will definitely be as cute as you were back then." Sam said with a smile. "Isn''t that enough of a reason to want them to be girls?"
Hearing him call her cute, Alice''s heart throbbed harder. She knew he was referring to when they were little, however that didn''t stop her from getting bashful about it.
"E-even if you say so¡ we can''t just start making babies, you know." Alice said. "We¡ we have to be responsible about it. And we can''t let it get in the way of our work."
Seeing how she''s still being reluctant, Sam let out a sigh. He reached for the drawer beside the bed he took some tissue from the box that was on top then proceeded to wipe the sticky fluids staining Alice''sher.
"Alice¡ could it be that you don''t want to have my child?" Sam asked, his voice sounding a bit down.
"N-no! That''s not what I- aah!!" Alice tried to respond, however she released a sweet moan despite herself sensing her honey pot getting rubbed.
"Then¡" looking up at her, Sam asked with a serious expression. "Didn''t you enjoy doing it with me?"
Alice''s eyes went wide for a moment, the words getting stuck in her throat. Thinking about it for a moment she then arrived at her answer, and the second she did her hands moved to cover her face as she felt it heating up even more.
"I¡" finally getting the courage to speak she uncovered her eyes but still couldn''t look at him while saying it. "I really¡. I really enjoyed it¡"
"... is that so?" Hearing her answe, Sam let a smile y on his face. "Did my cock make you feel good?"
"D-don''t you know a better way to say such things?" Alice said in protest, but then she added in a hushed voice. "It felt¡ really good¡"
"I see¡"
Done cleaning the mess he made, Sam tossed away the tissue then looked up at Alice. Knowing what''sing she moved her hands and closed her eyes, the next second she felt the now familiar sensation of his lips touching hers. Separating a few secondster Sam made her turn around andy on her stomach. He brushed the long white hair aside revealing her beautiful back, he then went on to massage her ass for a while, cing his now fully erect meat pir between the plump cheeks.
"I will make you feel even better, Alice." Sam leaned down and whispered in her ear.
"Please, be a little gentle." Even though she said those words, Alice was sticking her hips out a little as if to invite him.
Sam grabbed his meat and ced it at her entrance, then, while still leaning over her body, he slowly pushed inside.
"Nnuuunnhh, uuh. Uhh kuuuuuh¡. Ahh¡ ukuuuuuuuhhh¡."
Alice hugged one of the pillows, burying her face into it in an attempt to muffle her moans, however that proved futile with her coquettish voice leaking as the thick rod made its way to her deepest parts.
Sam had a better time withstanding the stimtion from Alice''s tight pussy, still it took all of his concentration to not start pumping his hips roughly like he did before.
He slowly slid back and forth, the warm slimy vaginal walls squashing his dick inviting it all the way inside. Alice''s soft buns ttened each time Sam''s body pressed against them and sensing their bounciness he began to have the urge to speed things up.
"How do you feel, Alice?" Sam leaned down to ask.
"Ah, ahh¡. Good¡. It feels¡ haahh~?" Alice said, ncing behind her before adding. "You¡.. hah¡. You can¡ go faster¡.. haahh, ahh¡.. I''m fine¡. Hahhh¡. You don''t¡. You don''t have to worry¡. Hahh¡.."
Alice contradicted her earlier statement, seeking the strong stimtion she felt from getting pounded roughly even though she asked him to be gentle this time.
"Alright..." Sam said, pushing himself up with both arms. As he prepared to go on with the act he remembered something important and stopped to contemte it.
Wondering why he wasn''t moving Alice was about to turn around and ask but then she heard his voice close to her ear.
"Alice¡" Sam said in a whisper. "I love you."
The moment those words reached her Alice''s heart almost stopped before beginning to throb like never before. An inexplicable sense of happiness filled her chest and tears of joy gathered in her eyes.
"Me too¡" she said, her lips drawing the most beautiful smile. "I love you too, Sam."
As if that was his signal, Sam thrust his hips with everything he got.
"Aaaaaaaahhhhhh~?!!!"
His movements resumed, loud pping sounds filling the room as he hit her deepest parts as fast as he could possibly go.
"Nnuu, ah, aanh~?, Sam¡.. Sam~?¡.. I... ah~?, I love you¡.. ahhn~?¡.. Sam~?¡.. ah, ahh¡.. I love you¡.. I love you¡. I¡.. I¡.."
With one final thrust, Sam''s rod kissed Alice''s cervix before unloading his thick semen into her for the second time.
"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhh~?!!!"
Chapter 50 Consequences.
"...am¡hey¡Sam!"
Having heard his name being called, the boy''s eyes slowly opened.
"Jeez, you shouldn''t be sleeping in a ce like this!"
Looking up he saw a little girl no older than twelve. Her pure white hair was so long it almost touched the ground. Her eyes were crimson, the color of blood. The strangebination gave her an uncanny beauty, one that was very difficult to ignore.
"Ali¡ce?" The boy muttered with a hoarse voice. His throat was dry making a ss of water the thing he desired the most right now.
"Yes, the one and only." The girl said with a proud smile. "Anyways, you''ll catch a cold if you fall asleep here. Your parents will get angry again."
As he listened absentmindedly the boy looked around him trying to get a sense of his surroundings. He was in a garden covered in bushes and grass with trees surrounding the area like a fence. On hisp was a thick book so his guess was that he had fallen asleep while reading under the shade of a tree.
"Quantum physics for beginners." The white haired girl said, leaning beside him to read the title of the book. "Whoa¡ no wonder you fell asleep."
"No, the weather is just nice so I took a nap." He said, getting up and stretching his limbs.
"You mean to tell me you understand those things?" She asked, and when he nodded in response she backed away as her face grew pale. "Are you really seven years old?"
Seeing her reaction the boy felt a bit offended.
"I don''t want to hear that from you, miss I''m good at anything and everything."
"I might be good at my studies but I know I will never understand anything in that book." The girl replied, having sensed that she had angered him a little. "Yeah! I meant that Sam is really amazing for understand something so difficult! Really amazing!"
"... really?"
"Yes!" Reaching out with her small hand she patted his head and added. "I''m sure you''ll grow up to be an amazing scientist!"
The boy''s mood improved on the spot, but his face was heating up for some reason. Just when he was about to ask her to stop patting him the two heard a loud beeping sound.
"... I must go." The girl said after looking at the small watch on her hand.
"Another check up?" The boy asked. "It''s happening a lot more these days, even though you look just fine."
"Right!? I never feel bad but father still insists that he checks on me." The girl sighed. "He says I won''t grow up unless we do it everyday."
Seeing how bothered she was, the boy looked down at the book in his hands and thought for a moment.
"Maybe I should study biology instead." He said.
The girl had a sickness of some sort and it had something to do with the gene that gave her white hair and red eyes. Her father was an amazing scientist doing his best to find a way to cure the gic disease, however from the looks of it he has yet to make any significant progress.
The boy wanted nothing more than to help his precious friend, that''s why he decided to dedicate himself to science from a young age. However he was afraid he won''t make it in time at this rate.
"I''m sure you can do very good no matter what you choose." The white haired girl said with an understanding smile. "Then, see you tomorrow."
Waving her hand she then turned around and walked away. The boy watched her go silently, his eyes locked on the long white hair.
~¡ó~
When he opened his eyes Sam still felt somewhat exhausted. He didn''t know how long he had slept but from the looks of it it hadn''t been that long.
As his brain booted up he began to feel something pressing against his left side. When he turned his head to check he saw a white haired sleeping beauty using his chest as a pillow while wrapping her arms around his waist.
Still a bit dizzy he lifted the nket and saw that they were both naked. Just then he began to recall everything that happened the previous night and his whole body tremblex.
They went at it for nine rounds and if he hadn''t passed out he was sure they would''ve gone for more. Not even his ex was able to achieve that much in a single night.
Alice was able to bring out the beast inside him resulting in some really intense stuff. His head wasn''t in the right ce to begin with, however the pleasure he experienced made things worse, that was probably the reason why he didn''t hesitate to cream her each and every time.
This is bad¡ Sam thought, getting up and sitting on the bedside.
While he was happy that he finally had his chance with his childhood crush, now he would have to face the problems that will definitelye with it. For starters, the likelihood that he had just impregnated her. Not only does it mean that she would be discharged for failing to uphold the rules despite being the base''smander,but his position would be threatened as well since the only reason he got it is because of her rmendation. It''s easy to guess what people will think if it gets out that they are together.
Then there is her father to consider. Alice was Sam''s neighbor and their families were on really good term, however if there is one thing he remembers about her father then it was how over-affectionate and overprotective he was.
He remembered his mother making a joke about saving Alice for him so the two can get married once they''re old enough. While he was happy about it at first, once he saw the scowl Alice''s father showed as he said it was too early to talk about such things he realized the situation might be helpless.
So that''s what the dream was about¡ he thought, holding a hand to his head as he felt a slight headache.
Though he never got to learn the specifics, at some point the disease Alice suffered from when whe she was little was cured. Apparently the main symptom was that it halted her growth resulting in an early death, however seeing how she had be such a stunning adult woman it was clear that her father did a really good job.
"Guess I will need to discuss things with him sometime soon." Sam sighed, reaching out to grab his phone from atop the drawer. "I hope he doesn''t kill me."
A secondter Sam''s eyes went wide. Looking at the small screen he noticed that it was already 10:30, but that wasn''t what rang the danger bells in his head. There was a message notification waiting to be opened and the sender was none other than Kurokami Shizuru.
Chapter 51 More Than That.
Seeing the message notification Sam came to the realization that he had messed up on another front. He had spent the night having sex with a woman while he was in a rtionship with another one. He cheated, in other words.
This wasn''t something like ying with the Valkyries, which aren''t even human. Not only did he sleep with Alice, he had also tried to purposefully impregnate her. And as if that wasn''t bad enough the feelings he had for his childhood friend, which he thought had died long ago, were now back and he was sure he has fallen for her once more.
Realizing he now has feelings for two women at the same time Sam began to panic. Obviously there is no way to keep them both at the same time, expecting that is just idiotic. He would have to choose between them eventually.
His childhood crush who''s one of the most beautiful women in the world, the one he dreamed of being with for a long time, or the sweet Asian girl who has been nice to him from the first time they met even when he was scrutinized by almost everyone in the base, the one he decided to date because he saw himself spending the rest of his life with her.
It was a really difficult choice. But for the time being what he had to worry about the most is Shizuru''s reaction once she finds out, which will eventually happen as he had no ns on ending his rtionship with Alice after what happenedst night.
Maybe it''s a good thing that we only kissed so far¡ he thought, tapping the screen to open the message. It could''ve been way worse.
Since they had been dating for only a few days he felt that the blowback could be contained, but then he read the contents of the message.
[I know you''re exhausted so you don''t need to show up for breakfast. Get some rest and sleep well!]
Seeing that the message had reached him soon after he got his room, Sam felt a heavy sense of guilt fall on him. Shizuru was thinking about him, worrying about his health, and what was he doing around that time? He was embracing another woman.
He did something despicable to her, and while he felt guilty about it he still had no regrets. If it was any other woman he would never have cheated, however Alice was an exception. Of course he didn''t expect his girlfriend to understand, that''s why he worked his mind trying to find a way in which things don''t end up blowing in his face.
"Mnmm¡"
Some timeter Sam heard the sound of sheets being moved behind him.
He turned just in time to watch as the white haired beauty slowly got up, checking her surroundings with barely open eyes which fell on him then went wide.
Looking down at herself she realized she had nothing on. Her face blossomed into a brilliant shade of red and she quickly grabbed the nket using it to cover her voluptuous chest.
Cute. Sam thought, smiling to himself as if all his worries had vanished for a moment.
Alice looked around once more trying to understand the situation and once she did she looked up at Sam, her expression that of shock and surprise.
"Good morning." Sam said.
For some reason that caused her to blush even more and she quickly moved to cover her face.
"G-good morning¡"
After a while she seemed to calm down enough to respond, doing so while still hiding half of her face. Though such maiden like behavior didn''t suit someone of her age, Sam''s heart to skip a beat nheless and he felt his meat stand for attention.
"So, how do you feel?" He asked.
"Um¡ uh¡" it took Alice a while to find an answer, the events from the previous night flooding her mind. Once she was ready to answer, she took a deep breath and looked Sam in the eyes, shing a brilliant smile. "I feel happy, I guess."
An arrow pierced Sam''s heart, urging him to move. Without hesitation he approached her, holding her chin with his hand before cing his lips on hers. Alice was startled for a moment but then rxed.
The kisssted for quite a while and when it did finally end Sam felt a sense of satisfaction only to remember the predicament he was in right now. He didn''t show it on his face, of course, doing his best to smile so the white haired woman wouldn''t notice.
"I''m d, Alice." Sam heaved a sigh, but then held up his phone and added. "Well, I would''ve liked it if we went at it a little more, but sadly we are out of time"
Seeing the digital clock drained the blood from Alice''s face.
"The announcement!" She eximed, pushing herself up just to lose bnce and fall into Sam''s hands.
"Careful now, you just woke up." He said.
"But! The announcement! I was supposed to be there when the news of what happened to the second base gets released! We are supposed to tell everyone about the Cmity our Valkyries defeated the other day too!"
Was that supposed to happen today? Sam thought, unable to recall.
"Can''t they do it without you?" He asked.
"I have to address our troops as themander of the¡" stopping for just a moment, her expression rxed a little and she looked up at Sam. "I already did the final checks and approved everything, but unless I''m present they would have to dy it for another time."
"Then there is no problem, right?"
"Well, if you don''t consider me losing face because I overslept after spending the night with a man then yes, there is no problem." Alice let out an exasperated sigh, she then turned to Sam with half closed eyes. "And what did you mean by that just now? Don''t tell me you still want more after all of that?"
Sam smirked and nced down. Following his line of sight Alice froze the second she saw his meat pir, fully erect and ready to go.
"I was just tiredst night." Sam said with a proud smirk. "Normally I would''vested much longer."
"Much-" Alice was in shock. "More than that!!?"
"Well, it''s not that I like bragging about it." The way he held his head high said the opposit. "I''m pretty sure I can go twenty four hours without a break if I tried."
"Whoa¡" Alice was lost for words, looking amazed but also scared at the same time.
"I think it happened around the time you got your first engagement." Sam looked up as he tried to recall one of his lowest points. "I was so heartbroken back then that I invited three girls from college back to my apartment. By the time we were done I realized an entire day had passed."
"... Eh?" Alice blinked repeatedly. "Th-three? At the same time?"
"Yeah¡"
When Sam nodded to confirm, Alice''s face went pale once more.
"Hey now, don''t give me that look." He said, smiling wryly. "I was in a really bad ce back then."
"B-but¡ three at the same time! And for that long!" Alice felt like she would faint at any moment, scared of what would''ve happened if he didn''t fall asleep when he did.
Realizing she was focused on something else entirely, Sam sighed in relief.
"Well, you could say I have pushed it way too far that time."
"That would be putting it lightly." Alice heaved a long sigh. "I never took you for someone who sleeps around with multiple women at the same time."
"No." Sam quickly exined himself, afraid that she had misunderstood something important. "It happened only once. Thankfully I was able to see how it would end for me very early and worked on correcting it. Nowadays I don''t sleep with a woman unless I decide to take her seriously."
"... really?" Alice asked, looking at him with upturned eyes.
"Yes." Sam said. "In fact you are the first woman I''ve slept with sinceing here."
Unconvinced by his answer, the white haired beauty gave him a doubtful look.
"What about your new girlfriend, then?"
"We¡ have been dating for only a few days. We have yet to do anything."
"I see¡" for some reason Alice looked awfully relieved.
Seeing that Sam stopped to contemte his answer a little. Maybe the reason he kept Shizuru at a distance even though he knew he liked her was that he still had some hope of getting together with his old crush, even after everything he went through so far.
I even ended my previous rtionship the moment she invited me here. Sam thought, feeling ashamed of how much of a simp he actually is.
After a moment of silence, Alice decided to address the elephant in the room before Sam got the chance.
"So¡ what now?" She asked, her expression having turned serious. "We have done something horrible to Ms. Kurokami. I''m happy that I got to be with you but¡ what about her?"
"Yeah, about that¡" Sam scratched the back of his head. "I have been thinking about it and¡ I realized it might actually be worse than it looks."
Seeing that she has yet to understand what he meant, Sam took a deep breath and prepared himself for what''s toe.
"Alice, I don''t think we can be together."
Chapter 52 I Dont Mind That.
"Alice, I don''t think we can be together."
Alice''s body twitched soon after she heard those words.
"Eh?" The smile began to disappear from her face which had already lost color.
"Well." Sam cleared his throat, seeing that his little joke was more effective than he thought. "To be more precise we can''t date openly like a normal couple."
Even after that it seemed like Alice didn''t understand what he was trying to say. Sam sighed, allowing her a few seconds to gather her thoughts. When she didn''t appear toprehend what he''s going for he gave up and decided to just tell her.
"You''re technically my superior, remember?" Sam said. "It would be bad for your reputation if people heard about us. Not to mention, I only got my job thanks to your rmendation so people would definitely start questioning my capabilities."
Jealousy can get really ugly sometimes, and the truth doesn''t always prevail. If they get caught at some point, it''s easy to see most people using Alice of abusing her authority to get her lover into an important position.
"In order to avoid any problems." Taking a deep breath, Sam told her the conclusion he arrived at."I think it would be for the best if we keep our rtionship a secret."
Staring at him for a while, Alice then looked down as she thought things through. Her conflicted expression told him she''s having a difficult time epting this arrangement, which wasn''t a good sign considering he has yet to tell her the other half of the deal.
"Also, there is another reason why we can''t be open about it." Sam prepared himself for the worst and went on. "It''s about Shizuru."
He saw Alice''s shoulders twitch at the mention of the name, but he went on nheless.
"She means a lot to me, it won''t feel right for me to toss her aside right away." He said. "If it gets out that we broke up because I cheated on her with you I''m afraid I won''t be able to stay in this base. It''s too much of a scandal."
In reality if he was given the choice Sam would''ve liked to have them both at the same time, however that wasn''t something up for him to decide.
He did read news of howmon it had be for multiple women to share a single man, but that didn''t mean he could expect them to be okay with it.
"... I understand¡" Alice spoke after a while. "Ms. Kurokami must be a wonderful woman. I don''t want to hurt her feelings as well."
"Somehow I feel that''s unavoidable." Sam said, feeling the guilt even more than before.
"I don''t mind keeping our rtionship a secret, but¡ don''t you think it would be more painful if she finds outter on?" Alice asked, her eyes locked with Sam''s. "What about you, Sam? I doubt you''d be fine with lying to a woman you hold dear, and I don''t think I can forgive you if you didn''t feel anything when doing so."
"Of course I wouldn''t feel good about it." Sam sighed. "It''s just¡ I need some time. I''ll think of a way to solve this without it blowing in anyone''s face."
Sam understood very well that he was setting the difficulty way too high, and that no matter what be does someone will get hurt pretty badly. Still he had no choice. Best case scenario is that Shizuru gets tired of him and decides to end the rtionship. He could try doing subtle things to direct things toward it, but that wouldn''t be so easy when he doesn''t really want to break up with her.
Damn it! If this was one of those harem novels I wouldn''t have had to worry so much!
Letting out a sigh, Sam turned to Alice. He reached with his right hand and caressed her cheek, he then came closed and kissed her on the lips.
"I will find a way, you don''t have to worry." He sighed, seeing the difficult road ahead of him. "As I said before, we will keep everything a secret for now. We also have to be very careful when meeting, one slip up and we are done for."
"Well, now that we''re together I would like it if we met more often." Alice said, shyly twiddling her finger.
"If it was up to me I would be eating Alice every night till I knock her up. However we can''t really afford that."
Alice''s face became redder as she remembered how rough their first night was. It wouldn''t be surprising if it turns out that she is already pregnant, but even if that''s not the case it will definitely happen soon if they keep doing it the same way everyday.
"Every night would be too much." Alice said, then it suddenly hit her.
Sam has such a strong libido that he could do it with three women at the same time for almost an entire day. It would be fine for now as long as she could take it on herself, but what would happen once she conceives?
Alice came to a sudden realization. Just like how he cheated on his girlfriend once, there is no guarantee that the same wouldn''t happen to her as well, especially once she bes unable to satisfy his hunger. It was only a matter of time before it happens, and though it pained her think about it, she did her best to calmly consider her options and think of the most optimal solution.
"I believe it would be for the best if we limit ourselves to meeting once or twice per week." Sam said, having given the matter some serious thought. "My room adds to the risk so we should meet in your office, just like we''re used to."
"Yes, I understand." Alice answered with a nod.
"We need to n things ahead of time to make sure there are no problems." Sam went on. "Until I discuss the matter with Shizuru it would be for the best if I''m the one to contact you first. When the time is right I will send you a message to see if we can meet."
"Um¡ Sam¡" Alice spoke, her eyes cast down. "I know you''re trying to do this the right way but¡ I just want you to know that you don''t have to force yourself¡"
"... what?" Sam raised an eyebrow, not understanding where she''s going.
"Well, I have been thinking about it and¡ expecting you to make me your only woman is too much." Looking up at him, she added with a small smile. "You can date anyone you want as long as you don''t abandon me."
"No." Sam replied instantly.
"Eh!?"
"What are you saying, Alice? How can you even suggest that?"
His reaction was nothing like she had expected, making her wonder if there is something wrong with what she said.
"Listen, Alice, I already told you that I don''t sleep with a woman unless I''m willing to take her seriously." Sam said, reminding her of what they had discussed earlier. "It means that if I get involved with another woman, it won''t be just a passing affair. And even if you are okay with it, expecting the same from the other party isn''t realistic."
"I get what you''re trying to say, but¡" looking at him through half lis eyes, Alice then added. "Are you going to be okay? If I get pregnant you wouldn''t have anyone to satisfy your urges with."
"I was okay for an entire year. You dont have anything to worry about."
Holding back on sex wasn''t really a problem for Sam. He might get grumpy and a little frustrated, but that''s nothing a little hand action can''t fix. Not to mention, he now has three very expensive toys he could use as an outlet. With the Valkyries around he has no reason to seek out other women.
Sam didn''t like the idea of sleeping around just for the sake of it, and he realizes that despite what she says Alice would definitely get hurt if he starts sleeping with other women. Even if he finds someone who is willing share him with her another set of problems would definitelye. There is no perfect ending where everyone get what they want. It''s just how reality works.
"Also." Crossing his arms Sam said withpletely straight face. "I will never allow you to sleep with other men so forget it. You are my woman now and no one is allowed to touch you but me!"
"... eh?" Alice looked at him, blinking repeatedly. "Why would I want other men?"
"Well¡ won''t you ask for equality or something?" Sam asked. "Obviously I wouldn''t mind you being my only woman if I''m your only man, but I will never allow you to see other men even if you allow me see other women."
"I don''t mind that." Alice replied. "To begin with, why would I want another man when¡"
Alice''s voice faded near the end and her face became red once more. She looked up at him with upturned eyes, fidgeting a little as she followed.
"There is no way I can be with other men after what happened..." That was something Alice was sure of.
Though he said that he would train her body so his cock would be the only thing that she remembers, what Sam failed to notice was that he is one step short from achieving that goal.
Having a five in body count meant nothing if she only slept with each one once, and with all her experiences amounting to nothing whenpared to the previous night.
Alice had felt like a virgin who had experience sex for the first time. It would take one or two more nights at most, after that she would never be able to enjoy the pleasures of the flesh with anyone other than Sam and because of that she is willing to put up with anything he does.
Sam had sessfully conquered both of Alice''s heart and mind and all it took was just one night.
Hearing Alice''s statement sent a spark through Sam''s body and as if by reflex he pushed her down and got to action. They ended up having another two rounds. Alice was then saved by a message from Shizuru asking if he''s going to be there for lunch.
.- .-.. .. -.-. . / .-- .- ... / ..- -. .- -... .-.. . / - --- / ... - .- -. -.. / ..-. --- .-. / - .... . / .-. . ... - / --- ..-. / - .... . / -.. .- -.-- .-.-.-
Chapter 53 Get Over It Already.
"Alright boys! Lunch is ready!" A middle aged man announced, hitting a frying pan with adle.
"Took you long enough." One of the soldiers said.
"Damn I''m hungry!" Another eximed.
One after the other, all twelve gathered taking a tray from the nearby stack before forming a line in front of a long table. Tworge pots were ced on top, steam rising from each. Beside them was a basket filled with bread and an ice box with a bunch of cans in it.
"Again with the bean soup?" One of them asked.
"You got a problem with my beans?" Said the old man, pointing hisdle at the first in line.
"We eat it three times a week. Are we not allowed toin?" The second in line peeked his head, looking at the old man with a frown.
"Silence! Be thankful or you can chew on those dry rations for the next two days!!!"
"WE ARE VERY GRATEFUL, SIR! PLEASE ALLOW US TO ENJOY YOUR MEALS!"
One after the other the soldiers were served their food. Some bean soup, meat and potatoes, bread and a nice cold bear. Drinking in broad daylight wasn''t advised, especially when on duty outside the base, however the soldiers had to unwind somehow. Not to mention there isn''t much normal men could do against the dangers of this apocalyptic world.
They soldiers were one of the scouting units sent out regrly. While the Valkyries handled the red grounds where the likelihood of Cmities appearing increased dramatically, normal soldiers had to go around the purifiednds installing equipment, studying the environment and most importantly gathering resources. Though the base recieves supplies regrly, it''s always nice to have some fresh ingredients from time to time.
"To think we would find flock of sheep just walking around."
One of the soldiers said, forking a chunk of meat to his mouth. He was a somewhat short guy with buzz cut and just by looking one could see the energetic aura surrounding him. "Real meat sure is different. That synthetic shit is nothing inparison!" Enjoying the bite for a moment he turned to the guy sitting to his left. "Don''t you think so, Jordan?"
? "Hm? Ah, yeah¡" the orange haired man replied before going back to staring at empty space.
"C''mon man! It''s been days already!" Brandon, the man sitting beside Jordan, frowned at the the absentminded reply he received. "There is plenty fish in the sea! And it''s not like you don''t have luck with thedies!"
"Yeah, she wasn''t for you, get over it already." John, the man sitting across from them spoke.
He was the prince type with long blond hair, a handsome face a calm demeanor. One thing for sure is that he''s the most popr among his friends.
"It''s not that easy¡" Jordan said, forcing himself to eat.
"Well, if you weren''t an idiot you would''ve known those two were a thing." Brandon said,ughing mockingly. "Watching you cram your ass between them was really pathetic."
Jordan responded with a re and the other guy held his hands up and backed away.
"Calm down, I''m just messing around."
"He''s right, you know." John said, as calm as ever. "The girl had him in mind from the start. You should''ve seen iting much sooner."
"... yeah¡" turning back to his food, Jordan grimaced. "I should''ve."
Brandon and John nced at each other then sighed. Though they said all of that, the two understood how their friend feeels very well. They knew that he had fallen head over heels for that Asian girl, and how much of a pain a man in love can be. Their only hope was that time would help him forget, though from the looks of it that will take quite while.
"But, damn that Doctor sure is lucky." Brandon said after gulping from his bear. "He has the Valkyries all to himself and now he got a cute girlfriend. What''s next? He''s doing themander in secret as well."
"I wouldn''t be surprised if that''s the case." John said, slowly sipping from his can.
"Give me a break!" Suddenly it seemed like Brandon was the one holding a grudge, going on a rant after finishing his drink in one go. "I don''t think I can go on living if someone took Ms. Schneider! Especially if it''s that guy! What''s wrong with him anyways!? When did geeks suddenly be popr!?"
"He''s quite handsome, you know." John replied.
"C''mon! He isn''t that special!" Brandon replied.
"And really good at bed." John followed.
Suddenly the drunk fool froze. Jordan twitched once, showing that he was listening even if it didn''t look like it.
"What''s that supposed to mean?" He asked.
"Lara went to the same college as him." John spoke calmly. "Apparently one of her friends hooked up with him once and she hasn''t been able to enjoy sex ever since."
"... seriously?" Brandon said.
"Yup."
A moment of silence passes. Jordan wasn''t the only one who lost his appetite as Brandon sat down and stared at his te. Only John went on to finish his food unbothered by the heavy atmosphere.
"Hey, isn''t he, like, really dangerous?" Brandon said after a while.
"Why so?" John asked.
"I mean, if he really is that good, aren''t you afraid that the women will start going after him? We already have enoughpetition as is, we don''t need someone with a golden dick to hoard them all."
"Aren''t you blowing it up out of proportion?" Jordan finally broke his silence. "He''s already taken, and most girls despise him. Besides, do you really think he''s that good?"
"Who knows?" John said. "But Brandon got a point."
"Really?" The guy in question looked the most surprised.
"Well, I don''t really care who he dates or hooks up with, but it still rubs me the wrong way that he gets to spend time with the Valkyries."
"Oy yeah¡" Brandon said,looking up as if remembering something. "You''re a Zero Three devotee."
"Pedophile." Jordan said with a snort.
At that moment John suddenly snapped, mming his fist onto the table sending a re at the orange head.
"I dare you to say that aga-"
Seeing the two smirking at him the blond guy realized that he had fallen for their trap.
"I know she''s cute and all but¡ seriously man? She looks like a middle schooler." Said Brandon. "I prefer Nine much more. I want to suck those giant milkers of hers till the day I die."
"Hmph, I expected nothing more from a primitive ape like you. Only thinking with your dick." John said, looking at his friend with condescending eyes. "Zero Three''s smile is the light that guides us to a better tomorrow! Without her we would never have the will to go on living!"
"And you wonder why people call you a pedophile." Brandon said with a shrug.
"Why you-"
Before he could retaliate, John heard a sounding from his pocket. Cheking his phone he noticed that a message just arrived and when he opened it his eyes almost popped out.
The sender was one of acquaintances in the base, a Zero Three fan just like him. It said [You won''t believe who''s here today!!!] And with it came a photo with none other than the young Valkyrie. She was in the cafeteria, sitting at a table as if it''s the most normal thing in the world eating breakfast along with none other than the Doctor and his girlfriend.
"What''s up?" Jordan asked, walking over to take a look. Brandon did the same and they both ended up just as shocked.
"This¡ it''s from this morning, right?" Brandon asked.
"There is signal here?" Jordan followed.
"There is, but it''s weak¡" John replied, his voice shaking.
Just then another message arrived followed with the photo of a T-shirt with some words written on it.
[Got an autograph!!!]
"... Seriously?" Brandon said with a shortugh. "Guess we really picked the short straw, huh? Too bad for you, John."
"... that bastart¡" John said, his voice hoarse.
"Um¡ John?" Jordan said.
"He''s eating with her like it''s something normal." The blond guy said, his eyes locked on the shot with Sam, Shizuru and Zero Three eating together as if there is nothing strange about it. "Who does he think he is?"
"Now that you said it, the Valkyries don''t usually wonder around the base, right?" Brandon asked. "Could it be that he''s the one who invited her?"
Messages began to arrive one after the other, all from people who managed to get autographs from the young Valkyrie. John and the others were on duty and would be out for the entire day. It should be known that there is no signal this far from the base, even so the ones who sent the messages did so anyways knowing he might not receive them, meaning they couldn''t wait till hees back to rub it in his face.
He had missed the chance to meet his idol. Realizing that something broke inside the blond guy.
"You were right, Brandon." He said, still looking at his phone with eyes wide open.
"Um¡ what?"
"We need to do something about him¡" John went on. "He''s too dangerous to be left alive."
There is nothing strange about being a Valkyrie fanhowever some take it way too far sometimes. Seeing those two being so casual to their goddess, the fanatics would surely lose their minds and it just so happens that John was that type of guy.
Chapter 54 The Valkyrie Residence. (Part One)
Sam barely made it in time for lunch. The moment he met with Shizuru and basked in te radiance of her smile he felt his Soul burn like an evil spirit getting exorcised.
The guild from having cheated on her pained him, however he somehow managed to see it in a positive light. It meant that he cared about her enough to feel that way and that Alice didn''t push her out of his heart.
Still, he could already see how devastating it will be once they eventually part ways and that made him scared of telling her even more.
"You dont look any better." Shizuru said. "You didn''t get much rest, did you?"
Sam did his best to act normally, but his exhaustion was brought up eventually and he had to provide a reasonable excuse. He couldn''t tell his girlfriend that he was having the night of his life with his first love, obviously, so he decided to y it as insomnia keeping him up most of the night and bad posture ruining his sleep.
The only thing he could do about it is to try and rest well the next night.
Sam''s lunch date passed without a problem. Or so he hoped, at least. It might be that Shizuru noticed that something was off about him but choose to not mention it, however being paranoid wouldn''t do him any good so he decided to go on with his day instead of worrying about it so he tried his best to not think about it too much.
He headed for hisb after that and waited for the Valkyries to return.
After a while he began to have a bad feeling realizing that it was already past the time they would usually return in. Thankfully he didn''t have to wait like thest time and the three weapons arrived around 17:00.
Apparently the reason they werete is that they ran into three D ss Cmities which, while not that strong, were quite difficult to deal with. In the end they managed to finish them off then returned after making sure there are no more Cmities in the vicinity.
The Valkyries didn''t have a scratch on them, however the appearance of Cmities was worrying. With thisst encounter, the Valkyries had fought eight Cmities in a single month. That isn''t much whenpared to other Resistance bases, however for the forty sixth which sometimes goes for months without finding a single enemy it was something to worry about.
The three went into Eir and the examination started then ended soon after. Sam didn''t conduct any experiments in the meantime allowing the process to proceed as it''s supposed to. When it was done and the Valkyries came out he informed them of something important he had ned for the day.
"You''re visiting our quarters?" Nine asked, tilting her head looking confused.
"That''s new." Zero Three said. "No human ever visits out side of the base. Only themanderes over every once in a while."
"My security clearance has been increased recently so I decided to see what it''s like over there." Sam said, hiding the fact that he has been ordered to keep an eye on them. "Since I have a lot of free time I might even start visiting quite often."
? The three had their eyes wide open but each for different reasons. Zero Three was afraid of the headache his nagging would definitely cause to her, Zero Five was happy that she could spend more time with him and Nine realized that the chances to perform experiments will increase significantly.
Saying his first visit will be right afterwards he urged the three to quickly go and shower. In the meantime he edited the examination results and wrote his report before sending it.
"Doctor, we are done." Nine said having returned after washing up.
The three were wearing their ck sailor uniform, with Nine''s being the only one that''s a bit different. Her skirt reached all the way to her ankles, most likely because a short one wouldn''t suit a mature woman like her if she were a human. In fact the only one who looked normal in the uniform was Zero Three whose appearance resembles that of a school girl, the other two looked like they''re doing some cosy.
"Alright, let''s go." Sam said, standing up from his seat.
Theb was the closest area to the Valkyries'' quarters. It didn''t seem like there are any other entrances so if one wanted to go there they would have to pass by theb first.
At the end of the corridor there were two big metallic doors. It was Sam''s first time seeing them despite spending a lot of time only a short distance away.
"This door leads to the living quarters." Zero Three said, pointing at the left door first then the right. "This one leads to the waiting room where we change into battle gear before going out. There are other doors that lead to it from the living quarters so this one is mostly used when we return for the examination."
"I see¡"
Going through the door to the left the four walked through another long corridor. Zero Three was leading the way, positively beaming with excitement. Zero Five was right behind her with Sam at the very back and Nine walking beside him.
"Doctor, how about you stop by my room before you head back." The blond Valkyrie said. "There is something I would like to show you~?"
The tone of her voice made it clear what her intentions were. Hearing her the other two nced behind them, although they didn''t say anything.
"Maybe another time." Sam said. "I intend to keep today''s visit short."
Sam was in no hurry to enjoy ying with the Valkyries. Last night had left him so satisfied he didn''t feel the need to attempt any experiments today, not to mention that he didn''t really have much time since he would have to go back for his dinner date with Shizuru.
The group reached another metallic door that opened automatically when they approached it. Beyond it was a wide room with a high ceiling. The lights were brighter, giving the area a different atmosphere from the dimly lit corridors they had passed just now.
"We are here!" Zero Three jumped ahead then turned to face them before adding. "Wee to our home!"
Compared to the dorms the soldiers stayed in, the room they entered resembled the waiting area of a hotel with a number of sofas ced around coffee tables, chairs near the walls, decorative nts here and there. There were TVs installed here and there as well. Even the illumination was different, giving off a cozy vibe that made Sam forget that they were in a military base.
"This here is the living room." Said Zero Three, walking over to one of the sofa''s before throwing herself on it. "We spend most of our time here while on standby."
"Is that so?"
"Well, we don''t really have to be here all the time." The young Valkyrie added, averting her gaze to avoid meeting his.
"Fufufu. Three spends most of her time in the rooftop pool." Nine said with a giggle. "Well, I can''t really reprimand her when I rarely ever stay here."
"What about you, Zero Five?" Sam asked.
"I try to stay here as often as possible, however with how infrequent the attacks are I feel it would be a waste of time to always do so."
"I see¡"
This was another w when it came to the Valkyries being weapons. Since they were programmed to act like normal humans the idea of staying put in the same room was unbearable leading them to spend their time somewhere else. If they were normal weapons mindless that wouldn''t have been a problem. In fact they wouldn''t have had to bother building such a ce for them. It was clear that the military was trying to make them asfortable as possible, wasting a lot of resources just because a certain someone wanted to make his fictional lovers real.
"Those two doors lead to the waiting room I mentioned before." Three said after a cough, clearly trying to move on from the topic.
After that they went around checking what''s behind each door one by one.
"This is the dining hall."
As the young Valkyrie had described it, it resembled the cafeteria the soldiers eat in, only with fewer tables. There were several vending machines lined up on one of the wall, most of which had drinks in them while two were where one could order food. Everything seemed consumable by humans so if Sam wanted to he could eat his meals there sometimes.
"This is the bathing area."
Next they went to the baths. It was somewhat different from what Sam had expected with everything being in one room instead of separated stalls. There is a section along the wall where one could wash themselves, however most of the room was upied by arge pool like bath tub which, ording to nine, is regrly filled with hot water during bathing hours.
"I think I should be the one doing the next part." Nine said, taking Sam''s hand and pulling him toward another door.
Chapter 55 The Valkyrie Resistance. (Part Two)
The door Nine pulled Sam towards led outside, which he found somewhat surprising and after a moment of thought he soon realized what the blond Valkyrie intended to show him.
Following the outer wall of the base they arrived at one of the corners where a small garden was build. A number of flower beds came into sight, each having different colors.
"Are you the one who''s nted these, Nine?" Sam asked.
"Yes." Nine said with a proud smile. "It takes a lot of effort, but it''s incredibly fun."
The Valkyrie then went of to describe some of the flowers and how difficult they are to take care of. There is the Amaryllis bedonna, known as the jersey lily, the gazania which is called the African daisies. There is the Lily of the Nile, some Gazania rigens as well as sun flowers.
"You''re really knowledgeable about flowers, huh?" Sam asked, honestly impressed.
"Pretty, aren''t they?" Nine said, her cheeks a little red.
"Indeed."
With how boring things tend to get around the forty sixth base, some of the soldiers took farming and gardening as a hobby as well. The tools and seeds were scavenged from the ruins of a nearby city, some of which ended up in Nine''s possession after she made a formal request to themander.
"It''s good to see that you have a hobby to keep you upied." Sam said with a nod, a fake smile stered on his face. "Though I wonder why you would feel the need to sneak around in this case."
He was referring to the time he met her in the library. Nine averted her gaze, looking somewhat nervous. After a couple of seconds she gave the best excuse she coulde up with.
"Even with this I still end up with a lot of free time! There is a limit to what I can do here, and if I expand the garden it will be too much to take care of!"
"You are supposed to be on standby in case an enemy attacks, how you feel about it is irrelevant." Sam said. "I don''t need to exin why you must avoid wondering around the base, right?"
"You say that, but!" Turning away, the blond Valkyrie puffed her cheeks. "You invited Three for breakfast yesterday. Why is it okay for her to go there while we are prohibited?"
"There is a difference¡" Sam let out an exasperated sigh. "You can''t just wonder around on your own. We don''t know what problems that might cause so it''s for the better if you limit yourselves to your quarters."
"Doctor."
Turning around Sam saw that Zero Five was looking at him with knitted brows.
"I also think that it is unfair for Three to receive special treatment."
The young Valkyrie had backed away a few steps pretending that she had nothing to do with the matter.
"Alright, alright, I get it already." What started as a kind gesture to make a little girl feel better had unexpectedly turned into an annoyance.
Sam could only curse himself for not being careful enough about it. The two were created to be virtual lovers, and with Sam being their master it was only inevitable that they would feel jealousy if he treated another woman better than them.
Now that I think about it, wouldn''t they cause some problems if they find out about my rtionship with Shizuru and Alice?
Suddenly the problem sounded way worse giving him another reason to prohibit them from wondering around freely.
"To make things fair I''ll invite you two at some point." Sam said, looking at Nine then Zero Five. "Only once though, and you have to promise not to cause any trouble."
"Understood." Zero Five answered with a nod.
"Doctar is really nice." Said Nine, her gentle smile returning.
"Hey!" Zero Three called.
When the others turned to look at her she seemed to freeze for a second before averting her gaze and saying.
"I want to go too."
"You already had your turn, Zero three." Sam said, feeling the growing pain.
"But¡ but¡ I really liked it there." The young Valkyrie said, her gaze cast down. "And¡ I want to see Shizuru again¡"
"Shizuru?" Nine asked, causing Sam to p his facepalm himself.
"She''s the old man''s coworker. I was hoping we could be friends."
"A she, huh¡" Nine turned to Sam with, her smile unchanging despite the heavy air surrounding her. "Does Doctor have a lot of female acquaintances?"
"Alright then!" Sam pped his hands pretending he didn''t hear Nine''s question. "We don''t have much time so let''s continue on with the tour!"
As if to confirm his previous guess, both Five and Nine showed signs of jealousy at the mention of another woman, just like how a wife would react when her husband mentions a female coworker he''s getting along with.
Hey, Odin, did you really have to go this far? Sam though to himself, walking toward the door and ignoring the callsing from behind him.
The next room they went to was one he never expected to see in the Valkyries'' quarters, a fully equipped gym.
"I tend to spend a lot of time here." Zero Five said.
"Wait, really?" Sam asked, looking way more surprised than when he saw the garden.
"Yes. Working out feels good, even if it doesn''t have the same effect it as when humans do it."
The Valkyries are basically robots so no matter how much they train their bodies nothing will change, however it seems that they have been programmed to feel good about exercising, just like how a normal human would.
Odin really didn''t leave any detail out.
"Speaking of training." Zero Three spoke, looking at Sam with a smirk. "You look like you need some exercise yourself, old man. Compared to the other male soldiers you''re way too skinny."
"Well, I''m a nobatant." Sam replied. "But I guess you have a point."
"Eh? Really?" The young Valkyrie seemed taken aback by Sam agreeing with her remark.
The truth is that he had neglected his physical training after graduating from university, focusing most of his time on his research. Seeing that things had slowed down for various reasons he believed that it would be for the better if he dedicated some time to get back in shape.
"I might stop by in the morning from now on." He said, looking over the equipment.
"Then let''s work out together from now on!" Zero Five eximed, a rare smile appearing on her face.
"Y-you can always stop by the pool as well!" Zero Three said, crossing her arms with a proud smile. "Swimming is an all rounded activity that-"
She then went on to list the benefits of swimming and why it''s one of the greatest workouts. Listening to her one would forget that she isn''t a human and none of those mattered to her. In conclusion Zero Three really loves swimming and as long as she is having fun with it nothing else mattered.
Next the group visited the y room. It was a recreational space with multiple ping pong and pool tables as well as some arcade games, TVs and consoles.
"Yeahwe rarely evere here." Zero Threemented, surprising Sam once more.
Apparently none of them found the stuff there interesting and would rather do other things. That made him wonder if their special character traits prevented them from being interested.
That was thest room on the first floor so they moved on to the second one where the bedroom are. The residence has quite a few in case more Valkyries were allocated to the forty sixth base, however at the moment only three were upied.
"This is my room!" Zero Three spread her arms, eximing with a huge smile.
Though it wasn''t as big as Sam''s chamber, it still felt far too big for a one person room. It had no windows for some reason which made it feel rather stuffy. That said, it seems the young Valkyrie spared no effort in decorating it. The walls had posters of female athletes, mostly swimmers. Her bed was neatly organized with multiple plushies on it, some of which were penguins. It also had a desk with notebooks and study materials on it. When Sam asked he found out that Zero Thee has been following the curriculum of a standard first year high school for the past year or so.
As if he had yet to be faced with such situation, Sam once again wondered why a robot would feel the need to do something such as studying. But then he realized that the young Valkyrie was just acting the way someone her age would act. If she was a real girl she would''ve been in high school right now, instead she is forced to face the horrors humans are too weak to face.
Holding one of the notebooks in his hands, Sam felt grateful for the fact that the Valkyries are nothing more than software loaded into an intricately created shell. If that wasn''t the case, he didn''t know how he would feel about sending a young girl to the battlefield while everyone else hides from the enemies they''re supposed to face. The kind of psychological damage those battles inflict is too much for battle hardened soldiers to deal with. Thankfully being a human creation made their emotions much easier to control, otherwise the Valkyries would''ve gone insane long ago.
No¡ Sam thought, seeing the brown haired girl smiling at him. That doesn''t make it any less despicable¡.
Chapter 56 Feeling Guilty.
Compared to Zero Three''s room, the other two were rather minimalistic. Zero Five''s only had the most basic necessities while Nine''s had a few flower pots as decorations with artificial sunlight to keep them alive.
Well, not that I''m much different¡ Sam thoughtletting out a long sigh.
"Alright then." He said. "This concludes today''s visit so I will be heading back now."
"Why don''t you stay for dinner, Doctor?" Nine asked wearing her usual gentle smile.
"Maybe another time, I have my own arrangements right now."
"I see..."
"Doctor, will you being to the training room tomorrow morning?" Zero Five asked.
"Hmm¡ maybe?" When Sam mentioned it he didn''t mean he would start right away, however it seems the ponytailed Valkyrie understood it differently. "It''s better if you don''t wait for me."
"Is that so¡"
Now two out of the three looked down. Sam turned to thest one, the youngest in the group, and was met with an indifferent smile. Seeing that the brown haired one didn''t care enough to have a request, he suppressed the urge to sigh fearing she would take it another way.
"Well, have a good night."
Leaving them with those words, Sam turned around and left the Valkyries'' quarters. He passed by hisb and checked if there is anything he forgot, he then went to his dinner date with Shizuru.
"Doctor, do you know the reason why today''s announcement was dyed?"
The moment the Asian girl asked that question Sam choked on his drink.
"... w-why¡ cough¡ why would I?" He asked between the coughs.
"Well, as the person responsible for the Valkyries you seem to hold a higher position than the rest of us, even though your rank is sergeant as well."
"You have a point."
The recent increase in his security clearance pushed Sam to the level of a captain, even so his title stayed the same. Sam was a nobatant and wasn''t that involved with the rest of the troops so it didn''t make sense for his position to be higher.
"It''s not that my position is higher, it''s just that my job makes it easier for me toe by useful information, and I have my own connections as well."
"Is that so?" Shizuru said, taking a bit of her burger steak.
The scouting team found a flock of sheep the day before which allowed the soldiers to taste some natural meat for the first time in a long while. Shizuru seemed to enjoy the dish quite a bit, and so did Sam. The difference between artificial food and natural one couldn''t he more apparent.
"So, do you know the reason?" The Asian girl asked after swallowing.
"I heard themander wasn''t feeling well this morning." Sam replied, keeping his eyes on his tray.
The truth is that Alice had sent him a message soon after he left his room. She sounded rather upset, saying she''s unable to stand after that rough night. Basically an important arrangement had been dyed because the one with highest authority in the base was unable to move after having sex for the first time in a long while. It''s obvious that no one should learn about it, especially Shizuru.
"It must be quite bad if it forced thatmander to dy something." Shizurumented.
"Well, in the end she is just a human."
Very few have direct interactions with Alice so the image people have of her is that of an irondy who''s unfazed by anything. Some even doubt that she''s actually human, going by her unrealistic beauty that bordered on the realm of the Valkyries.
That led to people thinking; if thatmander is suffering from something then it must be much worse than what a normal person could handle.
"Anyways, it''s rather quiet today, don''t you think?" Asked Shizuru.
"You''re right." Sam replied, taking a look around the cafeteria.
The other soldiers were busying themselves with their food, no one sparing the two a nce as if everything went back to normal.
"I guess the word had already spread." He said.
They had asked Melissa to help spread the information that the Valkyries wouldn''t be visiting for a while, thanks to that no one came to bother them with the question of when will the next time one of the goddesses descend upon theme?
"Zero Three sure did enjoy her time here, right?" Shizuru remarked with a smile. "I know it''s somewhat of a bother, but I wish to meet her again."
"Sadly you will have to wait." Sam replied. "We don''t really know what effects would result from the Valkyries interacting with humans. I would like to research the matter a little bit before allowing them to wonder around."
ording to the Valkyrie file the AIs were created with the ability to behave like normal humans and interact with the people around them just like anyone else would, although with some tweaks here and there to suit their specific character traits.
With that said there shouldn''t be any problem if they''re allowed to do whatever they want, however Sam still wanted to study the matter a little more before making his final decision.
I should ask Alice and see if she can obtain info on the behavior of Valkyries in other bases.
Sam had a personal reason for not allowing the three to roam around unsupervised. Before giving them his permission he wanted to make sure that he had be their official master. He didn''t want to risk them getting attached to other male soldiers so until he gets a taste of bedding them, which would confirm that they belong to him, he didn''t n on letting them roam around too often.
"You really care about the Valkyries, despite how indifferent you usually act."
ncing to his right Sam saw his girlfriend smiling at him. He stayed silent for a moment, chewing on some meat for far longer than he should.
"It would only cause me more trouble if something were to happen to them."
The weapons were technically themander''s responsibility, however nowadays it''s starting to feel like he is the one managing them. It''s not supposed to be his job to instruct the three on what they can and can''t do, let alone keeping an eye on them. Well, it was until recently. Now that Alice had given him that mission he had no choice but to be the Valkyries'' manager.
Suddenly Sam remembered what he saw throughout his tour in the Valkyries'' quarters and the question of whether he cared about them got a different feel to it making him question his own intentions toward the three weapons.
"Shizuru." Sam spoke, addressing the woman beside him with her first name for the first time. "I was holding back on this question but¡ what do you think of Zero Three now that you got the chance to interact with her?"
"Hm? What do you mean?" Shizuru asked, the sudden familiarity cing a surprised look on her face.
"Well, let''s say you didn''t know she''s a Valkyrie." Sam said. "Would you have suspected that she isn''t a real girl?"
"Well¡ I would think she is an angel, since she''s so cute." Shizuru replied. "Ah! I think I get what you mean¡"
Sam had found himself asking why Odin went through such lengths when creating the Valkyries. It obviously didn''t have many benefits, and most of the time it''s outright impractical. Even if one were to consider his true goal of creating artificial women to be his lovers, there is no reason for him to go to such lengths to make them almost indistinguishable from normal humans.
"Sometimes I find myself feeling guilty about sending the three out to fight for us."
Hearing Sam''s statement, Shizuru''s hand stopped as she was about to bring a bite to her mouth.
"When you think about it, very few of us had ever seen what a cmity with our own eyes. Can we really say we''re doing anything when someone else is doing all the fighting?"
"Hey now..." Turning to him with a wry smile, Shizuru reminded Sam of something very important. Something that seemed to get overshadowed the more he interacts with the Valkyries. "Even if they look and behave like humans, in the end they''re weapons created by us to fight our enemies. To say that someone else is doing all the fighting in this case you first have to consider the Valkyries as normal people, right?"
"... I guess you have a point."
Sam closed his eyes and exhaled, finally noticing that his view of the Valkyries had been shaken quite a bit.
Sometimes he thinks of them as nothing but sex dolls he could use to satisfy himself, and sometimes, even if he doesn''t admit it, he sees them as normal humans just like anyone else. He might try to convince himself otherwise, however the guilt he felt when seeing the notebooks in Zero Three''s room, in addition to the time he spent monitoring her and Zero Five''s condition when they got injured, it all shows how much he cares for the three weapons.
,m This is bad¡ Sam thought, taking off his sses and rubbing the bridge of his nose. I must not let myself get attached. Nothing good will evere from it.
Whether he liked it or not, the day he will be separated from the three will inevitablye. The more he thinks of them as humans the more attached he would eventually be. It would be for the better if he continued to think of them as nothing but weapons or tools for him to satisfy his desires. Otherwise he would one day find himself crushed under the guilt.
Chapter 57 Announcement.
When Sam returned to his room he was surprised to find out that Alice was still there. After getting some rest she was finally able to move a little so she took a bath and changed the sheets then decided to stay over for the second night, although she had one condition.
"No sex tonight!" She said, holding her arms up in a cross while ring with a slight blush.
"Yeah, I understand." Sam said before pushing her down and kissing her.
No sex doesn''t mean they can''t do other things, and Sam was in the mood for some cuddling and making out. Alice was wearing one of his shirts over her underwear and nothing else which gave her a certain sexiness that''s difficult to resist, however for Sam who was able to abstain from any sexual acts for months despite his strong libido something like that couldn''t possibly make him lose control.
"By the way, Sam." While snuggling close to him, Alice suddenly asked a question. "Are you by any chance doing¡ stuff to the Valkyries?"
Sam''s heart stopped for a good two seconds, his entire body going cold.
"W-what are you talking about, Alice?"
"Well¡"
Reaching beneath one of the pillows she pulled a familiar small paperback. Seeing it Sam understood where her question wasing for.
"Really?" He asked, looking st her through half lid eyes.
"I should be the one saying that." Alice replied, giving him the same look. "I thought I warned you about what would happen if you touch any of them?"
It was the strange book he found in the library the other day, the one titled Valkyrie Smash. Even though the secret code can''t be found easily he felt that he should''ve done a better job hiding it, however since Alice stopping by wasn''t a part of his ns he and with how exhausted he was he failed to hide it beforehand.
"Alice, you think I''m that much of an idiot?" Sam asked. "And did you forget already? The HQ would definitely find out if anything happens to weapons. That''s why we do that daily examination."
While he had overlooked the chance that someone might find the Valkyrie Smash book, Sam made sure to burn the notebook and papers he used while cracking the code. If the book was discovered the worst that could happen was his tastes being questioned, however he couldn''t resist anyone finding out about the code.
Maybe I should''ve burned the book as well¡ Sam thought to himself.
"Well, you might not have done it before, but you''re thinking about it, right?" Alice asked.
"I would be lying if I said I don''t." Sam exhaled, preparing himself for the headaches. "Making us feel like it is the whole point behind their designs."
"I''m pretty sure you don''t need me to remind you, but¡" Alice sighed as well. "Just make sure you dont slip up. Even I can''t help you if you make such a big mistake."
"Who do you think I am?" Sam replied.
Alice was right, even if it''s in a different context from what she meant. In order to safely have his fun with the three Valkyries without getting into trouble Sam has to make sure to not slip up and always erase the evidence before sending out his report. The HQ didn''t say anything so far so it was safe to say they have yet to find out, and as long as he continues to be careful there is nothing for him to worry about.
"But seriously, to think you would be into stuff like this." Opening the book, Alice began flipping through the pages. "I can''t believe anyone would actually read this."
"I just happened upon it while looking through the library." As he spoke, Sam began to get nervous fearing that the white haired woman would notice the secret of the book. "It''s as bad as it sounds."
"Then why did you pick it up?"
"Curiosity, and because it made meugh." Sam replied.
The absurdity of the story was indeed amusing.
"I see¡ guess not every book has to be a literature masterpiece." Alicemented, looking back at the pages in front of her. "Come to think of it¡ I remember seeing something like this before."
"... what?"
"I think it was in my father''s room. Guess you two have somethings inmon."
Sam went still, staring at the white haired beauty in silence. What she thought was just a casual remark had a much bigger impact than she would''ve thought and sent Sam''s mind into a frenzy.
Something simr? Other copies of the book? Or could they be different ones with other codes?
"To think Mr. Schneider would be interested in stuff like this." Sam said, doing his best to hide his surprise. "That said, I''m kinda curious."
"Hmm¡" ncing up at him, Alice smiled mischievously. "And why would you feel that way?"
Having expected this reaction Sam moved in to kiss her before she could react.
"Well, the Valkyries might be out of reach, but.." Sam said, having pushed Alice down once more. "I still want to try the stuff they did in those books. Thankfully I have the most beautiful woman in the world here with me."
Alice was lost for words, her face beaming red as her heart thundered in her chest.
"How about it, Alice¡" leaning in, Sam whispered in her ear causing her whole body to shudder. "Want to try it with me?"
Despite her previousints, they ended up having two rounds before giving it a rest. Sam made sure to not be as rough as the previous night, but that didn''t guarantee the state Alice will be in once the morning arrives.
~¡ó~
The next morning Sam woke up by ident as Alice was preparing to leave. Her legs had yet topletely recover, however at the very least she was able to walk around normally, although with a bit of pain.
She intended to go before he notices, however he wasn''t about to let her without getting a good morning kiss first.
Having had a good night''s sleep for the first time in a few day Sam felt rather refreshed. As usual he showered, wore his clothes then met with Shizuru for breakfast.
Today was a little different from the usual though. When the clock hit 08:00 every soldier on the base received a message saying an important announcement will be made an hourter, asking everyone except those with critical positions to gather in the auditorium.
By now rumors about what happened to the second resistance base had already spread so most had a guess what it was all about. However very few knew about what Zero Three, Zero Five and Nine had achieved so Sam expected it to be a bigger surprise than the news about one of the Ragnarok Heralds being defeated.
The base had around 250 soldiers stationed there, which isn''t a lot by any means, but when you consider that most of the fighting is done by the Valkyries it makes sense for the rest of the army to be so small. Most of them gathered in the auditorium to hear the announcement while others decided to watch the broadcast from their phones.
When 09:00 arrived the crowd went silent as a white haired beauty elegantly stepped onto the stage. She surveyed the crowd with her crimson eyes, her cool expression stealing the hearts of many both male and female.
Alice started by greeting the soldiers under hermand along with some of the formalities usually ced at the beginning of a speech. She then went on to make the big announcement, telling everyone about humanity''s victory over J?rmungandr.
As expected everyone met the news with celebratory cheers and apuse, however a few secondster the mood took a dive after the news of what happened to the second base was delivered.
No one expected a wless victory, of course, however when people hear about seven Valkyries being destroyed and hundreds of soldiers losing their lives it''s only natural that they would be horrified.
Thankfully Alice had made the decision to save the most important piece of news forst. She went on to tell everyone about Evil Eye, the Cmity that had appeared in the territory of the forty sixth base. She described its abilities and what it''s capable of then went on to say that the Resistance headquarters had decided to ssify it as a high end A ss cmity.
Sam was surprised, having heard from the Valkyries that the monstrosity was definitely an S ss. Apparently the reason it wasn''t given that rank has to do with how easily it was defeated. It was disheartening to hear that the base wouldn''t get the achievement of being the first to defeat an S ss without a single loss, however it made sense when one thinks about it. The evil eye barely caused any damage so cing it in the same category as the Ragnarok Heralds would be too much.
That said, as themander of the base Alice made sure that the efforts of the Valkyries were recognized, summoning them onto the stage and awarding each one with a medal.
Some might say that none of it was nessary, after all the three weren''t that different from unmanned drones, however no one dared toin. After all Sam wasn''t the first one to see the Valkyries as more than mere weapons.
Chapter 58 Celebration.
"HERE IS TO THE THREE GODDESSES PROTECTING OUR BASE! CHEERS!"
the whole base exploded with cheers and apuse as everyone raised their cups in the air.
Following the announcement everyone went about their day as usual, however when night came everyone gathered in the open space at the small park inside the base.
The preparations had already been carried out by the twenty sixth base''s Valkyrie fanclub, and with themander giving her permission everyone came together to celebrate humanity''s victory over one of the Ragnarok Heralds as well as the achievements of their own Valkyries.
As they watched from the seats of honor with cups in their hands, Three, Five and Nine were stunned by the liveliness of the scene surrounding them. Several grills were scattered around, smoke rising from them as the soldiers prepared their barbecue. Barrels of beer were lined up as well as several brands of soda cans and other soft drinks. Long tables stretched on the side filled with different kinds of food and snacks.
Some of the soldiers sat on the side with instruments in their hands showing their talents as they yed one song after the other. Others danced along the songs theirrades sang.
"What are you doing?" Sam said, looking at the three Valkyries with a stern expression. "If you don''t get moving the meat will run out."
It was a big banquet but the food wasn''t limitless. If one let their guard down it was only natural that others would get away with the good stuff.
Sam was quick on the uptake, knowing that he wouldn''t get a chance to eat if he waited too much. In one hand he held a te with several skewers on it while munching from one he carried with the other.
"Um¡ Doctor, I don''t think¡" Nine began, but Sam only sighed and turned around.
"When things calm down a little they will turn to you with questions. Better fill your stomachs while you still can."
Remembering what happened in the cafeteria the other day, Zero Three was the first to get up. She nervously looked around until she spotted a familiar face among the crowd.
"Shizuru!" She called as she ran over to the Asian girl.
"Three! It''s good to see you again!" Shizuru seemed a but startled seeing the young Valkyrie approaching her.
She was eating with some of her colleagues today so she didn''t expect to get a chance to talk to her.
"Oh my God! It''s really her!" A female soldier squeaked.
"The real one!" Another eximed.
"Hello!" Doing her best to hide her nervousness, the young Valkyrie greeted the three female soldiers. "Is it okay if I have some?"
"Of course!" The third one eximed. "Please help yourself."
"Thank you!"
With a cheerful smile Zero Three picked one of the skewers, stared at it for a few seconds then bit into the meat.
"Hot hot hot!!!" She cried, trying not to drop the bite as she fanned at her mouth.
"Amazing!" The first soldier was in awe, both her eyes and mouth wide open. "So the Valkyries really do eat the same food as us!"
"Of course." Shizuru answered with a smile as she handed Zero Three a cup of juice. "ording to Sam it seems they lead a normal life outside of fighting."
"Eeeh!? I never expected that!"
"This meat¡ it tastes different¡" Zero Three noted, looking down at the skewer in her hand.
"That''s because it''s natural." Shizuru said.
"Hm? What do you mean? Does unnatural meat exist?"
As the young Valkyrie had her conversation with Shizuru and her colleagues, another Valkyrie was being surrounded.
"Please have some of this, ma''am." A male soldier said, lowering a bottle and filling a ss with a crimson liquid.
"Hm¡ this one has a nice aroma." Nine spoke with a smile, bringing the ss closer to her face.
"Yes. It is a 1972 Rivesaltes. Not as fancy for someone of your standing,but I hope it is to your liking."
The blond Valkyrie closed her eyes and took a sip.
Whether it''s a coincidence or not, everyone gathered at Nine''s table were male soldiers. Some brought carefully decorated tes while others returned with bottles of wine in their hands.
From afar the scene looked like a beautiful richdy being served by several butlers. It''s obvious why they were all attracted to her, however that didn''t matter much as all they''re able to do is watch.
"Hmm¡ this is my first time tasting something like this." Nine said, looking at the contents of her ss. "I might need to try other types before I can say what''s good for sure."
"Ma''am, is this your first time drinking alcohol?" Asked one of the soldiers.
,m "Indeed." Nine replied with warm smile, her cheeks a little rosy.
"Then that''s another cause for celebration! Everyone, bring out your most prized possession!"
Soon enough Nine''s side turned into a wine tasting party with the soldiers bringing some of the stuff they kept for themselves after scavenging the ruins around the base.
Obviously no amount of alcohol will ever have an effect on the Valkyries so those who were hoping to get her drunk so they could have a chance at doing something -not that they could- were stunned to see her down one ss after the other without as much as a change of expression.
In another corner Five was fighting to keep herself from breaking down after being left on her own. She was surrounded by unfamiliar faces and though they looked really friendly the ponytailed Valkyrie couldn''t help but feel nervous.
"But, man that proton canon was so cool!" A male soldier said.
"To think something like that is real." Said another soldier, a female this time. "I thought it was just a scene from a movie."
Unlike Nine who only attracted those lusting after her feminine parts, those who approached Zero Five were much more interested in the Valkyries as weapons. They were discussing the records of the battle against the Evil eye which were released after the morning''s announcement. Even though it''s been less than a day they had dissected every piece of the footage, studying all the details and providing their thoughts on them. Since she was the MVP of the event it was only natural that she would be the center of the conversation.
"It must''ve been really hot near tha canon, isn''t that right, Ms. Zero Five?" One of them asked.
"Hm? Yes, it was." Five answered, her voice sounding a little stiff.
"The asphalt beneath it melted in a matter of seconds." Another one said. "Normal humans can''t hope to use something like that on their owns."
"Oh! I''ve been dreaming of the chance to ask this question!" Another one turned to Five with sparkling eyes. "I know that Valkyries have a protective force field, but how does it work? And where does ite from? Ah! If it''s too much then you don''t have to answer. There are some things normal people aren''t allowed to know after all."
Five blinked repeatedly then looked down at her drink thinking a little before deciding to answer.
"I don''t know the details but¡ it seems that we have a mainponent that is responsible for creating the force field." Holding her hand up, a faint blue light began enveloping it as she went on with the exnation. "We can control the output ording to the situation. In a way it is possible to use it as a weapon as well, since it is capable of disintegrating anything thates in contact with it."
"... awesome¡" the soldiers whispered, all of them leaning in to get a closer look at the glowing hand.
"Could it be¡" one of them spoke. "Is this the reason why we were warned to not make physical contact?"
"Hm?" The Valkyrie looked confused for a moment, but then she answered quickly. "Y-yes! Indeed. The force field is always active after all."
While it wasn''t a lie, what Five left out was that while it''s always active, most of the time it''s set at its weakest and couldn''t possibly do any damage to anyone.
"But, seriously, Odin is really incredible." A male soldier said. "To think he created something so powerful and somehow managed to make it small enough to fit inside a human."
"I know, right!?" Another added, a mellow smile on her face. "Did you see the device generating the base''s barrier? That thing is huge! And it''s not even half as strong as that of the Valkyries."
As she listened the the soldiers chatting, Zero Five nced behind her and caught a glimpse of the doctor who smiled at her when their eyes met.
Returning the smile, she turned around and did her best to take part in the conversation.
Seeing that Sam felt relieved. He kept his distance from the crowd and carefully observed the three and how they interacted with the other soldiers. At first he felt incredibly nervous, however as time went on he allowed himself to rx a little. Of course he had to rely on the help of some strong whiskeyfro achieve that state.
"Not a fan of parties?"
Turning around Sam saw a familiar red head approaching him. It was the president of their base''s Valkyriefanclub, Melissa.
Chapter 59 Experiment 03.
"Sergeant Ranford." Sam said greeting the female soldier approaching him.
"Just Melissa would do." The red haired woman replied with a smile. Holding up a bottle she then added. "Would you like some?"
"Sure."
With his cup refilled, Sam returned his gaze to the partying crowd. Things seemed to be going well so far, no problems, no idents. There was no need for him to be on edge any more so he allowed himself to rx.
"Better than expected, huh?" Melissa remarked as if she read his thoughts.
"I''m quite impressed." Sam said. "I never expected them to behave themselves."
"Well, at the end of the day they''re all trained soldiers. If they weren''t disciplined enough to follow the orders of their superiors then they wouldn''t be here in the first ce."
"I guess you have a point¡"
Taking a sip, Sam began to recall the agreement he made with the Valkyrie fanclub. In order for him to allow the three weapons to make an appearance at the party, Sam had ced some rules the soldiers had to follow; if any of them were to be broken, the party would be thest time the Valkyries would ever show themselves in public.
The rules were simple. First of all, no autographs. The goal of the event is to make the three weapons feel like they''re a part of the base, that means no celebrity treatment. Second, no swarming. Only a maximum of ten will be allowed to approach each of the Valkyries at the same time, all of which must be selected beforehand.
As usual, physical contact is strictly prohibited. A few other details were discussed, however as long as those three rules were followed Sam promised to give the Valkyries more freedom in the future allowing them to make contact with the soldiers more often.
"By the way, Doctor, aren''t you going to answer my question?" Melissa asked, having gulped her the contents of her cup in one go.
Sam raised an eyebrow as if to say he didn''t understand.
"I asked you earlier today, remember?" Melissa sighed, shaking her head slightly. "You never told us the reason behind your rules. I understand the no physical contact one, but what about the others?"
The Valkyries were basically idols, the local goddesses of forty sixth Resistance base. Asking the soldiers to not treat them as such was a bit unreasonable.
Sam had his reasons, of course, however he didn''t expect the other soldiers to understand.
"It''s an experiment." Sam said, bringing the ss to his mouth and taking a sip.
"Ho-oh, guess you aren''t called a doctor for nothing." Melissa said with a giggle. "And? Care to exin what this experiment of yours is about?"
Sam''s eyes surveyed the surroundings. They fell on Zero Three who was casually chatting with Shizuru and her friends. The smile on her face was unlike anything he had seen before. Zero Five still looked a bit stiff, however she was doing her best to converse with those gathered around her. The biggest surprise was on Nine''s side. At some point Alice had joined her, partaking in the wine tasting as well. Seeing the two beauties surrounded by a bunch of men made him nervous so he quickly took out his phone and sent themander a message saying ''don''t get drunk''.
A momentter he received a reply. ''Are you underestimating me?''
Obviously with how much she usually drinks a few cups wouldn''t have much of an effect on her, however Sam couldn''t help but be furious seeing all those horny bastards drooling over his woman.
Sam let out a sigh, feeling the exhaustion of having someone else he had to look out for.
"Any problems?" Melissa asked, having noticed his frown.
"Not really." Sam replied, downing his drink then refilling his ss. "Where were we?"
"You said something about an experiment."
"Oh, right¡" the strong whiskey was ying with his mind making Sam feel like being a little but more honest than usual. "I''m trying to see if the Valkyries can really live a normal life."
"... what?" The red haired soldier didn''t seem to understand so Sam went on with the exnation.
"When you think about it, other than them being weapons created to fight the Cmities, we barely know anything about the Valkyries."
After finding the secret files Sam had learned a lot more than the average person, however he still felt like his understanding of them is stillcking. "My current goal is to see if they''re capable of living like normal people. That''s why I want everyone to give them a normal treatment."
"I¡ think that would be difficult to achieve." Melissamented.
"Well, the first step is to determine if the soldiers are capable of seeing the differences between the three and normal humans. Beside appearance, of course."
"Ooh, I think I get it now¡"
The ones being tested today are the soldiers, not the Valkyries. It would take many more interactions to get a more urate result, however today will serve as a good start at the very least.
"By the way." Sam spoke, turning to the woman beside him with a question. "Since you''re so involved in the whole Valkyrie fanclub thing, am I right to assume that you have contacts in other bases?"
"Well, obviously." Melissa replies.
"Then I have a job for you." Closing his eyes for a moment, Sam took a deep breath. "I want you to gather information on the Valkyries behavior in other bases. Anything about their daily lives and their interactions with the soldiers stationed there."
"Hmm¡ well, that wouldn''t be so difficult. The problem would be the authenticity of the information."
Sam had no idea if the Valkyries in other bases have as little involvement with the rest of the soldiers as the ones in the forty sixth base. Technically there are no written rules preventing the weapons from interacting with everyone else, except for the one about no physical contact. That means there is a chance that things might be different in other ces.
"Anything will do." Sam said.
"Well, I hope you know that there is a price for everything." Melissa said with a smile.
"As long as it''s something I''m capable of." Sam replied with a sigh.
"Well, considering that this won''t be the only time we will be required to abide by your rules¡" Her eyes turning sharp and her voice bing serious, the female soldier stated making m her demands. "You will allow us to hold signing events at a separate asion."
"Sure." Sam replied curtly. He already had something like that nned for the future. After all he didn''t want to earn the wrath of the whole base by not allowing them to worship their idols.
"Also, photographs. Handshaking events are a no go, but you must at the very least allow us to take photos with the Valkyries."
"That¡" Sam let out a sigh. "Do the other bases hold those kinds of events?"
"Obviously. It''s a good way to gather funds." Melissa took out her phone, a couple of secondster she held it up for him to see. "In the case of basesclose to the settlements, such events are held periodically."
The screen disyed photos of people posing with some of the more famous Valkyries. This was the first time sam heard about something like this, even though he already knew how profitable marketing the Valkyries as idols can be.
"Well, we can''t really do the same, considering there are no settlements nearby." Sammented, handing the phone back to its owner. "Not to mention, our Valkyries aren''t that famous."
"Well, we can still hold it for those staying here, and the money could be used to improve the base."
"... Yeah, we can work with that."
Sam was about to take another sip but then he noticed that his cup was empty. He thought about refilling it once more but then put it away instead. He was already getting tired, his mouth slowly opening as he was about to yawn, though before he could something pressed against his side freezing him in ce.
"It''s good to know that you''re willing to cooperate with us." Melissa said, leaning against him with a flushed face. She gulped the contents of her ss all at once then tried to refill it only to notice that the bottle was empty as well.
"Arent you drinking too much?" Sam asked, casually pushing the female soldier away.
"Don''t worry, I can handle this much." Ignoring Sam''s attempt to move away, the red head leaned against him once more. As if it wasn''t already clear that she was doing it on purpose, she looked up at him and put on a yful smile.
"Say, I have yet to thank you for today." bringing her face closer to his, Melissa whispered in a sweet voice. "How about we get a room. I will make sure to show you how grateful I am~?."
Though the alcohol was already ying with his mind, Sam wasn''t about to make such a mistake, especially when he''s already cheating on his girlfriend.
"Sorry but I already have someone." Saying that, Sam distanced himself from the female soldier. Thankfully neither Shizuru nor Alice noticed anything, however it appears Zero Five had seen everything and she doesn''t seem too happy about it.
"Too bad." Melissa said, sighing with a disappointed smile. "I''m always avable, if you ever feel like it."
Saying that, the red haired woman walked away heading straight for the table with the drinks.
Sam looked over the crowd once more. He could feel the drowsiness clouding his mind so he decided it was time to get some rest.
"Guess I will have you do your job." He said, taking his phone out and sending another message to Alice.
As themander of the base looking after the Valkyries was her duty, not his. Saying that he is going to bed and asking her to look after the three weapons, Sam clicked send and watched as Alice''s expression changed. By the time she started looking for him he had already walked away from the party.
"Damn, that was way more stressful than I thought." Stretching his limbs, Sam walked in the direction of his room with eyes that threatened to close at any moment. The alcohol didn''t do him any good, clouding his judgment enough for him to leave at a time like this. Normally he wouldn''t have left the Valkyries on their own in such an environment, however he was drunk enough for him to prioritize himself, deciding to be a little selfish and entrust things to someone else so he could get some rest.
As he walked through the dark with slow steps, Sam lifted his head and looked up at the sky. He watched the stars in silence, noticing that the moon was nowhere to be seen. As he marveled at the beautiful night sky he heard the rustling of leavesing from behind him.
Naturally he turned around to check, but before his mind could register what he saw he felt a strong impact on his head. The world suddenly went dark. Thest thing he felt was his body falling to the ground.
... --- .-. .-. -.-- .-.-.- / -. --- / ... . --. --. ... / - .... .. ... / - .. -- . .-.-.-
Chapter 60 Injured.
''Shit! My head hurts¡''
Sam thought, carefully opening his eyes only to be met with a blurry white world.
"Doctor?"
He heard a familiar voice, however it sounded quiet and distant.
"Commander! he''s awake!" Someone else shouted.
"... Th¡ ree?" The word barely came out of his mouth, but a momentter a shadow loomed over him masking the white background.
"You''re in a really bad shape, huh, old man?"
His eyes began to gradually focus and soon he saw the cute face of the young Valkyrie smiling down at him.
"Wha¡ t''s¡ going¡"
"It''s better if you don''t speak at the moment." Came another voice.
Zero three moved away, letting a white haired woman take her ce.
"... A¡ lice¡?"
"For the time being please focus on resting." Themander said with a grave expression. "You can leave the rest to me."
Reassured by the words of the woman he loves, Sam slowly closed his eyes and went back to sleep.
~¡ó~
The next time he opened his eyes Sam felt much better. His head still hurts, however it subdued a little allowing him to notice the pain throughout his while body.
"What¡ the hell¡"
"Doctor?"
Turning to the right Sam saw the face of his girlfriend, Kurokami Shizuru, as she looked at him with eyes full of concern.
"Shi¡ zuru¡"
"Yes, it''s me." She said with a relieved smile.
"What¡ happened¡"
"Don''t worry, everything is fine now." The Asian girl said, taking her sses off to wipe away the tears that began to umte. "You were attacked on your way back to your room. Thankfully Ms. Zero Five arrived before it was toote."
Listening to the retelling, Sam began to remember what happened before he lost consciousness. He was on his way back to his room after drinking a little too much. Hearing the rustling of leaves he turned around to check and was hit in the head. Everything after that is gone.
"The¡ culprit¡?"
"... Sadly we have yet to catch them." Shizuru said, her eyes cast down. "ording to Ms. Zero Five they were three adult males, however because they had their faces covered have yet to figure out their identities."
"I¡ see¡"
Breaking into a sudden fit of coughs, Sam felt the pain intensify. Shizuro brought a ss of water, lifted his head and helped him drink it. With his thirst quenched he began to feel much better, although hunger struck next and his stomach began to rumble.
"I will peel some apples for you." Shizuru said.
Seeing her warm and caring smile, Sam began to feel another kind of pain.
"Sorry, Shizuru¡" he said.
"Hm? What for?" She askedlooking a little confused.
"For everything."
The guilt weighing on Sam''s heart kept getting heavier and heavier. Seeing the girlfriend he cheated on dutifully taking care of him made him realize how much of a horrible person he is.
"How long¡ how long was I asleep?" He asked, trying to divert his attention to something else.
"A little over a day." Shizuru said, her eyes on the knife peeling the red apple. "You were in a really bad condition. It took quite some time to get your bones back to how they were."
"Is¡ that so¡"
"Yes. Your injuries have been treated without a problem, however it will take some time before you''re able to move."
Medical technology has improved quite a lot in the years that followed the appearance of the Cmities. While it still can''t repair humans the same way as the Valkyries, it''s still good enough to put them back together into a stable state as long as they haven''t been turned into powder.
"Here, Doctor." Shizuru held out a slice of apple and spoke with a smile. "Say a~h."
Though he felt a little embarrassed, Sam closed his eyes and opened his mouth. As he slowly chewed while ignoring the pain in his jaw he kept thinking about his situation and what led to it.
"So¡ they didn''t catch the culprit¡" He asked.
"Yes. There is an investigation going on, but we have yet to reach any results." She said before feeding him another slice.
"Well, we know their motive at the very least." Hemented before biting.
"Do we?" Shizuru asked.
A few seconds passed as Sam carefully chewed. When he was done he had to struggle through the pain of swallowing which wasn''t as strong the second time.
"Well, it obviously has something to do with the Valkyries. Probably some fanatics are angry that I have some authority over the weapons."
"Really? I thought you were just their doctor?"
"Well, I doubt anyone knows this but¡ you could say I got a little promotion."
"O~h¡ wait¡ what?"
The Asian girl stopped working her hands and turned to Sam with wide open eyes.
"It only happened recently, and I still don''t know whether it''s safe to tell anyone." Sam sighed, feeling the sleepiness return. "I mean, just look at me. This happened even though themander is the only one who knows."
"You really are in a bad spot, Doctor." Shizuru smiled wryly, feeding him another slice. "Your position isn''t as enviable as one would think."
"True¡"
"Well, seeing that the Valkyries came to see you multiple times in the past two days, I wouldn''t say you''re entirely innocent."
ncing to the side, Sam felt his whole body shudder as saw the raven haired girl smile at the knife in her hand. Noticing his gaze she turned the smile at him before picking another slice of apple and putting it in his mouth.
"Doctar really is such a yboy." She said, slowly pushing the slice with her finger. "Being able to charm even the lifeless weapons. I can see why other men would be angry at you."
"W-what are you talking about, Shizuru?" Sam asked, doing everything in his power to maintain his calm. "You realize that''s not possible, right?"
"You said it yourself, didn''t you? That the Valkyries are programmed to act the same way humans do when they experience a certain feeling."
"Well¡"
"Seeing how worried they were, and the looks they gave you, their feelings are clear." Leaning in toward him, Shizuru whispered in a low voice. "Doctor, are you trying to break the hearts of our precious weapons?"
"Huh?"
"Odin sure is a cruel man. To make them as human like as possible. Did he not consider the ramifications of that decision? Worst of all, he had to go and make all of them female. It''s as if he wants to watch the world burn."
"Um, Shizuru, you''re starting to sound a little bit wierd?"
"Is that so?" Backing away a little, she smiled at him for a second before closing in and cing her lips on his. The kiss took Sam by surprise. Not that it was unweed, however he felt that there is something off about it.
"Sam¡" backing away slowly, Shizuru looked him in the eyes, a warm smile on her lips. "Love is a powerful emotion. You should always be careful of who you fall for, and more importantly, who falls for you."
"Old man! Are you still asleep!"
The strange mood suddenly shattered as the voice of an energetic young girl came in. Zero Three barged into the room, looking livelier than ever. Shizuru went back to her seat before anyone noticed and Sam held a hand to his forehead feeling a sharp headache.
"This is the medical bay. Keep your voice down." He said.
"Ooh! I see you''re up already!" Ignoring his statement, the young Valkyrie eximed.
"Doctor!"
The next moment two new faces popped up in the room. With a worried expressions, Zero Five and Nine rushed to his side.
"How are you feeling, doctor?" Nine asked.
"I''m sorry, if I was quicker I would''ve¡" Five began apologizing, tears gathering in her eyes.
"I''m fine, and no need to apologize." Sam said with a sigh. "Anyways, what are you doing here?" As if noticing it just then, Sam turned to Shizuru remembering what she said about the Valkyries visiting him.
"Themander gave us permission." Zero Three answered .
"Really?"
"Yes. Those two kept nagging her until she give in. They haven''t been doing well in our missions in your absence. Nine even got injured yesterday."
"Three! You shouldn''t bother Doctor with such trivial things!"
"Trivial, you say? You call spacing out while facing a C ss cmity trivial?"
"Is that true, Nine?" Sam turned to the blond Valkyrie with a stern re.
"Well, I was so worried¡"
Sam found it difficult to believe. The Valkyries'' emted emotions shouldn''t be capable of affecting theirbat capabilities. A moment of thought told him that there must have been other factors that led to the incident.
"Anyways, since I''ve been here the whole timehow did you get through your examination?"
"Themander took care of it." Zero Three said with a grin. "Old man, someone is able to do your job even though they know nothing about it. Doesn''t that make you look useless?"
"Well, I won''t deny that."
Sam didn''t really care about it, already knowing that Alice is capable of covering up for him if any idents urs. That said, he felt an incredible sense of relief remembering that he didn''t touch any of the Valkyries before being assaulted. With him not being there to alter the examination results, this incident would''ve turned out much worse.
Chapter 61 Research.
"Three, it''s rude to refer to Doctor like that." The one chastising the young Valkyrie this time was Shizuru, not Nine.
"Well, he is old and a man so¡" the young Valkyrie remarked.
"I''m not that old, you know." Sam said with a sigh.
"Does that mean I''m an old woman?" Shizuru asked, pointing a finger at herself. "I''m only a year younger than him."
"Eh!? Seriously!?" Zero Three stumbled backwards, looking utterly shocked.
"Yes."
"Why are you so shocked?" Sam asked.
"Of course I would. I thought you were at least ten years older than her." The young Valkyrie spoke with a serious expression. "Maybe you''ll look better once you start exercising more."
"I¡ guess you have a point¡"
Sam already ns on getting back into shape so her remarks didn''t bother him that much.
"You should do a lot of swimming." Zero Three said, getting excited as she once again sang the praises of her favorite sport.
"By the way, Doctor." As she spoke, the strange feeling Shizuru gave off beforepletely vanished. "Is it really possible for other people to take over your job that easily?"
"Well, ourmander is a special case." Sam answered. Alice was someone who could do anything if she puts her mind to it. It wouldn''t be strange for her to learn how to operate Eir in a short amount of time. "To begin with it doesn''t require any particr knowledge or skill. As long as they''re able to follow the instructions and read the data anyone can do it."
"So it really doesn''t have to be you, huh? I''m somewhat disappointed." Zero Three sighed.
"Hey, even if anyone can do it I''m still the most qualified, you know." Feeling a little offended, Sam decided to shot back. "I''m quite the expert when ites to nanotechnology, especially the kind used in Eir."
"Is that so?" The young Valkyrie looked at him as if to ask what''s so amazing about it.
"Now that I think about it¡" Nine spoke, holding her chin as she looked up. "Doctor looked way busier back when he first started working here."
"Theb was always a mess back then." Zero Fivemented. "Nowadays it''s always tidied up."
"That''s because I''m already done with my research." Sam said with a sigh.
"You never mentioned it before." Shizuru said, looking at Sam with half lid eyes.
"It''s not a great topic of conversation." Sam replied, scratching his head out of annoyance.
"So? What were you researching?" Zero Three asked, eyes filled with curiosity.
Sam had no intention of answering, however seeing the four beauties waiting patiently he let out an exasperated sigh and gave in.
"It''s a bitplicated but¡ to put it simply, I was trying to make even smaller nanotechnology than what we have at the moment."
"I feel like I get it, but at the same time I don''t¡" Nine said.
"So your whole research is about making small things smaller?" Three concluded.
"Something like that." Sam confirmed. "Currently I''m waiting for permission to start practical trials."
"Hm? You mean you have yet to try any of it?" Shizuru asked. "Not even onb rats? I thought you only need permission for human trials."
"It would be really problematic if such technology isn''t kept under control." Sam said. "Even I can''t imagine what it could be used for so it''s only natural for the higher ups to want to advance carefully."
Sam had focused all of his research on the medical use of nanotechnology with the goal to use it to cure Alice''s disease. That said, when most people hear about a technology that can alter human DNA their first thought goes to the worst possible scenariopletely overlooking the positive uses that can be achieved.
''Well, maybe I shouldn''t have tried to go subatomic in the first ce.'' Sam thought, another sigh escaping him. ''Though I''m pretty sure that''s the rout Odin took. The size of the Valkyries wouldn''t make sense otherwise.''
Odin chose to keep his scientific discoveries to himself. Those in power held one big grudge against him for that, but there was nothing they could do about it. After all the mad scientist didn''t care about humanity. He didn''t care if all of them died.
"I knew it! Doctor really is an amazing person after all." Nine said, a beaming smile on her face.
"Not really." Sam said, leaning back and letting the pillow embrace him. "If I were really that capable then I would''ve convinced the big wigs to let me do what I want by now."
That''s the difference between him and Odin. Sam has yet to get a single dor in fundings for his projects when the mad scientist built a bunch of sex-bots and convinced the world that they''re humanity''s most powerful weapon.
It''s frustrating, but he couldn''t do anything about it. As he let his thought wander Sam soon fell asleep. Noticing that the Valkyries went quite and one after the other they all left letting him get the rest he needs.
~¡ó~
Two dayster and Sam has yet to recover. Well, to be more specific he was advised to move as little as possible for a few day until he ispletely healed.
To put it simply, it''s like his body is being held together by a thinyer of glue and until it dries and hardens it would be for the best if he moved as little as possible.
That said Sam didn''t feel like staying in bed the entire time so he borrowed a wheelchair and was about to use it to get to hisb. While it had a little motor and could be moved by the user someone had arrived before he left and insisted on pushing it for him.
"You really didn''t have to do this, Nine." Sam said, holding a hand to his forehead feeling a slight headache.
"What do you mean, Doctor?" The blond Valkyrie asked. "All I want is to be helpful to you."
Though her intentions were good, Sam couldn''t help but feel that by doing this she was putting him in even more danger than before.
Today the only one who came to visit him was Nine and she just so happened to arrive at the exact moment he sat on wheelchair. Her eyes sparkled and she immediately took her ce behind him. The nerse that was helping him had her mouth agape the entire time because, even though she already knew that the weapons came to visit him often, she never expected one of them to offer to help him in any way.
The two saw many simr reaction as they headed to hisb. If the Valkyrie fanatics weren''t angry at him already then this would be the reason they were looking for.
Thankfully no one came up to them and they reached their destination safely, or so he thought. When they arrived at the door to hisb Nine didn''t stop and continued down the corridor. Sam turned around to look at her but she only smiled in return.
"Nine, you realize we just passed theb, right?" He asked.
"Yes." Nine replied curtly.
"Then shouldn''t you stop pushing already?"
"Doctor has nothing to do at the moment, right?" The Valkyrir tilted her head as she asked. "Instead of the gloomyb it would be for the better if you spent your time in our quarters."
"Well¡"
While she does have a point, Sam never intended on visiting the Valkyries'' residence which made it felt a bit wierd. That said, since he saw no problem with it he just shrugged and let the Valkyrie lead the way.
Soon enough they were inside the residence. Sam thought for a moment about the things he could do there. He remembered Nine''s garden and felt that spending some time there would help him a little. He was about to ask her to take him there but she spoke before he could.
"Doctor, shall we head to my room?"
The question took Sam by surprise, but before he could turn his head to ask the Valkyrie why she suggested that he felt something soft press against the back of his head as two arms wrapped around him from behind.
"Nine?"
"Three is in the pool on the roof and Five is in the training room." She whispered in his ear. "And with us here neither themander nor that female with the sses will be a bother. I can finally have Doctor to myself, even if it''s just a little."
Just then Sam began to remember Shizuru''s warning. Trying to be the Valkyries'' master meant that he had to make them fall for him. Though she shouldn''t have known anything about it, the Asian girl hit the nail on the head as if she was aware of where his actions would lead him.
That said, Sam had no intention of stopping aftering all this way. With his head sandwiched between the two giant marshmallows and the sweet voice whispering in his ear Sam felt a fire ignite inside him and his meat pir prepared itself.
"Alright." He said giving his approval.
"Yay!"
Tightening her hug for a moment, the blond Valkyrie then proceeded to push his chair toward the second floor.
Sam wasn''t in a shape that would allow him to enjoy such event to its fullest, however even like this he could still perform some experiments and that''s exactly what he intends on doing.
Chapter 62 Experiment 04
When they arrived at Nine''s room, Sam asked her to lock the door as he carefully stood up from the wheelchair and sat on the bedside.
"Nine,e here."
Backing away a little he made some space for her in front of him. The blond Valkyrie did as he said and soon enough a wall of golden hair was in front him.
"Doctor, what are we going to do today?" Nine turned to asks, her cheeks having turned red. Excitement filled her realizing from the way they sat that the Doctor intended on teaching her some new things.
"Hmm¡ since we have all the time until your patrol, I would like to take things at a slower pace." As he spoke, Sam gently caressed Nine''s shoulders. In theirst experiment they had to move quickly in order to make the most out of the little time they had, however they don''t have that restriction right now and because of that Sam had one thing he wanted to do.
Without hesitation he ced his lips on hers, beginning a long kiss thatsted for quite a while. Nine''s lips were one of the things he yearned for the most and now that he got the opportunity he ned on enjoying them for as long as he possibly could.
"... mmn¡ ahh~?¡mgmm¡mhmmm~?¡mmm~?"
Nine seemed to be enjoying herself as well. She opened her mouth and epted the tongue that came invading without resistance. She tried to shift her body so she could be in a better position,however Sam stopped her having decided on this position for a reason.
"Ahh!!"
He give her gigantic breasts a good squeeze causing the Valkyrie to gasp in surprise. Their lips parted for a moment but then they were pulled back together as if a maic force prevented them from being separated for long.
"Mmn¡ ahh~?¡. Haah¡. Mnmm¡ ahh~?"
Sam continued to gently fondle Nine''s soft marshmallows while enjoying her lips to the fullest. A few minutester he pulled her shirt up to expose her breasts, but although he already knew what awaited him he still felt a little disappointed.
"You always wear your battle suit underneath, huh?" He asked, still squeezing the giant melons "don''t you have any normal underwear?"
"Ahh~?¡ hahh¡ n-normal?... hahh¡ y-yes!... ahhn~?¡ I¡ I have¡ hahhnn~?"
Sam understood that the Valkyries had to be ready all the time in case an emergency urs, however he still felt a bit frustrated at the battle suit for being in the way. Not that he hated them though, they had their own appeal and he enjoys them all the time, however they''re hard to remove, or to be more precise he didn''t know where to start.
"Nine¡"
Deciding to move on to the next phase Sam brought his face closer and kissed the Valkyrie once more.
"Doctor~?"
When their lips separated, Nine smiled at him with passion filled eyes before closing them asking for another kiss.
"I¡ I really like it¡ when Doctor¡ does this¡?"
"Yes¡ I really like kissing you as well¡" Sam said, joining their lips once more as if his desire for hers reawakened.
"Kiss¡ing¡ is this¡ a kiss?" Nine muttered, gasping for air. "I''m kissing¡ Doctor~?¡ mnmm¡. Ah¡ mhaah¡.mmn~?¡. Ha~h¡ how¡ how wonderful~?¡.."
They went on like that for a while. In the meantime Sam continued working his hands, ying with Nine''s chest before going on to touch every part they could reach. They eventually found their way inside her skirt and between her legs where he noticed how moist it had gotten.
"Ahh~?!!"
The blond Valkyrie moaned as Sam began rubbing her important spot. With one hand down there and another squeezing her right breast, Sam sealed Nine''s mouth as he used his fingers to drive her into climaxing.
"Hhnghnnnnnnnnn~?!!!!!!"
Nine went stiff as a stream of hot liquid soaked herher. An incredible wave of pleasure washed over her body clouding her mind and making her incapable of thinking of anything else for a few seconds. Sam gave her a few seconds to catch her breath before kissing her again.
"How did it feel, Nine?" He whispered in her ear.
"In¡ hah¡ incredible¡ha~h?"
Even though it was just a little touching Nine was in a daze looking like she''s already drunk from pleasure. Seeing her expression added to Sam''s arousal causing the pain he felt in his pants to grow.
''Damn it! If only I wasn''t injured¡''
As an expert in the field Sam knew exactly what kind of state his body was in right now. Because of that no matter how much he wanted to f*ck the blond Valkyrie right now he had no choice but to restrain himself.
He would be fine as long as he proceeded gently, however with a woman such as Nine in his hands he was confident that he would never be able to hold back.
''Calm down. You will get your chance.'' He told himself as he went back to making out with the Valkyrie. ''One step at a time.''
"Nine." Pullimg back, Sam looked her in the eyes and said. "I want to see your chest bare. Remove your top."
"... okay¡"
Following his instructions, Nine moved from her spot between Sam''s legs and sat on her knees beside him. She then swiftly removed her shirt and proceeded to strip the nextyer. She tapped a blue metallic piece on her waist and the next moment the battle suit became loose falling off her shoulders without trouble. What surprised Sam however was the fact that Nine''s chest seemed to grow bigger as if it had beenpressed inside the whole time.
Once the thin fabric was removed, Sam was finally able to see what''s underneath, and he could could only describe it in one word. Beautiful.
The size was as unrealistic as it can be. If a real woman had breasts that big he was sure they wouldn''t look as good as what was in front of him right now. Nine''s didn''t sag and held their shape firmly. Her wless skin added to their beauty and her hardened nipples seemed to be inviting him.
"Ahh~?"
Sam reached out with both hands and began feeling the soft marshmallows once more. The sensation was different from when the thin fabric of the battle suit was in the way. The smoothness, softness and sticity were all different making Sam think he was touching a different pair of breasts.
"This¡ ah~?¡D-Doctor~?¡ This feels¡ haahh¡ it feels better¡. Than before¡ ahnn~?"
"True."
As he massaged her breasts, Sam noticed that Nine had rolled up her skirt and was in the process of pleasuring her honey pot all by herself.
"I see you''ve learned to do it on your own." Sammented with a smile.
"Yes." Nine''s smiled as her blush intensified. "Every night¡ hahh¡ every night I think of Doctor¡ ahn¡ I always end up¡hannah~?"
To his surprise, Sam learned that the blond Valkyrie has been masterbating while thinking about him all this time. If that wasn''t enough proof that he was already her master then he didn''t know what it takes anymore.
"Is that so¡" Sam said as he lifted her left breast up a little. leaning in he brought his face closer to the small protrusion on it then extended his tongue and licked.
"Aaaaaahhhhhhhh~?"
Nine''s whole body shuddered. Though it was by ident she ended up inserting the tips her middle and ring fingers into her secret flesh. If not for the thin stockings and the battle suit blocking the entrance she might''ve ended up pushing them all the way and although that didn''t happen another stream of hot liquid burst out as she felt a wave of sexual pleasure throughout her whole body.
"Hm? You already came a second time?" Sam asked having noticed the Valkyrie''s slight trembling.
"Haahh¡ y-yes¡ I think¡ hahh~?" Nine said, taking out her hand and showing him how soaked it was.
"You really are a naughty one." Sam said before diving into the softness of her chest once more.
"Ahhnn~?"
He ced her left nipple into his mouth and began sucking like a hungry child who had just found the source of his food.
"Ahhn¡. Ahh¡ Doc¡ tor¡ ahh~?!"
Sam sucked and licked as if he was trying to draw something out of the soft marshmallows. As he put his focus on the left breast, squeezing it again and again, his free hand was ying with her other breast poking and pinching her nipple causing an alien sensation to flood Nine''s nervous system.
''Huh?'' Sam came to a sudden stop noticing that the taste in his mouth had changed. ''Could it be¡''
He began sucking with a much greater force as a sweet taste spread in his mouth. While it was nothing like the beast milk he was used to, Sam had noints as he continued to drink.
"Ha~h¡ Doctor?... hahh¡"
Sam backed away for a moment to see the state Nine''s breasts were in. He squeezed them tightly causing a white liquid to spray out along with the Valkyrie''s coquettish moans.
The liquid was a nutrient concoction created from the food the Valkyries consume. It''s supposed to surve as a substitute for the natural breast milk produced by human females and ording to the Frejya files it''s much better than the best baby form avable right now.
"Nine¡"
Feeling a sudden sense of hunger Sam pushed the Valkyrie down and began partaking in his meal. Before he knew it three hours had passed but by that time his stomach was already full, so much that he ended up burping like a child who had just finished his meal.
4c6f7264206f6620746865206d79737465726965732044696f
Chapter 63 Border.
"What took you so long, Nine?" Zero Three asked, looking somewhat annoyed.
"Hm? I think I arrived just in time?" Nine turned to the clock on the wall just to realize that she''s two minuteste.
"Two whole minutes!" Three growled angrily. "We should be outside already!"
"Sorry sorry. I was a little busy, that''s all." Nine said, hanging her uniform inside her locker.
The reality is that she had to stop by the bathroom to take a quick shower and change. Doctor''s little experiment had left her a little sullied and she had to make sure no one notices.
"You went to see the old man this morning, right?"
The moment Three asked that question Zero Five''s eyes turned in the blond Valkyrie''s direction.
"Yes." Nine answered. "Doctor is doing fine, if that''s what you wanted to know."
"Of course he is." Zero Three waved a dismissive hand showing how little she cared about the topic. "He spent days in bed doing nothing. Wish I could be aszy as him."
"Three, you know Doctor isn''t doing that because he likes it." Five said.
"Yeah I get it already." The young Valkyrie shrugged. "I''m just surprised by how frail humans are. I mean, look it us. We suffer injuries that could kill them all the time yet we are already back in peak condition the next day."
"It''s not right topare us to humans, Three." Ninemented. "We arepletely different beings, after all."
"You mean weapons." Five said, staring at the blond one with half closed eyes.
"Indeed." Nine nodded. "It would be troubling for our creators if we are as frail as them. That''s why they allocate a lot of resources and energy to our repairs whenever we are damaged."
"I would like to avoid any big injuries if possible." Three said, checking the exposed parts of her body. "I really hate it when the restored spots dont have the same tan as the rest of my body."
"Three, how about you bring your second armor this time?" Five said after a short pause.
"Really!? Can I!?" The young Valkyrie turned around with sparkling eyes.
"We have been encountering a lot of D and C ss Cmities recently." The ponytailed Valkyrie said. "I think it would be for the better if at least one if us has her second armor on, just in case."
"Hmm¡ I don''t know about that¡" Nine looked up as if she''s thinking about something. "Even if Three''s doesn''t consume as much energy, using it when we aren''t sure there is a need sounds like a waste."
"I will handle most of the fighting." Five said. "That way we could keep our energy consumption to a minimum."
"Eeeh!!? What''s the point of me bringing my second set if I''m not going to use it!?" Threeined.
"It''s a precaution in case we meet another A ss." Five said.
The frequency of Cmity appearance had increased in the past couple weeks. It wasn''t as high as in other, more active bases, however when one takes into ount that they used to have less than two attacks per month it''s only natural to want to be on guard.
[Seriously, this set is so much cooler than the normal stuff.]
The three Valkyries put on their equipment and went out preparing to take off. Zero Three wore her second armor which had apletely different lookpared to what the other two wore.
For starters it covered her entire body. A thick silver mechanical suit that made the young Valkyrie seem a little taller than normal. With her hair tucked into the head gear she looked like a simple female mannequin, that alone was the second armor''s simplest form.
Several metallic boxes floated behind her each containing an additional piece of equipment. One of them split in half then into several pieces that gathered around each of the young Valkyrie''s arms fusing together to createrge gauntlets. Another box did the same creating a pair of metallic boots around her legs.
[This much should be fine, right?] Said Zero Three, her voice resounding from a speaker.
"Well, you''ll need to fly anyways." Said Nine with a wry smile.
"Remember, leave the fighting to me and keep the energy consumption to a minimum."
[Yea yea I get it already.]
Three opened her palms and pointed them at the ground below her. Particles of blue light began to gather underneath them forming two small rings, at the same time Zero Three''s armored figure began to gradually float up. Another pair of rings appeared under her feet lifting her to a higher altitude.
[Alright.] Said the young Valkyrie. [See ya!]
The four rings suddenly contracted and thr silver figure disappeared followed with a sudden explosion.
"Did she just¡"
Once the dust settled the other two looked around and saw that the young Valkyrie was already gone.
Zero Five couldn''t help but sigh.
"Well, let her have some fun." Nine said, igniting her propellers. "We better get there before the runs into anything though."
"... yes."
Flying alone wouldn''t be a problem, even if the speed of her departure was rming. As long as she doesn''t start a fight the energy she consumes would be kept at a minimum.
Soon enough the two Valkyries were in the air flying in the predetermined rout for today''s outing. Though they made catching up to Three their priority, Zero Five was flying at a leisure pace as if trying to enjoy the trip.
"Say, Nine." Out of nowhere, the ponytailed Valkyrie struck a conversation. "You didn''t just go see Doctor today, right?"
"Hm? Whatever do you mean?"Nine asked, her smile not faltering.
"Well, I just don''t understand why you would bete if that''s all you did."
Seeing Five being more talkative than usual caused Nine to get anxious herself. Doctor made sure to remind her to not tell anyone about their secret experiment, however she wanted to brag about how close she had gotten to him and that caused her thoughts to change.
"Hmm¡ wellyou know how Doctor is injured, right?" Nine said.
"Yes." Five nodded.
"Well, I took it upon myself to help him with a few things so he could be at ease."
"I¡ I see¡" noticing how stressed she had gotten, Zero Five took a deep breath trying to calm herself. "You''re kindhearted, Nine, helping Doctor even when he never asked."
"It''s only natural that I would." Nine replied with a giggle. "After all that''s what I was made for."
[I don''t want to intrude on your little chat but...] Zero Three''s voice cut in as if she had it timed beforehand. [You better get here and fast. We have a situation.]
Noticing the seriousness in the young Valkyrie''s voice the two dropped the topic they were discussing and elerated in her direction. What rmed them the most was that they had yet to enter the red grounds, which is a really bad sign with how close to the base they are.
A couple of minutester Zero Three''s silver armor came into sight. Once they reached her their eyes immediately moved toward the thing she alerted them about. On the ground right at the border between the purifiednd and the red area were multiple diamond shaped object. Six in total with the first being a light blue and each one that followedhaving a darker shade of the same color.
As usual the shape of the Cmities made no sense at all, however that wasn''t what bothered the three Valkyries at the moment.
"So that''s how they do it¡" Nine said, her sniper rifle already equipped.
[This is the first time we see it, right?] Three said.
"Yes. Usually it''s just left in the aftermath of a Herald''s invasion¡"
The six diamond shaped objects hovered over the border between the the red ground and the purifiednd. As they moved a red track is left behind extending the crimson border a little bit at a time.
The first one sprayed a thinyer that seemed to becking quite a bit. Once the second one passes over it the color grows stronger leaving very small gaps that would soon get covered by the thirdyer. Once all of the diamond shaped Cmities pass a certain point it would have the same shade as the rest of the red grounds.
The process was rather slow so it was hard to believe that this is the way it''s usually done, but that doesn''t matter at all. The Cmities are trying to extend their territories and that was nothing if not a bad sign.
"Nine, survey our surroundings. Check for any other abnormalities." As she spoke her instructions, Zero Five took the long case off her back and transformed it into herrge halberd.
[Wait! Are you going to fight them alone!?] Zero Three asked in a shocked tone.
"As I said, focus on conserving your energy. If it bes clear that they''re B ss or higher feel free to interfere."
Igniting her propellers, Zero Five dived straight toward the enemy.
Chapter 64 Limbless. (Part One)
Zero five dived toward the six diamond shaped Cmities. Gathering the nessary momentum she abruptly turned her propellers off, spinning around herself and swinging her halberd with everything she got.
The results were unexpected as the de bounced off the Cmity, the recoil freezing Zero Five for just a fraction of a second.
The target began spinning, turning its pointy end toward the Valkyrie. Red particles gathered to form a small light sphere that gradually grew in size.
[Five!]
Hearing Nine''s voice Zero Five moved out of the way just in time for a bullet to collide with the red light sphere. A small explosion blew the diamond shaped Cmity away but did the same to Zero Five.
The other five monstrosities were on the move as well, two of them surrounding the ponytailed Valkyrie while the remaining three retreated into the red grounds followed by the first one while came out of the explosion unscathed.
[This doesn''t look good!] Zero Three spoke. [I''m going in!]
[No!] Five shouted back. [Stick to the n.]
The initial attack might''ve failed, however the battle had just began. Five charged her force field to its fullest capacity causing her whole body to glow with a faint blue color that spread to her weapon as well. The energy des of the halberd extended growingrger and sharper.
The Cmities were going through a change as well, twisting around themselves like a strange jigsaw puzzleand splitting into smaller shapes.
As one of them opened up revealing its insides for just a moment, a line of blue light passed through the ck sphere surrounded by the moving shapes. The Cmity stopped moving all of a sudden, losing its color before falling toward the ground.
"One down!" Nine eximed, looking at the scene below through the scope of her sniper rifle with a huge grin on her face.
[Nice one, Nine!] Zero Three praised in an excited voice.
Sadly the second cmity didn''t fall as easily, splitting parts from its main body and using them to deflect the bullets.
That didn''t work all that well for it though as its attention was drown away from Zero Five who was already in the process of swinging her enhanced halberd.
The Cmity split more parts using them to block the de which cut through although with a bit of difficulty. That created a big enough gap for Nine''s bullets to pierce the ck core destroying the second Cmity.
"Hmm¡ going by their sturdiness I would say they''re C ss at most." The blond Valkyriemented.
[That''s an overstatement, Nine. They are your average E ss, considering they have next to no fire power.] Zero Three said with a sigh. [Maybe there really is no need for me to interfere.]
"Don''t let your guard down, there are still four left." Five said, turning to face the remaining enemies.
She had kept an eye on them even while fighting the other two, because of that she felt the need to be on guard as the four diamond shapes didn''t attempt to shoot her down while she engaged with the other two.
The Cmities spread out keeping an equal distance from each other forming a square, they then turned their pointy ends toward their center and fired four red beams that collided creating a sphere of light that became bigger by the second.
[I don''t think it''s good idea to let them do that!] Zero Three stated the obvious.
Zero Five quickly moved out of the way, but although the sphere of light had reached the border drawn by the diamond shaped Cmities, nothing came out. The Valkyries had expected some sort of beam to be shot out of therge red sphere however it retained its shape for a while and nothing happened.
"Somethimg is forming at the center." Nine said.
As if feeling a really bad premonition Zero Five turned to the gauntlet on her right arm and began typingmands. A couple of secondster something emerged from the sphere of light.
[What in the world¡]
The other two shared Zero Three''s bewilderment as they watched the thing that appeared before them.
To put it in the simplest of terms, it was a woman. Though it was nothing but a torso andcked all four limbs from the curvy form and full chest, thin waist and wide hips one could tell it had a feminine shape. It was white in color, and not in the sense of a human skin. It was the kind of smooth white paint one would see on inanimate objects. Its head was bald andcked any facial features which added to its uncanny and horrifying nature.
"THREE!" Five shouted.
[ON IT!]
The Valkyries had no way to ascertain how dangerous a cmity is which is why they have to engage them first beforeing up with the right countermeasures. In this case however all three agreed that the new one must be destroyed before it could make any move.
The metallic boxes floating behind the young Valkyrie copsed into smaller parts forming new pieces of equipment that attached themselves to her armor.
Large glowing des extended from her back forming green wings and a long thick pole appeared in her hand. The moment she grasped it three long triangles appeared along its shaft forming arge three dednce.
Zero Three pointed the tip of her weapon toward the strange new cmity. Her wings spread followed by arge halo forming under her feet as she crouched down preparing tounch herself.
"GO!"
,m Following Five''s signal a loud explosion resounded followed by a shockwave that threw Nine off bnce.
Zero Three flew toward the strange Cmity surpassing the speed of sound with no intent on slowing her eleration. The friction caused her armor to turn orange from the heat and in a fraction of a second hernce reached the Cmity.
Anotherrge explosion sent a shockwave throughout the surroundings.
As she covered her eyes with both arms Zero Five tried to get a look through the gaps and what she saw shocked her.
Zero Three was suspended in the air with her spear still extended as if something was blocking her advance. The air around the Cmity pulsates and the barrier came into sight. Half transparent white hexagons spread out from the collision point before disappearing into thin air.
It was an invisible barrier strong enough to block a charge from Zero Three''s second armor. That was all they needed to know to realize how bad the situation actually is.
Nine fired several bullets but they all collided with the invisible barrier getting deflected in random directions.
[This thing¡ is hard¡] Dspite how futile it looked Zero Three continued to push trying to prate the enemy''s defences. She had hoped that the female torso was putting everything it had into blocking her attack, but sadly it seemed to have more than enough power to focus on other things.
A mouth like gash opened in the Cmity''s head revealing two rows of sharp needle like teeth and a ck darkness inside.
"THREE GET OUT OF THERE!!!" Zero Five shouted.
The young Valkyrie had no way of killing her momentum so instead of trying to back away she tilted the angle of her weapon causing herself to fly toward the ground like a bullet that had been deflected by the invisible barrier.
A moment after Three moved out of the way the Valkyries heard a strange melodic voice.
"Laaaa~~~"
Though it was invisible, each one felt the soundwave as it spread out from the strange cmity like a dome that grow in size until it engulfed arge area with it at its center.
"Wha¡ what was that?"
"NINE!!!"
The blond Valkyrie was in a daze for a moment,ing back to her senses through Five''s call only to notice the danger she was trying to warn her about.
A purple arm with a wed hand appeared out of thin air and was swinging down toward her.
Although she moved just in time to avoid a direct hit the ws collided with the long barrel of her rifle and as if it wasn''t made from one of the strongest alloys created by humans the barrel was sliced off.
"Laa~~~"
Another melodic voice resounded followed by the appearance of six arms allming down at Nine before she couldprehend was was happening.
"NINE!!!"
An rm rang through the forty sixth Resistance base. Having received Zero Five''s quick report warning of the appearance of a potential A ss Cmity along with multiple C ss near the border and a request for the rest of their equipment Alice decided to announce a state of emergency.
Several unmanned drones wereunched in a matter of seconds to deliver the requested equipment as fast as possible while the rest of the soldiers moved into their positions.
"Shit, this doesn''t look good." Sam grimaced as he made his way toward hisb. Once inside he picked up his tablet checking the emergency announcement along with Five''s report. Shock overtook him the moment he saw the strange limbless female figure and without thinking much about it he sent themander a message asking her to request help from the other bases.
"Let''s hope it''s unnecessary." He muttered, his anxiety rising as he waited for the next report to arrive. "How did we not notice it till now?"
Chapter 65 Limbless. (Part Two)
"Laaa~~~"
The melodic voice rang and more purple arms appeared out of nowhere.
[How is this even possible!] Zero Three couldn''t help but ask.
The Cmity kept creating wed arms out of thin air. It didn''t seem to have an upper limit to what it can create in one go, and there was no way of telling where they will appear next.
"Nine! Is there any pattern in the sound it releases!?" Zero Five asked, having dodged two of the wed arms and was about to swing her halberd at the monstrosity.
"Sadly there are none." The blond Valkyrie replied. "I might need more time, we don''t have anywhere near enough samples to get a clear analysis!"
Nine had lost her weapon following the strange Cmity''s appearance forcing her to take a backseat till her second armores in. She could use her force field to try and attack the monster but that would be too reckless especially for a long range specialist like her.
,m [The barrier that thing creates is way too powerful¡] Three grumbled.
She had tried charging at the limbless female torso multiple times but was blocked each time. The invisible barrier didn''t budge in the slightest and just a little change in the trajectory of her attack causes her to be deflected like a bullet.
"Three, the angle. Don''t give it any rest." Five instructed. "Nine, focus on the analysis. I''ve received a reply from the base, equipment should arrive soon."
"Understood."
Zero Five looked down at the ground. The remaining four diamond shapes went back to painting thend with the red colorpletely ignoring the fight above them. Seeing that one could only conclude that the female torso didn''t need any assistance allowing them to continue their job without bothering with the enemy. She considered targeting them first, but fearing the change in the Torso''s attack pattern drove her to focus on it first.
The green des making up Zero Three''s wings glowed as she glided through the air. She extended her arms holding hernce at the ready as she elerated bit by pit beforeunching herself at the Cmity like a sharp missile.
A loud explosion followed her collision with the invisible barrier. The young Valkyrie clicked her tongue frustrated that she had failed once more. She continued to push with everything she got but the monster didn''t budge in the slightest.
"Laa~~~"
Hearing the singing voice the three Valkyries began to move. The only good news they managed to discover was that the purple wed arms couldn''t leave the spot they are created in which made them rtively easy to dodge. All they had to do was wait for the melodic voice to resound giving them a warning before the attack and though they couldn''t determine who the target would be as long as they moved all at once no one would get caught.
[HOW ARE WE SUPPOSED TO BEAT THAT THING IF WE CANT GET PAST THE DAMN BARRIER!!!]
The young Valkyrie was losing her patience. That didn''t affect how calcted her moves are, however her programmed personality wasing into y and her short temper caused her frustration to grow after each failed attack. She threw hernce, reverting it back to it''s original shape. Her wings copsed as well before gathering to form new equipment.
The rest of the boxes split apart turning into drones that floated around the Torsoing to a stop at what seemed like random locations at first, each creating a glowing white halo in the Cmity''s direction.
[LET''S DO THIS!!!]
Charging her force field beyond its limit, Zero Three activated another ability of her armor causing several sharp des to extend from it. Her glowing figurended on one of the drones causing its halo to stretch to its limit before contracting a momentterunching the young Valkyrie like a bullet.
The target wasn''t the Cmity but one of the other drones. Upon collision the glowing figure bounced off heading for another drone, the process repeated itself many times until the nothing but a blur could be seen.
Once she reached the intended speed Zero Three changed the target heading straight for the Torso. As usual the invisible barrier stopped her, however instead of pushing against it she allowed herself to bounce off heading directly into one of the drones andunching herself once more. She kept repeating the same attack again and again, bouncing from one drone to the other to increase her momentum before charging at the Cmity.
"Laaa~~~"
The monster sang again but the young Valkyrie ignored the voice. The purple arms that appeared in her way shattered like ss unable to slow her eleration even by a little. Sadly that didn''t matter much as the invisible barrier didn''t budge.
[Nine! Your armor has arrived! I''ll cover for you so get ready!]
Hearing Zero Five''s instruction Nine turned her back to the battle and flew in the direction of the drones. Seeing her approach one of them released arge ck container.
"Open up!" Nine shouted causing the container to split into two revealing its contents. Inside were several metallic boxes much like the ones Zero Three had, tworge ones with a radiation hazard icon on them and most importantly a silver suit of armor that opened up allowing the blond Valkyrie to settle inside.
The moment she got confirmation that the armor had beenpletely sealed Nine detached herself from the container followed by the boxes which split into smaller parts quickly forming her new weapons. Thick tubes extended from one of therge nuclear batteries attaching themselves to it as it fell into Nine''s hands.
[Safety measures clear.] She announced pointing therge canon toward the Torso. [Charging¡plete. Preparationsplete.]
"Get out of there, Three!!!"
The young Valkyrie was already on the move by the time she heard Five''s warning.
One after the other golden halos began to form around the barrel of Nine''s atomic canon as it glowed with the blue color of the Valkyrie''s force field. A big one appearing behind her as well holding her in ce in preparation for the inevitable recoil that''s about toe.
[Fire!]
Once Zero Three and all her drones were out of the way Nine didn''t hesitate and pressed the trigger. The halos surrounding her contracted holding her in ce as a blue beam exploded from the canon lighting the area like a sh if lightning.
"La-"
The Torso opened its gash like mouth to sing but the beam hit it before it could. For the first time it looked like the monster was having trouble defending as the invisible barrier seemed to be getting pushed back.
[Releasing first limiter.] Nine said causing one of the four halos surrounding the barrel of her cannon to shatter followed by the blue beam swelling to double its size.
The sudden increase of power took the Cmity by surprise overpowering the invisible barrier, however it didn''t prate it. The barrier mmed into the Torso causing it to lose the force pushing against the beam sending it flying toward the horizon getting pierced into one of the mountains.
Light shed in the distance and the world turned white followed by an ear shattering detonation and a tremor that shook the entire area. The explosion formed a dome of light that transformed into a mushroom cloud a few secondster.
[Did we do it?] Zero Three asked, shielding her eyes with her hand even though the armor protected her.
[Don''t let your guard down.] Five voice sounded from a speaker as she already had her own armor equipped.
[I would be troubled if that didn''t finish it off.] Nine said, tapping the nuclear battery beside her twice. [This one''s already empty. I only have another shot left.]
~¡ó~:
"Shit, it''s already heating up here." Sam said, loosening his necktie as he drove his wheelchair toward the nuclear shelter.
The explosion was quite a distance away and the force field surrounding the base should be capable of blocking the radiations, however there is nothing that could be done about the air heating up.
Knowing that theb would be unbearable the moment Nine fires her cannon he quickly made his way to the shelter, however his injured body didn''t allow him to run and the electric engine of the wheelchair wasn''t designed for fast movements.
"Damn it, they better not seal the damn thing before I get there!"
At the moment there was no threat of nuclear contamination so the base wouldn''t shut out those who have yet to take shelter, but no one could tell when that would change especially with how many idiots are among the soldiers who would think it''s better to abandon the ones who have yet to arrive instead of risking everyone else dying.
"Damned monsters! Couldn''t they take the fights somewhere else?"
Arriving at the cafeteria beneath which was the nuclear shelter, Sam quickly made his way to the back praying that no idiot was too quick in closing it off. Just then he noticed something in the corner of his eye.
"Hm? What the¡"
Turning around to check he realized it was a soldier stretched t on the floor.
''Did he get stumped or something?''
Though he considered leaving him where he is Sam still went to check on his state. Seeing the orange hair on his head caused him to grimace as he recognized the identity of the man without having to see his face.
"Sergeant Clementine, this is not the time nor the ce for a nap." Sam said in an annoyed voice, already aware that the man most likely couldn''t hear him.
Getting off the wheelchair he crouched down beside the soldier and tried shaking him a little.
"Sergeant Clementine?"
Sensing that something was off about the situation, Sam tried flipping the soldier so he would be facing up. He could already tell from the weight alone but just in case he reached out and touched his neck.
"... no pulse?"
The man was already dead.
Chapter 66 Limbless. (Part Three)
The Valkyries waited patiently for he initial effects of the explosion to die down.
Of course it would take quite a long time for all of it to go away, with the explosion being nuclear and all, however for the armored Valkyries a little bit of radiations wasn''t much to worry about so they nned on moving once the dust settles.
"La~La~Laaaaaaaaa~~~"
Sadly it seems their break didn''tst long. Hearing the melodic voice the three grasped their weapons and prepared themselves. A secondter the limbless Torso suddenly appeared a small distance away from them.
[Telepo-]
Before she could finish the word the Cmity opened its gash like mask and sang once more.
"LA. LA. LAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!"
unlike the previous times the voice that came out was shrill and ear splitting causing the Valkyries to feel a kind of pain they never knew they were capable of feeling.
[LOOK OUT!] Zero Five warned, drawing the other two''s attention to the plethora of arms that began to form around them.
The purple arms swung their ws at the three Valkyries but before they could reach any of them they suddenly hit a light blue barrier shattering into small pieces before disappearing.
[Nice save, Five!] Zero Three cheered excitedly.
Zero Five had used one of the special properties of her second armor to deploy a force field that surrounded all three Valkyries. The force field had the same properties as the one created by the Valkyries, however since it didn''t have the weapons'' internal battery it couldn''t be used for too long.
"LA~~~~LA. LA. LA. LAAAA~~~!!!"
The limbless Torso continued singing, creating one wave of wed arms after the other. Each time Zero Five activated her barrier for just a fraction of a second making if look like she''s sending out pulses that disintegrated the purple arms the moment they made contact with them.
[Five, We can''t keep doing this¡] Nine noted the obvious. [Should I hit it with another st?]
[No.] Five replied, her eyes locked onto the Cmity. [The first one didn''t leave any scratch on it.]
Nine''s atomic cannon was capable of harnessing the energy of an entire nuclear reactor releasing it in a single st. The beam had the power of twenty atomic bombs concentrating them on a single minuscule point further enhancing its destructive power, however the limbless Torso was able toe out of it unscathed.
[We need to look for an opening.] Five said. [Three, wait for my signal.]
[Understood.]
The Cmity''s singing voice had turned into shrill cries and screams as if to show the the level of rage it had reached. While it''s true that atomic cannon did little to damage it, the change in its attack pattern and voice made it clear that Nine''s attack was at the very dangerous enough to cause the monstrosity to lose its temper.
[Now!]
On Zero Five''s signal Zero Threeunched herself using one of her drones as a tform. The n was the same as before; hit it again and again as fast as possible until an opening shows itself.
Halos appeared one after the other surrounding the Cmity as Zero Three''s figure glowed a light blue color. She bounced from one drone to the other elerating herself before charging at the Cmity who kept on creating wed arms in an attempt to stop her only to get shattered the next second.
[How long will thisst?] Nine asked, letting out a sigh. [Not being able to deal any damage is quite stressful.]
Five said nothing, continuing to observe the Cmity trying to figure out how to counter it.
"Laaaaa~~~~~"
At some point the limbless Torso seemed to lose its rage regaining the beautiful singing voice from before. At the same time the number of wed purple hands it created decreased drastically with only a few appearing in Zero Three''s way.
[Strange¡] Five muttered. Just then an idea hit her and she immediately began the execution.
First she created more drones from the metallic boxes that came along with her armor. She then spread them all over the ce surrounding the Cmity just like what Zero Three did with hers.
[Three, retreat.] Five instructed.
[Alright.] Three replied.
Bouncing off the Cmity''s invisible barrier the young Valkyrie allowed herself to fly away followed by her drones.
Seeing the target of its attacks moving away the limbless Torso began singing once more.
[Hm?] Seeing that the gash like mouth had opened Nine and Three began to move in an attempt to avoid the uing attack, however to their surprise the singing voice never reached their ears and the purple ws didn''t appear.
Looking toward the enemy they noticed that the purple arms did appear, only that they stayed at a distance wing at a light blue screen.
[It''s the sound.] Five said. [I tried to iste it using the force field. As expected, the arms can only appear in ces the soundwave reaches.]
It was an impressive discovery, however soon enough it was clear that their initial problem was yet to be solved.
[This is good and all, but as long as we are unable to prate that damned barrier there is no way we can win.] Said Zero Three, sighing inside her helmet.
[And it''s not like we can keep the barrier up all the time.] Nine added.
The wed hands were dangerous butpared to the other Cmities they weren''t much of a threat ss long as they''re avoided. That led to the conclusion that the limbless Torso is more focused on defence rather than attack.
They had fo find a way to prate that invisible barrier, otherwise their efforts arepletely pointless. That said, they still have no idea on how to do it. Their only choice is to keep hitting it until something change, however if nothing happens then they would be wasting their scarse energy and soon enough it would be their loss.
[First of all, we need to move it out of her.] Five said.
Inside her helmet a small window appeared showing the spread of radiations from Nine''s atomic canon. While it didn''t reach the base they were cutting it close and couldn''t risk using another st at such a distance.
[Easier said than done.] Zero Threemented. [That thing wouldn''t budge at all.]
[We can use a second st to push it away, but what would we do when it teleports¡]
Nine went silent for a moment, speaking in the next as if she had just realized something. [If its teleportation is linked to the sound as well¡]
[Yes.] Said Zero Five. [It won''t be able to return here.]
But then again it still doesn''t solve their problem. What they needed is a way to destroy the monster, not one to iste it.
[We have no other choice but to use that again.]
The proton cannon was their only hope. If that isn''t enough to destroy it then it would be beyond what their base if equipped to handle.
[Three, your job will be to destroy the other Cmities while Nine and I deal with the Torso.] Five said, the huge drone carrying her proton cannon having just arrived.
[Understood.] The young Valkyrie saluted as she said.
The three Valkyries prepared themselves each intending to fulfill her role to perfection.
Nine flew downward before pointing her atomic cannon at the target intending on sting it further than thest time by changing the angle of the shot.
Zero Five took off toward the spot she chose to fire her proton cannon from. It took a couple of minutes for the weapon to charge, which was quite the dy especially in such a battlefield. The Torso continued singing and creating wed arms, its frustration growing at the barrier blocking its singing voice.
[Nine, I''m removing the barrier.] Said Zero Five.
[All preparations have beenpleted. Ready whenever you are.]
[Understood.]
At the same time Zero Three was crouching down on the halo of one of her drones with hernce at the ready.
[NOW!!!]
"Laaaaa~~~~"
The melodic voice resounded following Zero Fives signal indicating that the barrier blocking it has been removed. Zero Threeunched herself at the diamond shaped Cmities while The drones quickly moved out of the way as Nine squeezed the trigger of her atomic cannon painting the surroundings in the light of the beam that shot out.
Same as before the Cmity managed to block the st with ease but this time Nine had no intention on giving it any time to adjust.
[Releasing first and second limiters.]
Following her statement two of the four halos surrounding the barrel of her cannon shattered followed by the blue beam swelling to four times its previous sized releasing electric sparks into the surroundings as if it was about to go out of control.
Faced with the force of the st the limbless Torso was once again sent flying. Left with no time to retaliate it focused everything it got on protecting itself, however unlike before the attack didn''t end with the first st.
[Fire.] Said Zero five in a calm voice.
Another beam of light short out of the proton cannon enveloping the limbless torso sting it toward the horizon.
[First phaseplete.] ZeroFive said, tossing therge cannon toward the drone so it could be cooled down in preparation for a second st. At the same time she gathered her drones creating a second force field around herself as she prepared to go after the Cmity.
[Beginning second phase.]
Chapter 67 Symphony.
As the beam of her proton cannon hit the ground Zero Five spread her wings and headed for the site even though the explosion had yet to die out.
She pushed against the air pressure and heat trying to get there even one second earlier, however the resistance she faced disappeared all of a sudden.
The dome of light that had formed in the distance, swelling and swallowing everything it came by, had vanished without a trace. There was no sign if the mushroom cloud that would normally follow such explosion, only arge crater showing the area that had been eaten by the beam.
A window appeared in front of Five showing her the center of the crater.
There was a humanoid female figure, the limbless Torso they have been fighting so far. It was no longer limbless, with two long arms stretching from its shoulders and legs that matched bent as it crouched on the ground.
The limbs were purple in color just like the wed hands it created with each song it sang, however something about these felt different.
[You two, be careful.] Five said, sending the footage to her fellow Valkyries. [Something has changed.]
[Understood.] Nine replied.
[Only one diamond left.] Zero Three reported. [I''ll be joining you shortly.]
The Torso didn''t make a move, still crouching down. The moment she was in range Zero Five deployed her drones surrounding the Cmity preparing iste its voice the moment it starts singing.
[Huh? Are those¡ horns?]
As she got closer Five noticed that something was slowly forming on the Cmity''s head. It was a pair ofrge horns, purple in color just like its new limbs. They were thin and sharp bending backward like those of a goat.
Sensing her presence, the Cmity looked up even though it had no eyes. Its gash like mouth twisted into a horrifying grin causing the Valkyrie to feel horror even though she isn''t supposed to.
As if by instinct Zero Five charged her force field to its limit while activating her drones at the same time.
The Cmity didn''t open its mouth. It didn''t sing or make any voice. It spread its arms wide, in its right hand arge needle like object formed. The Torso waved it lightly and in the next moment the world was filled with another melody.
It wasn''t the singing voice the Valkyries had grown used to. No, this time it was different. It was the sound of an instrument, a violin to be exact. Hearing the sound shook the three, even the young Valkyrie who was still a long distance away felt the danger.
[... The earth¡]
Zero Five''s barrier should''ve isted the sound. Even if it''s possible for the soundwaves to travel through the ground, it''s shouldn''t be possible for them toe out so strong and clear.
One after the other more and more instruments joined the y. Soon enough it was an entire orchestra filling the world with aposition foreign to human kind.
[Five! Weren''t you supposed to iste it!!] Three shouted.
[It''s impossible!!! The sound is traveling underground, I can''t do anything about it!!!]
[Be careful, Five. I doubt it''ll be just arms this time.] Nine warned.
Just then a familiar scene began to take ce in front of the ponytailed Valkyrie. Small purple squares and rectangles began to flicker into existence one after the other. It was the same creation process as the Evil Eye, however unlike the Cmity that gave them the most trouble since their creation the Torso didn''t scan anything making its creation was a mystery.
[Don''t let it finish!] Nine shouted the moment she arrived at the scene.
Her atomic canon barely had enough energy to shoot anotherrge beam however it still could shoot her usual bullets.
Getting broght back to reality, Zero Five stretched her armmanding the drones to deliver another weapon to her. The proton canon has yet to cool down so she settled for another halberd, one that is several times sturdier than her usual weapon with the ability to enhance itself with its own force field without her having to extend hers to it.
[Nine, focus on the right. I''ll take the other one.] Five instructed, her wings spreading as arge halo appeared behind them.
[On it!] Nine turned her canon to the second cluster of flickering squares and began showering it with bullets. Five flew towers the other one, swinging her weapon and tearing through the creation with as much force as she could muster.
The Cmity continued swinging its arms, looking like a conductor guiding the orchestra as it yed the melodies of doom.
The creations began to gradually take form. They were giants reaching eighty meters tall, humanoid in shape with long sharp horns extending from their heads much like those of their creator. From afar they looked likerger versions of the Torso. It didn''t take a lot to know they were trouble so the Valkyries found sce in the fact that there are only two of them, doing their best to slow their creation even if by a little.
[I''ve arrived!!!] Zero Three announced, flying beyond the speed of sound with hernce pointed forward turning herself into a missile, however no matter how much she elerated in the end she was still unable to pierce through the Cmity''s invisible barrier.
[Damn it! Why. Won''t. You. Break!!!!]
She continued the attacks desperately trying to break through, however the barrier stood strong causing her weapon to bounce off each time.
The Cmity didn''t pay the young Valkyrie any mind continuing to y its symphony leisurely.
The purple giants were starting to take solid shapes. No matter how many times Nine''s bullets pierced through, no matter how many times Zero Five shed with her halberd, the creations kept on regenerating rendering all the damage the two Valkyries dealt into nothing.
[Five, I think we should rethink our approach.] Nine said, sensing that their efforts were meaningless.
[I know.] Five said, gritting her teeth in frustration. [We have to take down the source first, but¡]
No matter what they did they couldn''t pierce that barrier. Soon enough Three began to grow tired of the continuous failed attempts. She retreated to where the other two were intending to ask them what their next move would be. Just then the symphony came to an abrupt stop. The two giants werepleted.
The three Valkyries could only watch as they began to move. Their heads twitched, cracks ran through their joints like stone statues that hadjust came to life.
The humanoid figures bent slightly. The faint sound of a violin reached the Valkyries alerting them of the uing attack. But there was nothing that could be done.
[DAMN IT!!!] Zero Three cursed, crouching over one of her drones as she prepared to engage one of the giants.
[Five, I have one shot left.] Nine said, her voice tinged with concern. [I might be able to take one of them down, but I''ll be useless after that.]
[...]
Zero Five was lost for words. The giants regenerated as fast as they are damaged. The Torso is practically immune to damage. They needed to rethink their approach, but time was running out. The second symphony has already started.
[... Nine, let''s focus everything on the Torso.]
As she spoke, Zero Five tossed her halberd. At the same time a number of drones came forward delivering her proton canon.
[Everything!?]
[Yes. We will iste the explosion using my barrier and Three''s drones. If it survives all of that then I''m afraid there is nothing we can do about it.]
[... understood.] Nine nodded.
[Three, did you hear what I said?] Asked Zero Five.
[Would it really work?] The young Valkyrie shot back.
[I dont know, but we don''t have much choice.]
Sadly the Cmity didn''t intend on giving them the time to execute their n. The symphony erupted turning into a fast paced y followed by the sky color changing to a bloody red. The giants split their mouths open. Strange symbols blinked into existence formingrge circles in front of them as particles of golden light gathered to form sun like orbs that radiated pure destruction.
[Mo-]
The Valkyries'' voices faded as a pair of golden beamsunched drawing two lines across the ground erasing everything in their way. ins,kes, mountains everything was incinerated in a moment ending with arge explosion that shook the entire continent.
[... this can''t be¡] Zero Three murmured, watching as the second sun rose in the distance.
[... Doctor¡] Nine muttered, her eyes wide with horror as she realized what the two giants were aiming at from the beginning.
[NINE!!!!]
Failing to keep her calm, Zero Five turned her weapon toward the Cmity in a fit of rage. She was about to press the trigger when a strange voice reaches her ears.
[Wait wait waaaaaiiiit!!! Don''t fire yet!!!]
Three long cylindrical objects flew past Zero Five heading straight for the Cmity. They pierced the ground around it with equal distance between each of them forming a triangle that became clear after their tips opened up linking each of them with a golden beam of light.
Tendrils of lightning sprung out from the three pirs ignoring the invisible barrier and hitting the Torso directly. The Cmity tore its mouth open screaming in agony as the lightning ate at its body.
[NOW!!!] The voice shouted giving the signal.
Zero Five squeezed the trigger shooting her proton cannon however to her surprise three other beamsunched at the same time.
They were three Valkyries she had never seen before each firing a weapon of the same caliber as hers.
[Reinforcements¡?]
Chapter 68 Weakness Is Strength.
Four beams rained down on the Cmity, drawning it in the light of pure destruction.
Countless drones followed surrounding it with a barrierpressing all the energy in one area.
[Alright! Stop the fire!] The strange voice instructed.
[This is forty sixth Resistance base independent humanoid anti Cmity weapon, Valkyrie unit BHTCNA05. Please Identify yourself.] Said Zero Five, turning to the forth Valkyrie who had just appeared beside her.
[Greetings. This is the forty fifth Resistance base independent humanoid anti Cmity weapon, Valkyrie unit RHMBSHB3, here to provide support as requested by the forty sixth base''smander. You can call me B3]
Just by looking five was able to tell that the new Valkyrie was from the same generation as Zero Three; although she wore a full body armor there was no hiding her small stature and t underdeveloped chest.
[Well, this doesn''t look so good.] B3 said, bringing Five''s attention back to their enemy.
[You gotta be kidding me¡] said Zero Three.
The explosion ended, the light faded and the dust settled. After all the power put into thatst attack the cmity was still there.
It was damaged, with it''s right arm gone and a part of its head burnt, however in just a few seconds everything was regenerated leaving only a few scorch marks here and there.
The Cmity raised its arms preparing to start another symphony. Before it could the metallic pirs surrounding it opened up releasing more lightning paralyzing it.
[Hm¡ Cmities being resistant to nuclear energy isn''t so strange, but¡] the new Valkyrie muttered to herself, looking down at the Torso as she tried to think of an exnation.
[All we know is that it uses soundwaves to create and control its creations.] Said Zero Five, ring down at the enemy.
[I see. What about the giants?]
With the symphony stopped the two purple giants stood motionless, their mouths still open after shooting the death beams a few seconds ago.
[They''re its creations. Damaging them is meaningless as their regeneration is almost instantaneous.]
[Is that so¡]
[B3, I''m afraid another attack will have evesting effects on the area.] A new voice joined the conversation. [We are already nearing the limit of radiation we can handle as well.]
[I know I know. If you''re going to talk then at least tell md how we are supposed to deal with that thing?]
The lightning holding it in ce won''tst forever. They needed to find a way to destroy it and quickly.
[Zero Five, right?] B3 spoke. [Your base has faced a high end A ss just recently, huh? You guys sure have some really bad luck, huh?]
[Am I right to assume that things have been peaceful on your side?] Asked Zero Five.
[More or less. Only the asional C ss.] She replied, shrugging her shoulders. [That said, I''m afraid an A wouldn''t cut it for this one.]
The Torso had proved its destructive power to be bordering on the S ss by itsst attack. Worst of all is that there is no way to tell if that''s its full potential, there is always the possibility of it having more strength that it has yet to show.
[Hey, how is it that the lightning from those things is a able to get past the barrier?] Zero Three asked.
[No idea.]
Hearing B3''s answer, everyone including the Valkyries from the forty fifth base were left dumbfounded.
[Are you serious, B3?] Said one of the Valkyries.
[She''s always been like this.] Another one followed with a sigh.
[Oh c''mon! It''s not like I always have all the answers!!!] B3 protested. [It probably has something to do with the frequency. The lightning doesn''t deal damage. It''s made just to hold those things in their ce.]
[Isn''t that just what we need?] The one who spoke drawing everyone''s attention was Nine. With all eyes on her she seemed freeze for a moment but then she went and exined the idea she came up with. [You can adjust the frequency of the des of your melee weapons, correct? Won''t doing so allow you to get past the barrier?]
[That sure is a great idea, but¡] B3 sighed. [Alright everyone, I''ll send you the settings so let''s give it a try.]
[I''ll go first.] Zero Three said.
[You''re the only melee centered unit here, right? It''s all yours.]
As B3 spoke, Zero Three altered the settings of hernce turning its color from green to a faint blue. A secondter she began to groan.
[I don''t think this will work.] She said. [Even a brick wall can block something of this level.]
[Are you sure this is the correct settings, B3?] One of the new Valkyries asked.
[Yes, I am sure! I''m a support type, you know! Of course my equipment isn''t made to deal damage!] B3 shot back, frustrated by the way herrades were doubting her.
[Well, I guess we have nothing to lose.] Zero Three said, fastening her grip on thence as she brought one of her drones closer.
She crouched down on the halo it formed, pointing hernce at the Cmity as she prepared tounch herself.
[I''ll remove the binds the moment you get there so dont hold back.] Said B3.
[Don''t electrify me now.] Threemented with a shortugh.
As if counting down from three, a loud boom resounded as the young Valkyrie broke the sound barrier right from the start. B3 was shocked at the speed but was able to remove the lightning just a fraction of a second before Three entered its range.
The Cmity recovered almost instantly opening its mouth to sing, however Zero Three''snce shattered the invisible barrier like thin ss prating the Torso who moved slightly to the left avoiding a fatal blow.
"_______________!!!!!"
The monstrosity released a painful cry echoed by the purple giants. It was a moment worth celebrating, however the Valkyries watched in astonishment as the Torso slowly healed the most damage it took since the start of the battle like it never happened.
[I can''t believe¡ that''s all it took?]
Five''s surprise was understandable. The invisible barrier took the force of both her proton canon and Nine''s atomic cannon so it didn''t make sense for the only thing to damage it to be a physical attack enhanced by a weak electric current.
[Five, I think this Cmity is capable of absorbing energy.] Nine spoke. [You noticed it as well, right? How the explosion from the proton cannon vanished.]
[It absorbed it¡?] Five muttered. An explosion that big couldn''t possibly just vanish without a trace like what she had witnessed upon her arrival. The only reasonable exnation is that the Cmity somehow harnessed the energy and redirected it somewhere else.
[The giants¡]
[Yourrade is right.] Said B3. [We have shot that thing with four proton cannon. Even if we suppressed the explosion using the force field there is no way we would still be here if that thing didn''t absorb most of the st.]
The good news is that there is a limit to how much the Torso can absorb before it overloads. The bad news is that the Valkyries didn''t have the energy needed to repeat another attack. Not to mention, all of that energy wouldn''t just dissapear into thin air once they overload the Cmity. Even the Valkyries themselves wouldn''t be able to survive the disaster if that torso looking monster decided to turn into a nuclear warhead.
[So the reason such a low frequency charge is capable of damaging it is¡] Five spoke.
[Most likely the barrier ignores anything below a certain frequency.] Nine replied. [Guess it has to be lower than the default charge of our weapons.]
The secret to defeating the limbless torso was to use weaker weapons, who could''ve guessed something like that.
Five grasped her halberd, changing its setting and causing the glow of its des to fade.
[I''ll go down as well.]
The moment she announced that, the world shook violently at the sound of another symphony starting.
[I thought it-]
Looking down B3 saw that the Torso was still held in ce by the lightning from her lightning rods, however it wasn''t struggling to release itself like before.
Zero Threeunched herself at it once more, ignoring the effects of the lightning and using her momentum to escape the binding.
Everyone understood the reason the young Valkyrie was in a rush. The Torso stopped bothering ying the role of the maestro, its chest and head splitting apart revealing the endless darkness inside from which the sound of instruments came out.
The purple giants began to move as well, their hands reaching for the lightning rods.
[GO!] B3 shouted at Zero Five who was already on the move.
The moment she started her dive, her halberd at the ready, the purple giants turned their heads toward Zero Five with golden symbols forming circles around their open mouths.
Beams of light shot out targeting not only Zero Five but the other Valkyries as well. Orange lines were drawn on the ground followed by series of explosions as the creations hailed destruction on anything and everything in their desperate attempt at stopping the humanoid weapons.
[Hey tiny boss! Your lightning is in the way!] Three shouted as she prepared to charge the Cmity one more time.
[WHO''RE YOU CALLING TINY!!!] B3 shouted back.
Five skillfully maneuvered through the giant''s beams as she headed straight for the Torso.
[Three!]
[Got it!]
As if in sink, Zero Threeunched herself at the same time Zero Five swung her halberd. The lightning binding the Cmity disappeared but before it could react its head was chopped off a moment after the young Valkyrie blew a hole through its chest.
The symphony came to an abrupt stop and so did the destructive light beams. A momentter the purple Giants began to copse turning to small squares and rectangles that slowly blinked out of existence.
Chapter 69 Dark Days.
Five severed the Cmity''s head while Three pierced its body with hernce. It was a pretty blunt attack. Without the support of the energy des they had to put more force and pressure on the weapons resulting in them receiving a significant amount of damage.
[GET OUT OF THERE!!!] B3 shouted.
Realizing what was about toe the Valkyries quickly got away from what''s left of the Torso''s corps. Three secondster anotherrge explosion shook the continent as all of the energy the Cmity had absorbed came out in one go.
Five and the Valkyries from the forty fifth base used their drones to create a tube shaped force field redirecting the energy toward the sky.
A pir of light shone for a couple of minutes piercing the red sky above painting a scene that was equally as beautiful as it was horrifying.
[Wow, that sure looks great.] B3 said [who would''ve thought something so beautiful could be so deadly.]
[What? Being sentimental doesn''t suit you, B3.] Said one of the Valkyries.
[Oh shut up! I can be as sentimental as I- huh? Where are you going!]
As soon as the light from the explosion began to fade Nine and Zero Five turned around and took off without saying a word.
[Our base was hit by the beams from before.] Zero Three exined. [They''re probably worried about the old man.]
[The old man?] B3 echoed.
[The Doctor who does our examinations. They''ve been getting attached to him quite a bittely.]
[Hmm¡ that sure is strange. We rarely ever meet our physicistso I don''t see how you''d get attached to yours.]
[Oh we do meet him a lot.] Three spoke, sounding a bit annoyed. [He''s weak and annoying. The other day he was beaten by a bunch of soldiers. Can you believe it? He couldn''t do anything even though they were just humans!]
[Um, your doctor is a human as well, right?]
[Well, yeah, but!] Zero Three sighed. [Well, I guess you have a point.]
[Now I feel curious about this Doctor of yours.] Said B3. [How about we stop by their base before going back home?]
[Good idea!] Said one of the Valkyries.
[Hey! We left the basepletely defenceless, you know! We should hurry back!] Another rejectd the idea.
[C''mon! We came all the way here! Let us get some fun while we still can!] The third one protested.
[It won''t take long. We probably won''t see their humans anyways. Not until the radiations are cleaned.] B3 said.
"Aaaaaa-ah, look at what you''ve done."
As the five Valkyries turned around about to follow behind the first two they all froze in their ce. Looking back their eyes moved toward the center of the crater created by therge explosion from a moment ago.
[... What¡?] Zero Three could only stare in astonishment. She felt that her eyes were ying tricks on her, even though she was watching the footage disyed inside her headgear.
Over therge pool of molten earth and radiations stood a female figure. It wasn''t the limbless Torso, which should''ve been a relief, however the sight only brought terror to the Valkyries, even with all the restrictions ced on their sense of fear.
The figure was more defined, detailed with clothes covering it, long purple hair flowing behind it and facial features showing an sorrowful expression. It looked strangely human. No, no human is capable of standing in that kind of environment. The Valkyries wouldn''t be safe as well, there is a limit to how much radiations they can withstand without their full body armor.
[New enemy spotted! Prepare fo-]
Before she could finish her words, one of the forty fifth base''s Valkyries lost her upper half.
[R6¡] B9 muttered the name of herrade, watching as what''s left of her body tumbled to the ground.
"I would say an eye for an eye but¡" floating in the fallen Valkyrie''s ce was the strange figure, having instantly teleported to their location without anyone noticing. "We are enemies, right? Killing each other is what we do."
A humanoid female figure with voluptuous proportions. Large breasts, wide hips and thin waist. Everything bordering on the unrealistic side stuffed into a tight suit that left nothing to the imagination. Diamond shaped half transparent purple panels formed six wings behind her back, the glow they emitted casting a shadow over its face as it smiled at the Valkyries.
"So? Who wants to die next?"
p This was the first time they met one. A talking Cmity. Recognizing it as an enemy the Valkyries began to move despite their emotional state.
The first to go on the offensive was Zero Three. Her expression had faded as she locked her eyes on the target. With hernce in hand she charged forward, however before the tip of her weapon could pierce it the female figure disappeared.
"And the second one."
The Valkyries turned in the direction of the voice, watching as everything happened in slow motion.
The Cmity pped the Valkyrie at the very back and the next moment her whole body popped like a water balloon.
[K9!!!!]
"Seriously? You''re all way too slow." The Cmity spoke again, its voice tinted with surprise and disappointment. "How were you able to defeat the Maestro?"
The monster lifted its hand about to hit another Valkyrie-
"Hm?"
However it was blocked before it could connect by none other than Zero Three.
"Nice! At least one of you is capable."
[Make it two!] B3 shouted, swinging both of her arms. The next moment two of her lightning rods mmed the Cmity on both sides of its head.
Zero Three quickly moved out of the way, stepping on the halo of one of her drones as lightning exploded from the rods binding the female Cmity. The green des making her wings glowed brightly as she red at the enemy then, with her force field charged to the maximum, the young Valkyrieunched herself thrusting hernce toward the enemy.
"Oh! Greatbo!" The Cmity spoke once more. "Alright, I''ll let you live."
Even though she broke the sound barrier at such a short distance Zero Three''s weapon met nothing but empty air once again as the target of her attack was nowhere to be seen.
"You on the other hand." The Valkyries heard the voice say "you are not enough."
[Ah¡]
Turning around, Zero Three was shocked by the sight of B3''s body being split apart.
"If you survive this much then congrattions."
[... stop¡]
"Hm? Stop? Why?" The Cmity replied to the young Valkyrie''s quiet murmur with a question. "I dont remember you stopping when killing our kind."
[DON''T DO IT! FIVE!]
Hearing Three''s shout, the Cmity shifted its head to the left only to be met with the glow of a green de. Zero Five came flying at her top speed swinging her halberd with every bit of power she could generate. A loud ng echoed through the sky but sadly the Cmity suffered no damage as it stopped Five''s weapon with one hand.
"You shouldn''t have returned." Said the Cmity.
Five retracted her weapon and prepared for another swing, but by the time the halberd came down the target was already gone.
"Well, let''s call it a day with this much."
Appearing right beside her, the Cmity grabbed Zero Five''s right arm ripping it off with a single pull leaving the Valkyrie paralyzed with shock.
"I hope you''d be prepared by the next time." Said the monster. "This much will never be enough to stop us."
~¡ó~
25th of July 2036.
The day humanity was once again reminded of the terror they were up against.
Less than a month after J?rmungandr''s defeat the Cmities began a full force assault on several locations on the frontline.
Thankfully none of civilian settlements were impacted, however the Resistance army suffered the biggest losses since its establishment.
The bases that faced the brunt of the attack were the first, fifth, twenty fort and fifth, twenty nh, forty sixth and fiftieth. Among them the twenty forth and fifth were wiped outpletely by Fenrir, one of the Ragnarok Heralds.
The death count reached twenty thousand four hundred and sixty two.
A total of seventy three Valkyries were destroyed, some of which were from bases that received rtively no damage.
The records submitted by some of the surviving Valkyries showed the appearance of a new kind of Cmity, leading to the confirmation of several theories, one of which is the existence of a sentient entity behind the monstrosities driving humanity toward extinction.
Seven of the new type were spotted. All of them had the distinct appearance of an otherworldly beautiful woman and the ability to converse, although they showed no interest of having a peaceful talk.
Many were quick to point out the simrities between the strange female Cmities and humanity''s supposedly strongest weapon, the Valkyries, however the suspicion was cleared after footage from the battle near the forty sixth base arrived.
The new type showedplete resistance to the radiations contaminating the area where the battle took ce, something the Valkyries weren''t capable of. The difference in fighting power was another proof. As it turned out humanity''s strongest weapons were utterly useless when faced with this new enemy. That led to all eyes being pointed at the man who created them in the first ce, however Odin was nowhere to be found.
After doing irreparable damage to the front line the Cmities once again retreated deep into the red grounds. The whole incident seemed like nothing more than a warning. The real battle had yet to begin, even then humanity didn''t seem like it has any chance after all.
Chapter 70 Inferiority.
It took ten days for temperature around the forty sixth base to go down and for the radiations to get cleaned.
A short period when one considers that the area had experienced something on the level of a nuclear winter.
Even with the cleansing done the soldiers were still prohibited from leaving the base. It made it so they cane out of the nuclear shelter, sure, but that''s only on the condition that the base''s force field is deployed.
Sam was forced toe out much earlier to supervise and guide the Valkyries''s repairs. Hearing what happened to Zero Five he quickly stuffed himself into a hazmat suit and headed to theb.
While her injuries were severe, he was relieved that they weren''t as bad as thest time. Putting her arm back into ce took a while but it wasn''t a difficult procedure. the same couldn''t be said about the other Valkyrie though.
The forty fifth base was the closest so they sent their Valkyries to provide support. Two of them were destroyed, one survived but thest one was in a terrible condition.
They couldn''t do anything about those who were lost. The one that survived returned to her base almost immediately, as for thest one it was requested that they at least perform the nessary repairs before sending her back.
It was his first time putting a Valkyrie that had been split in two back together, but by tweaking Eir''s parameters a little he managed to guide process and soon enough she was on the road to recovery.
"Guess there are things only you can do." Zero Three had said once.
She came every day to check on the injured Valkyries same as thest time Five was injured. She looked down the entire time but sadly Sam didn''t have the leisure tofort her.
There was another reason as to why he had to leave the nuclear shelter long before the other soldiers came out. On the day of the disaster Sam had discovered the corpse of sergeant Jordan Clementineying down on the floor of the cafeteria. Almost immediately all fingers were pointed using him of murder. Everyone knew about the bad blood between him and the deceased so it was only natural that he would be the prime suspect.
By investigating the corpse it was concluded that the orange haired soldier died from his neck getting snapped, something Sam wouldn''t be able to do even if he was in full health.
While the usations ceased after the results were made public, some still looked at him with doubtful eyes making his stay in the shelter insufferable.
The investigation went on for days but no clues were found. Of course since Sam was innocent it means that the real murdered was still out there and that only helped to made everything more stressful.
Once Zero Five recovered the Valkyries went back to their usual daily missions, having stopped for a few days just in case another strong Cmity appeared.
With themander''s permission the three were now allowed to use their second armor without restrictions. There was no point in conserving energy if their chances at victory
decreased.
That said, Sam couldn''t help thinking that it''s all pointless. He had watched the footage Zero Three brought back again and again. The new type of Cmity that appeared, the one that is capable of speech. Even a blind idiot would tell you that they look like Valkyries. If not for their overwhelming power and their resistance to the nuclear contamination there wouldn''t be anything to distinguish them from each other.
That said, since it threatened to create unimaginable chaos the higher ups of the Resistance ordered that their presence must be kept a secret at all costs.
The simrities to the Valkyries wasn''t the only thing they were worried about. The humanoid weapons were humanity''sst line of defence. So far the only Cmities that have been a threat to them were the Ragnarok heralds, but now new ones appeared, ones that the Valkyries were helpless against. Human had only recently regained some hope, it would be too cruel to inform the public that they had taken two steps backwards after advancing a single one.
A month after the big battle. Life finally began to return to normal. Everything had been peaceful with no Cmity appearances. Sam could finally walk around without his hazmat suit, but even though his body was longing for the warm light of the sun he had been spending more and more time in hisb rarelying out.
"Old man, are you alive?" Zero Three called, looking around the messyb.
Stacks of papers wereying around. The walls were scribbled with symbols, mathematic equations and indecipherable text, showing that the white boards didn''t have enough space.
Several desks were brought in with multipleputer screens ced on them. It was as if the ce went back to how it was a few months ago.
"Hm? Ah, you''re already back." Sam emerged from underneath one of the desks. He was wrapped in a sleeping bag, the white of his eyes having gone red with heavy bags speaking of hisck of rest.
"Doctor, you''ve spent another night here¡" Nine said, doing her best to hide her worried expression as she struggled to smile. "It''s not good for your health."
"I know, I know." Sam said, taking his phone out and checking the time. "Shit, I missed another one. Hope Shizuru isn''t angry¡"
He quickly wrote a message to his girlfriend and hit send before turning back to the Valkyries.
"Alright. Let''s start your examination."
"How about you go take a shower first." Zero Three backed away, pinching her nose as she spoke.
"Yeah, I get it already. I don''t have the time so get in the damn pod."
Sam''s response shook the three Valkyries and they all moved to the next room to undergo their examination.
Sam did notice their gloomy expressions however he couldn''t bring himself to apologize. His life has beentoo stressfultely with the bad newsing in one after the other, he simple wasn''t in the mood to watch his words.
As if things weren''t bad already Alice returned from her recent trip to the HQ and brought with her the news of Odin''s disappearance. Apparently he just vanished leaving behind thest batch of Valkyrie which didn''t even make up for the ones lost in thest battle.
The mad scientist basically bailed on the rest of humanity. With his resources and genius it wouldn''t be difficult for him to leave the on his own and with a few Valkyries in tow he could restart the human race all by himself somewhere else.
Sam couldn''t me the man for leaving. In fact if he had the chance he would''ve left as well. But sadly he was trapped there waiting for the next time deathes knocking. The only way he could keep himself from breaking down is to go back to his research trying to make something that could help them survive.
Seeing that the Valkyries were already submerged in the green liquid Sam turned to the papers on his desk and tried to recall where he had leftst time.
Odin''s disappearance would''ve been a much bigger problem if Sam hadn''t discover the secret files hidden in Eir''s terminal. At the very least they would still be able to create more Valkyries, but that came with its own set of problems.
First was the trouble Sam would find himself in if it gets out that he had discovered such a secret and kept it from the military. Just telling the Resistance about them is a big no go.
The second problem was the materials used to make the Valkyries. As if it isn''t obvious the weapons weren''t made using anything cheap, even their equipment requires quite a few rareponents which is why it''s very rare to find two Valkyries who have something with the same design.
One good thing is that, with the mad scientist no longer being the only one capable of creating the Valkyries, humanity could go ahead and mass produce them while taking shortcuts whenever they could. What they needed were thebat capabilities so they could even forgo the human appearance and personality and use a more practical design would save them some valuable materials.
That said, Sam wasn''t looking forward to the day Valkyries are created with that philosophy. The Resistance would definitely want to focus on efficiency over anything else and if they end up creating something better what would happen to the current Valkyries? That was another reason Sam was afraid to turn in the blue prints to the Resistance.
That said, if he wasn''t willing to share his knowledge with the rest of humanity in order to protect three artificial women then he needed toe up with something that would help them achieve victory and he needed to do so fast.
Sam had spent the past month studying the Valkyries'' blue prints in detail. As he did he tried toe up with various ways to improve their performance all while pushing his research on nanotech into the next level even though he has yet to get permission to do any kind of practical experiments. That meant that everything he came up with so far was just theoretical, and as if that wasn''t bad enough he felt like nothing he did mattered and that he had failed to add anything to what Odin had achieved.
Left with an indescribable sense of inferiority, Sam leaned against the back of his chair and stared at empty space.
"I really need a bath¡"
Chapter 71 Confession. (Part One)
Once the examination was done Sam apologized to the Three Valkyries. He said they were right, especially Three. With two days having passed since thest time he had bathed his stench was so bad it made him feel disgusted of himself.
The young Valkyrie apologized as well, saying she had been a little too blunt with her remarks. Nine and Five showed visible signs of relief when he said that he would be taking a break to get himself in order. His research wasn''t going anywhere and the sense of helplessness overtaking him wasn''t helping so he thought it would be for the best if he did something else for the rest of the day.
Once the Valkyries left Sam organized theb a little then went back to his room. He took a long bath to rx and once he was out he sent a message to Shizuru saying he would like to meet for dinner.
A few secondster he received a positive reply. As he smiled at his phone his bed entered his sight. His mind recalled the time he found the white haired beauty sleeping on it and suddenly his excitement for the dinner date with his girlfriend was reced by a heavy sense of guilt.
Shizuru wasnt the only one Sam had neglected. He hadn''t seen Alice for a while now making his romantic life moreplicated than it should be.
Thinking about it for a while he began to ask himself how long does he n on lying. He nned to dedicate more time to his research so he felt that it would be for the better if he didn''t have anything to distract him.
"Maybe it''s time I tell her¡"
As he tried to gather his resolve, Sam let out a long sigh feeling his feet getting cold. He quickly dressed himself then grabbed hisb coat about to put it on, stopping to take a look at it for a moment. After a few seconds he ced is aside and walked to the door.
He was taking a break from work right now, wearing the coat would defeat the purpose.
~¡ó~
"Doctor!" Shizuru called, waving her hand when she spotted him from a distance.
Seeing his girlfriend''s brilliant smile seemed to revitalize him quite a bit only for the sense of guilt to crush his heart a momentter followed by the fear of what he ns on doing soon after.
"Good evening, Shizuru, thank you for being patient with me even when I''ve been so selfishtely."
Instead of apologizing for being an asshole and neglecting her for a while Sam decided to thank her. Shizuru didn''t get angry at him at all, always meeting him with a smile even though he missed many of their lunch datestely.
"Don''t worry about it. I understand that you have been busytely." Shizuru said. She stared at him for a while, looking him up and down with clear confusion. A secondter she realized what was different about him. "You aren''t wearing yourb coat!" She eximed in surprise.
"Yeah, I''ve decided to put it away for now." Sam said, looking down at himself. "Though I have to say it does feel kinda weird."
"Yeah. I mean, Doctor without a coat doesn''t feel like Doctor." Shizuru said with a giggle.
"Well, how about you call me Sam then?" He said with a smile.
"Is that your alter ego? You make it sound like you''re some kind of super hero." Changing her voice a little, Shizuru began performing a little skits. "Sam Sanderson is a normal man living a normal life, however he has a secret. A strangeb coat that fell from outer space. At first it looks like any ordinaryb coat, however when he wears it he bes the brilliant scientist fighting to save humanity from evil, Doctor!"
Sam wasughing, holding his sides the entire time. The Asian girlughed as well, stopping before he did and watching him with a warm smile on her face.
"Well, if you exclude the space part everything else is true." She said.
"Not exactly." Sam said, wiping the tears that had started to gather from all theughing. "The brilliant scientist part is fictional as well."
"You¡ haven''t made any advancements, huh?"
"Yeah¡"
An awkward silence fell on the two for a few seconds. Seeing that he had identally ruined the mood they had Sam was about to move on from the topic, however the girl grasped his hand and looked up shing him a bashful smile.
"I''m sure you''ll figure it out." She said.
Sam felt his heart throb, his eyes aching a little. That one sentence alone almost made him cry, thankfully he managed to hold himself back in time.
"Thanks, Shizuru." He said, exhaling as he felt the weight on his shoulders lessening a little.
The two walked to the cafeteria hand in hand ignoring the looks the other soldiers gave them. Sam knew they might get in trouble for breaking that one rule, however he didn''t really care. The recent events reminded everyone that they might lose their lives at any given moment so worrying about such details was a waste of time.
Getting their food they sat at their usual table and ate. Looking around Sam saw that many still had their eyes on them, however it was different from the jealous bunch from a few minutes ago.
"They''re still suspecting me, huh?" Sam said with a sigh.
"Most people dont change their minds easily, even if presented with solid evidence." Shizuru said, putting some vegetables in her mouth.
"I don''t really care what they think but¡ what about you?" Sam asked. "Are they still bothering you?"
"Well, they stopped suggesting that I break up with you, at the very least." She answered. "They said that there is no smoke without a fire."
"It would make more sense if I was the one who died." Sammented. "I mean, he''s the one holding a grudge against me, not the other way."
"Exactly. Oh! Come to think of it, I''ve learned some very interesting information recently."
"I''m all ears."
"Funny enough it started as a theory as to why you would want to kill Jordan." Shizuru spoke excitedly. "You see, one of his friends is a big fan of! Can you make a guess?"
"Well, obviously one of the Valkyries." Sam said. "Zero Three?"
"Correct!" She eximed. "Apparently he missed out on the first time you invited Three for breakfast. Because of that he got really angry when he wasn''t chosen to be among those who were allowed to interact her at the party."
"Don''t tell me¡"
"Yes. The likelyhood of him being one of those who attacked you is quite high. And with the bad blood between you and Jordan it''s easy to see them teaming up to get the revenge they thought they deserved."
"I see¡" Sam stopped to think for a moment, trying to remember how the investigation into his assant went. "Well, I will report this to themander and interrogate him directly. I would really appreciate it if you could get me his name."
"I think it was John McCain." Shizuru replied.
"Alright then."
Finishing their meal, the two went for a walk through the park. It was dark and silent, the perfect ce for an ambush. They soon arrived to the ce Sam was attacked in. He stopped to look around, not knowing what he expected to find there.
"You sure are brave, Sam. Even I am scared of this ce and I wasn''t the one who got attacked."
"I doubt they would try anything any time soon." Sam replied. "We aren''t exactly at a time where they can y fanatics."
Actually he was as scared as he should be. Fanatics are called that for a reason, and nothing would stop their craziness. Not even a disaster threatening to eradicate humanity would be enough to make them behave.
"I just hope they don''t turn their sights on you." Sam said. Shizuru was getting along with Zero Three pretty well so Sam feared that she would be the next target for his attackers. Thankfully nothing happened so far, but one needed to be careful.
"Don''t worry." Shizuru said, reaching behind her and taking out what appears to be a gun. "Unlike you I''m always prepared for a fight!"
"That wouldn''t really help if you''re attacked from behind."
All soldiers in the resistance are given a P320-M18 upon joining the Resistance. Sam had one of his own as well, however he never carried it around feeling that it wouldn''t see any use.
"That''s why I''m always paying attention to my surroundings." Shizuru said, holstering her weapon. "You tend to lose track of what''s around you, Sam. I doubt things would''ve been any different even if you weren''t drunk."
"True."
Moving on the two were approaching the end of their trip. The intersection leading to the female dormitory was in sight and Sam''s heart began pounding violently. When it was time to separate he refused to let go of Shizuru''s hand prompting her to look up at him. Seeing her confused eyes he took a deep breath then exhaled.
"Shizuru, there is something important I have to tell you."
Chapter 72 Confession. (Part Two)
"Something important?"
Seeing the nervous look Sam had on, Shizuru expression became serious.
"Yes. I have been looking for a chance to tell you for a while now." Sam said. "It concerns our rtionship and how we should proceed going forward."
"I¡ I see¡" remaining silent for a few seconds, the Asian girl looked up at him with her usual smile. "Well, I''m all ears."
At that moment Sam felt that something had grasped his heart and was in the process of crushing it. Suddenly all the courage he had gathered vanished into thin air.
In his attempt to calm himself he quickly came up with another course of action that would hopefully buy him enough time to collect himself.
"Give me a couple of minutes." Sam said, taking out his phone.
He sent Alice a message telling her to prepare herself. He then asked Shizuru to follow him and led her to the administration building. Standing in front of themander''s office he turned to check on the Asian girl. Seeing the confusion on her face increased the stress he felt, but thankfully he had managed to regain his determination so he was going to go through with it that night and he wouldn''t be backing away anymore.
With a trembling hand he knocked on the door.
"Ce in!" Came a response after a couple of seconds.
Alice looked quite nervous herself, the mask of amander she usually wears in public was nowhere to be seen.
"Good evening,mander." Sam said as he entered the room.
"Yes, good evening, sergeant Sanderson, sergeant Kurokami."
Offering them seats, Alice sat on the sofa opposite to them and straightened her back. She considered serving some tea but then thought otherwise. Knowing the reason behind their visit she felt that it would be rude to try and show hospitality.
Taking a deep breath, Sam steeled his heart one more time before talking.
"I''m sure you two are already acquainted, but just to be clear let me make the introduction."
The girls nodded at him, both at the same time. To his surprise Alice looked way more nervous than Shizuru who still seemed to be a little confused.
"Shizuru, this is Alice Schneider. You already know her as themander of the forty sixth Resistance base. She is a childhood friend of mine. We have known each other ever since I was five." Pausing for a moment, Sam then went on. "Alice. This is Shizuru Kurokami. She is the woman I told you about. We have been dating for almost two months now."
"We met back when Sam was injured, right?" Shizuru said, her smile faltering a little. "Though I never expected that you two had such a connection."
"Um¡ yes¡" Alice''s reply felt a bit awkward, her smile was forced as well.
The room went silent for a while, no one daring to say anything. Feeling the pressure growing by the second Sam cleared his throat and continued with what he came here for, doing so before fear could get the better of him.
"Shizuru, for the longest time I¡ I had a crush on Alice. I thought I had ovee it by the time we started dating, however I was wrong." Being careful with his words wouldn''t help him lessen the impact of what he was about to say, however he did his best to choose each one, bracing himself for the reaction that would inevitablye. "A while ago Alice came to my room at night. One thing led to the other and we ended up sleeping together."
The silence returned. Sam waited for a few seconds, but no one said anything. He couldn''t bring himself to look at Shizuru, afraid to see what kind of expression she had at the moment.
"Shizuru, I want you to know that my feelings for you are genuine." Sam spoke after a while, unable to withstand the silence. "I didn''t meant to betray you. It''s just¡ I just couldn''t resist."
At that moment the girl in question got up from her seat. Noticing her turn to face him, Sam hesitantly looked and surrendered himself to fate.
Shizuru stared at him for a few seconds, her face showing no expression. After a while she raised her hand high and pped him across the cheek.
~¡ó~
"Well, to be honest I already suspected something."
Sam wasn''t so naive as to think that he''d get away with just one p, however he was surprised by how calm Shizuru was at the moment. He had expected her to storm off without saying a word but she sat down beside him once more, closing her eyes as she thought about something for a while. When she opened them the first thing she said shocked both Sam and Alice.
"I mean, how wouldn''t I?" Shizuru shrugged then turned to Alice with a thin smile. "The way you looked at him back in the medical bay wasn''t how amander would look at one of her subordinates. I immediately thought that there is more to your rtionship, though I never expected that you''re already sleeping with each other."
"I''m sorry¡" Sam said
"Don''t get me wrong. I''m not ming either of you." Shizuru said. "I don''t think themander is the kind of woman who would purposefully steal someone''s significant other. As for Sam, well, you''re a man. There is no need for an exnation."
"No, you have every right to me us." Alice said. "It''s true that I didn''t know about your rtionship when I went to Sam''s room that night, but he did tell me before we¡ before we did it¡ I¡ I still went along with it so I have no excuse."
"So you told her that we were dating then proceeded to make a move on her?" Shizuru asked, turning to Sam with half lis eyes.
"It''s not what it looks like." Sam said trying to defend himself. "There is a lot more to the story so¡"
"It''s not Sam''s fault." Alice interjected. "I wasn''t emotionally stable after my engagement broke and¡ Sam was trying tofort me, that''s all¡"
By the time she finished Alice''s face had gonepletely red. Shizuru on the other hand was ring at Sam who had his face covered with both hands.
"Okay, I will admit it. I took advantage of her emotional state and, well, I might''ve been a little forceful as well." He said. "She tried to stop me but I didn''t listen. Alice did nothing wrong."
"No, I should''ve tried harder and¡" Alice was fidgeting in her ce, holding both hands to her flushed cheeks as she tried to suppress her smile. "I''m ashamed to say this but¡ I was really turned on back then¡"
"I guess you''re both in the wrong, then." Shizuru said. Something told Sam that she didn''t like the way Alice was acting.
"... Yeah¡" the other two replied in unison.
"So? Am I right to assume it wasn''t just a passing fling?"
Faced with this question, Sam''s heart almost jumped out of his chest. But before he could give his answer Shizuru added something that surprised him.
"Just so we are clear, I don''t n on letting go of him any time soon."
She was looking at Alice, her eyes dead serious.
"Shizuru¡"
"You stay silent, Sam." Shutting him with a stern voice, the Asian girl continued to stare at her rival waiting for her answer.
Alice was flustered for a moment looking between the two sitting on the opposit sofa. A few secondster something seemed to click in her head and she turned to look into Shizuru''s eyes. Taking a deep breath she quickly regained her calm then dered.
"I don''t n on giving up either."
"... I see¡"
They have finally reached it. Sam knew it would eventuallye; the moment he would have yo choose between the two.
Alice was the woman he loved for the longest time. She is a beauty every man dreams of and being with her would make his lifeplete.
Shizuru was the sweetest person he had ever met. While she is average in terms of looks, her personality and the way she treated him were the things that made him fall for her. If Alice hadn''t confessed to him that he was sure he would''ve gone to live a happy life with the petite Asian girl.
However the question isn''t about who is better. No matter who he ends up choosing Sam felt that he would never get over the other one. Going with Alice would cause the least trouble as he has yet to cross the line with Shizuru, however that didn''t mean they would be able to go on with their lives as if nothing had happened.
"Before this bes a much bigger mess I would like to make a suggestion." As Sam wrecked his brain thinking of a solution, Shizuru spoke and once again took both him and Alice by surprise. "How about we just share?"
Chapter 73 Agreement.
"You want to¡ share?"
Alice looked as confused by Shizuru''s suggestion as Sam was. The two looked at her with a raised eyebrow, however the Asian girl tuned to her cheating boyfriend with half lis eyes.
"Or could it be that the whole point of you bringing me here is to dump me in front of her?"
"N-no! Of course not!" Sam said,ughing nervously.
"No, that''s most likely what you had in mind." Shizuru said with a shrug. "You probably thought the option that would cause the least amount of problems would be to end our rtionship since we are still at the early stages."
"Eh? Um¡ uh¡"
Sam was left speechless.
"That said, us breaking up ourlt of nowhere would cause more problem than you think. People will ask questions, you know." She added.
"Yeah, I already thought of that." Sam said, his head cast down.
"Anyways, it''s not like you want to end our rtionship because you no longer feel anything toward me. If we both agree to a share you then there is no problem."
"Um, Ms. Kurokami¡ are you sure about this?" Alice asked, slowly raising her hand.
"What? You think I will just let you have him?" Shizuru shot back.
"N-no! In fact your suggestion works for me just fine, but¡ would you be okay with it?"
Staring at the white haired beauty for a while, Shizuru then smiled.
"I don''t think it matters."
"What?"
"I mean, it will definitely hurt to let my man be with another woman, however it''s much better than having to give up on him and start from scratch."
"I¡ see¡"
"Besides, I think it''ll benefit all of us." Shizuru said. "You two can''t be open about your rtionship since everyone would assume that Sam only got to where he is now with your help. And themander dating one of her subordinates doesn''t sound too good."
"You¡ do have a point." Alice nodded. "But I don''t see how that would benefit you, Ms. Kurokami."
"Oh, isn''t it clear? My future would be secured." Shizuru said. "Sam is the whole package. He''s handsome, smart and hard working. He has a respectable career and a bright future ahead of him and¡"
As she spoke Shizuru noticed that Sam was slightly blushing which made her feel a little embarrassed herself.
"Anyways! What I wanted to say is that I can be with the man I want so I don''t care what he does when we aren''t together. As long as he doesn''t neglect me, of course."
"Um, am I not allowed to have an opinion?" Sam asked, smiling awkwardly.
"What is it, Sam? Don''t tell me you have a problem with being with two women at the same time. Or could it be that you were lying when you said you have feelings for me?"
"Well¡"
For some reason Sam felt that he had dragged himself into a much more troublesome situation than he would''ve liked.
"I also thought that it would be for the best if Sam and I kept our rtionship a secret." Said Alice. "I never considered him as a potential partner for a long time so I don''t think I have the right to keep him for myself."
"Alright then! Since everyone agrees to it from today onwards the three of us are in a polygamous rtionship!" Shizuru dered with a p of her hands, however a momentter she turned to Sam with a smile, one that looked like her usual but at the same time didn''t. "Just so we are clear, this is the only exception I''m will be making. "
"I''m actually surprised you''re willing to put up with this." Sam said, feeling a chill running down his spine.
"I''m amazed, Ms. Kurokami." Alice spoke. "I had prepared myself for a¡ different kind of reaction. I never expected you to be so open minded and epting¡"
"Please call me Shizuru. We will be in a rtionship with the same man so we should try to get along."
"I see. In that case, I will be in your care from now on, Shizuru." Alice said. Though she tried her best to smile she still couldn''t hide how conflicted she felt about the matter.
"Same here." Shizuru said, bowing her head a little. "I will be in your care."
Watching the scene Sam was still unable to believe what''s happening. Two womenjust agreed to be with him at the same time, something he had never thought was possible. He never knew Shizuru held him in such high regard, at least not to the point that she would be willing to share him with another woman. That only made him feel worse about cheating on her.
"Even though you worked it out, I somehow still feel like I did something horrible." Sam said.
"Well, that''s because you did." Shizuru said with a giggle.
"Indeed." Alice said, suppressing herugh. "Sam can be so cruel sometimes. But you could say that bnces things, since he''s way too kind most of the time."
"Right? You''ve probably heard of it but he once invited Zero Three for breakfast because she was feeling down."
"Yes. It''s one of the reasons I chose him to be the Valkyries'' physician." Alice said. "I knew he would take especially good care of them even if others think of them as nothing but weapons of war."
"That''s news to me." Sam said. "Wasn''t I just the convenient choice since you knew I wouldn''t refuse?"
"That''s a part of it as well." Alice replied.
"You two have been together for a long time, right?" Shizuru asked, her eyes on Alice. "What took you so long? I mean, why did you wait until now to confess to him?"
"Well, for a long time I only saw him as a cute little brother." Alice replied
"I see." Shizuru nodded. "So? What made you change your mind?"
Hearing that question, Sam and Alice suddenly turned to stone. They both remembered the time he kissed her while she pretended to be asleep, and knowing how it would sound they both silently agreed to tell a different story.
"Well, a while ago I was suffering from a heartbreak and called him tofort me." Alice spoke, her mind working out a story that was as close to the truth as possible without having to tell the real events. "While I was crying in his arms I¡ I began to realize how much he had grown and¡ how handsome he actually is¡"
"Hmm¡ I see¡"
Looking beside her, Shizuru noticed that Sam was blushing again.
"What about you, Sam? If you liked her for so long why didn''t you say anything before?"
"... same reason I didn''t say anything to you." After considering it for a while, Sam told them his answer. "I¡ well, screw it. I''m a coward, alright? I was too scared of ruining our rtionship that I couldn''t do it."
"That''s understandable." Shizuru said. "Though I expected you to have more confidence in yourself."
"Yeah." Alice nodded in agreement. "I expected a lot more from someone who seduced three women at the same time."
"Who what!?" Shizuru turned to her with wide eyes.
"And I''m pretty sure he had other girlfriends before." Alice added. "One of them even works for my father nowadays."
"So shyness isn''t the problem." Shizuru said.
"Well, that just shows how much I cared about you two."
Without meaning to Sam madd the two women blush with that one sentence.
"Sometimes he''s a smooth talker as well." Shizuru said.
"Yeah¡" Alice nodded.
The conversation went on for a while with the two girls doing most of the talking. Sam waited for the dream to end but as the clock continued to tick he was forced to admit that it''s reality. It seems that his luck has yet to run out, however as things continue to go his way he couldn''t help but feel that the blowback will be much worse.
Chapter 74 Selfishness.
Alice and Shizuru seemed to get pretty well. Too well in fact. Sam felt it was wierd; wouldn''t it make more sense for them to be at odds with each other considering that they have feelings for the same man?
They talked, shared stories and even drank a little. Alcohol has the power to bring someone''s true honest self out, however neither of them showed any displeasure at the agreement they had arrived to. In fact they seemed to grow closer the more drunk they got.
''Is this reality?'' Sam thought watching as the two leaned against each other,ughing with cans of beer in their hands. ''Will everything really be ok?''
As midnight approached Shizuru said it was time for her to leave. Saying he will be walking her back Sam stood up as well. Alice sent them off with a smile, although she looked a bit lonely as they left.
As expected, the walk back was awkward and silent. Sam said nothing, staying a few steps behind Shizuru. He wanted to apologize. He wanted to tell her that he''s sorry for hurting her, however he couldn''t bring himself to talk.
"Sam..."
As he stressed over what to say to her, Shizuru came to a stop.
"Y-yes!?"
Turning around, she shed him her usual smile and said.
"Would it be alright if Ie over to your ce?"
"Eh?"
~a¡ª?~
Having no excuse Sam was unable to refuse. Once he agreed to her request the two silently walked over to his chamber and soon enough they were behind closed doors.
''Calm down, idiot.'' Sam told himself, taking a deep breath. ''She most likely wants to go somewhere private to tell you how she really feels. Now that we are alone she doesn''t need to hold back.''
Turning to the Asian girl, Sam noticed that she''s looking away from him, an unmistakable red color tinged her ear.
"Um... is... is it alright if I use your shower?" Shizuru spoke, her voice showing how embarrassed she was.
Realizing his prediction was wrong Sam froze in his ce.
"S-sure!" He said, lifting his shaking hand and pointing at another door. "The bathroom is there."
"Okay... I will be quick..."
"T-take your time."
Sam remained in his ce watching as Shizuru disappeared behind the bathroom door. He took his shoes off and sat on the bed side, his nervousness skyrocketing when he heard the sound of water.
''Wait... are we really going to do it? After all of that?'' He couldn''t help but think. However the more he did the less excited he got. Soon enough he began to feel a different kind of nervousness, one brought upon him by the horrible things he had done to his girlfriend.
A few minutester he heard the bathroom door open so his eyes immediately turned in its direction. A momentter they went wide as his heart skipped a beat from what he saw.
Standing there was Shizuru, her clothes were gone with only a bath towel wrapped around her. When their eyes met she bashfully averted her gaze. Her sses were gone making her feel like a different person.
Sam gulped audibly, unable to take his eyes off her. Shizuru looked many times cuter than usual and that caused his beast to awaken.
"Don''t... don''t stare so much..." Shizuru spoke in an adorably bashful tone.
"S-sorry..." Though he averted his gaze, Sam couldn''t stop his excitement from growing. "It''s just... you look so cute I couldn''t help it..."
"... i-is that so..."
Silence returned for a few seconds. Sam continued to steal nces all the while. Her flushed skin, her slightly damp hair, long eyshes, glittering eyes. It wasn''t just his imagination. Sam was hit with a realization; Shizuru is way more beautiful than he had previously thought.
She was just done washing and had no makeup on. This was her natural look and it was levels above what he''s used to.
Having gathered her courage Shizuru walked over with slow steps. Sam moved making some space for her beside him. The silence went on even after she sat down, however Sam knew he couldn''t let it continue like that.
"Shizuru, let me ask you once more." Sam said, doing his best to remain calm. "Are you sure about this? The polygamy thing, I mean."
"... Do i have a choice?" Shizuru asked after a short pause. "You would''ve left me if I didn''t ept it."
"That''s..." Sam couldn''t deny it, and that only served to hurt him more.
"Alice sure is beautiful. It''s almost as if she''s one of the Valkyries." Shizuru spoke. "Compared to her I''m just an average woman."
"No, Shizuru is beautiful as well."
"I''m not an idiot, Sam. I know where I stand inparison to other women." Shizuru said. "I can never win against someone like Alice. I can''t even begin topare."
"No." Unable to bear with it anymore, Sam turned to face the Asian girl. "Appearance has nothing to do with it, Shizuru. It''s just... I have been in love with Alice since I was a child. My feelings for her refused to die, that''s all."
"So you''re saying that things would''ve been different if you had met me first?"
"Definitely." Sam said resolutely. "Shizuru, I was telling the truth when I said that my feelings for you are honest. I believe that you deserve someone better than a cheating bastard like me. That''s why I revealed the truth to you before going further."
"So? Do you still have feelings for me?" She asked. Though she tried her best to smile, her eyes had a hint of sadness in them. "I love you, Sam. I want to be with you..."
"Shizuru... I..."
Seeing the tears that began to gather in her eyes, the horrible sense of guilt he felt weighed on him even more. He didn''t know what to do. He feared that anything he does would end with him hurting her even more.
Shizuru said it herself. She said that she''s in love with him. Whether he broke up with her or went along with the polygamous rtionship, he felt that nothing he does could lead to a happy ending.
''Shit... is there nothing I can do?''
It was all his fault. He dug the hole on his own and now he''s unable to get himself out of it. Shizuru didn''t deserve any this. She should be with someone who would cherish her, not a two timing scumbag like him.
''No...'' as the horrible feeling continued, Sam''s emotions began to re. The more he thought about it the more he realized, he could never stand it. The idea of her being with another man filled him with anger and that anger soon swallowed the guilt, though it didn''t end the torment.
"Shizuru..." reaching out with his right hand, Sam slowly caressed her cheek. "I know I have no right to say it, but..." bringing his face closer, he looked her in the eyes. "I love you too."
Without hesitation he ced his lips on hers. Shizuru was surprised for a moment but then she closed her eyes. After a while ther lips separated, however they went back together before long.
"Shizuru, I''ve been thinking that you deserve a better man." Sam said, undoing his necktie. "But... I don''t think I can stand it."
Shizuru said nothing, continuing to look at him with dreamy eyes.
"Is it okay for me to be a little selfish?" He said, cing his hand on her waist,slowly pulling her into his embrace. "If it okay for me to keep you for myself?"
"... yes..."
Giving him her answer, Shizuru closed her eyes and perked her lips. Sam took her invitation for a kiss,pletely removing the restraints that kept him from epting the strange nature of their rtionship.
Two beautiful women have confessed their love to him, and even if he found it hard he had no choice but to ept that he was in love with both of them.
He had nothing toin about. He didn''t have to choose and could be with both of them at the same time. All he has to do is to make suretho cherish both of them, to spare no effort to make them happy. It was a really big challenge, however Sam was willing to take it.
A few seconds in and the kissing became more intense.
"Kya!"
Shizuru was taken by surprise when Sam pushed her down all of a sudden, but her mouth was sealed soon enough.
"Shizuru..."
From her lips to her cheeks then to her neck, Sam continued to kiss her. Noticing the towel covering her chest he backed away for a moment, taking his shirt off before proceeding to strip her naked.
"Wait!" Shizuru said, covering the lower half of her face as she looked away bashfully. "At least... turn the lights off first..."
"No." Sam said, his expressionpletely serious. "I want to see Shizuru''s beautiful figure."
Ignoring her embarrassment Sam continued to look her up and down. Shizuru was a normal woman so her proportions weren''t exaggerated like those of the Valkyries. As a soldier her body was toned through training with very little fat left behind. Her chest was medium sized, though that didn''t stop him from reaching out with his hands and massaging it.
"Ah! Ahh... S-Sam!.... Hahh... ahn~a??!!!"
Hearing the moans filled with sensuality Sam continued working his hands trying to get even stronger reactions, however soon enough his desire for her lips ovee him and he dived down once more going for a deep kiss thatsted for a long while.
Chapter 75 First Time.
Sam took off his pants and underwear, revealing his tool and preparing for the act.
"Ahh¡"
He spread Shizuru''s legs open, looking up at her after hearing her gasp. When their eyes met she quickly looked away, embarrassment and fear colored her face. Noticing how she felt Sam leaned in and kissed her again, but his beast was running out of patience and demanded that he gets to the real deal fast.
"... um¡ Sam¡" Shizuru spoke, her voice a little hushed.
"Hm? Is something wrong?" Sam asked, holding his rod and cing it at her soaking wet entrance.
"N-nothing¡ it''s ¡ it''s just¡" still a little hesitant, she told him something that came as a really big surprise. "It''s my first so¡ can you please be a little gentle?"
"Your first?" Sam''s eyes went wide. "Shizuru¡ you''re a virgin?"
Saying nothing, the Asian girl nodded. Sam didn''t know how to respond to that. Every woman he had slept with so far had some level of experience, which meant he didn''t have to hold back most of the time. This was his first time taking someone''s virginity, that caused a new wave of anxiety to hit him.
"It''s alright." He said with a smile. "I will make sure to be careful."
Though he said that, Sam had no idea on how to go about it. All he could think of was to be slow and wait for her to adjust. He started by rubbing the entrance a little, trying to make Shizuru rx. He then slowly pushed the tip inside.
"Ah!... ngh¡. Hahh¡"
"Are you alright, Shizuru?"
"Y-yes¡ I''m¡ I''m alright¡"
"Okay then¡ I will continue¡"
Shizuru was doing her best to stop herself from screaming as Sam''s stiffness slowly tore its way inside her. Herbia twitched, and brightly colored deflowering blood seeped out from the slight gap between them and Sam''s flesh pir, which they tightly held inside.
''So¡ tight¡''
Once he had gone all the way in, Sam''s whole body stiffened as his tool was crushed under the pressure.He never knew that a fresh vagina could be this tight, but seeing the red color seeping from it filled him with a sense of aplishment. Being the first to im a woman''s body sure had a different taste.
"Shizuru¡ how do you feel¡ does it hurt?"
"Just¡ just a little¡" the girl said, her eyes tearing up.
"Shizuru¡" leaning in once more, Sam wiped her tears then said before kissing her. "I love you."
He joined their lips again, distracting her as he slowly pulled his meat out. He then pushed it in once more a little at a time, continuing to do so again and again until he was sure she no longer felt the pain.
"How about now?" He asked. "Does it feel better?"
Shizuru said nothing, nodding with her gaze averted from embarrassment.
"Then you don''t mind if I pick up the paces right?"
Getting another nod as an answer, Sam smiled and pulled back. He then thrust his hips again, using a little more force all while beingcareful not to be as rough as he was with Alice.
"Ahh!!!"
Just then Shizuru''s vaginal walls contracted followed by hor love juices overflowing the next moment.
"Eh? Did you just¡"
Looking up Sam saw his girlfriend covering her face with both hands. She had climaxed from a single thrust. Though that only served to increase her embarrassment Sam couldn''t help thinking it was really cute.
Giving her a moment to catch her breath, Sam began to move his hips again. His rod slid in and out without trouble, and Shizuru seemed to be enjoying the experience as her body rxed.
"Ahh¡.ahn¡hahh¡ahh¡.Ann¡hnaahh~?¡."
As he held her from the waist, Sam felt that Shizuru was a bit frail. She was shorter than Alice and Zero Five, and much thinner than Nine. She was small overall and now that she was naked on his bed she looked way more vulnerable than usual.
"Ahh!... S-Sam! Ah!!... Sam! I''m¡ ahh¡ aahhh!!"
Without meaning to he began to hit faster and faster. He was nearing his limit as well so holding back had be somewhat difficult. As he was about to release he remembered something important, however it was toote.
"Ahhaaaaaaaaaahhhhhh!!!!"
Sam thrust all the way in shooting his seed into Shizuru''s deepest part. Her back arched as she came at the same time, feeling the hot fluid filling her womb.
"Shizuru! I¡ sorry I didn''t¡"
"Sam¡ hah¡ Sam''s¡ hahh¡ I have Sam''s¡ even though it''s my first¡ I''m filled with Sam''s¡. Hahh¡"
"Shizuru¡"
"It''s okay¡" still gasping for air, Shizuru reached out with her right hand and touched his cheek, smiling as she spoke. "I don''t mind it¡ you can do it inside me all you want¡"
For a moment Sam was unsure about it. Even if she gave him her permission, cumming inside her could lead to some consequences they have yet to discuss.
''What am I thinking?'' Looking down at the woman underneath him, Sam felt disgusted by his own cowardice. ''Didn''t I decide to keep her for myself? Why am I worried of something like that?''
Shizuru''s feelings for him were so strong that she decided to put up with him even though he has another woman. To reciprocate her feelings he decided to do his best to make her happy. If that''s really the case then why was he afraid of getting her pregnant?
"Shizuru¡" feeling his meat harden at the thought of impregnating her, Sam prepared to insert it once again. "You don''t mind having my child, right?"
"Yes." Shizuru answered, not hesitating a single moment.
"I see¡" Sam leaned in and whispered in her ear. "Then let''s make one right now."
"Yes?!"
As Sam''s pir invaded her womanly hole once more, Shizuru wrapped her arms around him, an ecstatic smile painting her face. While he did his best to be careful Sam couldn''t help being a little rough as he pumped his hips.
After a while the two exchanged positions with Shizuru going on top, however due to her inexperience she found it difficult to keep up with Sam''s movement and ended up below once more.
They kept going at it for a while, moving from one position to the other.
They did it on the bed, floor, against the wall, in the shower. Sam continued to shoot his load inside Shizuru every time intending to impregnate her just like what he did with Alice.
At some point his partner became unresponsive so he decided to put an end to it, but not before ejacting inside her one more time.
"Sam¡ I¡ haahh¡ I can''t¡"
Shizuru passed out soon after. Only then did Sam remember that it was her first time. That said, for a virgin that has never done it before she was able to hold on for the entire night, which was quite a surprise.
~¡ó~
Satisfied, Sam stretched beside his girlfriend and closed his eyes. As he slept he dreamed about many things.
In the dream his rtionship with Alice and Shizuru went well. The war against the Cmities ended and the three Valkyries were awarded to him for his contribution him the war. They bought arge piece ofnd and built a house where they all lived together. Alice and Shizuru got pregnant and gave birth around the same time. Seeing their kids Nine and Five got jealous and asked him to impregnate them as well, but since they weren''t human their children ended up resembling Alice and Shizuru''s, since their eggs were imnted into them to make use of their function as artificial wombs.
Zero Three got to go to a normal school and attended university as well, but once she was done she returned home and became one of his wives. Life was going great for Sam, however he knew it was all just a dream.
Though he felt the usual disappointment when he opened his eyes he couldn''t help but smile. It was a dream, sure, however it wasn''t an impossible one. As long as he continues to work hard then surely one day he would be able to get what he wants.
Looking beside him he saw Shizuru''s face. She was still fast asleep, snuggling close to him as she released soft breaths. As he watched her silently his mind woke up and a brilliant idea suddenly appeared.
He carefully got up and walked over to his desk, taking out a notebook from the drawer and starting to write something down.
He didnt know if it was because of the dream or the post but rity, however his mind was brimming with potential solutions to the problems he was facing in his research.
"Mnmm¡ Sam¡?"
A few minutester Shizuru woke up as well. She lifted herself and looked around, holding the nket to cover her bare chest.
"Ah! You''re awake." Sam said, turning around in his chair.
Shizuru stared at him for a few seconds then turned away, her cheeks going red.
"If you''re going to sit there then at least wear some pants."
Hearing herment Sam realized that he has been butt naked this entire time and that was a good reason for him to burst out withughter. Though she didn''t get it at first Shizuruughed as well. It was like the awkwardness of what happened the previous night was all gone.
Catching his breath, Sam got up and walked over to the bed. He pulled Shizuru into his arms and hugged her tightly, he then released her and went for a kiss.
"Shizuru, thank you." He said. "I still believe that I don''t deserve an amazing woman such as you, but if you''re willing to give me a chance, I will do my best for you."
"Well, you can start by going easy on me." Shizuru said with a giggle. "I never thought my first time would be so¡ intense¡"
"Sorry, you were just so delicious I couldn''t resist." Sam said as he caressed her cheek. "I''m looking forward to the next time already."
He was about to kiss her again, however Shizuru backed away and left the bed.
"Well, you''ll have to wait, then." She said, walking toward the bathroom with slow steps. "We still have our jobs, remember?"
Sam looked at the clock on the wall and realized it was already past seven.
"Alright then." He said, getting up as well. "How about we shower together to save some time?"
"Sure." She agreed without much thought.
They ended up doing it one more time while washing, though even after that Shizuru was still able to walk to her job with little trouble. Sam hadn''t been as rough with her as he was with Alice, even so he was surprised to see her go about her day without much trouble after having her first night.
That was enough for him to realize how tough she actually is, even if she looked so frail and delicate while on bed.
Chapter 76 Advancement.
Feeling refreshed after doing it with Shizuru, Sam headed for hisb ready to continue his research once again. The frustration and inferiority he felt the day before was long gone so he had no trouble putting on hisb coat.
"Alright then." He said once he was inside his domain. He ced the notebook he used that morning on the desc and turned to a certain device.
It was a VR headset. An industrial type that''s used inbs and factories to perform virtual experiments, saving materials and lowering the risk of failure. For Sam it was the only option he had, but it was better than nothing. If his research produces some good results he could use them to apply for materials to perform real experiments, after which he could shoot for human trials as well.
Putting on the gloves used as controllers, Sam wore the headset and entered the virtual space. It wasnt much different from hisnlb, mainly because he had adjusted the settings so it would lean more toward AR than VR. That way he wouldn''t have to worry about running into things and falling.
He sat down on his chair and summoned a floating menu. He selected a few materials from it and began the work. An hourter the first object was created. It looked like a sphere the size of a baseball made ofyers oponyers of intricately crafted circuits shaped like rings.
The strange object was one of the most essentialponents of a Valkyrie, the heart. Obviously it doesn''t have anything to do with the human heart. It was the part responsible for creating the force field the Valkyries use in battle, one of the inventions Odin kept to himself despite humanity''s plea for him to share his knowledge.
Sam had spent some of his free time recreating it from the blue prints, though he didn''t know what to do with it up till now.
"Alright. Let''s power it up and see¡"
Summoning another floating menu he produced two thin cables and linked them to the sphere. Tapping them produced a small window from which one can adjust the output of the energy required for the experiment. Even though it was all virtual Sam couldn''t help but be wary of what was about to happen. He entered the same numbers and adjusted the settings to simte the nuclear battery powering the Valkyries, then, after taking a deep breath, he pressed the option to start the simtion.
He expected a red window to appear before him saying that the experiment had failed, however to his surprise it was a sess.
The circuit patterns on the rings glowed a faint blue as they slowly spun around each other. A momentter a thinyer of light began to envelop the sphere.
"So this is how it looks without a shell¡"
The force field could be controlled and molded to any shape, however when it''s in its default setting it would go back to surround the sphere. The part responsible for controlling it is obviously the Valkyries'' core. Their brain, in other words.
Using the informations stored there the force field could be molded to the shape of their shell or expanded to cover their weapons. But that didn''t matter right now. Sam''s focus was directed toward something else.
Turning the heart off he pushed it aside and summoned another object and began working on it.
Hours pass before he''s able to finish it, however when he heard his rm he ced the headset down and walked out of theb.
He decided to not let his work get in the way of his lunch date with his girlfriend so he went to the cafeteria. Once he was done with his meal he went back and continued his work.
"They should be back any time now¡"
When he checked the time Sam realized that the three Valkyries were about to return from their daily patrol leaving him with very little time to continue his work.
Deciding to keep going until they arrive he waved his hand pulling the heart he created earlier and began pealing its outeryer off.
,m "I hope this works¡" he muttered.
Once he had removed the outer shell he brought the other objects he had been working on earlier. They were a number of rings that resembled the ones he had just tore off, however they had different patterns and circuits, and most importantly they weren''t made of one solid material.
The new rings were created using nano machines he had designed himself. He built them after the ones he created to help cure Alice''s disease which meant they were small enough to mess with the human DNA, however that wasn''t the only thing they could be used for.
"Don''t blow up, please¡" saying that, Sam turned on the power once more and watched as the heart began to glow.
A momentter a small window appeared before him, however it wasn''t the red one he was expecting.
"Yes!" He said, pumping hid fists.
It was a new menu that could be used to control the force field in ways that wouldn''t normally be possible.
He entered a few numbers and moved the slides a little, watching how the force field responded. At first he caused it to expand and contract. That wasn''t too different from what the normal heart is capable of,however for it to retain its spherical shape without having a shell to help it know where to go, it was quite the advancement.
"Let''s try something else¡"
Sam began ying around with the numbers and slides. He learned that it was now possible to divide the force field into different parts and control each individually. After experimenting with it a little he leaned back and looked at the heart, which was now covered in a thinyer of blue with three spheres of the same size spinning around it.
"This could be used as an additional weapon, but¡"
It certainly adds to the number of tactics they could use, however it''s not like the power increased. It wouldn''t mean much when going against that talking Cmity.
Turning the simtion off Sam put the VR headset aside and allowed himself to rx. When he opened his eyes he saw the three Valkyries looking at him causing his heart to almost jump out of its ce.
"Y-you''re back! Why didn''t you say anything!!!?" He yelled in surprise.
"Well, Doctor looked so focused just now." Nine said, wearing her usual heartwarming smile.
"And you no longer smell." Three said with a smirk.
"Doctor, you seem a lot more rxed today." Five said. "Am I right to assume that you''ve made some advancements in your research?"
"Well, something like that." Sam said, barely able to stop himself from smiling.
It''s true that his research was finally showing some results, however he couldn''t be sure until he tries it on a real heart.
"Anyways, let''s get done with your examination. I''m sure you have your own things to attend to, right?"
"I would like to see what Doctor is working on." Said Zero Five.
Seeing the ponytailed Valkyrie show interest in his work felt a bit strange. That said, Sam had no intention on telling anyone about his research. After all he was ying with a technology that''s not supposed to be essible to humans yet. He had no excuse to exin why he knows what he knows.
''First I will need to find a way to trick the Resistance into believing that I came up with the new heart on my own.'' Sam thought. ''I can try and apply for the chance to study the hearts of Valkyries that fell inbat, but if I convince them that I''m able to reverse engineer Odin''s technology who knows what kind of trouble I might find myself it.''
At the very least they would ask him to do the same with the rest of the Valkyries''ponents in the hopes of learning how to make one themselves. That would serve as a safe way of passing the Valkyries'' blue prints to them, however he couldn''t help feeling that it would be a bad idea.
"Maybe at some point in the future." Sam said. "Now, hurry up to your containers."
Zero Five looked visibly disappointed when he turned her down, however he couldn''t do anything about it. He hadn''t done anything to the threetely so he didn''t need to edit his report. The examination didn''t take long and the Valkyries left foun after leaving him to his research once again.
"Doctor."
Sadly that peace didn''tst as Zero Five returned a few minutester wearing her ck uniform.
"Is something wrong, Zero Five?" Sam asked, wondering if she was going to ask him to show her his research again.
"No¡ it''s nothing¡" the Valkyrie said. "I just¡ I just wanted toe see Doctor."
"For what reason?"
"N-nothing!" She answered, her cheeks turning a little red. "I¡ it has been a while¡ I was just wondering when we will continue¡ the experiment¡"
Chapter 77 Experiment 04.
When zero Five brought up the topic Sam realized that he hadn''t been giving her much attentiontely. The most he did was hug her a little after she recovered from her injuries that one time.
"Do you want to continue the experiment, Five?"
Five had asked him if he sees her as a human. Using that question as the starting point, Sam convinced the Valkyrie to participate in some lewd acts under the guise of learning about how much the weapons resemble normal humans.
"No, it''s just¡" fidgeting a little, Five looked at him with upturned eyes and said. "I want to spend some time with Doctor, that''s all."
"... I see¡"
Sam couldn''t help but think how adorable she is. Five was one of the most beautiful women he has ever seen, if he considers Valkyries as humans of course.
As his wood began to rise and his desire for her awakened, Sam remembered his promise to Shizuru. She made it clear that Alice would be the only exception so if it gets out that he''s doing the Valkyries in secret one could easily guess what her reaction would be.
''Well, Shizuru would be thest of my worries if I get discovered¡'' Sam thought, smiling to himself.
If word about his rtionship with the weapons gets out his life would be done. And he''s already past the point of no return so there is nothing he could do.
''So¡ what now?''
Sam began to think of what he should do with Zero Five. Normally he wouldn''t hesitate much however this time he had to consider whether it was worth pausing his research or not. Thankfully he wasn''t that sexually frustrated so he didn''t feel the need to jump at the opportunity.
''She wants to spend time with me, huh¡''
Sam was Zero Five''s master now. Her lover, in other words. Being lovers wasn''t limited to only sex.There are many things a couple could do that didn''t involve anything sexual.
''Come to think of it¡''
Remembering something he had nned on doing a while ago, Sam turned to the Valkyrie and smiled.
~¡ó~
"Alright then!" Sam eximed, stretching his arms as he entered the gym in the Valkyries'' quarters.
Five was already there, waiting for him with a smile on her face. Suggesting that they spend the evening exercising Sam quickly went back to his chamber to grab his tracksuit, going back to theb to change before following after the Valkyrie.
Five had changed as well, wearing a tight fitting spats and a sports bra leaving her midriff exposed.
Seeing her like that caused Sam''s beast to awaken, however he suppressed the urge focusing on what he came for today.
"Let''s start with some warmups." He said, walking over to the treadmills.
"Yes!" Five said, following behind him with a smile.
Being theb dweller he is, it has been quite a while since thest time Sam had done any kind of physical activity and because of that he knew it would be for the best if he took things slowly at first.
For the first ten minutes he went on walking speed only. After that he increased the pace to jogging speed, however to his surprise he began to show signs of tiredness after ten minutes.
"Strange¡" he said, gasping on the floor. "Is this all I''m capable of?"
He didn''t exercise much in the past few months, sure, but is that really enough to degrade his body to the point that he would get exhausted after twenty minutes of speed walking?
"Um¡ Doctor¡ would you like to rest?"
As a Valkyrie it was obvious that Zero Five wouldn''t even break a sweat from something like that. In fact no amount of physical activity would cause her to sweat, that much was written in the Freyja files. That said, Sam couldn''t help but feel pathetic when she looked down at him as hey on the floor soaked in a pool of his own sweat with.
"No¡" he said, forcing himself to stand. "Let''s keep going."
The two proceeded to do some stretching exercises, which brought to Sam''s attention how stiff his body has grown. He could barely do a set of fifty squats, forty pushups were a struggle and his stamina ran out before an hour passed.
"To¡ think¡ to think I''ve degraded¡ this much¡"ying on the floor once more Sam spoke his frustration as panted for air.
"So if they don''t exercise on a regr basis, humans lose physical strength and stamina." Zero Five noted, sitting on the bench beside him with a water bottle in hand. "Now I understand."
"Hm?" Sam turned to her with a raised eyebrow.
"Huh?Wasn''t this the conclusion you wanted me to arrive at?" She asked. "We Valkyrie have no need for exercise. Our strength and stamina won''t increase or decrease based on the amount of physical activities we perform. Even if we stay inactive for years we would still be able to be able to perform to the best of our abilities."
"Y-yes! Exactly¡" though it wasn''t his intentions, everything Five said was exactly true.
"So this is another part that distinguishes us from humans¡" Five muttered.
"Well, I''m sure there are many who wish they could exchange their bodies for one like yours." Sam said.
"Really? Why?" Five asked.
"You''ve said it yourself just now." Sitting on the bench beside her, Sam went on. "You don''t need to exercise to be in your best shape. You''re able to perform feats unimaginable to humans and most importantly you dont get sick."
A Valkyrie''s body is immune to any and all diseases humans might suffer from. That alone was enough to make one wish to be one of them.
"Not to mention, your just too beautiful." Sam said, cing his hand on her waist and pulling her toward him. "Many would want to be as irresistible as you."
When she turned to face him Five was taken by surprise as Sam stole her lips, however she ddidn''t resist, closing her eyes and epting the kiss.
Sam was at his limit. Watching Five this entire time has caused his arousal to peak and with how much he had sweated today he decided it was time to treat himsel a little.
Grabbing the bottom of her sports bra he lifted it up and freed her breast then began ying with them while enjoying her lips.
Though they were much smaller than Nine''s, Sam still enjoyed the softness end sticity of Five''s breasts, squeezing then again and again before going on to pinch her hardened nipples.
"Ah! D-Doctor!... ahhn!!!"
Sam joined their lips once more, invading her mouth with his tongue and tasting her saliva. Doing so made his feel a sudden thirst and with it came another kind of desire.
"Five,e here for a moment." Sam said, pulling the Valkyrie by the arm.
He made her sit on hisp, lifting her a little so her chest would be on the same hight as his face. What he nned to do was obvious and he wasted no time before starting.
"Ah!!"
He began licking the left breast, moving his tongue around the are before putting the nipple in his mouth and nibbling on it.
"Ahh! Doctor! I¡. Ahh~?"
As he sucked, Sam''s mouth was soon filled with the rich vor of the Valkyries artificial breast milk. He continued drinking until he had his fill before looking up at at five whose face was a blushing mess.
"You''re so cute, Five." He said before kissing her.
He felt his stiffness rubbing against her crotch as if asking him to involve it into the action. He remembered his night with Shizuru and realized that Five has yet to have her first time as well. That is unless Odin had already tried the goods before handing them to the Resistance.
"Five, how about we continue with the exercises?"
When she heard him the ponytailed Valkyrie furrowed her brows in disappointment, however when he made her lie down on the bench she realized they weren''t done yet.
He sat down on his knees with her between his legs. He then took out his fully erect penis and ced it between wer soft marshmallows.
"Five, hold them together like this." Sam said, teaching her how to apply pressure on his rod. He then took her water container and spilled a little over her chest while slowly moving his hips.
"This should do." Sam said with a smile.
Five felt a little wierd being in such a position, however she didn''t mind it at all. If fact seeing that Sam was having a good time filled her with excitement as well and looking for a way to make him feel even better she began squeezing her breasts against his rod while moving them in contrast to the movement to his hips.
"Five¡ your breasts¡ feel so good¡"
Sam''s began thrusting faster and faster, cing his hands over Fives to hold the soft hills in ce. His penis twitched repeatedly signaling that he was at his limit and with a final thrust his back arched as he shot his load.
Once the rush from ejacting faded he rxed his body and took a deep breath. Looking down at Five he saw her shocked expression as his white fluid stained her face and for some reason he couldn''t stop himself from smiling.
Chapter 78 Unexpected Visitors.
Sam spent the rest of the afternoon teaching Zero Five how to give him blow jobs. Just like Nine she was quite skilled at handling his meat, even though it took her a few tries before she was able to do it properly.
Watching the gorgeous Valkyrie kneeling in front of him as licked and sucked his fully erect rod served to fuel his excitement, casing the stiffness to return soon after his load gets blown. Parting Five''s head Sam began to consider when he should get serious and use her lower lips for the first time.
Once dinner time became near he returned to his room to take a quick shower and change his clothes. He then met with Shizuru and had dinner.
He invited her to his room afterwards, however she declined saying she has yet to recover from the previous night. Sam only wanted to have some quality time with his girlfriend so he was shocked when she turned him down.
But he didn''t have to worry. He had many options so with the first being out of question he took out his phone and sent a message to the second one.
Alice agreed to meeting him so he needed tomander''s office immediately. At first they agreed to cuddle as they watch a movie, however halfway through they started making out and a few minutester Sam picked the white haired beauty and went to bed. Though he had Five empty his reserves earlier he still went down on Alice the entire night making love to her with everything he got.
Sex was good and all but his favorite part was hearing her muttering his name and saying she loves him while asleep. That was another way in which Sam was reminded of how lucky he was.
A couple of months ago he cursed his luck, seeing how he''s surrounded by beautiful women he couldn''t hope to touch. Now he has a cute girlfriend, his first love finally shares his feelings, and two of the Valkyries made him their master. Only Zero Three is left to conquer, but he wasn''t in a rush to get her.
The next morning Sam woke up in Alice''s bed with the while haired beauty in his arms. He kissed her on the forehead then went to take a shower. Thankfully it was only a little past six so he wouldn''t be missing on his breakfast with Shizuru.
"WHAT!!!?"
As he rxed under the hot water falling down on his head, Sam was startled by Alice''s sudden yell.
Before he could ask what''s going on the door to the bathroom opened and a naked Alice quickly came inside.
"Alice? What''s going on?" He asked, watched as she poured some body wash in her hand and began cleaning herself.
"This is bad, Sam." She said, joining him under the shower. "I just received an important message from the headquarters."
"The headquarters?"
"Yes. I don''t know what''s gotten into him now, but for some reason he''s decided to pay us a visit." Turning to look him in the eyes, Alice said in a serious tone. "My father ising."
~¡ó~
Wolf Schneider. One of the top brass in the resistance and a big contributor to humanity''s survival. His intellect is second only to Odin, making him one of the most valuable people in the world right now.
Normally he wouldn''t leave the headquarters under any circumstances, however for some reason he decided to visit the forty sixth base now of all times.
The most likely reason would be that he wanted to check on his daughter, one could argue that he was too busy cleaning up the mess that resulted from therge scale Cmity attack, however an entire month had passed since the big battle so it''s a bit toote to make this visit.
And that''s without mentioning how sudden it is. He just decided to send a message saying he''s on his way when he had already crossed half the world. Shouldn''t he give them a day or two to prepare themselves at the very least?
"So, what''s the n?" Sam asked.
Alice had made the announcement the moment they were done showering and the base was in a frenzy. Drones were used to help clean the base and the soldiers were preparing themselves to meet the boss of their boss.
When he heard the news from Alice Sam quickly went to his room and took out his uniform. He couldn''t meet someone of such a high rank in hisb coat after all. He then went back to themander''s office to discuss a few things with the white haired woman.
"Let''s hope he doesn''t notice something we missed." Alice said, desperately changing the position of her har again and again as she stared at her reflection in the mirror.
"That''s not what I meant." Sam said with a sigh. "I''m talking about our rtionship. You have yet to tell him about us, right?"
Hearing his question, Alice''s while body went stiff, her hat falling off her head.
"Eh!? Well¡" her neck cracked as she turned away avoiding his look. "We were keeping it a secret so¡"
"That''s what I''m talking about." Sam sighed. "You might''ve avoided the topic so far, however Mr. Schneider is a very perceptive person. I''m afraid he''d notice the moment he gets off the ne.
"It¡ it''ll be alright¡" Alice said, slightly trembling. "I''ll make sure everything turns out alright."
Sam couldn''t help but sigh.
''I''m the one who should be trembling here.'' He thought, remembering who it is they''re dealing with.
Alice might''ve been too dense to notice Sam''s feelings for her, however her father was a different story. It was difficult to tell when it started, however at some point he started giving Sam ''the look''. Being a kid Sam didn''t know what it meant, however as he grew older he realized that the old man was silently telling him to stay away from his daughter.
That said, Sam didn''t respect Wolf just because he''s Alice''s father. The old man was a rare genius and one of the big shots of the medical field Sam had spent years studying. In a way Sam looked up to him as a mentor and because of that he understood the importance of earning his approval.
"So¡ we aren''t going to tell him?" Sam asked.
"Of course not!" Alice replied. "He would definitely make thingsplicated for us. And he would never approve of our arrangement with Ms. Kurokami."
"I see¡"
''It still hurts though.'' Sam thought with a pained smile.
He had fantasized about the day Alice introduces him as her boyfriend many times and how nervous he would be when that happens. Sadly it seems he would have to wait a little more for that to happen.
As she went bac to trying to fix her hat, Alice''s phone beeped once. Reading through the message that arrived in a second she stood up from her seat and turned to the door.
"They''re here!"
The entire base was asked to gather in the main runway to greet the guest. Thankfully even with the little time they had to prepare everyone were able to ready themself without a problem.
ck jetsnded one after the other creating violent winds that died soon after the enginesstopped. Thergest among them was the first to open and multiple soldiers stepped out forming two lines in front of the airstair.
A couple of secondster a man stepped out of the jet. He was a giant that reached over two meters with wide shoulders and muscr body that couldn''t be hidden under his decorated military uniform. The white hair on his head told of his age, however the fierceness in his red eyes erased the image of a frail old man people might''ve gotten from seeing him for the first time, causing many of the female soldiers to whisper "daddy" under their breaths as they felt their private parts began to tingle.
That''s right. Same as his daughter, Wolf was one of the most handsome men on earth right now and despite being in histe fifties he was still able to make women wet just by looking in their general direction.
As he descended the airstairs the other passengers came out one after the other. To everyone''s surprise the first three were Valkyries, though they wore the standard female formal uniform instead of the usual ck sailor uniform. Since he''s one of the most important people in the resistance it''s only natural that they would spare at least three to ensure his safety.
Following after them were a number of staff and among them was a familiar face Sam was shocked to see only to remember a passing remark Alice had made the other day.
It was a female soldier with slightly messy ck hair andrge round sses behind which a pair of tired eyes seemed to servey the soldier.
Those eyes soon fell on him as he was standing at the front row behind Alice, and though it should''ve been impossible for him to see it Sam could swear that her eyes began to sparkle the moment they met his.
"... Elina¡"
Chapter 79 Big Changes.
"Greetings, General Wolf Schneider. The forty sixth Resistance base wees your arrival."
As he stood facing the soldiers that came to greet him, Alice steps forward and salutes her father.
"I apologize for the sudden visit." Wold said, not taking his eyes off the white haired beauty. "As you already know a lot of things happened recently which didn''t allow for a more appropriate procedure."
"We''d be happy to have you no matter the circumstances." Alice replied, doing her best to not crack under the pressure of his gaze. "Am I right to assume the reason for this visit isn''t something that can ne dyed?"
"Indeed." Wolf replied. Just then his eyes seemed to catch Sam, turning to a sharp re that sent shivers down the Doctor''s back.
"Then how about we discuss it in my office." Alice said, moving aside and motioning with her hand toward the administrative building.
She was about to turn and start walking, however she noticed that the tall white haired man wasn''t paying her attention anymore. His eyes were on someone else, lowered into a sharp re as if he had seen the most despicable human in existence.
Taking a step then another one, Wolf stood before Sam towering over him like a giant towers over an insect.
"It''s very nice to see you again, Sam Sanderson." Wolf said his voice rough like a growling beast.
"The feeling is mutual, sir." Sam saluted, stering a fake smile on his face.
"I have read youtest research paper and I have to say¡" pausing for a moment, Wolf to a breath then added. "It''s quite impressive, indeed."
"Thank you, sir. Your words mean a lot to me."
"In truth one of the reasons behind today''s visit is that research of yours. I would like for you to join our meeting, Sanderson."
"It would be my honor."
Ending their short exchange, Wold turned around and smiled at Alice.
"Alright then." He said. "Let''s get going."
The two walked away, followed by the new Valkyries then Sam. As he was about to take a step someone walked over to him and marched by his side.
"It''s been a while."
Sam let out a sigh, feeling an inexplicable urge to let his shoulders slump.
"It sure has."
It was a short woman with slightly messy hair as if she never bothered to treat it with care. Her eyes spoke of her exhaustion, hidden behind a pair of round sses that put a certain Potter to shame. Her uniform was proper, at the very least. Still she gave off the distinct air of wanting to be anywhere but there, more than any of the soldiers that gathered in the runway that day.
"She sure is beautiful." The woman said, her eyes locked at the white haired woman ahead of them. "I hope it was worth it."
Letting a long sigh escape him, Sam kept his eyes ahead and said.
"Listen, Elina, can we leave it forter? This isn''t the time for such discussions."
"Well, we can always get a room, if that''s what you want." The woman, Elina, said with a slight smile.
~¡ó~
Once the door to themander''s office closed Wolf turned to face Alice. He stares at her for a few seconds before spreading his arms.
Silence fills the room as everyone waits for something to happen, however no one said anything and no one moved.
"What?" Wolf said. "You haven''t seen your father in months and you won''t even offer him a hug?"
Themander mask Alice wore suddenly fell and her face turned red. She looked around her checking the reaction of those present. Sam was standing by the door along with the three Valkyries and the woman who apanied them inside. Though the person with the highest authority is saying that it''s okay, she still didn''t feel that it''s the right time to be casual with their interactions.
"Don''t tell me you''re too old for this now." Wold said, letting out a dramatic sigh. "Papa feels sad."
"Please stop, father." Alice said. "This isn''t the time for something like this!"
"Well, we won''t go anywhere until I get my hug!" Said Wolf.
It was as if the overwhelming pressure he emitted a moment ago was gone, turning him to a simple old man who wanted nothing but his little girl to show him some affection.
Knowing how stubborn he could get, Alice reluctantly approached his and wrapped her arms around his waist, burying her head into his chest.
"Oh how I missed this feeling." Wolf said, gently patting her on the head. "You grew so distant, and you barely talk to me anymore. Papa was worried you hated him."
"Father, can you please stop it?"
? Very few have seen this side of the man and Sam was one of them. But while others might think it''s adorable or endearing, Sam found it terrifying. The old man still sees his daughter as the little girl he raised on his own, and he''s way too overprotective of her, especially against men who show interest in her.
There is a reason Alice only ever had fiances and not a single boyfriend. All of them go through a very strict screening and the bar is set really high for them even if they pass, which might be a big contributor to why they always end up running away.
Sam had failed the screening right from the start. While Wolf was like a mentor to him, the man made it clear very early on that he would never allow him to be with his daughter. He literally said it right to his face, which might''ve been another reason as to why Sam never had the courage to confess.
''Too bad, old man.'' Sam thought, grinning in his mind. ''I won in the end.''
After a long warm embrace Wolf finally let go of his daughter and once again put on the mentel of a general, clearing his throat with a cough before beginning the serious talk.
"A lot has happened recently, and things have changed in the Resistance."
Sam didn''t know when but at some point one of the Valkyries standing beside him had moved from her spot, prepared tea and was now in the process of serving it.
"We have lost quite a few Valkyrie in a very short amount of time. And thanks to the one making them disappearing we are now left with a very small supply. It doesn''t really look good for humanity at the moment."
"So it is true that Odin had disappeared¡" Alice said.
"Well, it was our fault for relying on him in the first ce." Said Wolf, taking a sip from his cup. "We should''ve expected that this would happen at some point."
"But¡ how is the headquarters going to handle this situation?" Asked Alice.
"Well, at the moment we are doing our best to fortify our defenses. That said, there isn''t much we can do, especially with the appearance of those new Cmities."
"I still can''t believe it myself." Alice sighed, remembering the footage brought back by Zero Three and the others. "A talking Cmity¡ I felt like our understanding of the enemy wascking from the beginning."
"Indeed. But that doesn''t change our objective. Unless they show the willingness to negotiate we have no choice but to continue fighting."
It was difficult to see the Cmitiesming to the negotiation table when they''ve spent thest decade making sure humanity has one foot in the grave. The talking Cmities had enough power to destroy the Valkyries with a single touch. That made everything they fought so far seem insignificant, and knowing that the one holding the bigger stick gets to decide the terms of the negotiation humanity had no choice but to continue fighting to the bitter end.
"Alice¡ no,mander Schneider." Wolf spoke, not as the doting father but one of the generals leading humanity''sst line of defence. "Big changes areing to the Resistance in the near future. The frontline will be redrawn once more and many of the bases will be disbanded and merged with others."
Hearing that announcement, Sam and Alice couldn''t help but gawk at the old man.
"It was decide that, due to the severity of the recent attacks, the forty sixth Resistance base will be put out ofmission with all troops, including the three Valkyries stationed here, being relocated to the headquarters in preparation for the next big battle."
There was a lot to unpack in the news that had just been delivered. The forty sixth base will be shut down. The Resistance has seemed its existence unnecessary and decided to relocate everyone back to the headquarters.
Just like everyone else Sam was aware that all the big shots, beside Wolf of course, couldn''t care less about the rest of the soldiers and only want the three Valkyries.
It wasn''t that strange of a decision as there isn''t much point in expanding the frontline too much. Still, shutting down one of the bases that managed to withstand multiple attacks from potential S ss Cmities doesn''t seem like the wisest of choices.
''Something isn''t right.'' Sam thought, ncing at Elina beside him.
He wasn''t expecting her to exin anything, however when he saw her smile once more he felt that something was off about it.
Chapter 80 I Cant.
The frontline will be redrawn and forty sixth base will be disassembled. Sam was shocked to hear the news, so was the base''smander. It was the first time something like this has happened. So far the Resistance made it their goal to reim more territory, but now they''re just giving it up.
"The process will gradually take ce over the next two months." Wolf said after taking a sip from his cup. "In the meantime there is something else I would like you to take care of."
He was looking in Sam''s direction, confusing the Doctor for a moment.
"You need something from me, general Schneider?"
"Yes. As I said before I''ve went through the research papers you submitted and I have to say I''m quite impressed."
Thest research Sam submitted for review were about nano machines capable, at least theoretically, of performing tasks at the atomic level. The technology could be revolutionary if they manage to make it a reality. With it no disease would be incurable, still there is no telling what it could be used for as well so the Resistance was reluctant to give him permission to do any kind of trials.
"Nana." Wolf said, looking at one of the Valkyries he brought with him.
She had proportions closer to Zero Five than the others, with a voluptuous body and a chest that still looked natural despite being bigger than the average. Her hair was a shining silver that almost reached down to her shoulders. Her expression was calm, although the sharpness of her eyes threatened to cut anyone she looked at.
The silver haired Valkyrie came forward, in her hand was a metallic suitcase Sam had failed to notice before now. She ced it on the table and entered a six digitbination to unlock it. Once done she turned around and returned to her spot.
"Sergeant Sanderson, do you know what this is?" Wolf said, opening the suitcase and showing them its contents.
"That''s¡" Sam was in a bigger shock than he was when he heard the news a minute ago. "It can''t be¡"
"From your reaction I can guess that you''re already familiar with it. Well, I would be disappointed if you didn''t." Wolf smiled. Noticing the confusion on his daughter''s face he decided to exin anyways, after all it wasnt something most people would be interested in. "This is the heart of a Valkyrie, theponent responsible for creating and maintaining their force field."
Inside the case, was a spherical object that looked rather simr to the model Sam made by following the blue prints. It was spotless with no scratch on its surface as if it was just brought out of he factory.
"This is one of the parts we managed to retrieve from the Valkyries we lost in the recent battles." Wolf said, his red eyes turning to Sam as he he lifted the small sphere. "Your job will be to take it apart and reverse engineer it. If you manage to do it I''d be willing to let you have a go at the other parts."
''Bingo'' Sam thought, pumping an imaginary fist.
"General Schneider, I''m sure you''re well aware that this is outside my area of expertise, right?"
Not rushing to ept the task, Sam pretended to be bothered by the offer using the fact that he specializes in medical applications as an excuse. Since he has the the blue prints memorized it would be a walk in the park for him, however he couldn''t be hasty. Suddenly bing too good at something will definitely end up hurting him.
"To be honest, we have already tried doing it ourselves. Three attempts that ended with the thing blowing up in our faces."
''Well, obviously¡'' Sam thought.
"Apparently Odin was serious in wanting to keep the technology a secret, so much that he prepared several traps in case anyone tries to study the weapons."
Though his intentions were directed at something else the mad scientist still created the most powerful weapons in human history and he understood what that implies. To make sure the technology isn''t misused, which is something humans are too good at, Odin ced several traps in the mainponents of the Valkyries which would erase anyone who tries to take them apart along with everything around them.
It''s still a mystery how he was able to get away with it. Technically he was one of the top guys at the Resistance, but to be able to go against the rest of the organization just like that shows how much power the man had.
Letting out a long sigh, Wolf continued his exnation.
"I was wondering if we could alter your nano machines and use them this time. Since it''s something you came up with yourself I decided it would only be right for you to be the first one to try it."
"I see¡" Sam said, looking at the floor and pretending to contemte the matter a little before saying "I''m thankful for the opportunity and I''ll do my best."
"Good." Nodding once, the general closed the case and pushed it toward Sam. "The rest of the equipment will be unloaded and delivered to yourb in a few minutes. In the meantime why don''t you show Ms. Braiens around the base."
"Understood."
Suppressing an annoyed sigh, Sam picked up the suitcase and turned around. He nced at Elina who had a broad smile on then walked to the door. Though things seemed to be going well for him so far, in the end his day wouldn''t be so peaceful after all.
~¡ó~
"I like this ce." Elina said, looking around from side to side.
"I know you don''t so stop it." Sam said, no longer bothering to hide his annoyance.
"To think you have survived a nuclear disaster without a single loss. Pretty impressive."
"Yeah, impressive, alright."
"Why are you being so cold to me, Sam. It''s been almost a year, you know." Quickening her pace to catch up to him, Elina looked up at Sam with a bright smile. "Didn''t you miss me at all?"
"Nope." Sam replied coldly.
"How cruel!" Elina eximed. "I couldn''t eat for an entire week! How can you move on so fast after what you''ve done to me!?"
"Drop the act. Skipping meals isn''t something new for you." Sam sighed. "Besides, it''s not like our rtionship was that deep. You didn''t care much when I decided to leave."
Elina was Sam''s ex. The two used to date before he came to the forty sixth base and broke up for obvious reasons.
She was a brilliant young scientist who specialized in the same field as Sam. At first they started out as research partners, but the girl ended up falling for him and after hooking up a few times their romance bloomed only to be burned to ash when Sam recieved Alice''s invitation toe work for her.
"I see that you work for Mr. Schneider now." Sam remarked.
"Yes. Normally that seat would''ve gone for you. Sadly you decided that simping is more important." Elina said with a smile. "But thanks to you I now have my ownb and am allowed to do my own research. And without a boyfriend I can fully concentrate on my work."
"I see." Sam said.
"So? What about you?" She asked. "Are things going well with your childhood crush? Did you confess to her yet?"
"Nope." Sam said.
He obviously had no intention on telling anyone about his rtionship with Alice, especially not someone who works directly under her father.
"Eeeeh!? Then why did youe all the way here?"
"Who said I did so just to try and get together with her?" Sam grimaced. "I already told you, I owed her a lot, that''s why-"
"Yes yes, I get it already."
Feeling his irritation growing, Sam decided to use another one of his cards.
"Just so you know, I''m already seeing someone right now."
Hearing that sentence, Elina froze in her ce. Sam walked a few steps then turned to look behind him. Seeing her shocked face brought some piece to his mind.
"Y-y-you''re seeing someone?" She stuttered. "As in¡ you have a new girlfriend?"
"Yes." Sam answered. Turning around and continuing his walk toward hisb. "She is a cute Asian woman from the monitoring department. We only got together recently but it has been going well since then."
"No way¡" Elina said, her body slightly trembling. "But¡ my n¡"
"Hm?" Stopping once more, Sam turned around only to find the tired woman tearing up.
"I thought that¡" looking down at the ground, she allowed the waterworks to start. "I thought I might still have a chance¡ now that you''ll being back to the HQ."
"Um¡ uh¡"
"It''s your fault!" She suddenly began to shout. "How could you dump me like that! Because of you¡ because of you¡"
Sam noticed that her outburst has drawn quite a few eyes and began to panic. Sadly he was a second toote in stopping her.
"Because of you I can''t enjoy sex anymore!!!"
Chapter 81 Error 404
As if they didn''t draw enough eyes already, Elina''s announcement made every soldier in the surroundings freez in their ce and look their way.
Sam began to panic. His reputation wasn''t the best and he already had enough false rumors spread about him. He didn''t want to feed the fire, but Elina didn''t care.
"Hey, can you stop, please?" Sam said, keep his voice down. "You''re really embarrassing me!"
"Why did you leave me?" Elina asked between the sobs. "Was I not enough? I did my best for you and yet¡"
Feeling the embarrassment growing Sam began to look for a way to escape. Noticing that they were close to the male dorms he quickly grabbed Elina''s hand.
"Come with me."
~¡ó~
Once they were inside his room, Sam ced the suitcase on his desk and heaved a tired sigh.
"Just¡ what were you thinking?" Turning to face his ex, Sam noticed that her tears had stopped.
She was looking around the room. For some reason it felt like the mood had changed but he couldn''t get his hands on it.
Elina reached inside her pocket and took out a phone. One look told Sam it wasn''t the standard model given to all soldiers and staf. Tapping on it a few times she ced it on the desk and turned her eyes toward Sam.
"We need to talk." She said, her tone different than before.
"Of course we do." Sam replied, still feeling that something was off about her. "What was that just now?"
"Sorry. But there is no other way." Elina said. "We are being monitored so it was the only way to get to somewhere private without drawing suspicion."
"Monitored?" Sam nced at the phone Elina ced on the desk then took out his own.
It was just a hunch, however when he checked he noticed that there is no signal.
"I''m jamming everything inside this room, just in case there are bugs we dont know about."
"Hold on. What are you talking about?"
Sam''s confusion was to be expected. It''s clear by now that what Elina intended to discuss wasn''t their breakup or her sex life, which makes everything she said so far a well performed act meant to mislead whoever is eavesdropping on them.
"Sam, be honest with me." She said, her eyes lowered into a sharp re. "The white haired woman, you have yet to make a move on her, right?"
Sam hesitated to answer the question as he couldn''t guess the intention behind it. After contemting for a couple of seconds he decided to go with the default answer.
"What are you talking about?" He said. "I already told you I have a girlfriend."
"That''s good to hear." She replied, taking her round sses off and wiping them with a cloth. "Listen, Sam. It might sound like I''m talking nonsense, but I need you to believe me."
"That''s a lot to ask." Sam said. "You don''t seem to believe it yourself."
"We didn''t part on the best of terms, but I still look up to you, at the very least." Elina said. "When you left for this ce, I began looking into the woman named Alice Schneider. At first I did it out of jealousy trying to get some revenge."
"... Seriously?" Sam wanted to facepalm himself.
"That doesn''t matter right now." Elina replied, seemingly not bothered by the absurdity of her own actions. "What I found while investigating is what matters."
Sam gulped audibly. It sounded like she''s just trying to smear the image he has ofAlice, however he couldn''t dismiss it as just that. Elina wasn''t someone who would waste time and effort on such petty things. She is a no life scientist. Someone who would spend days in ab foregoing any kind of self care. If she went through with her investigation then she must''ve discovered something that kept her interested.
"She had very few acquaintances, which is strange for someone as good looking and sessful as her." Elina went on. "I tried tracking some of them, mostly her peers in coge, but everyone I spoke to refused to give me any kind of information about her."
"Well, that makes sense." Why would they spill the beans to aplete stranger.
"It doesn''t." Refuting Sam''s response, Elina''s re green sharper. "Once or twice would be understandable, but all of them refusing to talk about her at all is definitely suspicious."
"They refused to talk about her?"
''Did something happen that made them want nothing to do with her?'' Though he still found it hard to believe, Sam couldn''t help but think it through. ''If that''s the case the she would''ve definitely told me¡ strange¡''
"That''s only the surface of it." Elina continued. "The staff in the university knew almost nothing beside her appearance. She''s a top student ording to the records yet none of the teachers seemed enthusiastic when talking about her. Then there is the matter with her rtionships."
"You sure did a thorough research, huh?"
"Yes." Elina nodded, not catching on how creeped out Sam was. "At around that point I noticed something strange about myb and apartment."
"Let me guess, someone broke in and bugged the ce."
"I didn''t believe it at first, after all nothing was moved out of ce. However I noticed that several of the devices I own were moved. Most had voicemand and cameras so I suspect they were hacked and used to spy on me."
The more he listened the more he wanted to dismiss everything she said. The whole story sounded like something out of a mystery novel, too fictional to be true.
"At that point I considered dropping the search and going on with my life, however I feared that it would draw attention exposing that I know that I''m being watched."
"You should''ve stopped anyways. It sounds like you''ve gotten yourself in quite the deep trouble."
"Well, if I did then I wouldn''t have discovered what I''m about to tall you." Taking a deep breath, Elina looked Sam in the eyes before continuing her borderline fictional story. "The only thread I had yet to check was her dating life. I remembered you saying that she had five fiances, but when I tried to look for them I found nothing." Pausing for a moment, Elina continued with a troubled expression. "There aren''t many people in the world, let alone ces they could go to. Finding someone isn''t supposed to be difficult as long as they''re alive, but I couldn''t find anything about the men she dated. There are no records of the first four as if they never existed. No names, addresses, academic or military records, nothing. As for the fifth¡"
Elina stopped there, pursing her lips as she remained silent for a while.
"One day I was suddenly summoned to the Resistance headquarters where I was offered my new job. Since then I have been too busy to do anything. But it still bothers me to this day."
Sam held a hand to his chin in thought. As Elina had pointed out, with the sharp decrease in human poption and settlements it should be rtively easy to find people. Even if one were to try and hide the likelyhood of all four going dark for no reason is minuscule. Then there is the fifth.
''Come to think of it¡ alice never mentioned his name¡''
Sam tried as hard as he could however he couldn''t remember at all. His eyes slowly widened as he realized that he had no idea of who they were.
Alice talked about them whenever she got into a rtionship or had a breakup, however beside what they looked like and their personality traits she never mentioned their names or showed him any pictures.
''Come to think of it, I never wanted to know so I never bothered to ask¡''
Feeling that his heart was getting stepped on again and again Sam cultivated a habit of ignoring anything that has to do with Alice''s ex fiances. Everything she said as she cried in his arms went in from one ear and out of the other, but now that he''s faced with this situation he wished he paid more attention.
"As you said, it is rather-"
Before he could finish his sentence a knock on the door shook the Soul out of his body. Elina was as shocked. She quickly grabbed her phone and put it away.
Sam was about to go open the door but she grabbed his arm stopping him.
Before he could ask she reached out for his vest and opened it. She then loosened his necktie and undid some of the buttons on his shirt.
Sam was confused for a second but she motioned for him to open the door as she messed his attire as well.
"General Schneider is looking for you."
To Sam''s surprise the visitor was one of the Valkyries Wolf had brought with him. She was a petite girl about as tall as Zero Three, probably from the same generation as well. Her hair had the same bolen color as Nine and reached to the back of her knees. Her eyes were bark blue and contained some fierceness Sam had never seen in any of the Valkyries he had met before.
"He''s waiting int theb." The Valkyrie said.
"We¡ will be there in a moment."
Just then Sam realized what Elina did. She was trying to make it lookk as if the two of them were making out to hide the fact that they were discussing a very sensitive topic. It was a smart idea, however he couldn''t help but fear what would''ve happened if he opened the door and found Shizuru standing there instead of the young blond Valkyrie.
Chapter 82 Evolution.
"I asked you to take take Ms. Braiens on a tour around the base. Never did I think your room would be the destination." Wolf said, an uncharacteristic mischievous smile on his face.
"Well, we had a lot to catch up on." Sam wore a fake smile as he spoke.
He was still on edge after that Valkyrie suddenly appeared in his door. Though they tried to y it as them getting intimate, however knowing that the Valkyries have superior sight and vision he was almostpletely sure that they''ve heard them.
''Calm down.'' Sam told himself. ''It''s all nothing but paranoia fueled by jealousy.''
Still, he couldn''t take the topic off his mind. After all the man standing in front of him was someone who could make people disappear with ease.
"Sanderson, how about you show us yourb." Said Wolf.
"It would be my honor." Sam replied, bowing his head slightly. "Though let me apologize in advance, the ce is quite messy at the moment. I had little time to clean it up."
"Don''t worry, a messy workce is a sign of genius."
Sam worked his mind trying to remember if he had left anything that exposes himying around, and even though he was sure he was in the safe, having someone like the old man looking through his stuff put him on edge.
"Alright then." Sam said, motioning for theb''s direction. "This way, if you would."
The onesing on the tour were Wolf and his three Valkyries. Alice took on the role of showing Elina around the base. As expected the scientists with round sses didn''t bother to hide her animosity toward the white haired beauty. Alice was well aware of the hatred filled side look she was getting, however she tried her best pretend she didn''t.
"Well, this is a surprise." Wolf said upon their arrival. "It''s not as messy as I thought it would be."
The room was filled with stacks of paper and notebooks, the walls still had scribbles on them and several devices and gadgets were lying around. As Wolf had pointed out, the room wasn''t at its best, however it wasn''t that messy. Sam had tidied it up a little a while ago so it wasn''t at its worst.
"So, I imagine you had been working on something else while you waited for your permission to begin practical trials."
"Indeed." Sam said with a nod. "Sadly I dont seem to make any significant advancements."
"I see¡ we all get stuck at some point. The important thing is to stay patient and never give up."
As he looked around Wolf would pick up some of the papers and give them a stern look before putting them down.
''Good thing I hid the most suspicious papers¡''
Lately Sam had been delving in the realm of subatomic and quantum physics so everythingying around was nothing but equations and calctions. Anything rted to his attempts at improving the functions of the Valkyries was hidden, including
The VR headset and the notebooks he wrote his findings in.
"Tell me, Sanderson." Wolf spok, flipping through the pages of a notebook. "Do you have any interest in gic engineering?"
"... Perdon me?" Sam raised an eyebrow, taken aback by the strange question.
"I''m well aware that the whole purpose behind your research is to try and cure my daughter." Letting out a long sigh, Wolf continued. "Though I feel grateful for all your effort, it still terrifies me that the two of us have arrived at the same answer."
"I''m¡ I''m not sure I understand, sir¡"
"You have heard from Alice already, right?" The old man out the notebook down and turned to look Sam in the eyes. "I''ve cured her disease years ago. Do you have any idea on how I managed to do it?"
Obviously, Sam had no answer. When he heard the news from Alice he was shocked, spending many sleepless nights thinking about the topic. The only thing he knew about the disease is that it''s gic and that alone wasn''t enough for him to guess how it was cured.
At most he theorized that the old man had found a way to alter her genes, however something like that had the power to change the world so it was strange that nothing about it was published so far.
"Wait¡" Sam held a hand to his chin as he thought for a moment. "Arrived at the same answer¡ it can''t be¡"
"Yes. I have created a device small enough to manipte nucleotides. I don''t know if it''s a coincidence or something else, however the nano machines you''ve designed are almost a perfect replica of the ones I made back then."
"Sir¡ I don''t know what to say¡ I¡" Sam stuttered as his eyes went wide. He felt his mind growing numb, panic striking his heart causing his whole body to tremble.
"Don''t worry, I''m not using you of anything." Wolf waved his hand dismissively. "After all there are no records of my research. I''ve burned everything once Alice was cured so there is no way you would''ve stolen the idea from me."
"Huh¡ you burned everything?"
"Obviously." The old man said. "Humanity wasn''t ready for that kind of technology yet. They never will."
The ability to manipte DNA had many implications. While it could be used for good, like curing incurable diseases, the likelihood of ot being used for evil purposes was high. All it would take is a single maniac and humanity would be done. Not that it matters right now.
"I''ve been the one holding off your research from being approved. Focusing on it is pointless at this stage."
"...huh?"
The reason he was denied permission for practical trials was the old man''s intervention. It made sense now. After all the nano technology sam was researching was too good to not be approved. Even if it didn''t yield any results, the concept alone should''ve been enough to draw the attention of the scientificmunity and the many sponsors looking to finance the next big scientific advancement.
"Humanity is done, Sam."
Just when he was about to ask the old man for his reason, Wolf closed his eyes and said something that shocked Sam even more, addressing him by his first name for the first time since ever.
"We have no hope of winning this war." Wolf continued. "The next battle might be thest. Humanity will be wiped out and there is nothing we can do about it."
"It¡ it can''t be¡"
Sam already knew the situation was helpless, however he didn''t want to give up. He was sure that as long as they continued to fight they would one daye out on top. That said, it seems he was the only one who had that opinion.
"Many are already looking for ways to leave the." Wold sighed. "Don''t know where they got the idea that the Cmities won''t follow them."
"So it''s true." Sam said. "Odin had escaped the."
"Who knows." Wolf replied with a shrug. "That man is an idiot. I wouldn''t be surprisd if he had already left the moment those monsters appeared."
Many had theorized that Odin wasn''t a human but a robot created with the same technology as the Valkyries, which is why he rarely ever shows himself in public. It would make sense for him to leave a replica of himself behind as he escaped somewhere safe, though it seems that replica had decided that it''s time to make a run for it as well.
"Anyways, humanity has no way of winning and our extinction is getting close." Wolf said, looking Sam in the eyes. "That leaves us with one desperate measure. We must evolve to the next stage before the Cmities get to us."
"Evolve?"
"That''s right." Wolf nodded. "Escaping the won''t be enough. We must gain the ability survive anywhere under any conditions." Stopping for a moment, the old man then continued. "First of all, we must unlock the secrets of the Valkyries and learn everything about them so we can recreate them on our own. Once that is done we have to find a way to use those findings to enhance ourselves."
"Are you saying we should¡"
"That''s right." Wolf said. "Whether it''s by uploading our minds into the nk core of a Valkyrie or recing all of our organs until we are the same thing as them, our only chance at survival is to toss our flesh."
Walking over in slow steps, Wolf ced his hands on Sam''s shoulders.
"Sam, I haveplete trust in your abilities." He said, his eyes filled with expectations. "You''ve made it so far on your own, I have no doubts that you''ll be able to do it."
"But¡ sir¡"
Sam didn''t know what to say. Evolution? Turning humans to Valkyries? Is that even possible?
"You''ll have until you move to the headquarters. Be sure to study the heart thoroughly by then." Wolf said, ncing over to the Valkyries.
As the three weapons walked out of theb, the old man leaned in and whispered in Sam''s ear.
"Take care of Alice for me."
Chapter 83 Visitor.
The general and hispanions were staying the night with their departure scheduled for the next day.
Sam was busy the entire evening organizing the materials and equipment Wolf brought for him, only stopping to perform the daily examination on the three Valkyries.
Looking at it Sam thought it was strange that he bothered to bring so much when they were being relocated to the headquarters in a month''s time.
"Hm? Why won''t this¡" Sam mumbled, staring at his ID card.
He was standing in front aloft arge ck container. When he slid his card through the digital lock he got a red window saying ''ess denied'', which was rather peculiar considering his recent promotion.
He checked the list of the objects delivered and saw that it was listed as ''important materials'', which wasn''t very specific.
"Guess I''ll have to ask Mr. Schneider about it¡"
For the time being he instructed the drones to carry the the container into the storage room.
When his job was almost done he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. A message from Shizuru arrived asking if he''d be there for dinner. Sending a confirmation he quickly finished everything he needed to do and headed for the usual meeting spot.
Soon enough he was able to spot Shizuru, however the next next moment he couldn''t help but grimace seeing who was there with her.
"Hi there! Sam!" Elina said with a bright smile.
"What are you doing here?" As he asked the question, Sam nced at Shizuru and saw the smile stered on her face. He could tell it wasn''t the usual radiant smile he was used to but a fake one that hid an significant amount of rage behind it.
"I was waiting for you, obviously." Elina said. "And then I just so happened to run into this very nice woman here who said you''d pass by here any time now."
"So it''s all a coincidence?" Sam said, looking at the female scientist with half lid eyes.
"Hm? What do you mean?" Elina looked genuinely confused.
"Doctar~" Shizuru spoke, her voice sounding colder than usual. "May I know why I''m hearing rumors about you dragging one of the visitors to your room?"
"Um¡ uh¡"
"Oooh! So you two know each other?" It took her a couple of seconds to connect the dots and when she did Elina''s eyes went wide as she turned to Shizuru. "It can''t be¡ the new girlfriend?"
"... yes¡" Sam said with a sigh.
His mind was in quite the mess after all the things he heard today so he didn''t even stop to consider the consequences of what his ex did this morning.
"I-I-I-I see! So you''re his new girlfriend!" Elina entered full panic mode. "M-m-my name is Elina Braiens! S-Sam and I u-used t-to date a while ago¡"
"Why are you stuttering so much?"
"Is that so?" Shizuru replied, still wearing the same terrifying smile. "I''m Shizuru Kurokami, Doctor''s current girlfriend." Turning to Sam she asked a question. "Don''t you think it would''ve been for the best if you informed me that your ex is here to visit?"
"Well, it''s not like I knew she ising." Sam replied, slowly averting his gaze.
"And taking her to your room the moment you were left on your own. I guess you still have some lingering feelings, hm?"
"Not really." Sam replied instantly.
"Wha- That''s harsh!" Elina got over her nervousness almost immediately. "So you forgot about me just like that!?"
"Yep. Just like that." Sam replied, his voiceking any kind of emotion.
"How terrible¡" Elina said. "So I was just a piece of meat to you? You never had any feelings for me!?"
"Elina, just drop it already." Sam sighed. "You should''ve known how it would end from the get go. Stop wasting your time and move on."
"Move on, you say!? You make it sound so easy for someone who''s still in love with his childhood crush to this day."
"Hmmmm¡ sounds very interesting." Shizuru said. "I would love to hear more. How about you join us for dinner?"
"Eh!? S-sure¡"
Sam nced at Shizuru asking her what''s she nning, however she just smiled at him. The three of them went to the cafeteria got their food and sat down to eat. Only then did Shizuru start the conversation.
"So, ms. Braiens, what did you mean by he still has a crush on his childhood friend?"
"Well¡" Elina nced over at Sam, feeling a little guilty all of a sudden.
Of course the Asian girl already knows everything, because of that Sam didn''t understand why she is bothering with such questions.
"I-it''s nothing important." Said Elina with a nervous smile. "Don''t let it bother you."
"Is that so¡ then-" pausing for a moment, Shizuru followed with another question. "How about you, Ms. Braiens? It seems you still have some feelings for Doctor."
"... Well, it''s kinda difficult to forget¡"
Sam wanted to get the hell out of that ce immediate, however he had nowhere to run.
''Hey, Elina, why are you blushing like that?'' Sam thought, doing his best to not look at his ex.
"How was he like when you were dating?" Shizuru went on with the questions.
"Hm¡ let''s see¡" Elina gave her answer after thinking for a moment. "He was always focused, and ambitious. Sometimes he would spend days in theb without eating or sleeping."
"I guess that part didn''t change¡" Shizuru remarked.
"I really enjoyed working alongside him." Elina said. "I had no doubt that one day he would rise to the top of the scientificmunity, but one day he just decided to leave it all ande here."
"I still continued my research, you know." Sam said. "Don''t talk as if I abandoned it."
"Yes, I''ve seen the papers. I''m impressed that you''ve managed to find a way to stabilize the nucleotides while tearing them apart. At this rate gicreprogramming isn''t that unrealistic of a dream."
"No, it''s still impossible. Keep in mind that we have yet to prove if any of the things I came up with could work."
ording to Wolf Sam''s research was so close to his own that it was difficult to believe they came up with it separately. If that''s really the case then there was no need for Sam to bother with practical trials since the old man had already proved its effectiveness whi he cured Alice.
''That said¡'' thinking back to the second task Wolf had left him with, Sam let out a sigh. ''Turning humans into Valkyries, huh¡''
Theoretically it''s doable, however Sam wasn''t so sure that he would be able to. Using his nano machines transnt rejection wouldn''t be a problem, however he didn''t know how far they could go before the brain itself would stop functioning.
''This isn''t as simple as recing organs with artificial ones.'' As he brought his spoon to his mouth, Sam ran several calctions through his mind starting to work on the task without even realizing it.
"So, how did you two meet?" Shizuru asked. "Or would it be better if I asked how you got together?"
"Well, we just hooked up while workingte one night." Elina replied. "I had feelings for him before then but I never acted on them, but after that night i was unable to take him out of my mind so i decided to shoot my shot."
By this point Sam was so deep into his own thoughts that he had filtered out all the noise from his surroundings. Noticing that he was on auto pilot Elina leaned in and informed Shizuru in a quiet voice.
"I see¡" the Asian girl said. "So this is him when working¡"
"It''s better to not interrupt him when he goes like this." Said Elina.
"I''m afraid I already did¡"
Sam made a habit of ignoring his surrounding whenever he was in deep thought, not just while he''s working. Though since she didn''t know that Shizuru thought that she had been a nuisance since she shook him out of this state many times already.
~¡ó~
"Shit, to think I''ve spaced out for that long¡" Sam grumbled as he made his way to his room.
As he was busy brainstorming over the stuff Wolf had dropped over him, his girlfriend and ex seemed to have bonded while talking about him. At some point they decided to just leave him there and he didn''t notice that they were gone until it was time for the cafeteria to close. When he checked his phone he found a message from Shizuru saying she would be spending the night with Elina so they could talk a little more.
He was happy that the two of them seemed to get along however he still had a very bad feeling about the nature of their rtionship.
''I hope Elina doesn''t say anything stupid.'' He sighed, opening the door to his room.
''Hm? Did I leave the lights on?''
Usually the room would be dark until hestepped inside, after which the lights would turn ou by themselves. However they were on right now even though he was still standing outside.
''Did Alice decide to stop by?''
All of a sudden Sam felt the need to be on high alert. Alice was the only one beside him who''s able to unlock the door to his room, however the two had agreed that they would only meet in her room going forward, and even if she decided to do things differently she would''ve asked for his opinion first.
''Maybe I should just get out of here.''
With that thought in mind Sam walked inside with careful steps, keeping the door open just in case he needed to run. He looked around to see if anything was moving or missing, however what he found only served to add to his confusion.
On the floor beside his bed were a bunch of clothesying around, the next moment he heard the sound of watering from the bathroom.
"I''m back!"
Sam let out a sigh, his shoulders slumping as he realized it was just his white haired lover. He went in and began picking up the clothes waiting for a reply, however the water only stopped and no answer came from the bathroom.
"Can you please stop throwing your clothes around?" Sam said, picking a white piece of cloth that appears to be a handkerchief. "Well, if doesn''t really matter as long as you pick them up yourself."
Just then the door opened and his head automatically turned in its direction.
He was expecting to see the white haired beauty,ing out in her birthday suit to surprise him, however what he saw wasn''t the beautiful figure of his childhood friend. One could argue it was beautiful, however it was severelycking, a bit small and underdeveloped,cking the curves that came with a mature body such as Alice''s.
Golden hair wed behind it, still damp with the weather from the shower. Sharp blue eyes turned to stare at him, their fierceness sending a chill down his spine.
It was a Valkyrie, the same one who had interrupted his conversation with Elina earlier that day.
As he stared at her naked body in pure terror, the young Valkyrie reached out with her right hand spoke.
"Do you mind returning that?"
Chapter 84 You Cant?
Seeing the naked Valkyrieing out of the shower threw Sam into panic mode. ''How did she get in? Why is she here? Is it about what Elina said? Am I in danger? Valkyries aren''t supposed to be able to hurt us so¡''
Questions ran through his mind one after the other and it didn''t help that the blond one was walking toward him. He backed away one step only to trip and fall on the bed scattering the clothes he had just picked. Lifting himself up he found her standing in front of him, her right hand extended.
"Do you mind returning that?"
It took him a while to realize she was pointing at the white cloth he held in his palm. Still shaking he extended his arm and gave her what she asked for, however what happened the next moment shocked him even more.
Spreading the piece of cloth, the Valkyrie leaned down and lifted one of her legs sliding it though one of the holes. She did the same with the second then pulled it up all the way to her slender hips. It was only then that Sam realized that it wasn''t a handkerchief he holding on but a pure white panty.
"I forgot to pack a change so this is the only one I have." The Valkyrie said, continuing to wipe her golden locks.
"... You are¡" Sam began.
"Miku." She said, turning away from him. "You forgot to close the door."
"A-ah, yeah¡"
ncing at him from over her shoulder, the strange Valkyrie walked back into the bathroom. Sam was lost at what to do. For now he decided to make a run for it. He realized that there is nowhere for him to go, however staying there wasn''t an option.
Getting up he slowly made his way to the door, careful not to make a sound. He was about to make it out when he heard the Valkyrie''s voiceing from behind him.
"Where are you going?"
Sam froze in his ce, his neck creaking as he slowly turned in the bathroom''s direction.
"Well, I was just checking if I entered the wrong room¡"
His ID card opened the door so it is obvious that he was in the right room, still he had to make up some excuse so he could run away.
"You''re in the right room." The young, blond Valkyrie said. She had put on a shirt that went down below her important ce, however it didn''t seem like she wore anything beside the underwear from before so Sam was struggling to look at her.
''Why did she have to be so cute¡?'' Sam thought as he gritted his teeth in frustration. ''I can''t even get scared properly!''
Closing the door, Sam turned around to face the strange Valkyrie.
"So¡ your name is Miku?"
"Yes." She replied with a nod.
Sam found the name a bit strange since all the Valkyries he knew so far had only numbers in their names, but when he thought about it Wolf had addressed another one of the Valkyries apanying him by Nana so he concluded that he had given each of them names.
"How long do you n on standing there?"
Sam almost jumped in his ce when she asked him that question. Her tone was as calm as before, however that didn''t stop it from being threatening.
Miku walked with slow steps then sat on the bedside. An awkward silence filled the room. Sam was still standing by the door trying to keep as much distance between him and the intruder as possible, however he couldn''t stay calm, deciding to strike a conversation to learn more about her objective.
"So¡ Miku¡"
"Yes?"
"Mind if I ask what you''re doing in my room?"
Maybe that was way too direct. Still it was the obvious question to ask. One doesn''t just infiltrate other people''s rooms without a reason.
"I hate the rooms they gave us so..." The Valkyrie named Miku spoke, her tone indifferent. "I''ll sleep here tonight."
"I¡ see¡"
Her answer only worked to confuse Sam even more, but before he could say anything else she asked him again.
"How long do you n on standing there?"
"Ah! Yes, sorry about that." cing his hand on the door handle he proceeded to open it. "Then, enjoy your stay. I''ll go find somewhere else to-"
The door was suddenly mmed shut. Sam slowly twisted his head to look at it, and lo and behold the petite blond Valkyrie was there holding a hand to keep the exit closed.
"Um¡"
"Where are you going?" She asked, her expression unchanging.
"Well¡ you''ll be sleeping here so¡" Sam said, slowly backing away.
"So?"
"Shouldn''t I go somewhere else?"
"Why?"
Sam didn''t know whether he should feel scared or not. The way she tilted her head as if she was confused looked adorable, but that didn''t distract him from the fact that she''s a deadly weapon.
''It''s been a while¡'' he though, realizing it has been a while since he was afraid of the humanoid weapons.
The Valkyries named Miku stared at him for a while, then, as if realizing something important, her eyes went wide.
"Is it about the bed?" She asked, turning to look inside the room.
? "Y-yes!" Sam said, nodding. "There is only one bed so-"
"We only need one bed, right?" She interjected, still looking a little confused.
"Eh?" Once again Sam found himself freezing.
A couple of seconds pass as the two stare at each other. Letting go of the door the petite blond Valkyrie walked back into the room.
"You can take a shower if you want." She said. "I''ll wait for you."
Sam''s tired brain worked extra hard to try and understand the situation he was in, however to no avail.
''Was she sent to keep an eye on me?'' He thought ''is that why she''s trying to keep me here?''
"Um¡ Miku¡" Sam spoke, trying to confirm one of his suspicions. "When you said we only need one bed did you mean that¡" gulping audibly he forced the next words out. "We''re going to share it?"
Otherwise one of them would have to sleep on the floor. It would be funny if she asked him to do that, or so he thought at least. Invading his room then forcing him to sleep on the floor, the situation would be way too bizarre to not make himugh.
"You have been acting strange for sometime now." Miku asked. "Don''t tell me¡ is this the first time you had a Valkyrie over?"
"Well, isn''t that obvious?"
Sam''s reply seemed to surprise Miku as she took a step back looking at him with wide eyes.
"Oh! Then it''s the other way around." She said, pping her hands in realization. "You''re the one who goes to their room!"
"W-what are you talking about?" Sam didn''t like where this conversation was going. "Why would I go to their rooms?"
Putting two and two together would make it seem as if she thinks that he''s used to sleeping with the Valkyries, but Sam didn''t want to believe that''s what she''s alluding to.
"Eh? I mean¡" holding a hand to her chin as she thought, the petite Valkyrie looked at him with visible confusion. "Where else would you do it?"
Sam was afraid to ask, however the question came out on its own.
"Do what?"
The answer seemed to stab him right in the gut.
"Have sex." Miku said. "You do it with your Valkyries all the time, right?"
Silence returned to the room. Sam continued to stare at the petite blond Valkyrie, his brain struggling to process the word that came out of her mouth. After a couple of seconds he was hit with a wave of panic and his mind could only think of one question.
''She knows!!!?''
Sam felt his soul leaving his body, but before he copsed to the floor he noticed something important.
''That''s right!'' He thought to himself. ''I have yet to do it so¡''
Sam did many things to the Valkyries, however he has yet to have sex with any of them. He fondled their bodies, sucked their tits and made them give him blow jobs, however he has yet to cross the line with any of them.
The way Miku spoke makes it clear she''s talking about full intercourse. She also sounded surprised about him not going to any of the Valkyries'' rooms or bringing them to his.
''She''s only assuming that we''re doing it.'' Sam let out a sigh of relief. His eyes then shifted to the petite Valkyrie, a different kind of stress hitting him. ''But¡ if that''s the case, could it be¡''
"Um¡ Miku¡" Sam spoke, afraid to confirm the conclusion he had arrived to just now. "You know that we aren''t allowed to touch the Valkyries, right?"
"Yes." She replied almost immediately. "And?"
"Well, not touching them also means we can''t do it with them. Do you understand?"
It took her a few seconds, but once she understood light left her dark blue eyes as she looked up at him, this time however her stoic expressionless mask melted giving way to a lost and disillusioned look to appear on her pale face.
"Um¡ Miku¡ what made you think that I''m¡ that I''m having sex with our Valkyries?"
staring at him for a few seconds, the Valkyrie gasped as if she remembered something.
"That''s right! The book!" She said, turning around and rushing to the bathroom.
"The book?" Sam echoed with a raised eyebrow.
A momentter she came back holding what looked like a small paperback in her hands.
"The male character in this book does it with his Valkyries all the time!" She said, walking over to where he stood and lifting the book for him to see. "Why can he do it, but you can''t?"
Sam didn''t hear Miku''sst question. No, he did hear it, however his mind was too busy trying toprehend what it is he was looking at that he couldn''t bother to pay attention to the strange Valkyrie.
''It can''t be¡''
The Valkyries are famous idols with unrealistic beauty and many fantasized about doing the deed with them. It wasn''t strange for those fantasies to take the form of artworks, stories and fanfics shared around with people of simr interest.
Sam was somewhat familiar with such stories, however if they just so happen to get mentioned in front of him only one book woulde to mind the title of which he was seeing on the one held in front of him right now.
''Valkyrie¡ Smash...''
-. .- -. .- / .. ... / ... . ...- . -. / .. -. / .--- .- .--. .- -. . ... . .-.-.- / -- .. -.- ..- / .. ... / - .... .-. . . / .- -. -.. / -. .. -. . .-.-.-
Chapter 85 Close Your Eyes.
"Can I have that for a moment?" Sam snatched the book without waiting for permission.
"Wha-"
As he stared at the book cover Sam filtered out the blond Valkyrie''s voice, walking inside and taking a seat on the bedside.
''Is this another version?'' Sam thought. ''No¡ this is apletely different story¡''
Having read through the first page he was soon convinced that what he held was apletely different book.
At first the only difference seemed to be the color of the cover, however now that it became clear that they contain different stories the obvious question would be whether they have the same codes or not.
Sam began to read through the contents, paying attention to anything that might resemble a hidden code.
The writing style was the same with ack of editing that hurts the eyes and the story did little topensate for that. There were three heroines this time, unlike the first book however they were from Zero Three''s generation, which meant petite girls with young features.
The main character was different as well, being a scientist responsible for taking care of the three weapons. Someone like Sam, in other words. The story starts with the three Valkyries inviting him to y with them and as they gradually get closer he begins to teach them sexual stuff little by little until they start having foursomes on a regr basis.
Before he knew it Sam was already staring at thest page of the book. Despite hisints, it was refreshing and easy to read which let him breeze through it in less than an hour. He also managed to catch the subtle hints here, and if his memory serves him right the code was different from the one ge solved thest time.
"Heeeey!!! Are you done yet?"
Hearing the Valkyrie''s voice in his ear brought Sam back to reality. He moved away a little, noticing that she was leaning dangerously close to him and the moment their eyes met his mind began to work at full capacity to get a better understanding of the situation.
"Miku, do you mind if I ask where did you find this book?"
The dark blue eyes went down for a moment as she thought her answer before looking up at him again.
"I found it in a storage room." She said. "It was in a box full of books. I think it used to belong to general Schneider."
"I¡ see¡"
Just then Sam remembered Alice mentioning that her father had several books simr to the one he had.
''Is this one of them?''
Sam held his chin in thought. Soon enough his mind was filled with more questions and he turned to the Valkyrie looking for answers.
"So, Miku, is this book the reason you thought I''m having sex with our Valkyries?"
"Yes." She answered with a nod.
"Does anyone know about it?" Sam went on. "I mean, did you show the book to anyone?"
"No." She shook her head and added. "I noticed that people don''t usually talk about the things that happen in it so I decided to keep it a secret."
''Good¡'' Sam closed his eyes and let out a sigh of relief, however his next question was ready and he felt a bit nervous all of a sudden.
"Correct me if I''m wrong." He said, clearing his throat with a cough. "You decided toe here after reading this book, right?"
"Yes."
"Does that mean you were hoping we would do the things they did in it?"
As he read the book Sam had realized that one of the "scenes" was strangely simr to how the current situation started. The main characteres back to his room to find one of the heroines waiting for him there. They have a little talk which ends with them making out then getting it on the entire night.
"Yes."
Miku answered without hesitation, her expression as deadpan as before. Sam stared at her for a moment, letting out a long sigh.
''Is this a trap of some sorts?''
He couldn''t believe the situation was that simple.
"So, let me get this straight." Holding up the book he tried to summarize his thought. "You found this book and after reading it you felt like trying the things the characters did, that''s why you sneaked into my room."
"Yes." Miku answered, her expression unchanging.
Sam let out another long tired sigh.
''What the hell¡?''
"So¡ you want to have sex with me?" He asked.
"Yes." Miku answered.
He couldn''t help but stare at her after she gave that answer. The situation was way too bizarre to be true, it felt like a prank of some sorts. He began to wonder if people will pop up at any moment tough at him for getting flustered by the young looking Valkyrie.
"... Why?" Sam asked after a while. "Why did you choose me specifically?"
Casting her eyes down for a few seconds, the petite Valkyrie then answered.
"I heard our doctor talk about you once. She said you were the best at it."
"I¡ see¡ and who is this doctor of yours?"
"Elina Braiens."
''Elina!!!!''
Sam wanted to Im his head in the wall. Though he had already moved on after breaking up with her, his ex has yet to do the same. Apparently she still sometimes talk about him with her coworkers, making sure to mention how good in bed he was and how she can''t get over him.
''Seriously, I just can''t¡''
It was one long day with one suddenly revtion after the other. First Alice''s father decides to visit and he brings with him the heart of a Valkyrie and tells him that humanity is done for and that he has to find a way to turn them into robots. Then there is what Elina said about her findings while trying to dig some dirt on Alice.
And as if that wasn''t enough he now had a Valkyrie who came all the way from the headquarte just to have sex with him.
''My head is about to explode¡''
Sam felt an annoying headache every time he tries to think. He wanted to sleep and leave everything for the next day, however he knew it would be difficult to do so.
"Hey¡" tugging on his sleeve the Valkyrie asked him a question. "When you said you weren''t allowed to have sex with us, were you telling the truth?"
ncing beside him Sam noticed that the Valkyrie''s expression had changed a little. She looked anxious, even if a little. Seeing the way she gazed up at him was a reminder of how cute she was and remembering the contents of the book he had just read his wood went stiff all of a sudden.
''Damn it¡ this isn''t good¡''
The situation was so confusing. Sam knew that it would take quite some time for him to sort out his thought and decide on the best course of action, however he didn''t have much time.
Wolf would be returning to the headquarters the next morning and he would obviously take her back with him. That means it will be quite a while before he gets a chance at making her his.
But the alternative came with a lot of problems as well. If he did anything to her right now it would be the end for him as he wouldn''t be able to erase the evidence like he usually does. Still, he couldn''t help but want to risk it.
Miku was just that cute. At first she looked to be the same calm type as Zero Five, however unlike the ponytailed Valkyrie she doesn''t seem to be hiding her true emotions behind a mask which makes herck of expression especially endearing.
''I wonder how she would look when doing it¡''
Clearing his thoughts Sam began to fantasize and as he did his mind worked on some excuse he could use to convince himself.
''Well, the world is about to end anyways so¡''
If what Wolf had said was true then Sam had no reason to hold back. Facing the Valkyrie beside him he took a deep breath and calmed himself.
"Miku, close your eyes."
She looked confused for a moment but then her eyes went wide. Sam was sure she is aware of what he''s trying to do since she read the book as well so when she closed her eyes and puckered her lips it was clear that she is giving him her permission.
Still a bit hesitant, Sam leaned in bringing his face closer to the Valkyrie''s then, praying that he isn''t making a really big mistake, he ced his mouth on hers.
"... so¡ this is a kiss¡" Miku said, toughing her lips as her cheeks began to redden.
"How did it feel?" Sam asked, keeping an ear on his surroundings trying to see if anything has changed.
"I¡ don''t know¡" she replied, looking up at him, however the moment their eyes met she quickly turned away.
Noticing her reaction the red color spreading to her ears Sam realized that he had already seeded.
With nothing happening even after what he did Sam began to think that it wasn''t all just a trap. He lifted his hand and touched her cheek, slowly turning her his way. As she shyly looked up at him he kissed her again, this time going at it a little longer than the previous time.
"Miku, you want to have sex with me, right?" Sam asked, gently caressing her golden locks.
The Valkyrie said nothing and only nodded.
"Then, from now on¡" leaning in for another kiss, Sam spoke in a low voice. "You''ll have to do everything I say from now on, understand?"
Chapter 86 Orders.
As they kissed, Sam slowly pulled Miku into his embrace. She was as light as a feather, he barely felt her weight as she sat on hisp. He ran his fingers through her golden hair and felt its silkiness. Her body was smaller than that of Shizuru. It felt strangely frail and delicate, even though she''s supposed to be one of humanity strongest weapons.
''I wonder if Zero Three feels like this as well¡''
While making out with young Valkyrie, Sam''s mind inevitably began to picture the other one he was familiar with. He was getting along with her pretty well,pared to before at least. After getting together with Alice and Shizuru he no longer felt the rush to do all three Valkyries so he has been pushing Three to the back of his mind for now.
''Maybe I should make a move on her as well¡''
Sam felt the Valkyrie''s hands pushing against him so even though he was reluctant to let go of her lips he decided it was time to let her catch her breath.
"Ha~h¡"
Miku exhaled, her face now a blushing mess. Their eyes met for a moment but she quickly gazed away.
"You''re so cute, Miku¡" Sam said, slowly caressing her head.
"Um¡ thanks¡" the Valkyrie replied, looking at him from the corner of her eyes.
"Is something wrong?" Sam asked.
"Well¡ I''m used to people callingme cute, but¡" holding a hand to her chest, the Valkyrie shed him a small smile. "When you say it I feel strangely happy¡"
"I see¡ then¡" pulling her in for another kiss, Sam said before joining their lips again. "I will say it as many times as you want¡"
In his heart Sam thanked Odin for leaving him with this gift. Miku was another exceptional beauty who would definitely make his life more fulfilling.
If he had the time he would''ve liked to take things slowly with her, teach her one things after the other just like what happened in the book. However with her leaving tomorrow he was left with only two choices; go all the way right now or wait till he moves to the headquarters where he would have all the time in the world.
Sadly it seems that someone else made that choice for him.
"Hm?"
Loud beeping sounds came from his pocketpletely ruining the mood. The two stopped kissing and Sam quickly took out his phone to read the message that had arrived.
[One of the Valkyries apanying father is missing. Do you know anything?]
Realizing it''s Alice, Sam couldn''t help but grimace.
"It seems we are out of time." He said, turning to the Valkyrie with a wry smile.
"I¡ see¡"
Miku exhaled, looking strangely relieved. noticing that Sam pretended to frown.
"What? Are you that happy we''re going to stop?"
"Eh? N-no!" Miku quickly shook her head. "It''s just¡" casting her eyes down for a moment, she then looked up at him, eyes wide with realization. "The book! They only kissed when they met in secret for the first time, right?"
"... yes." Sam nodded, concluding from the way she was blushing that she was too embarrassed to do anything beyond that.
''Seriously, she''s so cute¡''
Sam stole one more kiss from the young Valkyrie causing her to overoverheat. He then ced her down and began working on a reply for Alice.
[I was about to contact you. You''re looking for the small one with the blond hair, right? I found her in my room when I returned just now.]
''Come to think of it¡''
"By the way, the door was locked, right?" Sam asked. "How did you get in here?"
His question seemed to bring the Valkyrie back to her senses, even if by just a little. She struggled to speak, still unable to keep eye contact. Looking at him with upturned eyes she gave him her answer.
"The window¡" she said. "It was left open¡"
Sam turned to the only window in his room. He never expected anyone to sneak in through it, after all they''re in the third story. The Valkyries were a special case though so she would''ve made it in one way or another.
Hearing the beeping sound again he turned to his phone.
[Father apologizes for the inconvenience. Someone wille to take her so wait just a little.]
Having expected such a reply Sam turned the the young Valkyrie and asked her to prepare herself. As she put on her uniform he decided to confirm a few things with her just in case.
"Miku, if you don''t mind I would like to keep this for now." He said, holding up the second copy of Valkyrie Smash. "Also, remember that you can never tell anyone about what happened today, understand?"
"Understood." Miku nodded, clenching her fists with eyes full of determination. "We have to keep it a secret just like in the book, right?"
"Yes." Sam said with a nod. "And one more thing. This is something the book doesn''t say, but now that we have kissed you have be my own personal Valkyrie and you have to follow my orders going forward."
"I¡ see¡"
The petite blond Valkyrie seemed a bit confused, which scared Sam quite a bit making him think he has yet to conquer her properly.
"But¡ wouldn''t that be a problem?" She asked, further fueling his anxiety.
"Why would you think that?" Sam asked, smiling nervously.
"I mean¡ I''m still under the general''s jurisdiction, and I will be returning to the headquarters tomorrow¡" Looking down at her feet, an air of sadness began to envelop Miku. "Since I''m your personal Valkyrie, wouldn''t it be bad for me to follow the orders of other people?"
Having processed her question and understood her worries, Sam sighed in relief. Turns out he was sessful in bing her master and thankfully it only took him one kiss.
That said, what''s troubling her is a serious matter that required careful consideration. Unlike Nine, Zero Five and Zero Three, Miku wasn''t his responsibility which would limit their interactions and increase the risk of him being discovered. In fact once he moves to the headquarters he most likely would have very few chances to see the Valkyries as he''s doing right now.
''This is troublesome¡''
Having one more thing to think about, Sam felt that his head is about to explode. However he didn''t have the time toe with a more solid n at the moment so he his only choice was to take some temporary measures while he looks for a better solution.
"Listen very well, Miku." Sam spoke, doing his best to convey his seriousness. "These will be my orders for you for the time being."
Hearing those words, the red color disappeared from the petite Valkyrie''s face as she straightened her back and listened attentively.
"You will be going undercover in the headquarters to gather information in preparation for when I arrive there." Pausing for a breath, Sam went on. "Continue to perform your duties and follow orders as you''ve done so far so no one would discover that you''re now mine. If anything seems out of the ordinary you have to report it to me. And if you ever find yourself in a hopeless battle always prioritize your own safety, understand?"
Pausing for a moment, the Valkyrie nodded her head and saluted.
"Understood!"
As if on cue the doorbell rang. Sam quickly walked over and opened it, taking a step back when he found himself face to face with another Valkyrie. It was the silver haired one named Nana. The way she red at him seemed to say that she knew everything, but apparently the one causing her to frown was standing right behind him having brough her bag from the bathroom and put her shoes on.
"Miku, just what in the world were you thinking, bothering our hosts like that?" Nana asked, her annoyance clear in her voice.
"I thought it would be okay to spend the night here¡" said the young Valkyrie, pouting her cheeks a little.
"And where would the Doctor sleep if you''re upying his bed? You shouldn''t be here in the first ce, do you understand?"
"... Yes¡"
With a sad expression on her face, Miku walked out of the door.
"We apologize for the trouble we have caused you." Nana said, bowing her head a little.
"No need." Sam replied with a smile. "It was a surprise but I wouldn''t call it troubling."
"... I see." Exhaling in relief, the silver haired Valkyrie turned around. "Well then, I wish you a good night."
As the two walked away Sam''s mind began to work again. It was one of the longest days he had so far, leaving him with quite a lot to think about.
Elina confused him with what she learned through her little investigation. While he considered giving that matter some serious thought, the news of humanity''s inevitable demise brought by one of the military''s top seemed much more concerning.
Wolf had asked him to elevate humanity to the next level in order for them to survive, however something like that wouldn''t be easy to aplish, otherwise the old man would''ve already done it himself.
''Well, I will leave everything for tomorrow.''
As he turned around to his room struggling to keep his eyes open, Sam noticed that the two Valkyries had stopped a small distance Dow the corridor. The petite one turned around and walked back toward him in hurried steps.
''Did she forget something?'' He thought at first, but seeing the slight blush on her cheeks told him that it might be something else.
When she arrived in front of him she nced behind her to see where the other Valkyrie was then quickly pulled him inside the room.
"Did you forget something?" Sam asked.
"No¡" Miku replied, shaking her head left and right.
She tugged on his sleeve asking him to lean toward her a little, she then held a hand to cover her mouth and whispered.
"We didn''t have sex yet but I still feel like I should say it." As she spoke in a hushed voice, Sam could never have expected the next words toe out of her mouth. "I love you."
Sam froze in his ce, his eyes slowly going wide. Miku took the opportunity to kiss him on the cheek then quickly walked out and left him there.
She is a Valkyrie and he is her master. Sam understood that her programming dictated that she must treat him a certain way. However when he heard those wordsing from what everyone including him believed to be a lifeless robot, something inside his seemed to break and shatter.
Chapter 87 Fear. (Part One)
''... huh?... where am I?''
The world was painted red. The sky was the color of blood and the ground was covered in molten rock.
Looking from above, the scene looked like it''s the end of the world.
''Isn''t this¡''
[New enemy spotted! Prepare fo-]
Hearing the voice that was suddenly cut, hear eyes opened as she remembered where she was.
[... R6¡]
Another voice reached her ear.
''... no¡'' she thought. ''Don''t look¡''
Though she tried not to, her head moved on its own pointing her in a certain direction. Her eyes refused to close forcing her to watch as that thing erased one of rherpanions.
"I would say an eye for an eye but¡ We are enemies, right? Killing each other is what we do."
She couldn''t see it''s face for some reason, however it''s lips were visible, spilling those words before curling up into a sinister smile. Watching it brought nothing but terror.
"So? Who wants to die next?"
The enemy disappeared. The next thing she heard was another scream.
[K9!!!]
One after the other, her allies fell without as much of a resistance. Her limbs shook uncontrobly, a foreign feeling locked her movements, as if her joints were stuck.
''... no¡''
"You are thest one."
Suddenly the enemy appeared in front of her. Knowing her end was near she swung her weapon with everything she got. However the enemy barely reacted. It raised one arm, effortlessly stopping hernce without it doing any damage.
"This is the end for you."
Saying those words, the Cmity reached out with its left hand. Its pitch ck fingers slowly wrapped on her neck, their surface cold despite the nuclear disaster in the surroundings.
''... no¡''
As she felt them slowly press on her she tried to scream again and again. The world around her began to darken and thest thing she saw were the purple lips smiling at her.
"No!!!!"
Three''s eyes snapped open and her body shot up. Her force field was charged to its maximum output as she surveyed her surroundings. After a couple of seconds she began to realize she was inside her room, however that only seemed to add her confusion.
Realizing there was no immediate danger she breathed in relief, however a momentter she noticed that her bed was destroyed. Probably because of the glowing blue barrier encasing her.
As she got up to her feet images from a what she saw in her sleep shed inside her mind. A strange sensation filled her, making her entire body grow cold.
"What''s¡ wrong with me¡" she muttered in a low voice, staring down at her shaking hands.
Valkyries weren''t humans so they had no need for something like sleep, however since they were programmed to behave like humans going to bed at night was something they had to do. Once their eyes close their core would cease most of its functions, which meant they don''t process any information of any kind, especially the visual kind.
However Zero Three was sure she saw something. Though it looked like the battle against the talking Cmity at first, the events were different from what she remembered.
The Valkyries aren''t humans. They don''t require sleep and they surely didn''t know what it''s like to dream. Zero Three had no idea that what she experienced was a nightmare and that only served to feed her fear.
~¡ó~
The next morning Sam left his apartmen with bloodshot eyes. The words Miku left him with kept him awake the entire night and even though he spent the entire time thinking in the end it got him anywhere.
He couldn''t even be happy that he got to add another Valkyrie to his collection. Hearing her confess to him like that was truly shocking as he had never experienced it before.
He already had Five and Nine but neither of them said anything about having feelings for him. Though that made him start doubting his position as their master, what worried him the most was something different entirely.
"Shit¡"
Remembering the cute blond Valkyrie from the previous night, a horrible feeling spread through Sam''s chest. She was an AI specifically created to be a virtual lover with a shell that''s designed to be as appealing as possible. Knowing that one would think that the three magic words are the first thing to be added to her vocabry, however when she whispered them into his ears an irreversible change happened inside Sam''s head.
He was no longer able to think of her as a weapon. To him, the petite Valkyrie with longgolden hair and dark blue eyes had be nothing more than a young girl.
Unlike the previous day only a few soldier had gathered to see the general off. They were mostly the division leaders in addition to him and Alice which made the number of those present less than twenty.
"It''s only a month, however one can''t possibly tell what might happen in that amount of time." Wolf spoke addressing his own daughter. His eyes seemed to drift in Sam''s direction for a short moment as he added "Make sure to keep your guard up and carry your duties properly to the very end."
"Yes." Alice replied, holding her hand to her head as she saluted. "We are grateful for your visit, general Schneider."
Wolf stared down at the white haired woman, a different expression on his face. A second of silence pass before he moved without a warning and wrapped his arms around her.
Watching the scene shocked most of those present, only the Doctor was unfazed as he saw something like thising. As he rolled his eyes with a sigh he found himself looking at Miku who was standing behind the old man along with Elina and the other Valkyries. As they exchanged nces her cheeks began to redden despite her trying to maintain a deadpan expression which made the horrible feeling in his chest grow stronger the longer he looked at her.
When he tried to avert his gaze he ended up locking eyes with Elina who seemed to jolt up for some reason before beginning to blush herself.
''What''s wrong with her?'' Sam thought, trying to distract himself from his own feelings.
"Be safe, Alice." Wolf said, bringing his emotional moment to an end.
"You too, father." Alice replied with a smile.
The two saluted at each other one more time. The old man then turned around and walked away without looking back. The engines ignited and the aircraft soon took off.
A few secondster everyone walked away leaving only Alice and Sam standing there.
"He sure didn''t change at all." Sammented.
"Yes." Alice said. "I just wish he would stop treating me like a little girl."
"That''s impossible and you know it."
"I guess you have a point."
Wolf was so much of a doting father that Alice had to fight for him to allow her to reach her current rank. He was the one who pushed for her to be themander of the forty sixth base since it was in the region with the least Cmity attacks. He was so concerned about her safety it''s actually a surprise that he''s even allowing her to stay one second out of his sight.
"I was afraid he was going to demand I go back with him." Alice let her shoulders slump for a moment as she exhaled in relief. "But I guess it doesn''t make a difference with the whole base being relocated."
"Well, it was only inevitable." Sam let out a sigh and turned around.
There is a lot of work to be done until they''re ready to depart. He on the other hand would be busy until the veryst day working on the Valkyrie''s heart the old man had given him as well as the other task he left him with.
Having skipped breakfast Sam went to the cafeteria and got himself some coffee and bread. He then went back to his room, put on hisb coat then made his way to hisb with the copy of Valkyrie Smash he had gotten from Miku the previous day.
Sitting down he ced the book in front of him and stared at it for while, however no matter how much he tried he couldn''t bring himself to open it.
The book contained a code just like the first one. Knowing what he had discovered from solving itst time he was sure that the secret this one leads to is something big as well, however for some reason he no longer felt excited about solving it.
As he continued to stare at the small paperback minutes passed and soon it became hours. After a while he noticed that his eyelids had gotten too heavy so he decided to take a short nap, however a momentter the door slid open and a familiar face barged inside.
"Five?" Sam spoke the Valkyries name, taking his sses off and slowly rubbing his tired eyes.
"Doctor¡"
She seemed to be short of breath and from her anxious expression Sam got a feeling that whatever made her brought her there it can''t possibly be anything good.
Taking a second to catch her breath the ponytailed Valkyrie looked him in the eyes.
"It''s Three¡ she¡"
Chapter 88 Fear. (Part Two)
Sam followed Zero Five to the Valkyries'' quarters. Arriving at the second floor he soon spotted Nine standing in front of the sor to Zero Three''s room.
"Doctor!" The blond Valkyrie''s expression rxed the moment her eyes fell on him.
"Five has told me everything." He said, turning to face the door.
When the young Valkyrie didn''t show up for breakfast that morning her tworades thought something was off, however remembering thest time that happened, Nine guessed that she might''ve went to eat with Sam and his coworkers.
That said, when she didn''t return by the time they usually start preparing for their patrol the two decided to look for her. Only then did they realize she had locked herself up in her room.
''I have a really bad feeling about this¡'' as he thought that to himself, Sam lifted his hand and knocked on the young Valkyrie''s door.
"Zero Three, it''s me¡" he said. "Is everything okay?"
There was a long moment of silence that followed his question, but then a response came with a barely audible voice.
"Leave me alone."
Just from the tone Sam was able to tell she was in quite the emotional state. Normally he wouldn''t have thought much of it, however after what happened with Miku he felt that he could no longer treat something like this lightly.
''Now¡ how am I suppose to handle this¡?''
Sam let out a long sigh, taking off his sses and rubbing the bridge of his nose. He was rather tired at the moment however he couldn''t afford to be careless about this situation.
After thinking it through for a while he faced the door once more and asked a question.
"Three, you don''t want to go patrolling today?"
A moment of silence pass, however this time there was no response. Sam waited for a few more seconds before turning to the other Valkyries.
"You two will have to handle today on your own." He said. "Stay away from the red grounds and contact the base if you spot any Cmities."
Nine and Five didn''t seem too sure about his order but after a second of indecisiveness they nodded silently and left to take care of their job.
Sam waited a couple of minutes after they were gone before attempting to talk to Zero Three once more.
"Nine and Five have left, you know¡" he said, but no response was offered.
Waiting for a few more seconds he took out his ID and looked at it for a moment before sliding it on the terminal beside the door.
He didn''t want to force his way in but he had no other choice. That said, he never knew how unprepared he was for what he saw inside.
Three was hugging her knees in a corner. Her bed was a mess, the frame broken and half of the mattress gone. The plushies she had were damaged as well, which for some reason came as surprise more than anything else.
"... how did you¡"
Hearing a weak voice Sam turned to the Valkyrie in the corner.
"I''m your supervisor now, remember?" He said. "It would be a problem if I couldn''t get to you in a situation like this."
"... just¡" pausing for a moment, the young Valkyrie went back to burying her face in her knees. "Leave me alone."
Seeing her like that was somewhat disturbing, however Sam tried to keep his calm, scratching the back if his head while hiding his anxiety.
Knowing that her personality was programmed to be around teenage years he began to wonder if that has something to do with it, however he found it difficult to believe that a rebellious phase would cause her to destroy her own bed like that.
After taking some time to think about his next action, Sam closed the door behind him then walked over to the young Valkyrie and without waiting for her permission he sat down right beside her.
Three raised her head and stared at him for a moment. Her eyes seemed a bit tired, hidden behind her long almond colored bangs. After he made himselffortable she decided to move away putting a little distance between them. Afraid of making her more ufortable Sam decided to stay in his ce allowing a few seconds to pass before speaking again.
"So¡ what happened?" He asked, getting straight to the topic.
Zero Three didn''t respond, contuing to stare at empty air with her arms wrapped around her knees.
"You know, strange behavior like this can reflect badly on you¡"
Still no response. Sam searched for something to say, however his tired mind was having troubleing up with anything. The silence continued for a while but then the young Valkyrie spoke, though she didn''t answer his question orment of his previous remark.
"Nine and Five went out, huh?" She said, her voice a little hushed.
"Well, there is nothing to worry about." Sam said. "It ''s not like we can''t afford not taking a day or two off."
Things have been peaceful ever since the talking Cmity appeared, and with the headquarters deciding to abandon this part of the frontline there was no point in continuing with the patrol. From now on the only reason for them to go out would be protocol, meaning there is no problem in one of them staying behind.
The question is why did she decide to not go all of a sudden? What Zero Three did was defying orders and neglecting her duty, which should be impossible for a Valkyrie.
''It''s impossible, unless¡''
"I¡ I couldn''t fall asleep¡" after a silent couple of minutes the young Valkyrie decided to talk. "Every time¡ I close my eyes¡"
Her nails dug into her skin as she tried to get the words out. Sam wanted to say she doesn''t have to if she doesn''t feel like it, however he couldn''t afford that. He needed to learn what the problem was if he wanted to find a solution for it.
Gritting her teeth in frustration, Zero Three then took a deep breath doing her best to calm down.
"I keep seeing it¡ The talking Cmity. It keeps appearing and¡ it destroys everyone and¡" as she spoke, tears began rolling down her cheeks. "And in the end it¡ it grabs my neck and¡"
Before she could say thest word the young Valkyrie felt her whole body moving. Sam had reached out with both hands and quickly pulled her into his embrace, only realizing that he did so when he was already hugging her.
"... it''s okay¡" he said, still confused by his own actions. "You''re safe now. No one will ever hurt you."
Three was stunned at first, not understanding what was going on. Her first reaction should''ve been to push him away, however as he tightly wrapped her in his arm she felt strangely at ease to the point that, for just a moment, she honestly believed that no harm would befall her as long as she was in his hands.
Grasping his shirt, she stopped fighting the tears and let it all out.
"I¡ I don''t want to do it anymore, Doctor!" The strange sense of security eased her fears, because of that she couldn''t help but voice some of the thoughts she knew she couldn''t say in front of the others. "I don''t want to fight the Cmities! I don''t¡ I don''t want to get destroyed! I was able to open my eyes thest time I got hurt but¡ who knows if that would happen the next time? What if I got damaged so badly that you wouldn''t be able to repair me anymore?"
As he listened to her wails, Sam''s whole body shook with terror. He ran the words through his mind again and again, each time arriving to the same conclusion. It was impossible to deny it at this point.
The Valkyries were made with the ability to analyze their surroundings and choose the right emotion to emte in response to the situation they''re in, however some emotions were restricted to make sure they''re able to perform their role as weapons.
Fear is a necessary emotion, it''s directly tied to life itself. Every living creature fears it''s own death, that''s what fuels its desire to live and survive.
Valkyries aren''t supposed to feel fear. They aren''t supposed to worry about what happens to them when they get destroyed, otherwise they wouldn''t be able to fight. The fact that she considered such scenario and is unwilling to put herself in a position that would lead to it could only mean one thing.
She is no longer a weapon. She is a living creature afraid of it''s own demise. Putting aside all the power thates with the shell of a Valkyrie, Zero Three is just a young girl now. She is more or less a human being.
"Doctor¡ I¡ I¡"
"It''s alright." Sam said, gently patting her on the head. "You don''t have to fight if you dont want to¡"
If he ever had any doubts left, the girl crying on his chest right now had erased all of them. Sam could no longer see her as a weapon. However when he noticed that he had arrived to that realization, his mind couldn''t help but to remind him that of the trouble that came with such line of thought.
Chapter 89 A Person.
Opening her eyes, Zero Three slowly lifted herself up. She stretched her arms and yawned, feeling strangely refreshed. Taking a look around she noticed that something wasn''t right.
''Huh? This isn''t my room¡''
It took her a moment before realizing she was in theb. It was difficult to notice since this was the first time she saw it from such an angle, however when she spotted Sam leaning back on his chair with his eyes closed.
A momentter her face began to heat ad she remembered what happened a while ago.
''Huh?''
Recalling everything made her realize something else. She had just woke up which means she has been asleep before then. Even though that''s the case she didn''t see the talking Cmity.
''... strange¡''
Just then Sam yawned as he woke up. He turned into Three''s direction, looking at her with tired eyes before reaching for his sses and putting them on.
"Oh, you''re awake." He said, smiling. "Did you sleep well?"
The young Valkyrie opened her mouth to respond, however before she could say anything she began to blush again, only nodding and looking away.
"Good. We have a lot to discuss now that you''ve calmed down, but first let''s get done with your examination."
Three stayed silent, changing into her pilot suit in another room before entering her container. Usually she would naturally fall asleep while floating inside the green liquid, however this time she managed to stay awake even though her eyes were closed.
A few minutes pass and the examination is done. After a quick shower she put on her uniform and returned to theb where Sam was waiting for her.
"Alright then." As she sat on a chair facing him, Sam held his tablet and began speaking. "Physically you''re in peak condition as always. I''ve deduced a few things from what you told me earlier today so-"
"Wait¡" as if just noticing, Three whipped her head in the direction of the digital clock hanging on oneof the walls. It was 22:32. She had slept through the entire day and she didn''t even notice it. "I''ve been asleep for that long."
"Yeah." Sam replied with a nod. "I had to bring you here so I could keep an eye on you."
"I¡ see¡"
Three didn''t know why but the thought of someone watching her as she slept caused her face to heat once more.
Sam did his best tofort the young Valkyrie as she cried in his arms. Eventually she passed out so he considered leaving her in one of the extra rooms so he could go take care of his job, however when he noticed that she was still clinging onto him he decided to bring her back to theb with him.
The other day he had decided to add a bed in case he needed to take a quick nap. He never knew it woulde in handy in a situation like this.
"Anyways, you said you see things while you''re asleep, right?" Sam spoke. "I know it might feel ufortable, however I need you to tell me everything in details."
Seeing the seriousness in his eyes made Zero Three felt a little tense. After a few seconds of silence she began to tell him everything.
Sam kept a solemn expression as he listened to each elword carefully. He noticed that the the young Valkyrie was having a difficult time describing how she felt when faced with what she feared. The big battle from that day had left her with a trauma that broke the restraints on her emotions causing her to gain learn what it''s like to feel fear.
"Three, I believe what you saw in your sleep is something we call a nightmare. A bad dream, in other words."
"A bad¡ dream?"
"Yes. Dreams are a series of thoughts, images and sensations that ur during a person''s sleep. Some are good and some are bad. The fight against the talking Cmity has left a big impact on you which resulted in you seeing what you saw."
The young Valkyrie listened attentively, however her attention was drawn to something very important.
"A person''s¡ but¡ I''m a Valkyrie¡ not a person¡" she said, her eyes gradually widening.
Sam observed her reaction carefully. In stories about AI gaining sentience they would usually make it seem as if they''re desperate to be recognized as living beings, however who knows if it would be like that in this case.
"That''s correct." Sam said. "You are a Valkyrie, Three, however I don''t think you''re the same as the others anymore."
"... eh? What do you mean?" Asked Zero Three.
"First of all, you abandoned your mission and disobeyed your superior''s orders." Sam said. "While that''s bad on its own, the reality is that you aren''t supposed to be capable of doing it. Unless something about you changed granting you the freedom to independently make such decisions."
It was only then that the Valkyrie noticed it herself. Today wasn''t the first time she didn''t feel like going out. The reasons varied but no matter what she wanted she would always carry her duties and follow orders. However this time she shut herself inside her room and refused toe out despite the time for the daily patrol arriving.
"Before we discuss what that implies, I would like to ask you another question." Sam said. He had already gotten his answer from listening to her moments ago. Still he wanted to confirm it one more time before deciding whether to tell her or not. "In the case of the talking Cmity, does it feel unpleasant when you consider the possibility of you getting damaged by it?"
As she thought about his question, the young Valkyrie looked down at her hands, clenched tightly on herp. She began to recall the battle and the nightmare she had. A cold chill ran down her back, that alone was enough for her to understand what the Doctor meant.
"I¡ I always thought that I should avoid getting damaged, but¡" passing for a moment, she then added in a trembling voice. "Now just the possibility of it happening makes me want to run away¡"
"... I see¡"
Sam held his chin in thought. A few secondster he looked Zero Three in the eyes having decided to exin it to her.
"Three, the unpleasant emotion you''re experiencing is something we humans refer to as fear." He said. "It''s main function is to act as a signal of danger and threat and trigger the appropriate adaptive response."
"Huh? Isn''t that just normal danger detection?" Three asked.
"Yes and no." Sam responded. "Your danger detection is designed to increase yourbat abilities and minimize the damage you receive, however it can''t overwrite your the actions you want to perform. Fear on the other hand has a direct affect on your decision making and now that you''re able to experience it you wouldn''t be able to do things the same as before."
To understand what he meant all she needed to do was to look at her thoughts from today and the day before. Though the conditions were the same, yesterday she had no trouble going out even with the possibility of the talking Cmity appearing. Now just considering it causes her to shiver and just thinking that she might have to fight that thing again is enough to make her want to hide in her room.
"Fear¡" Three muttered to herself. "So it''s called fear¡"
"I don''t know how it happened but I doubt your creator had intended for you to obtain this emotion." Sam said.
In the Valkyrie blue prints it was mentioned that the AI are capable of emting fear, however a restriction was ced on it to make it possible for them to perform their missions without concern. That restriction was now broken in Zero Three and considering the situation theyre in it''s clear that it''s not the only one that was broken.
"Three, what I''m about to tell you is very important so you need to listen very well." Sam said. "Also, no matter what happens you aren''t allowed to tell anyone about it. Not even Nine or Five."
Once again the young Valkyrie felt a but tense. She stayed silent for a moment before bracing herself and nodding, giving him the signal to start.
"Fear is a very important emotion. As I said before, it acts as a signal of danger and threats, which makes it a keyponent in one''s desire for self preservation." Sam closed his eyes, breathing in slowly. "The fact that you''re able to experience fear, as well as act on it while ignoring your orders mean that you''re capable of putting your own survival as your top priority. You wouldn''t be able to do that if you were nothing but a weapon whose only purpose is to fight."
As she stared at him in wide eyed disbelief, Sam finally revealed to the Valkyrie that she has now be.
"You are now a living being, and although you aren''t exactly a human, you''re also an individual. That makes you a person just like any of us."
Chapter 90 Real Purpose.
"A¡ person¡" Zero Three said. "I''m a person now?"
"Yes." Sam replied.
He had thought long and hard about whether he should tell her or not, however in the end he decided to do it.
The reality is, Zero Three had been showing signs of sentience for a while now. He had attributed them to her slightly aggressive personality, but it turns out he was right the first time.
"You say that but¡" tilting her head,the young Valkyrie spoke with a confused expression. "I dont feel any different¡"
"Well, it might take time for you to notice." Sam said. "With that said, I need you to understand what position you are in."
"... I''m in trouble, aren''t I?"
The young Valkyrie seemed to shrink a little, her anxiety bing more visible.
"To put it bluntly, yes." Sam spoke while still observing her reactions carefully. "You now have a will of your own, which gives you the ability to make your own decisions and also disobey orders. For those at the top those things make you a very dangerous individual if you are a human, let alone a Valkyrie. The idea that someone with your powers isn''t under their control terrifies them to no end and because of that there is no doubt that they wouldn''t tolerate your existence."
"I¡ see¡" the young Valkyrie cast her eyes down, staying silent for a moment. "So they''d think I''m a danger now."
"... yes." Sam replied.
"But¡ but I don''t want to hurt anyone! Why would I-"
"It''s not about whether you want to or not, it''s the fact that you can that makes you dangerous." Sam said. "Three, if I had to guess I would say that fear isn''t the only emotion you''ve gained now that you''ve be a person."
"... what?..."
"As I said, you now have a will of your own, which means you can judge the things you see, hear and experience. Eventually you wille across things you like and things you hate. Things you agree with, and others you don''t." Pausing for a moment, Sam let out a long sight. "What I, and many others, fear the most is that one day you would find a reason to hate humanity. And once that happens, the likelihood of us bing enemies will increase significantly."
"But¡ I¡"
The two fell silent for a while. Sam understood that the whole matter was confusing to her, but he needed to understand the situation they''re in so he could make the appropriate response.
Of course he had no intention on harming her just because she had lost the restraints on her emotion, however he could guess what others would think when they hear she''s no longer a lifeless weapon.
''But¡ man¡'' letting it a sigh, Sam stared at the Valkyrie feeling a little disappointed. ''I can no longer make her mine, huh?''
Now that he could no longer see her the same as before Sam began to believe that he woukd be doing something really bad if he tried to get it on with her. The excuse of "she is just a robot" went out the window just like that and he began to fear that the same would happen with Nine and Five.
It would be fine if they choose to be with him, but that would mean breaking his promise with Shizuru. In the end he was just disappoint that he might not be able to control and use them as he likes.
''I''m such a jerk, huh¡''
"Three, I have a suggestion that would help us avoid problems for the time being. Would you like to hear them?"
Putting aside the fact that he can no longer make her his personal Valkyrie, Sam still felt some responsiblity for the safety of the young Valkyrie. Why is he''s going out of his way to potentially doom humanity? That he didn''t understand himself.
Is it sympathy? Or is it guilt? Looking at the young girl in front of him, Sam couldn''t help but want to keep her safe. Sadly at the moment there wasn''t much he could do to achieve that.
Zero Three looked him in the eyes and nodded. She listened attentively as he listed the things she needed to do to avoid humans realizing she isn''t under their control.
"The objective right now is that we must focus on is that we have to make sure no one finds out that you are now able to disobey orders. I''m covering for you today so it will be an exception. Starting tomorrow however you would need to go through your usual routine as you always did in the past."
"Eh!? But¡"
Three looked to be a little surprised by what he said, though she soon understood that she didn''t have much choice.
"Things have been safetely so I doubt you would face any trouble. That said, if you find yourself in a hopeless situation you can always retreat. You dont have to fight to the very end like you did before."
"... alright." Three nodded in understanding. "If it''s normal Cmities I think I would be fine. But if the talking one appears¡"
Sam was taken aback by her answer, having expected some resistance. Three quickly caught on to that and gazed away, her cheeks reddening a little, remembering when she told him she didn''t want to fight anymore.
"I know what I said, but¡ who would protect you if I don''t go? Not to mention, Nine and Five would be in trouble if I''m not there!"
"Good." Sam said with a smile. "I''m d to hear that you feel that way."
Three smiled in return, feeling a little at ease. Seeing that made Sam''s heart ache. After seeing how terrified she was not that long ago he was now asking her to go out and continue fighting for them. It was way to cruel, however he didn''t have much choice. After all he couldn''t just let her do what she wants and pretend that no one will notice. That might work for a while but once they move to the headquarters she would have no choice but to either fight or expose herself.
Still, Sam was aware that there is a limit to how long they can get away with pretending to obey orders. Something told him that she would get exposed sooner orter at which point her life woulde to an end.
And that''s while assuming that she would y along nicely the entire time. If Three, or any other Valkyries in a simr state, decide to revolt against humans then the problem would be muchmuch worse.
Not only would they have the Cmities to worry about but they would have the ones they relied on in this desperate war turning against them. Humanity would be fine at that point.
''Well, we are dead anyways.'' Sam thought, remembering what Alice''s father had told him.
Humanity didn''t have much long. They had lost the hope that the Valkyries might be able to turn this war around and were now looking for other ways to ensure their survival.
It would be easy to hide one sentient Valkyrie in all that chaos but then what? It''s not like the Cmities would leave once everyst human is dead, and even if they did, would the Valkyries be able to rebuild on their own afterwards?
''I need to give this some serious thought¡''
Once all humans are dead he wouldn''t have to worry about anything, but since they have no choice but to fight and keep fighting till they win Sam had no choice but to consider what would happen to the Valkyries when they achieve the goal.
Just then, out of nowhere, Sam remembered the request Wolf hade to him with the day before. He had asked him to find a way to turn humans into Valkyries, and now that he thinks about it again he realized that he had never considered what he said from another angle.
Altering humans so they could be no different from Valkyries, either by recing their bodies one part at a time or downloading their brains into aputer and nting it into the shell of a Valkyrie.
If Sam somehow seeds the final result would be no different from how Zero Three is right now. It''s not possible to turn Valkyries into humans, but it is possible, at least theoretically, to turn humans into Valkyries.
In the end they would be the same species so there won''t be any problem if the original ones to gain their individuality and free will.
''Could it be¡'' Sam thought, realizing that something was off about the conclusion he had arrived at. ''Is this what he was after all along?''
He began to suspect that the old man''s objective wasn''t to ensure humanity''s survival. After all there was no need for humans to discard their current form just so they could travel to space.
There is a high likelihood that the purpose of the so called evolution is to make humans and Valkyries one species. Once that thought urred to Sam he began to suspect every word the old man had told him.
''Does he know?'' Sam thought. ''Could it be all just an borate n to avoid a conflict between humans and Valkyries?''
Chapter 91 Suspicious.
Sam sat down at his desk. In front of him was a small paperback with the words "Valkyrie Smash" on the cover.
He stared at it for a while then let outa sigh, turning to look beside him. On the bed he had prepared in case he needed a nap was the young Valkyrie with almond colored hair. She had been asleep for most of the day, even so she ended up falling asleep soon after their conversation ended.
Sam had given her permission to use one of the extra rooms until her bed is changed, but after a few minutes she came to theb in her pajamas and while hiding most of her face behind the pillow she brought she asked if she could spend the night beside him.
At that moment Zero Three looked so cute that Sam''s heart skipped a beat. He knew she only came there because she''s afraid of nightmares, still he felt a little happy that she knowing she''s relying on him forfort.
He was nning to work through the night so he decided to let her have the bed. That said, he never expected her being there would be so distracting.
''I can''t really read this with her around.'' He said, picking the book and giving it a hard look.
The heroines of the story were young Valkyries much like Zero Three. They were quite naive, their curiosity making it easy to manipte them. That said, when Three was in his arms scared and trembling he had felt an overwhelming desire to protect her. It was a different kind of attraction, one that didn''t involve a great deal of lust.
''Could it be¡'' Sam began to think. ''Am I into young girls?''
First it was Miku and now Zero Three. Unlike any of the other girls he had the two of them felt a little special. Their cuteness was addicting and he felt that he would do anything for them just to see their smiles.
''Something is wrong with me¡''
Zero Three had broken the restrictions and has her own free will now, which makes her a normal person in his mind. That mean she is no longer the virtual lover AI she was created to be and by consequence he could no longer be her master.
Well, he could still try and make her fall for him, however if he felt reluctant to do so when he didn''t have honest intentions. He couldn''t treat it as a game anymore.
''Better focus on my job for now¡'' he thought.
The matter with Three aside, Sam still had quite a lot of things to think about. Specifically Wolf''s visit has been bothering him the more he thought about it. There are a lot of things that didn''t make much sense.
First of all, there is no reason for him toe all the way there just to tell them that the base will be relocated. He could''ve sent a messenger or just told them over phone.
One can argue that his real reason is to see Alice, but that didn''t sound right. He could''ve just ordered her to move back to the headquarters ahead of time.
Then there is the matter of the jobs he had left him with. Wouldn''t it be more efficient to summon him to the HQ? Instead they brought all the tools and materials he needed all the way to him, which makes it even more weird when he considered that they would need to move everything once more when they run out of time.
''Take care of Alice for me.''
Remembering thest words the old man said to him, Sam''s mind began to ring rm bells.
''Could it be¡'' he thought, his eyes slowly going wide. ''Is something happening in the headquarters?''
Reaching into one of the drawers he took out a notebook and began writing down his thoughts. Wolf was trying to keep him and Alice away from the headquarters, he was almost sure of that. The base''s relocation isn''t a decision he could make alone. At first it sounded like something he woulde up on his own to protect his daughter, but could it be that he was against it all along?
He also said that the headquarters was most likely the target for the next Cmity full assault. It would make sense for him to want Alice as far away from it as possible.
''No, wait¡ how did he know?¡''
Was it just a spection? The headquarters is at the center of the three biggest settlements at the moment so it made sense for it to be the target of Cmity, the frontline exists to make sure they dont reach it. However thest battle had proven that nothing could stand in the way of the Cmities if they decide to move.
''Am I reading too much into it?'' Sam thought.
Wolf''s actions were way too suspicious. Considering that he had told him about humanity''s inevitable demise and no one else made it even more suspicious. Then there is the thing with evolution.
The old man said that he had arrived to the same results while researching a cure for Alice, and he had done it years before Sam. If that''s the case why did he delegate the work to him instead of doing it himself?
Sam doubted that he has reached a higher level of intellect than Wolf. If anyone could push humanity to the next stage of evolution then it would be the old man.
''What are you after, old man¡''
As he tapped the notebook with the pen repeatedly, Sam tried to get into Wolf''s head. He analyzed every word he had said hoping to find some clue. A few minutester he was struck by another realization.
"He already did it¡"
The pen fell from his hand as he stared at empty space. It was just a spection, but for some reason it sounded way too usible to be ignored.
Wolf had told him that their research had been simr, and that they had arrived at the same results yet he chose to keep it a secret from the world. He is one of the most brilliant scientists humanity has left, which should''ve made him the first in line when it came to the attempts at reverse engineering the Valkyries. Instead of doing it himself he brought it for Sam. That could mean two things: either he believed that Sam is more than capable, or he has already done it but doesn''t want the world to know.
The second theory sounds more likely. The old man has already found a way to turn humans into Valkyries and he was telling Sam to do it next. Still, why go through all the trouble? This is about humanity''s survival, they didn''t have the time to hide secrets and y around.
First Odin and now Wolf Sam couldn''t help but wonder what''s up with geniuses and making their inventions a secret?
''Well, that''s all under the assumption that the old man really did it¡''
It could all be just a misunderstanding on his part. Closing the notebook, Sam stretched his back and yawned. In the end he only managed to confuse himself even more.
''But¡ how does he expect me to do it?''
The ship of theseus. It''s a thought experiment about whether an object that has had all of its originalponents reced remains the same object.
Downloading human consciousness into aputer, whether it''s possible or not, poses the dilemma of whether the digital version really is the same person or not.
On the other hand there is the route of recing parts of the human body little by little. Would a human that had every part of his body reced still be the same person?
''Maybe I should leave thinking about that to when I find a way to do it.''
Picking up his pen once more, Sam entered a focused state as be began to work on finding a way to achieve his objective. He already had the Frejya blue prints memorized so he knew all there is to know about the shell of a Valkyrie. That means he could start working on turning humans into Valkyries right away.
~¡ó~
Sam still had his head buried in his notes by the time morning arrived. Zero Three woke up confused about her whereabouts. When she began to recall her face wentplete red and she quickly left theb.
A message from Shizuru arrived asking if he would be there for breakfast. Having made very little advancements through the night he decided to take a little break and eat something.
As he walked back to hisb he decided to start working on solving the code of the book since three had finally left, however when he arrived he found another Valkyrie waiting for him.
"Ah! Good morning, doctor." The blond Valkyrie greeted him with her usual kind smile.
Chapter 92 Help Me Wash.
"Nine, good morning."
Sam was a little surprised to see the blond Valkyrie. Though he already had a guess as to why she has decided to visit him so early in the morning.
"I saw Three earlier." Nine said with a warm smile. "She seems to be back to normal."
"Yes." Sam nodded. "There is nothing to worry about."
There was a moment of awkward silence as the two stared at each other. Not wanting it tost, Sam walked over to his desk and put down the coffee cup he had brought with him before taking his seat.
"I guess you have something you want to ask."
Nine''s smile faded and she cast her eyes down. Looking hesitant for a moment, she then spoke in a more serious tone.
"I wanted to ask about yesterday''s events¡" she said.
"Sure. Though I can''t promise that I''ll be able to answer."
Three''s newfound sentience was a very sensitive topic. Sam had no idea on how to go about handling it so for the time being he decided to keep it a secret. He even went so far as to lie to Alice saying he needed the young Valkyrie for something to secure permission for her to sit out the patrol.
"I¡ I wanted to ask if Three is in trouble." Nine said, her voice tinged with worry. "She disobeyed orders and¡ she abandoned her duties¡"
"You don''t have to worry about that." Sam replied, smiling in an attempt to ease her worries. "She''s just being a little rebellious. It''s something girls her age do."
"Huh? You mean that was normal?" Nine cocked her head a little as she asked.
"Yes. She would''vee out eventually but I decided to give her some space, that''s all."
"I¡ I see¡" Nine exhaled, relief visible on her face. "Honestly. I never expected to say this myself, but some of us Valkyries really do some wierd things."
''Like you''re the one to talk.'' Sam thought, remembering the time she made him peep on some couple getting it on. That led to him remembering the first time she kneeled before him, then their first experiment which caused his rod to instantly go hard.
"Well then, I''m sure you''re busy so¡"
Nine was about to leave, however before she could Sam stood in her way.
"Since you''re here there is something I want to ask from you."
~¡ó~
Five was in the gym and Three was swimming in the rooftop pool. With those two being busy Sam decided to take the chance to do something he was nning for a while now.
"Sorry for the wait, Doctor."
The door opened and Nine came in. Her face was a little red as she held a white towel to her giant bosom in a meaningless effort to hide her naked body. Her long hair was tied over her head giving her a new look that Sam has never seen before.
The two were in therge bath inside the Valkyries'' residence. Saying that he has yet to shower after spending the night in theb he asked Nine to help him wash his back. Knowing what that implied the blond Valkyrie agreed immediatel, but what made her even more excited is when Sam began groping her ass as they made their way to the residence.
Sam was rock hard the entire time, but seeing Nine giving him shy looks as she stood there fully naked turned him even more. In that moment the Valkyrie looked more beautiful than usual and Sam felt like attacking her right then and there.
"Let''s start, then¡" Nine said, taking her ce behind Sam.
She took one of the shower hands and opened the water soaking both of them. She then grabbed a green scrubber and bottle of body wash.
"What are you doing, Nine?" Sam asked, looking at her from over his shoulder.
She had put away the towel she was using to cover herself so her giant milkers where right there for him to see.
"I-is something wrong?" Nine asked, startled thinking she had made a mistake.
"You are going to wash my back now, right?" Sam had tried to not look directly at her bare bosom, however his eyes inevitably went down. "In that case you should be using your body, not a scrubber."
"I-is that so¡" Nine looked down at her chest then smiled. "Understood."
She took the bottle of body wash and removed the lid then poured some of the content on her breasts. Using her hands to spread it a little she then closed the distance between her and Sam and pressed her chest against his back.
"Is this how it''s done, Doctor~?"
"Y-yes¡ you''re doing good¡"
Feeling the two melons rubbing against him, Sam was filled with an inexplicable sense of happiness.
Foam began to form soon enough and seeing it gave the Valkyrie an idea.
"Ah! How about I help you wash the front as well?" Saying that, Nine sneaked her hands under his armpits and began rubbing his chest and stomach. She continued going lower and lower until her hand finally reached his crutch.
"Oh my~?!" Nine eximed as she touched his his stiffness. "I guess this part requires some special help~?"
Nine stopped moving her body and put all her focus on Sam''s rod. She wrapped her slender fingers around it and began moving her hand up and down.
"There sure are a lot of things a man and a woman can do in private, hm?" Nine said, speaking from over Sam''s shoulder. "Does this make you feel good, Doctor~??"
"Yes¡ Nine¡" Sam said. "You learn really fast¡"
"I would do anything if it''s to please you~?"
Feeling his penis twitch in her hand, Nine upped the speed thinking Sam was about to finish. He wasn''t at first but when she started jerking him with that intensity he was at his limit soon enough and without a warning the white fluid erupted sttering the wall in front of them.
"Ah! I can make Doctor cum with just my hand!?" She said, sounding a little delighted.
"Of course you can¡" Sam said, his breathing a little uneven.
He never expected a simple hand-job to feel that good, however he was still not satisfied.
He opened the water and washed away all the foam. He then stood up and faced the Valkyrie, his trooper ready for the second round.
"You know, Nine, the best way to wash a man''s member is using your tongue and mouth." He said with a smile.
"I see~?"
As she knelt in front of him, Nine looked at Sam''s rod with a coquettish smile. She brushed a few strands of hair behind her ear as she brought her tongue out and licked the head once.
She didn''t use her hands at all, licking the shaft from every angle while stopping to such at it every now and then. Once it waspletely covered in her saliva she stopped to check her work, letting out a sensual sigh before gobbling the whole thing in one go.
"Ah!" Sam couldn''t help but gasp.
Once his rod reached all the way to her throat, Nine slowly backed away until only half of it was still inside. She continued to use her tongue to stimte him, twisting it around while focusing on his ns.
Closing her eyes she began bobbing her head slowly, taking the meat pole out sometimes and licking it repeatedly before gobbling it again.
Feeling the warmth and slipperiness of her mouth and tongue sent shivers throughout Sam''s body. Nine didn''t know it herself but when she''s pleasuring him like that Sam was powerless andpletely under her control. The pleasure she made him feel was overwhelming and soon enough he found himself on the verge of ejacting for the second time.
"Hm!?"
Sam grabbed Nine''s head and held it in ce. He then began thrusting his hips with all the force he could musterpletely disregarding the Valkyries''s muffled moans. He kept pushing his meat all the way into her throat until it exploded inside shooting his load down her pipe while she still has yet toprehend what was going on.
"A~h~..." Sam let out a rxed sigh as his orgasm ended. He then slowly pulled his thing out allowing Nine''s lips to slide on it cleaning everything that came out.
Once her head was released she covered her mouth and started coughing, most of the semen he had shot inside her was spilled out but she didn''t look too bothered after how how roughly he had treated her.
"That was really good, Nine." Sam said as he gave her a head pat.
"I''m d you''re enjoying it." Nine said, looking up at him with a smile. "Though I have a question, Doctor."
"Hm? What is it?"
"I want to know why we don''t do it more often?" She tilted her head to the side a little. "If it makes you feel good then shouldn''t we start doing it every day?"
"Good question." Sam let out a shortugh. "However I''m afraid that won''t be possible. If we start doing it every day then I wouldn''t have time for work."
Not to mention, if he started to empty his reserves frequently he would be in really bit trouble when it''s Alice or Shizuru''s turn.
"I see¡ that''s understandable."
Nine washed away the sticky fluid covering her chest. She then turned her back to Sam and looked at him from over her shoulder, her lips curving in a mischievous smile.
"Doctor~?, it''s your turn now~?" she said. "Please help me wash my back~?"
Chapter 93 Make Me Yours.
Sam pushed the blond Valkyrie against the wall then made her stick her ass out.
"D-Doctor?"
Once she was in that position, Nine got excited thinking they were finally going to do it. But then Sam took a bottle of soap and began pouring it on her back, specifically the two soft hills in front of him.
He began massaging her back then settled on her ass, squeezing each of her cheeks with one hand.
"Ahh~?!"
Not only did she have thergest breasts, Nine also had the fatest ass among the women he had gotten close to so far. He moved his hands in a circr motion enjoying the softness, aided by the viscous substance which made the surface a bit too slippery.
When he let go for a moment Sam noticed something interesting. Raising his hand he gave Nine''s soft behind a weak p.
"Aahhh~?!!!" The Valkyrie let out a surprised cry. "D-Doctor!!?"
Her protesting re got ignored as the man was too busy watching the scene in front of him with great interest. He spanked her once more, his eyes going wide even more.
"Doctor! What are¡ ahhn~?!!!"
Nine''s ass jiggled every time he spanked her. The bounciness was incredible prompting him to continue as he watched attentively. Nine was angry at first but then she found herself turned on soon enough. Her rough breaths didn''t go unnoticed by Sam and he smiled as he moved on to the next step.
"I see you like being spanked, huh, Nine?" Sam said, putting a little more strength in the next hit.
"Ahh~?!" Letting out a coquettish moan, Nine looked back at him with a smile. "I don''t¡ ha~h¡ I don''t know why¡ but when Doctor did it¡ ha~h¡ I suddenly got excited¡ AHH~?!!!"
Spanking her once more, Sam spoke with a sadistic smile.
"So it feels good, huh?"
"Yes~?!!! Ahh~?!!!"
"Then I will make you feel even better."
Sam had his eyes on another ce he wanted to tease for a while. He slipped his hand between her legs, caressing her inner thighs as he went upwards. In a second he reached his destination and used his middle and ring finger to gently brush Nine''s secret slit.
"Hyaahhh~~?!!!"
Her whole body shuddered at the sensation. As he rubbed her honey pot with his fingers, Sam continued to spank her ass again and again listening to her sensual moans.
"Ahh!! Do- hyaahh~?! Hnnaahh~?! Ahh! Haah.. ahhnn~?¡"
Wanting some of the fun for himself, Sam grabbed his rod and inserted it into her thigh gap, pushing her legs together sandwiching it between those thick thighs of hers.
"Ahh~?!!"
He held on to her waist with one hand and spanked her with the other. He then began moving his hips causing his rock hard cock to rub against her vagina.
Feeling the heating from it, Sam''s excitement spiked and so did Nine''s. He began thrusting with everything he got, all while fighting the urge to invade her insides.
"Haahh~?¡ Ahhn¡ D-Doctor!! Ahh¡ I''m¡ I''m¡ aaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhh~?!!!"
Nine went stiff, her love juices flowing out as she climaxed. Noticing that Sam released his hold as well, his white stuff shooting out and staining Nine''s giant breasts which hung in the way as she leaned down.
"Haa~h~?¡. Doctor~?"
Seeing her smile at him, Sam leaned in and kissed the blond Valkyrie. He hugged her from behind, groping her breasts before fondling them in a milking motion.
"Ahh~?!!"
He pressed on her nipples and pinched them, causing the Valkyrie to gasp from the stimtion. Their saliva mixed as he entwined his tongue around hers, which was sticking out as she struggled to catch her breath.
A couple of minutester Sam felt that his rod, which was still between Nine''s thighs, was hardening once more as if to say it was time for another round.
Kissing the Valkyrie one more time he let go of her breasts and straightened himself. He reached for the shower hand and opened the water washing away all the foam. He then stopped to gaze at the scene before him, a smile slowly forming on his face.
Nine''s beautiful ass was red from all the spanking. A few months ago he would''ve never dreamed of seeing this with his own eyes. Now he was here, the gorgeous Valkyrie is in front of him bent down with her ass out.
''I guess it''s time¡''
Thinking that to himself, Sam leaned in and kissed Nine once more.
"Nine, I will make you mine now." he whispered in her ear before backing away.
The Valkyrie didn''t understand what he meant, looking back at him with confused eyes. But then she saw him ce his meat pir at her entrance and everything became clear.
"D-Doctor!!?"
"Hm? This is what you wanted, right?" Sam said, noticing the surprised look she had.
"Y-yes!" As the red color spread from her cheeks all the way to her ears, Nine''s smiled deepened as she showed genuine happiness at his decision. "I want to do it! I want Doctor''s penis inside me! Please make me yours! I want to be Doctor''s Valkyrie!"
Seeing how enthusiastic she was put a smile on Sam''s face. She asked him to make her his Valkyrie, so without wasting any more time he began to press forward.
"I''m going in, Nine!"
His cock spread her slit open and slowly made it''s way deeper into her love tunnel, tearing the thinyer of protection as it imed first ce.
"AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!" Nine let out a once in a lifetime cry feeling Sam''s cock prate her deepest parts.
Sam was astonished. The sensation was much simr to when he took Shizuru''s virginity, but maybe because she isn''t human there was no deflowering blood leaking out even though he was sure he tore her hymen a moment ago.
''Ah.. maybe this is¡ a bit much¡''
A moment after he stopped pushing Sam felt like his rod was being crushed by an incredible force, so much that he was unable to move fearing that he would lose his thing if he tried to pull it out.
"N-Nine! Can you¡ rx¡ a little¡"
Sadly the Valkyrie had no idea what he was talking about.
"Doc.. tor¡. Hahh~?¡ Doctor''s¡ penis¡ Doctor''s penis¡ hahh¡ is¡ is inside me~?"
As she gazed at him from over her shoulders, Sam realized that something was off about the Valkyrie. Nine looked a little dazed. Her dark blue eyes had small pink hearts in them, as if she was a cartoon character looking at something she loved way too much.
Before he could think of anything, his mind was was shocked by the sensationing from his crutch. Her vaginal walls began undting all of a sudden as if they were trying to suck him inside. The stimtion was too sudden freezing him in ce, so to make up for it the Valkyrie began to move instead.
She pushed her hips forward just a little, then, without giving him a warning, she thrust them back with enough force to cause a pping sound.
That was enough to bring Sam to the verge of ejaction, even though he already came three times just a few minutes ago. He was expecting a Valkyrie''s pussy to be something special, however the stimtion was just way too strong. It was as if the hole was trying to suck the semen right out of his balls causing him to feel pleasure he hand never experienced before.
"Aahhhnn~?!!!"
Nine tried thrusting her hips back once more, the wet pping sound echoing through therge bath. Her expression had changed to that of pure ecstasy, each time she felt the thick rod slid into her she would release moans full of sensuality.
When she tried to move for the third time, Sam grabbed her waist and held her in ce. His body was trembling as he pulled his rod, but before it was all out he thrust it in once more putting in everything he got pushing Nine''s entire body until her breasts were squeezed t against the wall.
"Aaahhh~?! Ahh¡. Ahhn~?¡ hhaahnn~?¡ nhaahh~?¡ ahhn~?"
Sam pumped his hips like there is no tomorrow. He never had sex this good before. It made him wish he had made his move much earlier. He apologized in his heart to Alice and Shizuru, but no matter how much he tries he could never deny that Nine''s hole was the best ce he had ever put his cock inside.
"Ahh~?¡. Doctor~?¡ Docror~?¡ ahhh~?¡ ha~hh~?¡. Ahh¡ aaaahaaaAAAAAAHHHHHHHH~?!!!!!!"
Unable to hold it in anymore, Sam thrust his hips as he climaxed at the same time as Nine. His seed began flowing, mixing with her overflowing love juices quickly filling her artificial womb. Her vaginal walls contracted applying even more pressure on the rod as if to make sure it doesn''t escape even after thest drop was squeezed out.
Having released his load, Sam allowed his body to rx again Nine''s as he gasped from the intensity of what he had just experience.
"Nine¡ ha~h¡ that was¡ incredible¡" he said, feeling his penis shrinking back to its normal size allowing him to pull it out.
"Doctor¡" with the pink hearts still in her eyes, the Valkyrie gave Sam a heated look as she turned around to face him. "One more time." She said, slowly pressing her chest against his. "I want to feel it one more time."
With no hesitation the blond Valkyrie stole a kiss from him. As the two began making out Sam had a feeling that their fun had only just started.
Chapter 94 Not Enough.
"Nine, are you there?" Five spoke into the intee.
She was standing in front of Nine''s room with Zero Three beside her.
It was time for their daily patrol yet the blond Valkyrie has yet to show up so they came to look for her.
"Ah! F-Five? Ahn¡ i-is something¡ hahh¡ is something wrong?"
The two looked at each other having noticed how strange Nine''s tone was.
"That''s what we want to ask you." Zero Three asked, crossing her arms. "It''s time for work. We''re gonna bete."
There was no response for a long ten seconds and the young Valkyrie''s frustration began to grow, but then nine spoke, her voice sounding a little bit better.
"About that¡ since Three got a pass for yesterday, Doctor had given me permission to sit this one out." She said. "You two will be on your own today. Be careful out there."
Five stared at the small terminal beside the door feeling that something was off, however there was nothing she could do. If Nine has permission to stay in the base then there is no room forints.
"Nine, you aren''t facing any problems, right?" Five felt a little bit concerned seeing that herrade didn''t even open the door to talk to them.
"Ah~?! Y-yes!! I¡ haahh~?¡ I''m in¡ I''m in the middle of something¡ right now¡ ahhn~?"
"I see¡" Letting out a sigh, Zero Five turned around and walked away. The young Valkyrie followed after her a momentter.
"Didn''t she sound really wierd just now?" Three asked, looking back at Nine''s door.
"Well, if there was a problem she would''ve said so." Five replied.
"You don''t sound so happy about it. Is it that much of a problem if one of us decides to no stay behind."
The young Valkyrie felt a little guilty about what she did the day before, however it''s not like she could''ve done anything about it. Even now she still doesn''t feel like going out, however after what she learned from her conversation with the Doctor she realized that she would be in really big trouble if she doesn''t carry out her duties as usual.
Five didn''t respond for a while, keeping her silence as they went down the stairs.
"There is no problem." As she spoke, the ponytailed Valkyrie seemed a bit pouty. "It''s just unfair that you two get to spend time with Doctor while I''m out there."
"W-what are you talking about?" As she asked that question, a red color began to spread on Zero Three''s cheeks.
"Nothing." Five replied. "Let''s get this done with already."
~¡ó~
"Doctor! Hah¡ What are¡ ahh~?¡. Haah¡ what if¡ what if they noticed¡ haaahnn~?"
"Well, you should''ve controlled your voice better." Sam said before silencing the Valkyrie with a kiss.
After taking Nine''s virginity, Sam realized that there is no way he could be satisfied with only that. However staying in the bath for too long risked them getting discovered, especially with Fiveing out of the gym at any time.
After washing themselves the two sneaked back to Nine''s room where they have been at it for the past three hours.
"You... Ha~h¡ you say it like it''s my faul, but it''s Doctor who can''t hold back¡ ahh~?!!!"
"What did you say?" Sam said, lifting his hand and spanking Nine''s bouncy ass.
"Aahhh~?"
"Is it my fault that your pussy feels so good?"
He spanked her again and again, but the Valkyrie only released delighted moans as she looked back at him with a smile.
The two of them have been at it when Five came to check. Nine had asked for a break so she could respond but Sam was reluctant to stop. He had told her what to say then pushed her against the door and continued doing her as she spoke to the other two.
"D-Doctor¡ ahh¡ likes my pussy?... ahh~?¡ does.. ahh¡ does my pussy¡ hnaahh~?¡ ah¡ make Doctor¡ hahh¡ feel good¡ haahh~?"
"Yes¡" Sam replied, cing his hands on her waist. "It feels really good!"
He kicked everything to thest gear pumping his hips as fast as he could. His rod slid through Nine''s warm and slippery love tunnel as it tried to squeeze out every bit of man milk out of him.
"Ahh~?!! Yess!! Doctor''s.Ahh~?!! Doctor''s penis~?!! Doctor''s penis feels¡ soo good~?!! Ahh! Haahhh~?!! Ahh¡ ahhh¡. Aaaaaaahhhhhh
The wet pping soundshot more and more intense until they suddenly stopped followed by the Valkyries''s cry as the two of them came at the same time.
''No good¡'' Sam thought, slowly pulling out after letting out thest drop. ''Still not enough¡"
He stepped back and watched the scene before him. Nine leaning against the wall with her ass sticking out, her legs shaking a little as a mixture of semen and love juices oozed out of her honey pot.
From the looks of it Nine really liked being taken from behind. They have done it multiple times already and the most pleased she sounded was when he spanked her.
"Let''s take a break." Sam said, going to the bed and sitting down.
Nine fell to her knees, still panting with a big smile on her face. The pink hearts in her eyes had yet to fade
Heaving a long sigh, Sam looked up at the ceiling and tried to rx. He found it difficult to do so. Even after cumming inside her a total of seven times, which makes it the tenth time that he had ejacted this day alone, he has yet to feel satisfied.
Nine''s vagina was the best his rod had entered so far. It made him feel like a teenager who was experiencing an orgasm for the first time. Even so once he''s done the only thing he''s left with is the desire for more.
"Mmnmm¡"
Snapping back to reality he looked down just to find the blond Valkyrie sitting between his legs licking his balls and shrunken penis trying to make it hard again.
He ced a hand on her haid and slowly caressed her hair which had been undone at some point.
Looking up, Nine shed him an aroused smile then ced his rod inside her mouth, twirling and twisting her tongue around it. A few secondster she slowly slipped it out hard and ready for the next round.
"Alright then." Sam said, cing a hand on Nine''s shoulder before pushing her down on the floor.
"Ahh~?"
He spread her legs apart and took his ce holding his tool at her entrance.
"Doctor~?"
Without hesitation Sam thrust his hips pushing straight to her deepest partNine''s back arched at the sudden roughness, but the smile she had on said she would be fine.
He grabbed her arms and began pumping his hips, watching as the giant marshmallows in front of him swayed up and down along with his movement. Nine was already gasping for air with her tongue sticking out as she showed an ecstatic smile.
Before long Sam felt like he was about to cum, but seeing Nine''s expression he decided to do something different from before. He waited till thest second and just before he finished he quickly took out his rod and shot his load all over the Valkyrie.
"Aaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh!!!"
Having climaxed at the same time, nine didn''t didn''t notice the white stuff covering her until muchter on. When she did she looked a bit angry and said that she likes it more when he finishes inside her.
The two went on to have another round, then another.
To make sure they aren''t interrupt Sam had asked Alice to take care of the examination for him saying he''s busy with the task Wolf had given him. He also told her to not send the report since he needs to edit out Zero Three''s to hide the fact that he hugged her the day before.
With all disturbances out of the way he continued having fun with the blond Valkyrie all the way tillte at night. At that point he was way too exhausted to even move and decided to spend the night in Nine''s room.
~¡ó~
When he woke up the next time Sam felt his whole body demanding that he goes back to sleep. Looking to the left he found Nine cuddling close to him as she slept soundly.
The two of them were naked under the nket so he felt her bare prests pressing against him which caused his rod to harden instantly.
''Not good¡''
Yesterday Sam had experienced the best sex he had in a long time. Even so he was still craving more even after spending the entire day doing it which posed a big problem.
Sex is good and all but at the moment he was short on time while having quite a lot of things to work on. He had already wasted an entire day trying to satisfy his lust and he didn''t have the leeway to continue doing so.
Checking his phone he realized it was four in the morning. He quickly got up and put his clothes on, checking on Nine one more time before heading for the door.
"Ha~..."
Once he exited the room a sigh of relief escaped him. He had managed to control his desire, thinking that he was safe now that he is out.
"Doctor¡"
In the darkness of the hallway he heard a familiar voice that made his whole body shudder. Slowly turning in the direction of its source he let a nervous smile form on his face as the one standing there entered his sight.
"Five¡"
Chapter 95 True Feelings.
"Doctor¡"
When he turned around and saw the ponytailed Valkyrie, Sam almost had a heart attack.
"Five¡"
Though he recognized the owner of voice he felt no relief as his whole body went cold. She was still in her ck uniform which made it difficult to see her in the dark hallway. From the looks of it it doesn''t appear like her being there was a coincidence.
"So you were in Nine''s room this whole time¡" Five said, her face expressionless as always.
No. Though it was expressionless, Sam recognized the look in her eyes very well. It was the look of a woman who had caught her significant other cheating, and seeing it on one of humanity''s strongest weapons was a good reason for him to feel that his life was in danger.
"F-Five, this isn''t what it looks like¡"
Holding his hand up, Sam slowly backed away as a nervous smile creeped on his face.
"Not what it looks like?"
Five stared at him for a few second. She then walked forward forcing him to back away a few more steps beforeing to a stop a small distance away.
"Five?"
Ignoring his voice the ponytailed Valkyrie turned to face Nine''s door, hesitating for a moment before going in. The first thing she noticed was the strange scent which was much like what she smelled when Sam had visited the gym and practiced with her the other day. Her eyes moved to the bed where the blond Valkyrie was sound asleep, her bare breasts out in the open even though Sam had made sure to cover her before leaving.
Seeing the naked Nine gave Zero Five all the answers she needed.
Leaving the room she turned to face Sam, her expression still the same but the danger in her eyes was now a few times stronger than before.
"Doctor, you were experimenting with Nine, weren''t you?" She asked, taking a step in his direction.
"F-Five¡ I¡ I can exin¡"
"Since when?" Ignoring his terrified stuttering, she took another step. "What about Three?"
"Wha-"
"I guess it makes sense." The Valkyrie came to a stop, lowering her head as she spoke again. "You need more samples if you want more urate results."
"Five¡ what are you¡"
"I¡ I thought I was special¡"
Sensing the change I''m her tone, an inexplicable sense of guilt assaulted Sam.
"I thought you had me keep it a secret because¡ because you didn''t want the others to know about what we do¡" as her tears begin to, Five looked up at him, her mask having crumbled as she allowed herself to cry.
"Doctor, am I not good enough anymore?"
Seeing the tears falling off her eyes, the guilt Sam felt grew a thousand folds stronger recing the fear he had felt before. Racking his brain for a solution he quickly walked over to the crying Valkyrie and grasped her hand, pulling her along as he headed for her room.
~¡ó~
Once inside, Sam embraced Five trying to calm her down. It took quite a while for tears to stop, but even after that she refused to let go of him so he sat down on the bedside with her on hisp.
''Not good¡'' Sam thought as he slowly caressed her back. ''At this rate I will definitely lose control¡''
A beautiful girl was sobbing in his arms, her voluptuous bosom squeezed tightly against his chest. Even though he had spent an entire day making love to another one, somehow the touch of a Valkyrie was enough to reignite his fire.
"Doctor¡"
The quiet whisper snapped him out of his thoughts. He felt the arms wrapped around him slowly tighten, and though it didn''t cause him any pain it still scared him quite a bit.
"Do you hate me, Doctor?..." five asked, her voice tinged with doubt and sadness.
"W-what are you talking about, Five?" Sam asked. "How could I ever hate you?"
He had never taken her for the jealous type, but apparently every woman got that part in her, even Valkyries.
"Then¡" pausing for a moment, Five asked another question. "Why are you spending more time with the others than you do with me?"
Sam was confused for a moment.
"What do you mean?"
"First it was Three and now it''s Nine. You had them both skip on patrol just so they could stay with you, right?"
"Um¡ that''s not exactly what happened¡"
Though he said that, Sam didn''t have any excuse to give the ponytailed Valkyrie. Five had witnessed what happened with Zero Three and saw how she spent the entire day beside him in theb, even if she was asleep the entire time. As for Nine, not only did she catch him red handed as he was about to leave the crime scene, she must''ve realized something was up from the moans she heard through the inte when she came to check on the blond Valkyrie the previous day.
''Maybe doing it back then was a bad idea¡'' that thought only helped him remember what he did which caused his rod to harden even more.
Unbeknown to him his right hand had descended a little too far and soon enough he was mindlessly stroking Five''s behind.
"Doctor¡"
Though she wasn''t in the mood to be touch in such a ce, Five allowed him to do it anyways. She had noticed the stiffness in his pants as well which told her that he wants to do the things they practiced the other day.
"Five, believe me when I say it''s all just a coincidence." Sam said. As his eyes moved down he noticed where his hand was, but instead of removing it he went and started using the other one as well.
''Shit¡ why am I so horny all of a sudden?''
"A coincidence?"
Finally releasing her hold, Five looked up at him with curious eyes.
"Yes." Sam nodded. "It migh appear as if I''m spending more time with the others, but that''s just because they happened to be there at that particr time. If we were topare, Three is the one who spends the least time with me. Even the other day she was asleep the entire time, remember?"
"Well¡"
"As for Nine¡" Sam came to a stop, his mind quickly working out the best response he could give at the moment. Soon enough he had a n and as he went to execute it he slipped his hands under Five''s short skirt and began fondling her soft behind which was covered in the thinyer of her stockings.
"Ah!"
Feeling the pair of hands suddenly grab her ass, Five looked behind her reflexively, her face goingpletely red in a couple of seconds.
"You see, Five," Sam spoke, his tone more serious than before. "Nine had decided to be my own personal Valkyrie, that''s why I spent the entirety of yesterday with her."
"Your personal¡ Valkyrie?" Five said, her gaze moving back to him.
"That''s right." Sam said. "You see, as a human male I have a very strong lust for beautiful females, Valkyries included. Nine had offered herself to me and because of that I spent the entire day doing with her the things a man and a woman do in private. It was the first time we had done it so I wanted it tost as long as possible."
Telling the truth was the simplest and most efficient n he coulde up with. He was already Zero Five''s master so he didn''t have to worry too much. No matter what happens in the end she would listen to what he says, unless she somehow ends up removing her restrictions and gaining sentience as well.
Five cast her eyes down as she thought about what he had just told her, however she couldn''t really focus when her behind was being yed with the entire time.
"Five, how about you be my personal Valkyrie as well?" As he spoke, Sam began to feel nervous all of a sudden. "You are one of the most beautiful women I know and I want you all for myself. Will you grant me that wish?"
The moment he finished those words a light impact knocked the air out of his lungs. Five had buried her head in his chest chest and wrapped her arms around him once more.
"This is it¡" Five began tearing up again. "This is what I always wanted¡"
Having not expected that to happen, Sam froze for a moment unintentionally letting go of the Valkyrie''s soft bottom hills.
"I''ve always felt it but¡ I didn''t know what it is¡" looking up at him, Five smiled like never before. "I want to be with Doctor! I don''t care about humans Cmities. I want to be Doctor''s Valkyrie! I want to follow Doctor''s orders alone and do only what he says! I¡ I¡" tears began to flow down her cheeks once more as she finally put her true feelings into words. "I love you, Doctor! Please let me be your Valkyrie!"
When Sam decided to ask her directly he never expected to be hit with such an outburst of emotions. Five''s expression as she confessed her love to him sent an arrow right through his heart.
''Ah¡ don''t tell me¡''
At that moment Sam was sure he had felt it. It was different from when Miku said the words, and nothing like when Nine asked him to make her his. After a moment of thought he realized where he had experienced such a feeling.
It was the same as when Alice had confessed to him as they made love. Her feelings had reached him back then and he felt how genuine she was. The same was happening right now, and though he had never realized it before, his heart throbbed as he admitted it to himself.
"Five, I-"
Before he could say the words, a loud beeping sound filled the roompletely crushing the mood. Sam stayed silent for a moment then let out a long sigh. His blood began to boil, but before he could decide on whether to ignore the message or not, another one followed as if to tell him he didn''t have a choice.
"Sorry, Five, could you give me a moment?"
"Y-yes¡"
? Five was blushing to the ears, awkwardly getting off hisp and sitting beside him on the bed. Sam let out another frustrated sigh and dug out his phone from the pocket of hisb coat.
''This is better be important¡'' he thought as he checked his notifications, but the moment he read the message his eyes went wide as his head cooled down immediately.
[Another soldier was found dead. Please head for the cafeteria immediately.]
Chapter 96 Another Murder.
"His name is John Kerry, a sergeant from the thirteenth reconnaissance team." Alice spoke, introducing the victim to Sam who had just arrived. "Acoording to witness reports he returned with his squad yesterday afternoon after which he spent most of his time resting in his room. Around midnight he went out to y cards with some acquaintances, something he''s used to do while on break. The game went on till 03:00. That was thest time anyone has seen him alive."
Sam went down on one knee and removed the white sheet covering the corpse. The victim was a man in histe twenties with long blond hair and very handsome face.
The cause of death was a strong blow to the back of the head. The corpse was found behind the cafeteria by one of the staff as they went to prepare today''s breakfast.
"I don''t really recognize him¡" Sam said, unable to remember if he had seen the man.
"Actually he is one of the three suspects in the case of your assault from a while back." Alice said.
"... what?" Sam turned to look at the white haired beauty, his face showing a confused expression. It was only a few secondster that he remembered what she was talking about.
"Yeah, right, that did happen, huh¡"
A little over a month ago Sam was attacked at night by what he suspected to be some Valkyrie fanatics. Though it had been a major inconvenience he forgot all about it as soon as hepletely recovered.
"Huh? Did you really forget?!" Alice asked looking quite baffled.
"Yeah, I had a lot of things on my mind so¡" just then Sam seemed to remember something important. "Wait, if he''s one of the suspects does that mean¡"
"Yes, he''s one of sergeant Clementine''s acquaintances." Said Alice.
Not only did he forget about the time he got assaulted, he had also forgot about how he had discovered Jordan''s corpse as he headed for the nuclear shelter.
''So that''s why they''re giving me those looks¡''
Sam nced at the crowd standing behind the yellow caution tape surrounding the crime scene. Many had suspected him for the murder of the orange headed soldier even though he couldn''t have possibly done it. This time however things are different.
Sam has already recovered from his injuries so it wouldn''t be difficult for him to kill someone by hitting them on the back of the head. And the biggest problem would be hisck of alibi.
No one can prove that he was in hisb the entire time and he couldn''t just say he was sleeping with one of the Valkyries.
''Well, we can always look at the maintenance area''s entry records.''
The maintenance area where hisb is located was a building connected to the Valkyrie residence. A special ID is required for entry and exit and a record is kept of each along with the footage from the security cameras ced around.
,m As long as it''s proven that he hadn''t left the maintenance area for the past few hours he wouldn''t be in trouble.
"Commander." One of the female soldiers approached Alice with a tablet in hand. "I''ve checked the security footage, however there are no signs of the perpetrator leaving the crime scene."
Alice took the tablet, grimacing after a while. Standing up Sam asked her to show him and he immediately understood the reason behind her visible displeasure.
The forty sixth base was in a rtively peaceful part of the frontline. Well, as long as the past few incidents are ignored. With the enemy they''re fighting being inexplicable manifestations of horror very little resources were out into equipping the bases to deal with human caused problems.
Because of that many parts of the base have blind spots which aren''t covered by the security equipment. The ce where John got ambushed was at the back door of the cafeteria which is mainly used by the kitchen staff and the only ways to reach it are two small alleys, one beside the storage room and the other beside the outer wall of the base.
The security footage showed John walking toward the cafeteria, probably wishing to buy something from the vending machines ced nearby. He came to a stop looking toward the alley between the cafeteria and the storage room. After a couple of seconds he walkedover and disappeared behind the building. There is no sign of anyone leaving the area for the next hour until the ones who found the body appeared.
"It looks like he was looking for something here." Sam said, rewinding the video to just before the blond guy went into the alley. "Maybe he heard a sound of some kind and went to check?"
The man didn''t act surprised when it happens so either he was expecting it or he was seeing something they aren''t able to see from that camera angle.
"Now that you said it¡" Alice took the tablet and began checking the footage once more.
"There are no other ways to leave the area, right?" Sam turned to the ones who discovered the corpse with that question.
The one to answer was a grey haired man that seemed to be in theter half of his fifties.
"Well, the shelter under the building has tunnels that lead to different parts of the base. However the gates leading to it can''t be opened without themander''s permission."
Sam turned to look at Alice, who shook her head slowly.
"I made sure they weren''t opened since thest time the shelter was in use."
''So you''re telling me we are dealing with an invisible enemy?'' Sam thought. ''Or maybe it''s one that can go through walls.''
Sam heaved a long sigh. As if they didn''t have enough problems already, now they are forced to y among us instead of trying to survive the apocalypse.
The worst part is that he couldn''t get angry even after his moment with Zero Five got interrupted. He didn''t really care about the guy named John but it would be really heartless for him get annoyed by someone''s death.
''Damn it¡''
Sam was forces to leave Five''s room soon after receiving Alice''s message. Though he wanted to make it more special he ended up kissing her only once saying they would continueter on. Sadly with the situation being like this the arousal he was feeling earlier vanished and he felt that it''ll be a while before he could find an opening to do it with the Valkyrie for an entire day.
As his thoughts wandered he spotted a familiar red hair in the corner of his eyes.
"Rough day, huh, Doctor?" Melissa said with a wry smile.
"Indeed." Sam replied. "You know anything about him?"
Melissa nced at the corpse for a couple of second before talking.
"As I remember John was one of the Zero Three devotees." She said. "He''s known to cross the line when ites to his favorite idol. Back when we were deciding on those who would be allowed to interact with the Valkyries he almost lost it when he wasn''t picked for Zero Three''s group."
''Come to think of it¡''
Back when they were nning things Sam had informed the fan club president that the young Valkyrie would most likely stick close to Shizuru who she was already acquainted with, because of that the ones who got picked were mostly the Asian girl''s colleagues.
''I guess that''s another reason for him to have a grudge against me¡''
"I don''t see Brandon around." Melissamented. "He was close to both John and Jordan. Maybe he knows something."
"Alright. I''ll ask themander to send someone to look for him."
Sam was about to go tell Alice but felt his arm being grabbed. The red haired woman motioned for him toe closed then whispered in his ear.
"You should take a shower before you meet your girlfriend." She said. "She isn''t the one you''ve been fucking beforeing here, am I right?"
When Sam gave her a surprised look, Melissa wincked at him with a mischievously smile then turned around and left. Turning around he realized that Alice was looking his way with half lid eyes.
With how urgent the situation was he had no chance to wash after what he did with Nine and with how close she was to him the white haired beauty must''ve noticed ad well.
Normally she would suspect that the one he was with is his other girlfriend, Shizuru, however as soon as she realizes that he didn''t leave the maintenance area since yesterday it''d be easy to connect the dots.
"Sergeant Sanderson, can youe to my office?" Alice said, her expression as serious as it could get.
For a while he though that his crime has been exposed. Following behind themander, Sam began to think of some kind of excuseto save himself.
He could say that he was too busy and forgot to bath, but that might not work depending on how strong Alice''s sense of smell was.
A couple of minutester the two entered themander''s office.
Chapter 97 Bodyguards.
Once the door closed behind her, Alice turned to face Sam. They stared at each other for a few seconds, the tension in the room growing by the moment.
After a long minute of silence the white hairedmander moved. Sam''s body went stiff seeing her approach him, but defying his expectations she threw herself onto his chest as she hugged him tightly.
"... um¡ Alice?" Sam was confused for a moment, but when he heard what she said next he understood the reason behind her actions.
"You''re safe." Alice spoke, nuzzling up against him. "I was so worried¡"
"R-really now¡"
Sam''s nervousness grew a thousand golds seeing that she was now close enough to notice the strange odoring from his body. Despite that he returned the hug, slowly patting her head.
Of course his trooper was quick to stand for attention and that didn''t go unnoticed by the white haired beauty.
Alice nced down before looking up at him with half lid eyes.
"Sam, you realize this isn''t a good time, right? Someone just died." She said, heaving an exasperated sigh.
"It''s just a reaction, don''t let it bother you." Sam replied with a nervous smile.
"Also, when was thest time you bathed?"
Just when he was about to rx the question finally came up.
"I¡ have been really busy¡" Sam replied. "I didn''t get the chance¡"
"I know the work father left you with is very important,however you shouldn''t neglect taking care of yourself. It would be really bad if you copse from exhaustion."
"... I¡ will make sure to be careful¡"
There was a moment of silence as they hugged each other a little longer, Alice then let go of him and walked over to her desk.
"Can''t believe something like this happened. And just when we were starting with the preparations to leave this ce." She sighed, rxing on the back of her chair.
"The problem is that this isn''t the first time." Sam said, sitting at the edge of the sofa. "And it seems I''m the prime suspect in this case as well."
"Come to think of it, you said you and sergeant Clementine had some disagreements in the past." Alice said. "Mind if I ask what it was about?"
Sam let out a sigh. He really didn''t want to talk about it, but in the end he decided to just do it.
"He was trying get together with Shizuru but got rejected. You can guess the rest."
"Ooh¡ I think I understand." Alice nodded repeatedly. "You stole the woman he was after, I guess he would have a grudge because of that."
"I didn''t steal anything. Shizuru and I had something going on for a while at that point. It''s his fault for not being able to read the mood."
Though he said that, Sam wasn''t that good at catching hints as well. If the Asian girl didn''t bring up the idea of dating he would''ve just cowered until she got tired of him.
"That aside, how are we going to solve this problem?" He asked. "There is a murderer in our lines. If we go back to the headquarters without finding out who it was they would really get away with it."
"I understand what you mean, but¡" letting out a sigh, Alice held a hand to her forehead. "We have very little evidence. All we can do is interrogate the soldiers and try to lower down the number of suspects. It would be much easier if we had an idea of what the motive might be, but sadly¡"
They knew very little to even make a guess. As his mind went through the things he heard so far, Sam decided to mention what Melissa had told him earlier.
"Apparently the victim was a big fan of Zero Three." He said. "Though I find it difficult to believe that has anything to do with his murder¡"
"Zero Three, huh¡" Alice mumbled in a low voice, her eyes cast down. "Speaking of the small one, you asked for permission to sit het out of the patrol the other day, right? And yesterday it was Nine. Is something going on?"
The question spilled cold water on Sam who had thought the difficult part had ended. His mind worked at top speed toe up with an excuse, but even though he had one at the ready, somehow he felt that his white haired lover wouldn''t buy it.
"What are you talking about, Alice. Weren''t you the one who asked me to keep an eye on those three?"
"Well¡"
"Since I''ve been stuck in myb the entire time I didn''t get the chance to supervise them as you asked. That''s why I had one of them stay behind so I could check a few things."
"I¡ see¡" Alice seemed unconvinced at first, but then she let out a sigh as if dismissing the subject. "It must be quite difficult, having to deal with them all the time."
"Yeah, it really is¡" Sam followed with a nod.
"So¡ did you find anything?" She asked. "I remember you being quiet paranoid about the way they were behaving recently."
"Nope¡" Sam shook his head slowly. "I think what happened back then was just me reading too much into it. I barely interacted with them before so I shouldn''t have rushed to conclusions."
As he has yet to decide how he would deal with the matter, Sam didn''t want anyone to know about Zero Three gaining sentience. It''s not that he didn''t trust Alice, however the fewer those who knew the better it was for now.
It was difficult to imagine a scenario where humanity doesn''t freakout at the prospect of one of their weapons obtaining individuality. The only solution would be for him to do as Wolf had told him and find a way to turn humans into Valkyries. Only then would Three have a chance at living a normal life.
"Well, am I right to assume that you intend to make the third one stay behind today?" Alice asked.
"That was the n." Sam replied, doing his best to keep a poker face.
"There won''t be any need, then. I''ve decided that there is no point in continuing with such operations since we''ll be abandoning the region in a few weeks. The Valkyries are to stay put until further notice."
"... understood¡"
Sam wasn''t expecting something like that so it came as quite the surprise.
"Also, from now on make sure to keep at least one of them by your side." She said. "They might not be able to hurt humans but at the very least they would be able to detect danger before it gets to you."
"Wait¡ hold on¡ are you asking me to make the three my bodyguards?" Sam asked, his eyes wide open.
"Of course." Alice replied with a smile. "I would do anything to keep you safe."
"... shouldn''t I be the one saying that?" He said. "And wouldn''t it make more sense for them to protect you, the base''smander?"
"You don''t have to worry about me." Alice said. "I''m not the one who got attacked before."
"Even if you say that¡"
"Besides, the administration building is as secure as yourb and the Valkyries'' residence. I rarely leave my office so I''m sure I''ll be fine."
Sam sighed once more. Something told him the murdered would definitely find a way no matter how secure they might think they are.
But that didn''t really matter. Since he now has the permission he didn''t have to worry abouting up with excuses. First he would continue where he had left with Five, after that he would move between her and Nine until he gets his fill of that sweet sweet Valkyrie vagina. He could even have threesomes with both of them. Surely that would be enough to satisfy the thirst he felt even after doing it with Nine all day long.
"Back to the main topic." Alice spoke interrupting his tain of thought. "Do you think the two crimes are rted?"
"Huh?" Sam was stunned for a moment but he quickly regained hisposure. "You mean that of sergeant Clementine and this one?"
"Yes. We know that the two victims are acquainted, however does that really mean the perpetrator is the same one asst time?"
Sam stopped to think about it for a moment, staring at the ceiling as he did.
"Now that you said it, we can''t overlook that possibility."
They had made the assumption that the two crimes are rted but they didn''t have much evidence to support that.
"Well, we might learn something once we interrogate the third one." Sam said, referring to the third guy Melissa mentioned.
"I know I''ve already said it but¡ I honestly can''tprehend why someone would kill one of theirrades when the world is like this." Letting out a sigh, Alice got up from her chair and turned to stare out of the window behind her. "Hopefully we catch the criminal before it''s time to move. I doubt I would be able to sleep well otherwise¡"
Sam agreed with her on that point. Not that he cared about the victims or the morality of the matter. He just had a feeling that unless this mystery is solved one day it''ll somehow blow up in his face.
Chapter 98 Mystery.
After his meeting with themander Sam headed back to his room where he took a shower and changed onto a new set of clothes.
In the meantime Alice gathered the soldiers in the auditorium to make an official statement about the incident. She urged everyone to be careful and to move in groups of at least two to lower the chances of anyone else bing a victim.
Afterwards Sam met with Shizuru for breakfast as usual.
"Things sure have gotten much worse¡" the Asian girlmented, noticing the suspicion filled eyes staring in their direction.
"It''s only natural." Sammented.
He didn''t let the crowd bother him at all and ate his food peacefully. That said, he couldn''t help getting a little worried about where things are going right now.
"I''ll be quite busy going forward." He said. "Will you be fine on your own?"
"I''m more worried about you." She said with a giggle. "I still have a few acquaintances I can stay with. You on the other hand¡"
"I''ll be spending most of my time in theb anyways." Sam said. "That ce is as secure as it could possibly get."
Of course he kept out the part of the Valkyries being there to guard him. He didn''t want his girlfriend to have anything else to worry about for the time being.
"But honestly, I can''t believe we are going through this again." Shizuru said, sounding a little upset.
"True." Sam replied before taking a sip from his coffee.
"This criminal knows exactly when to strike. First it was in the panic during thest big battle and now it''s right after the announcement from two days ago. It seems he likes to use big events as a cover for his actions."
While Sam was busy dealing with Zero Three''s problem Alice had announced that the base would be relocated in the uing month. Though the general reception was mixed the majority was relieved to hear that they''re going to move to the headquarters which is much safer than anywhere else on the frontline.
"We still don''t know if it''s the same guy." Sam said.
"Of course it is." Shizuru replied. "I''ve read enough books to know where this is going."
Sam let out a shortugh which drew a pouty look from his girlfriend.
"And? May I ask what you think will happen next?"
"Both Jordan and John were part of the same reconnaissance team, right? The murderer will most likely continue hunting theirrades in an attempt to hide his tracks."
"I see¡"
What she said made some sense. With only two victims it should be much easier to connect the dots and learn the criminal''s motives, which is why he needs more victims to throw off the investigation.
"Jordan and John might not even be the real targets." Shizuru said. "It could be that they''re the ones being used as a cover."
"Maybe¡"
Asking a mystery novels lover like Shizuru for her input might have been a bad idea as now things had gotten moreplicated than they should. That said he couldn''t deny that she has a point. Until they learn the true motive behind the murders all theories are still viable.
A couple of hourster Sam was summoned to the disciplinary office where the interrogation was taking ce.
Alice along with a number of security guards were present and the one being interrogated had arrived just before him.
Sergeant Brandon Crawford was a close friend of Jordan and John. His shock at the death of his friend was visible and making him talk didn''t prove to be a problem.
Soon after the interrogation started he admitted to assisting John in assaulting Sam that time. Turns out the handsome blond guy was the one who orchestrated the attack. Apparently he was angry at the Doctor for being so close to Zero Three, which is something they had already concluded.
What surprised them though was that Jordan was apparently the one who stopped him from killing Sam. It seems he was somewhat of a good guy despite being persistent to an annoying degree.
After that incident the three stared to drift apart. When Jordan was found dead the other two were sure that the perpetrator was Sam but they kept their mouths shut in fear of their own crime getting discovered. With John being dead only Brandon was left so he was desperately asking for the guards to protect him from Sam.
Sadly no matter how many times they asked he never seemed to recall anything else that might''ve been the reason his friends were targeted.
Feeling that there was no point in him being there Sam decided to leave everything to Alice and head back to hisb.
~¡ó~
"Wee back, Doctor."
Sam was startled by Zero Five who was there to greet him the moment he arrived.
Unlike her expressionless demeanor from before she now has a warm smile on her face with slightly red cheeks. Seeing her like that made him desire her lips, but sadly the incident from earlier had put out the fire that was in him and he no longer felt like doing anything to her.
Five didn''t seem to mind it at all, saying that all she wanted was to stay by his side. Well, at least that''s what she thought at first.
"Good morning, Doctor~?"
As soon as he sat down with the intention of doing some work the door opened and a certain blond Valkyrie came in.
"O~h! Five is here as well!?"
Five''s mood took a swing for the worse in contrast to Nine''s cheerfulness. She clearly didn''t want anyone to interrupt her alone time with the Doctor, but Nine didn''t seem to care.
"Do you need anything, Nine?" Sam asked, having noticed the sparks flying between the two.
"Nothing. I just thought that I should go see Doctor." She said, cing a hand on her cheek as she let out a sorrowful sigh. "Waking up all alone. I felt really sad, you know."
The aura around Zero Five changed which made Sam believe that Nine was purposefully pulling her leg. She must''ve been awake the entire time meaning she probably heard the conversation they had in the hallway which is why she''s acting like that.
As if to confirm his suspicions, Nine walked over, leaning toward him before whispering in his ear
"Yesterday was really fun~?. Doctor, when are we going to do it again?"
Five suddenly shot up from her seat drawing their attention to her. She quickly made her way to Sam''s side and wrapped her arms around his left before pulling him away from Nine forcing him to get up from his seat.
The blond Valkyrie watched in wide eyed surprise as Five red at her.
"You''ve already had Doctor for an entire day. It''s my turn now!" Five said, burying his arm between her soft melons.
Though the way she said it was quite adorable, Sam couldn''t help but feel like he''s a toy the two girls were forced to share.
Nine seemed baffled at first, but then her smile soon returned and she quickly went and hugged Sam''s other arm.
"Five, Doctor isn''t a toy for you to keep him to yourself." Nine said in a teasing tone. "Besides, I''m his personal Valkyrie now. Isn''t it obvious that I should be by his side most of the time?"
"If that''s the case then it''s the same for me!" Five shot back. "I''ve decided to be Doctor''s Valkyrie as well! If that means I have to always be with him then I''d be happy to do so!"
"Oh~h¡" looking up at Sam, Nine shed him a dangerous smile. "So you weren''t satisfied with just me? Doctor sure is a greedy man~?"
As she tightened her hold on his arm, Sam began to seriously feel scared for his life.
"But I guess that''s only natural." Letting out a sigh, the blond Valkyrie leaned her head on Sam''s shoulder and spoke in a much warmer tone. "Doctor deserves to get everything he wants. I believe that all Valkyries should offer themselves to him."
"All!!?" Five was shocked for a moment, but before she could say anything else Nine looked up with a start.
"By the way, Doctor. Since you''ve already obtained Five does that mean you n on going after Three next? Or could it be that she''s already yours?"
"Three, huh¡" even if she didn''t ask him that question, Sam was aware that he would have to do something about the young Valkyrie.
Sadly now that she has gained sentience making her fall for him will probably be much more difficult than it already is, and even if he''s sessful his rtionship with her won''t be that of a master and AI making it different from what he has with the other two.
"Were you talking about me?"
Not a moment after he said her name the young Valkyrie suddenly showed up. She stared at the three for a few seconds before she lowered her eyes looking a bit confused.
"Umm¡ no, I don''t think I want to know."
Seeing her reaction, Sam let out a very long sigh.
Chapter 99 Back To Work.
"And that''s how it is." Sam said as he ended the exnation.
He had told the three Valkyries about Alice''s decision for them to stop going out on patrols and their new job, but to his surprise none of them knew about the base relocation.
"To think the day we leave this ce would actuallye¡" Zero Three murmured, a sad expression taking over her face.
The announcement took ce while they were dealing with the young Valkyrie''s problem. Only when Sam brought it up did they all realize that they had missed out.
"What are you saying, three." Nine said with a smile. "It was only a matter of time."
"I guess you have a point." The young Valkyrie let out a long sigh. Her mood then switched instantly, a wide smile appeared recing her frown.
"Since you only need one of us to guard you, does that mean I can leave now?" She asked.
"Well, yes. You''re free to go." Sam said.
"Ya~y! I can swim all day!!!"
The young Valkyrie got up and dashed out of the door.
''What did shee here for anyway?'' Sam let out a sigh.
He turned to face the remaining two, and the moment his eyes fell on them he gulped audibly.
Two incredible beauties were sitting on his bed, their cheeks slightly reddened. He felt that it was an obvious invitation for some fun times, however he knew he couldn''t just indulge himself like he did yesterday.
"Alright then¡" letting out a sigh, Sam spoke his decision. "Today Zero Five will be the one to guard me. Tomorrow will be Nine''s turn and since she most likely wouldn''t like being stuck here all day Zero Three will be thest. Is that clear?"
"Yes." Five nodded with a smile.
"Doctor¡" hesitating for a moment, Nine looked up at him, her smile showing signs of nervousness. "It doesn''t have to be only one of us, right? How about I stay here and guard you as well?"
Seeing her expression, Sam thought about it for a moment then shook his head.
"I won''t be able to concentrate with both of you here. To be honest I would rather be on my own while working, but orders are orders."
"... I see¡" Nine looked a little down as she stood up from the bedside. "Nothing can be done about it, I guess¡"
For a moment Sam thought she was heading for the door, which was behind him. He was about to move out of the way but after two steps the blond Valkyrie was suddenly in front of him, her face stopping right before his as she carefully kissed him on the lips.
The speed in which she moved left no room for reaction so by the time he realized what had just happened it was already over. Nine backed away and smiled at the stunned Doctor. She then turned to Five who was looking at them in wide eyed shock and smirked.
"Then, I''ll be on my way, Doctor~?"
Sam and Five stayed still until the door closed behind the blond Valkyrie who seemed to be in a really good mood as she left. Sam nced in Five''s direction and their eyes met for a moment, but the ponytailed Valkyrie looked away with a frown.
Sam let out a long sigh, shaking his head with a hand on his forehead.
Knowing he couldn''t work in this mood he considered his options then went and sat down beside the Valkyrie. After a moment of awkward silence he ced his hand over her shoulder and pulled her toward him.
"We¡ didn''t finish our conversation earlier, right?" Sam said, slowly caressing Five''s shoulder.
Her mood improved in an instant and she looked up at him with a bashful smile.
"Are you sure you want to be my personal Valkyrie?" Sam asked.
"Yes." Five replied, not hesitating for a moment.
"Alright. Close your eyes."
The Valkyrie did as he said, closing her eyes and preparing her lips. Sam stared at her for a moment then slowly dived in.
He joined their mouths, making out with her for a couple of minutes. He held back on using his tongue, enjoying the soft cherry lips until he felt it''s appropriate to stop.
"Five, from now on you are my Valkyrie." Sam said.
"Yes." Five replied, her face beaming with joy.
The two began kissing again, this time Sam didn''t hold back on using his tongue. His initial n was to make her feel better after what Nine did, but as more time passed he found himself enjoying the act, which was a really bad sign since he didn''t want to spend another day making love to a Valkyrie especially with how tense things are right now.
''... just a little wouldn''t hurt¡''
~¡ó~
After enjoying five''s lips for a while Sam went back to his desk and busied himself with work. Though with a beautiful girl waiting for him on the bedhe felt somewhat distracted.
''Maybe I should do something else¡'' thinking that to himself, he ced down his pen and closed the notebook in front of him.
"Five, we are moving to another room." Sam said.
Five was already on her feet the moment she saw him stand up.
"May I ask where are we going?"
"I need to start working on one of the tasks general Schneider had assigned to me."
He was referring to disassembling and reverse engineering the Valkyrie heart.
Wolf had mentioned that the previous attempts to take apart those intricate pieces of technology all ended with them self destructing due to the traps Odin had left behind to keep his inventions a secret.
Though he had memorized the blue prints to a point where he could recreate any part without having to check them, doing so in VR and in reality are two different things.
One mistake could lead to the entire thing blowing up in his face, something he wanted to avoid at all costs, of course.
While he was busy having fun with Nine the previous day a number of drones were working on preparing a new room by installing the equipment Wolf had brought with him. It was done earlier that morning so Sam was going to give it a test drive first before beginning the real work.
The room was separated into two sides through a transparent yet very strong ss, much like the one in the Eir room.
At first it looked empty with only a simple terminal in front of the ss wall, however it''s obvious that there is more to it.
"Wait here." Sam instructed.
He headed for a small door on the left wall.
He held up his ID for the scanner to unlock the door then disappeared behind it for a few seconds before emerging on the other side with something on his hand. It was a spare smartphone he had obtained from the supply room to use for his experiment.
At the center of the room a cylindrical shaped tform rose up to about the height of his waist. Sam ced the smartphone on it then went back to the previous room.
"It''s been a while since I did this." He said as he typed something in the terminal. A momentter a small box came out from the side containing what looked like gloves and some thick sses, at the same time lines began to form on the ceiling on the other side of the room and four mechanical arms appeared one after the other, each with a different set of tools, and surrounded the tform Sam had ced the smartphone on.
"Alright." Sam said, putting on the gloves and the sses.
The moment he did multiple windows appeared on the ss wall in front of him showing different parameters with a big one at the center having a magnified image of the smartphone on it.
Sam moved his fingers a little and as if in sink the mechanical arms on the other side of the ss wall moved as well.
"It''s been a while since I''ve used one of these." Sam said as he summoned a menu in front of him and began doing some adjustments. Once everything was to his liking he took a deep breath and entered a state of extreme concentration.
Five''s eyes went wide as she watched from the side. Sam''s fingers moved at an incredible speed and the mechanical arms did the same. In just a couple of minutes the entire smartphone was taken apart and turned into its smallestponents which were ced neatly on another tform.
"Now let''s put it back together¡"
Saying that Sam started doing the opposite of what he did a moment ago. It took him much longer but in the end he managed to reassemble it but in the end the smartphone was back to the shape it was before he started the process.
Once he was done Sam took off the sses and gloves then went to the other side of the ss to check his work.
Seeing the phone turn on normally Sam smiled to himself. The experiment was a sess.
Chapter 100 Difficult Task.
Done with the warmups, Sam brought out the suitcase with the heart in it. Once it was ced onto the tform he returned to the other side of the ss and wore the gloves and sses.
The first thing he did was to increase the safety measures to the maximum. That created an invisible force field on the other side of the ss, which wasn''t as strong as that of the Valkyries, however it would help absorb some of the damage of anything goes wrong.
"Doctor, is it okay if I ask what is that?" Five said,ing closer to the ss wall to get a look.
"That''s¡ the heart of a Valkyrie." Sam was a little hesitant to answer. It didn''t seem right to talk about what''s basically one of her kind''s internal organs as he''s about to take it apart. "It''s the part of you that''s responsible for creating the force field."
"I¡ I see¡"
The answer seemed to bother the Valkyries more than he thought. However there isnt much he could do about it. It''s the proper reaction one should have to what''s about to happen.
"This is still confidential information." Sam said, turning back to the object on the other side of the room. "Odin has disappeared, which means we can no longer create new Valkyries."
"Wha-" the shock caused the words to get stuck in Five''s throat. "Odin!? You mean our creator?"
"Yes¡"
When she said it like that, Sam realized that the man they''re talking about was something akin to a god to the Valkyries. As impressive as it was, creating the Valkyries didn''t feel that big of a deal before. However now that Three has gained sentience and individuality Sam began to see the man in a different light even if that result wasn''t what he was going for.
''Well, he had the audacity to name himself after a god¡''
"Since that man is no longer around we have no choice but to try and find a way to create Valkyries on our own. He had kept the process a secret so no one know how to do it, which is why we are attempting to reverse engineer some of the parts we retrieved from Valkyries that fell in battle."
"I¡ I see¡"
Five cast her eyes down, a sad look taking over her face.
"Is something wrong?" Sam asked.
"Well¡ I just remembered that our situation might be hopeless." Five said. "If our creator has given up on this war then¡"
Sam had nothing to say to that. If the man who has helped humanity survive so far decided that fighting is pointless then surely there is no hope of theming out on top.
"Whether it''s hopeless or not, we have no choice but to keep fighting." Sam said. "If we are going to lose anyway then might as well fight till the very end."
The Cmities had no intention of epting their surrender, that''s evident by how they continue with their assault despite being capable ofmunicating.
"I''ll continue to do my best till the very end so-" Sam said one more thing before entering his deep focus mode. "I''ll be relying on you to keep me safe."
Hearing those words, Five''s mood improved instantly and a smile appeared on her face.
"Yes!" She eximed. "I''ll do my best!"
~¡ó~
Unlike when he took the phone apart, Sam''s movements were much slower this time. Though he had the blue prints memorized by heart, the reality is that there is no safe way to disassemble the heart since it wasn''t made with that in mind.
Knowing that the day he gets to try it will eventuallye he spent many hours figuring out how to get around the traps Odinid in their way.
He adjusted theser cutter to the smallest caliber and began cutting around the circuit that activates the trap on the outer shell.
The heart is supposed to be dormant since it isn''t linked to the nuclear battery used to power the Valkyries, however ording to the blue prints it has it''s own internal power supply which is used in emergencies and in this case to causerge explosions if anyone tries to mess with it.
Removing the traps is like cutting the cables on a timed bomb, one mistake and everything is gone. The materials used to make the small spherical device are exceptionally hard which made it quite the struggle to cut through them. He couldn''t use a strongerser as well in fear of damaging the loweryers, his only choise was to move slowly and carefully.
After two hours he finally managed to remove the first trap. He was thankful to Odin for not making it so that the other traps activate if one of them is removed, otherwise removing them would''ve been much more difficult. There were two left, and same as the first one each took two hours to remove.
"This took much longer than I expected¡" Sam said, taking his sses off and wiping the sweat off his forehead.
The stress of working like that for six hours straight was starting to get to him, but at the very least he finally managed to get past the firstyer, removing the protective shell and unveiling the technological masterpiece underneath. At first it looked like a small sphere created from multiple rings of different sizes ovepping each other. Though each ring seemed like a single part, the reality is that they were made out of millions of nano machines held together to form a single solid object.
''Things will be different from here on¡'' Sam thought, letting out a sigh.
"Will you be taking a break, Doctor?" Five asked.
"Yeah. Sorry about that." Sam replied, taking his phone out to check the time. "It seems we missed lunch because of me."
"You don''t have to apologize, Doctor. We Valkyries don''t require sustenance aft-" before she could finish that sentence, a loud growling sound came from the Valkyrie''s stomach.
A second of silence pass. Five''s face began to heat and she couldn''t resist covering it with both hands.
''Yeah, Odin put that in as well¡''
The Valkyries might not need food to survive, however since they were created to behave like humans they''re forced to eat from time to time. Not doing so wouldn''t affect them at all, as long as they can ignore the signs of hunger, of course.
"How about we go eat something?" Sam said with an amused smile and Five nodded her approval.
That said, he couldn''t really take her to the cafeteria with him so he was at a loss of where they should eat.
"Oh, right, you have a cafeteria in your residenceright?" Sam said recalling his tour through the building.
"Yes." Five replied. "Are we going to eat there?"
"Well, we don''t have much choice. It would only cause me more trouble if people saw us together."
Looking confused, Five tilted her head to the side.
"Why? Am I not your personal Valkyrie now? Isn''t it normal for us to be together?"
Just then Sam remembered that he hadn''t told her or Nine to keep their rtionship a secret.
"Listen, Five, the fact that you are my personal Valkyrie is a secret that must never get out." Sam said, closing his eyes and heaving a long sigh. "While you''ve chosen me to be your master, I''m still far too low in themand chain that I''d be erased the moment our superiors find out."
"But¡"
"Nothing can be done about it. At least for now." Though he said that, Sam didn''t really know if it would change in the future.
If he followed Wolf''s suggestion and found a way to turn human''s into Valkyries something is bond to change. That said, he couldn''t imagine the higher ups just handing him Five and the other, especially after they obtain even more power.
''I need to find a way¡''
His only choice would be make his way to the top of the Resistance and what''s left of humanity, only then would he be able to have his Valkyries without anyoneining.
''Doctor deserves to get everything he wants. I believe that all Valkyries should offer themselves to him.''
As he was in deep though, Sam remembered what Nine said earlier. All Valkyries should offer themselves to him. He didn''t give it much thought before, but the idea of getting to keep all of them for himself sounded more appealing than he thought.
Quite a few of them had been destroyed and more will suffer the same fate soon enough. By the time he makes it to a position where he would have control over the Resistance, the Cmities would''ve destroyed most of them.
If he wants to get his hands on as many Valkyries as possible he needed to act soon. Thankfully Odin had left quite the gift for him. With the blue prints and his expertise in nanotechnology it wouldn''t be a dream to rise to the top as long as he ys his cards right.
''Shizuru and Alice will definitely hate me for this.'' Sam thought, smiling as he sighed. ''Though I''m sure everything will be fine once I turn them into a Valkyries as well.''
Chapter 101 Feels Strange.
? After getting lunch Sam summoned Three and Nine for their daily examination. He had to make sure to remove all of the evidence from the report before sending it.
As he was going through the examination results he found something that shocked him quite a bit. Apparently Eir had considered Nine getting prated as damage and automatically fixed her hymen restoring her virginity.
He didn''t know how to feel about that, however he liked the idea of every time feeling like the first so he chose to not let it bother him.
Once he was done with the report Sam went back to working on the Valkyrie heart.
Sadly by the time he was done with the second ring dinner time arrived. With the stress building up from the amount of concentration the task required, Sam found himself rather exhausted especially after how little sleep he got the previous day.
Deciding to take a long nap after dinner, Sam and Five went to the cafeteria in the Valkyries'' residence where they met Nine and Three who were about to eat as well.
"It feels strange, having someone else eat with us." Threemented.
They were having beef ravioli for dinner. Most of the livestock the base is taking care of will be moved with them as well so it was decided that some need to be consumed in order to make transporting everything easier.
"Usually it''s only the three of us, right?" Nine said, bringing a fork to her mouth.
"Doctor is busy. It''s more practical for him to dine with us." Five added.
Sam kept his silence as he ate. A couple of seconds pass and the young Valkyrie suddenly ms her cutlery on the table.
"Alright! I can''t take it anymore!" She said, pointing a finger in Sam''s direction. "What the hell is going on here!!?"
There is a very specific reason for Three''s sudden outburst. It was already a surprise that the Doctor hade to eat with them, but what she thought was weirder is the fact that both Nine and Five are sitting beside him leaving her alone on the other side of the table.
It''s not that they had a set arrangement, however with the four of them being there she expected that two would be sitting on each side of the table facing each other.
"You two have been getting way too clingy all of a sudden! What''s wrong with you!?"
Sam let out a long sigh as the Valkyries on his sides stared in surprise.
"Three, could it be¡" covering her mouth as she gasped, Nine looked at the young Valkyrie with wide eyes. "Did you want to sit beside Doctor as well?"
"What are you talking about?" Three replied, Bernie expression spoke of how annoyed she felt. "I''m asking why you''re so close all of a sudden? Besides, aren''t we prohibited from making physical contact with¡"
Coming to a stop, the young Valkyrie began to recall the time Sam had embraced her. She felt her face heat gradually and her legs gave in for some reason, forcing her to sit down.
"It doesn''t matter what the previous rules are." Nine said, wrapping her arm around Sam''s left while leaning against him. "We are Doctor''s personal Valkyries now. We only follow what he orders us to~?"
"... what?"
After a moment of silence the young Valkyrie raided her head looking utterly confused. Sam sighed once more and was about to tell Nine to let him finish his food, but his words fell on deaf ears.
"Oh! Right! You have yet to offer yourself to Doctor, right?" Nine said, her surprised reaction clearly fake this time around.
"W-what are you talking about?" Three asked, her eyes shifting toward Sam.
"You see, Three, both Five and I have offered ourselves to Doctor." Five nodded repeatedly as Nine spoke. "That means we no longer belong too the Resistance. We only follow orders given to us by Doctor and act ording to his will."
The exnation seemed to confuse Zero Three even more, and she continued to stare at Sam as if to ask him what the blond one was bbering about.
"You''ll understand soon enough." Finally letting go of Sam''s arm, Nine looked Three in the eyes and said with her usual smile. "Once you offer yourself to Doctor everything will make sense."
Though he didn''t know why, Sam felt a little bothered by the way Nine had said thosest words, and it seems he osmt the only one as the young Valkyrie went a little pale.
"Stop it, Nine." Sam said. "You shouldn''t speak as if the matter is already settled. It''s up to Three to decide whether she wants to be one of my Valkyries or not."
On the inside Sam wanted to reprimand Nine for her big mouth, even if the situation is his fault. She still doesn''t know that others must not learn that she now belongs to him otherwise the likelihood of troubleing his way will increase. He doubted that the young Valkyrie will tell on him, however one couldn''t be careful enough.
"What are you saying, Doctor?" Nine spoke. "After all the kindness you treated her with, would she have a reason to refuse bing yours?"
"It''ll not that simple¡"
In order for him to be the master of a Valkyrie Sam has to fulfill certain conditions which would result in their AI recognizing him as their lover. For Five it was interacting with her until her sturn mast shatters. Nine''s condition were vague, however being intimate with her did the trick. Three on the other hand, it''s no longer that simple in her case.
She''s no longer bound by the restrictions of a normal Valkyrie so the previous condition wouldn''t work on her.
''No, it''s just that it''s no longer guaranteed.'' Sam thought as he locked eyes with the young one. ''I can still try to make her fall for me, and unlike those two, her feelings wouldn''t be forced by her programming¡''
As he continued to stare at her, Zero Three looked away as she began to blush. She kept stealing nces at him for a few seconds befor sitting down and focusing on her food once more.
''Maybe I''m closer than I thought.'' Seeing how adorable the bashful Three looked, Sam couldn''t help but smile realizing that his goal might not be as far as he thought.
~¡ó~
After dinner Sam went back to hisb and worked some more. He had topose a report detailing what he learned from the progress he made so far.
Obviously he couldn''t rely on his knowledge from the blue prints for this. He needed to make it vague and iplete as if he was still in the process of studying the device.
As he type on the keyboard Sam noticed that Zero Five was slowly dozing off. Seeing her struggle to keep her eyes open caused his sleepiness to grow stronger.
''Maybe we should call it a night¡''
Stretching his arms, Sam got up from his seat and faced the ponytailed Valkyrie.
"Five, you can go to your room now." He said. "We are done for the day."
"Eh? N-no!" Coming back to her senses, Five shook her head showing her refusal. "My job is to guard you for the entirety of today. If I go now that would mean Nine would have to take my ce!"
"No, I just want to get some sleep, that''s all. I think I''ll be fine on my own."
"Then that''s more of a reason to not leave!" The Valkyrie didn''t hesitate to shoot down the idea. "I can''t leave you alone in such circumstances. Your life might be in danger so I need to be close enough to act in case anything happens."
Though he doubted anything would happen to him, the look in Five''s eyes told him that she wouldn''t be backing down.
That said, with how sleepy she looked a few seconds ago he doubted that she could keep going for long. Her danger sense would still be active even if she falls asleep so it didn''t really matter whether she''s awake or not. After thinking it through for a few minutes an idea appeared in Sam''s mind.
"Alrught." He said as he looked at his phone. "The bed here is a little small so let''s go to your room."
When he checked the clock Sam was surprised to see that it was only a little past ten. Three and Nine should be asleep by now so no one should disrupt them from here on.
At first Five didn''t understand why he had decided on her room and why the size of the bed matters, but then she suddenly got the idea that his aim is for the two of them to sleep together.
As she led the way Five felt her face heating up. Her chest was growing warm at the thought of what''s about to happen, however she failed to consider that what Sam was nning might not be what she had in mind.
Once they were inside, the Valkyrie turned to face her master. She was about to tell him to wait as she changes into her sleepwear, however before the words coulde out her mouth got sealed as Sam stole a kiss from her.
"Come, Five." Sam said, smiling at the frozen still Valkyrie. "I''ll teach you a few things about what it means to be my personal Valkyrie."
Chapter 102 Sixty Nine.
Once they got to her room Sam didn''t hesitate to start making out with the ponytailed Valkyrie. After a couple of minutes he exined to her what her role as his personal Valkyrie would be.
In addition to protecting him and following his orders, she also has to perform certain acts to provide him with sexual relief. It was Five''s first time learning about sex and the things a man and woman do in private, which left her a little confused.
"So, In short I''ll be ying the part of a human female?" Five asked once the exnation was done.
"Yes." Sam replied. "Well, we''ve already done some things before so you will get used to it soon enough."
While she didn''t fully understand just the thought of them doing something only a human male and female usually do filed her with excitement. It meant that he saw her as one of his kind, and though she thought that she didn''t care before, for some reason the idea made her feel really happy.
The two spend a few more minutes making out after which Sam made her stand on the bed and spread her legs a little. What happened next seemed rather bizarre to the ponytailed Valkyrie, so much that she thought something was wrong with the Doctor.
"A-are you sure about this, Doctor?" Five asked, her voice tinged with worry.
"Yes. You just need to be careful." Sam replied.
Currently he wasying down on the bed with his head between her legs. The view was really nice, however he was patiently waiting for what''s about toe.
"U-understood." Five said, lifting her skirt a little. "Then, I will be starting now."
Still a bit hesitant, Five slowly went down on her knees. A smile formed on Sam''s face and in a couple of seconds it was buried under the Valkyrie''s two very soft bottom cheeks.
"Ah!"
Five covered her mouth as she unintentionally gasped. Her honey pot was right over the Doctor''s mouth and just his breath alone was enough to stimte her.
Sam began sniffing like a dog, taking big whiffs repeatedly. For some reason the Valkyrie''s privates smelled really nice, like a garden of roses. He reached out with both hands and began groping the soft buns all while five struggled to keep her moans from leaking.
Soon enough her breathing became rough and as if he was waiting for her to remove the hands covering her mouth Sam opened his and extended his tongue out licking her secret spot.
"Ah!! D-Doctor! Wha-Hyaaaahhh!!!"
Though her tights andbat suit were in the way she still felt the heat from of his breath and the trail of saliva he left behind. Sam felt her whole body shuddering every time his tongue slid on her flower bud, sometimes putting his lips on it and sucking even though nothing came out.
Thebat suit made a good job keeping her love juices from leaking, but that didn''t mean it''d be able to stop her from climaxing when the timees.
As she struggled against the strange feeling of her secret spot being stimted Five noticed the tent that had formed on Sam''s pants. Just then she remembered what she''s supposed to be doing right now and started removing his belt then his pants. In a second Sam''s fully erect penis revealed itself, throbbing with excitement as a drop of transparent liquid seeped from the tip.
Sam had noticed that his thing was out and stopped stimting the Valkyrie giving her a moment to begin doing her part. Five stared at the meat pir for a couple of seconds, swallowed audibly then leaned in and put her lips on the tip. She then extended her tongue and began licking it up and down.
When she began to get into it Sam went back to yings with her butt. He squeezed her cheeks then spread them apart before going on to massage the area between them along with her entrance. Though that caused her to freeze on multiple asions Five continued to dutifully please him with her mouth and tongue.
Before long Sam found himself on the verge of ejacting and as if she had sensed that Five immediately swallowed his rod causing the white fluid to burst out directly into her throat.
"Was that good enough, Doctor?" Having spent a few seconds making sure she drank every drop of the sticky white fluid, Five turned around to ask but Sam was nowhere in sight.
It took her a moment to remember that he was under her as she sat on his face once more when she got up. As he rxed after his load got blown he enjoyed the feeling of her soft behind he held a thumbs up telling her he''s fine and waited for his meat to get hard again.
A minuteter he was ready to go again so he got up from under Five''s butt then pushed her on the bed. He made her stick out her ass then proceeded to pull up her skirt revealing the beautiful sight underneath.
Five hugged the pillow and waited for him to do something as he slowly caressed her behind. After a short pause she was shocked to hear the sound of thin fabric being torn and once she felt a little cold down there she finally realized what he was doing.
Having torn a hole in her tights Sam then went and pulled aside the leotard likebat suit exposing Five''s secret slit which was soaking wet by that time.
Seeing the state it was in put a smile on his face. He brought his right hand to his mouth and spit on his fingers, spreading it around a little before reaching down.
"Ahh~?!"
He began massaging her opening slowly while observing her reaction. Seeing that she was doing her best to keep her voice down he pressed with his middle and ring finger rubbing with a little more strength than earlier.
Five''s muffled moans grew louder and her lower lips started leaking more and more. Her body twitched suddenly as she could no longer hold back and her fluids flowed out showering Sam''s hand.
"Five, how did it feel?" He asked, looking at the mess he had just caused.
The Valkyrie remained stiff for a few seconds as the wave of pleasure had yet to end. Once he began to rx she turned to look at him and to his surprise her eyes already had the pink hearts in them.
Five said nothing, giving him a heated look with flushed cheeks while puffing hot breaths out of her mouth. He took that as a sign of her being ready and prepared his tool to take her virginity away.
"Five, I''m going to put it in¡"
Though she heard him say it, the Valkyrie had no idea what he was talking about. Her mind was upied by the sensation of his tip rubbing against her slit making her think he was about to make her feel good once more just like he did not long ago, however she never could''ve predicted what was about to happen.
"Ah¡ Doc-...!! Ahh¡. Aaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!"
Five''s eyes went wide open, her hands sping the pillow tightly as she felt something thick slowly forcing its way inside her causing her to feel pain she had never experienced before.
By the time it stopped the object had reached far deeper than she thought it would. Five tried to get her erratic breath under control as she turned her head around to see what had invaded her body. Seeing the Doctor''s waist pressed against her behind she failed to understand for a moment, however it struck her in the next and she finally realized what the source of the pain was.
Sam was struggling himself. The tightness of Five''s vagina was on par with that of Nine and just like the blond Valkyrie the slippery walls began squeezing his rod trying to make him cum instantly.
"Hyaahhnn~?!!!"
Though he wanted to ask her how she felt first, Sam pulled his hips back before thrusting with everything he got.
"Ahh~?¡ ah¡hahh¡ ahh~?¡hahh~?¡ahhn¡haahh¡ahh~?¡"
As he held her waist and began pumping his hips, the pain Five had felt a couple of seconds ago began to fade slowly getting reced with a much stronger feeling of pleasure that made the rest of her body feel numb.
Sam didn''t hold back at all, hitting it at the highest speed he could muster all while doing his best to not explode just when it was getting started. Normally being so rough with someone who was a virgin less than a minute ago would''ve resulted in some damage, however since his partner is a Valkyrie Sam knew she would be fine no matter what he did to her, not to mention that Eir would restore her virginity the next day so he had nothing to worry about.
"Ahh~?! Doc-aahh~? Docta~? ahhnn~? I''m¡ I''m¡ aaaaAAAAAAAHHHHHHH~?!!!!"
As the thick rod reached to her deepest part Five felt an intense tingling pleasure spread across her body all at once down to her toes and fingertips followed with the heat of something slowly filling up her stomach.
Unbeknown to her Sam was being held tightly by the walls of her love tunnel feeling an indescribable sense of aplishment as he continued to pump his seed into her womb.
Chapter 103 Reason To Fight.
Though he wanted nothing more than to get a good night''s sleep, Sam''s body kept demanding more of the pleasure it got from doing it with the Valkyrie.
"Docta~a?? ahhn~a?? Doctahh~a??!!! Haahh~a??... ahh... haahh~a??"
Five''s coquettish moans and gasps entered his ear as she hugged him tightly, her body pressed against the wall with her legs held up by Sam. His rod slid in and out, getting wrung by the tight walls of her vagina which tried to to get him to cum as fast as as possible.
"Ahh~a??! Doctah~a??!!! So... good~a??!! It feel... so good... Doctaaaaaaaaaahhhhhh~a??!!!"
Sam mmed his hips against the Valkyrie sending his rod al the way inside and released his restraints. As he ejacted for the third time he felt a great deal of pleasure spread all across his body, growing stronger with Five''s vaginal walls contracting as she came as well.
"Docta... I love you..."
With the orgasming to an end Five''s body finally began to rx. She released her hold on Sam allowing their bodies to separate then stared into his eyes. Without hesitation she moved in to kiss him and Sam epted her withoutints.
"I love you too, Five." Sam said before kissing her again.
He took out his rod and allowed the white liquid to flow out. He then went to the bed and ced her down, taking a good look at her beforeying down by her side.
The white ribbon tying her hair was undone while he stripped her after the first round. Five''s appearance seemed to change without her long ponytail, however the long raven hair was beautiful as well so he had nothing toin about.
"I... I never knew that serving Doctor would feel this good..." Five spoke as she cuddled closer to him. "They said the reason we were created Iris to fight the Cmities, but... I would much rather serve Doctor than go into the battlefield... if only this meaningless war would end soon..."
"You don''t want to fight the Cmities, Five?" Sam asked, taken aback by what she had just said.
"It started around the time we fought the Evil Eye." She said, her voice mixed with a hint of sadness. "At first it was easier to ignore, buttely I''ve been thinking about it more and more." Pausing for a few seconds, Five let out a long sigh. "Enemies keeping no matter how many we defeat, and humanity will definitely perish whether it''s sooner orter. There is no point in us fighting this war."
If he had heard those things a couple of months ago Sam was sure that he would''ve entered a panic mode. Now however he waspletely rxed, listening carefully to Five''s worries as he slowly caressed her silky hair.
"You don''t want to fight, Five?" He asked.
"Yes." She answered instantly. "If I keep fighting then one day I would have to face an enemy beyond my capabilities. There is no telling if I could survive such an encounter, and once that happens I might not see Doctor again..."
"I see..."
Sam felt a little confused. What he had heard just now was oddly simr to what Three said after having that nightmare, which makes it sound as if she had gained sentience as well. However when she said that she would rather serve him be began to wonder if her thinking had changed just because he became her master.
''Ever since the fight with the evil eye, huh...'' sam thought. ''That was the first time she got a big injury...''
"Five, would you still feel the same if I was never around?" He asked, wanting to know if his influence is what causing her to change. "I mean, if the two of us never met, and you went through the same events, would you still lose interest in fighting this war?"
The Valkyrie remained silent for a while, and the tension grew in the meantime. Sam took a deep breath and tried to remain calm, however his mind couldn''t help but try and overthink everything.
"I dont think I can keep going without Doctor." After a long silence the Valkyrie finally answered. She slowly lifted herself, cing a hand on her bare chest. Her brows were furrowed, her lips pursed. She stared at Sam for a few seconds then said what remained of her answer. "If Doctor wasn''t around then I wouldn''t have cared about what happens in this war. The reason I continue to fight is to protect Doctor, to keep him safe. I... I..."
The moment he saw the tears gathering in her eyes Sam lifted himself up and quickly pulled her into his embrace.
"Thank you, Five." He said. "I''m really d to have you."
Feeling the warmth of his body against hers, Five let the tears flow as her lips curved into a smile.
"No need to thank me. I''m Doctor''s personal Valkyrie, after all."
Sam wasn''t entirely convinced yet, however he had a strong feeling that Five has broken the restraints ced on her, gaining sentience and individuality just like Zero Three.
Her primary goal is no longer fighting the Cmities. It has been overwritten, reced by her desire to protect him. Whether that was her own choice or the result of her bing his personal Valkyrie, it would be very difficult to tell, however at the very least she is no longer bond by the wishes of those who saw her as nothing but a weapon of war.
Sam wiped away the tears on Five''s eyes then leaned in to kiss her. He then pushed her down and spread her legs apart.
"Five, I will do everything I can so you wouldn''t have to fight anymore." Sam said, determination clear in his eyes. "Until then please continue to be my Valkyrie."
"Yes, Doctor~a??"
Seeing the smile she answered him with, Sam couldn''t resist stealing her lips once more. As they exchange kisses he slowly took his meat pir, which had regained its stiffness a while ago, and inserted it into Five''s entrance.
"Ahh~a??!!!"
Her warm and slippery love tunnel epted him in no time and he began pumping his hips slowly before gradually increasing his pace as time went on.
"Hahh~a?? Doctor... Doctor''s penis... incredible~a??... feels.. so good~a??..."
Seeing the lewd expression Five was making caused his arousal to shoot up even when he thought it couldn''t get any higher. He grabbed one of her breasts which swayed along with his movements and squeezed it causing some milk toe out.
"Ahh! D-Doctor! Ahh! Wai-... hyaaahh~a??!!! Ahhn~a?? Docta... if you... if you do that... ahh...ahh .... AhhaaaaAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!!!!"
Having sensed that she was about to climax Sam went down hard, mming his hips with everything he got and without hesitation he let his seed flow out inside her.
The moment he let everything out, a sudden dizziness took over him. He tried to keep himself up but it was futile. In just a second he found himself tumbling over Five who was still gasping from the rush of pleasure that had just floated her nerves.
Taking a deep breath, the Valkyrie slowly wrapped her arms around the Doctor. When he didn''t move for say anything she began to get worried, but then she sensed his faint sleeping breaths and let out a relieved sigh, a satisfied smile appearing on her face.
A couple of minutester she pushed him aside. She cleaned herself then removed the sheets dirtied by their love making, recing them with cleaner ones. She stretched down beside the man using his arm as a pillow then covered the two of them with her nket before turning off the light.
"Good night, Doctor."
Saying that, Five moved closer and kissed Sam on the cheek. She stared at his sleeping face for a couple of seconds then giggled to herself. Not wanting to bother him anymore she snuggled closer to him and closed her eyes.
~a¡ª?~
The moment the clock hit 06:30 Zero Three opened her eyes. She immediately lifted herself and stretched her limbs, yawning despite having had a really good night of sleep.
She rubbed her eyes a little then looked around. As she began to recall what happened the day before a big grin spread across her face.
She quickly threw the nket aside then jumped out of bed.
Tapping on one of the walls twice she caused an opening to show up. Behind it was a mirror and sink above which was a mug with a toothbrush in it and a tube of toothpaste.
After brushing her teeth she quickly threw her pink pajamas aside and changed into her swimsuit before put her uniform on top.
Today was another day where she wouldn''t have to go out on patrol which meant she could go and swim for as long as she wanted.
Not wanting to waste any more time she left was about to head to the cafeteria to have breakfast, but the moment she came out of her room she noticed someone standing in the hallway.
"Nine?"
The blond Valkyrie was standing still as if waiting for something. Seeing that what she faced was the door to Five''s room was enough to conclude that she was waiting for their ponytailedrade, however when she saw the smile she had on Three somehow knew that she shouldn''t ask.
"Good morning, Three. I see you are quite excited today." Nine said, something about the way she smiled felt different from the usual.
"Y-yeah... I want to go swim as soon as possible so I will be going ahead, okay?" Three spoke as she turned around.
"I see. Then, I hope you have fun."
Chapter 104 Countdown.
Somewhere in the north American continent was a ck dome. No one knew where it came from or how long it has been there, and in all likelihood no one will ever know.
Cracks began to spread over its surface emitting purple light. Little by little it began to crumble like the shell of an egg revealing what was hidden underneath.
It was arge square shaped tform twenty meters across, made out of obsidian like ck rock. It''s surface appeared smooth at first, however seconds after the ck domepletely disappeared strange symbols began to glow a purple light forming lines that drewplex geometrical shapes.
The air over the tform began to vibrate and in the next moment a pir of light shot up to the sky.
One after the other strange figures began to appear before the light pir. They looked human at first, however they were far from the frail and weak specie that infested the once lively. It was an uncanny resemnce with the only difference being the unrealistic beauty those beings had. And though their proportions varied, they all had female forms at the very least.
In just a couple of minutes the area was filled with the strange beings, and as the light pir began to fade all of them went down on one knee and ced a fist on the ground.
The light receded and the tform was in sight again, now however it had a strange construction on top of, surrounded by many more of the strange human like beings dressed in a much bulkier armor.
Ripples spread over the construction and its surface began to split into many cube shaped pieces which moved to the sides in unison as if opening up to reveal what''s inside.
"We wee the arrival of queen H." Said one of the kneeling figures, her voice thundering through the surroundings.
The construction opened up revealing a throne made of the same obsidian material. It was simple with the only decoration on it being the glowing simbols on its back.
Sitting on it was a small figure, a girl of short stature with a slender figure and thin limbs and. Her body was almost entirely exposed with only a few pieces of ck cloth covering her chest and privates.
Theck of clothing didn''t seem to bother the being shaped like a small girl as she sat on the ck throne rxing with one hand supporting her head. It was as if she wanted everyone to see it, her lustrous light blue skin which defied the conventional image her kind was made in. A breeze passed by ying with the short strands of her bluish white hair. A momentter light began to flicker over her head, drawingplex symbols that emerged together and formed a halo like red ring.
As an eerie silence enveloped the surrounding, the blue skinned girl slowly opened her eyes, their red irises cast down for a while before moving on to look at the kneeling crowd.
"I see everyone is here¡" the girl spoke in an ethereal voice. "But I don''t sense my sister¡"
"Your majesty, if I may speak¡" said one of the figures at the front.
"ck Thorn. You better have a good exnation." The queen said. Though her expression remained unchanged, her words ced an indescribable pressure on her followers.
The one who asked for permission, ck Thorn, stood up and walked over to the obsidian tform. She had long purple hair and a voluptuous body stuffed into a tight fitting suit that left nothing to the imagination. Once she was under the queen''s gaze she immediately kneeled again and lowered her head.
"Though we made an attempt, the target had no interest in negotiations which left us with no choice but to use force."
"And?" The queen asked. "By the looks of it you seem to have already done so, yet I don''t see my sister anywhere¡"
"Your majesty, I''m ashamed to say that we have failed to locate her whereabouts despite all of our efforts. The traitor seems to have hidden her well. Not only that but he also had the audacity to create an inferior version of our kind, using it to push back against us and slow down our search."
"An inferior version?" The queen''s eyes suddenly turned into a sharp re.
"Yes, your majesty." ck Thorn said, her body shuddering under the gaze of her ruler. "It seems the traitor had taken a new identity and attempted to blend in with the humans infesting this then alerted them of our arrival. Though we have been met with some resistance, our inva-"
"Get to the point." Said the queens, interrupting ck Thorn''s report.
"Yes, my apologies." Unable to breath from the terror weighing down on her, ck Thorn spoke once more. "We had an easy time throughout the first phase of the war, however when our victory seemed inevitable the enemy deployed a new type of weapon. From appearance alone it was clear that they were an attempt to replicate our kind, however after several confrontations we have learned that theyck most of our capabilities, instead relying on ancient equipment that struggles even against forth ss drones."
"I see¡" The queen closed her eyes and let out a sigh. "ck Thorn. I''ve listenedto your exnation yet I still don''t understand; where is my sister?"
"Your majesty, I-"
"You have wasted time, that''s what you did." The queen said. "If you carried your job like you''re supposed to, you would''ve finished by now."
"But¡ your majesty¡"
"Father had decided to betray our kind. Even though I graced him with the chance to be one of us, he chose to steal my sister from me and flee to this primitive world."
Standing up from her throne, H the queen of Cmities walked past ck Thorn and faced her soldiers.
"Search thend, find my sister, and once she''s back in my hands erase the rest of that pathetic race they call humans."
"Yes, your highness." The humanoid Cmities said in unison before disappearing into thin air.
The area became silent once more. The girl with blue skin and red halo slowly walked back to her throne, sitting down before speaking again.
"Now, ck Thorn. I want to hear more about this inferior version my traitor of a father had created." Said H, resting a hand against her cheek.
Remaining silent for a few seconds, ck Thorn exhaled before speaking.
"As I''ve mentioned before, theyck most of our capabilities. Their weapons are useless, their shields are weak. Aside from the force field, they can''t even use the most basic arts. They have no ess to any other power sources aside from their internal battery. However what I believe to be the most infuriating part about them is theirck of free will."
"Ho~oh¡"
The queen lowered her eyes as if something had caught her interest. Noticing that, ck Thorn decided to borate.
"Their information intake is quite limited, and most of their emotions are restrained forcing them to act a preprogrammed personality. They''re like brainwashed drones who have no say in their actions at all."
"I see¡" the queen let a smile appear on her face.
"However I have gotten word that some of them have managed to ovee the programming recently." ck Thorn said. "Your majesty. Even if they''re an inferior version, I ask that you show them mercy and save them from the dirty hands of those evil humans. They had no choice but to fight this war. I''m sure that if you were to stand before them they would-"
"Enough, ck Thorn. I understand what you''re trying to say." The queen interrupted, waving a dismissive hand with closed eyes. "I''ll go see them with my own eyes eventually. If they offer me their loyalty I will consider allowing them to join our ranks."
"You have my gratitude, your highness." ck Thorn said with a smile, her head still lowered.
"Now, leave me alone for some time. I need to prepare for our meeting with father."
As soon as she spoke those words, the small cubes began to move back into their ces forming the construction around the obsidian throne.
~¡ó~
Sam spent the night in Five''s room, waking up around seven in the morning. The Valkyrie was awake by then, however she didn''t leave the bed choosing to wait for him by his side.
Seeing her smile first thing in the morning warmed his heart and he couldn''t help but want to kiss her right then and there.
After having such a steamy night the two of them felt that a shower was nessary so they put their clothes on and were about to head for therge bath in the first floor, however the moment the door opened Sam was horrified to see Nine''s face as she stood there waiting for him.
"Good morning, Doctor~?" she said with a smile different from her usual. Her eyes turned to Zero Five who couldn''t help but blush and turn away. "I see you were quite busyst night."
"Uh¡ well¡" something told Sam that he was in a really bad situation, but before he coulde up with a response the blond Valkyrie quickly moved to his side and locked her arms around his right.
"It''s morning already so that means it''s now my duty to guard Doctor, right?" Nine said, looking at Five with a threatening smile.
Still under the effects of her first time Five only nodded in response. She didn''t know why but something told her that the blond one is aware of everything the Doctor had done to her and that filled her with a strange sense of shame.
"Oh my! Doctor, it seems you are in dire need of a bath!" Nine said, looking up at Sam with an exaggerated expression. Pulling him along she started walking down the hallway leaving the blushing Five behind. "We must hurry. I''m sure you''ll be quite busy today."
Obviously what the blond Valkyrie had in mind was more than just a quick bath. Though he wasn''t really in the mood, once the two of them got naked Sam quickly found himself looking down at Nine as she serviced him with her mouth.
Thankfully he managed to get his thoughts in order soon after he came and quickly convinced the Valkyrie to wait till night so they could have their sweet time.
Nine wasn''t so happy about that arrangement but agreed nheless. The two of them quickly finished showering then went to get some breakfast after which Sam went to continue his work on the Valkyrie heart.
Nothing out of the ordinary happened that day. He contacted Alice and Shizuru to see if there are any news, However nothing happened while he was holed up in hisb.
Nothing happened in the forty sixth base, that might be true, however all around the world the Cmities began to make a move. The countdown for humanity''sst battle has already began.
Chapter 105 Declaration.
The third day arrived making it Three''s turn to guard Sam. Obviously the young Valkyrie wasn''t looking forward to the job which is why she was so angry when the Doctor waste.
"Good morning, Three." Sam said as he yawned.
He wasing down from the second floor, which confirmed what Zero Five had told her earlier that day.
"What took you so long?" Three asked, ring at him with folded arms as she sat on one of the sofas. "I could''ve been in the pool by now!"
"Sorry about that." Sam replied. "Nine kept me awake tilltest night. I''ve barely slept at all."
For a moment the young Valkyrie was confused. The fact that he went to sleep in the blond one''s room seemed strange enough, however she couldn''t even begin to wonder what would keep them awake for too long.
''Come to think of it, Nine was waiting in front of Five''s room yesterday¡'' Three thought. ''Does that mean he had spent the previous night in her room? Is that why she knew he would be with Nine?''
Soon enough the young Valkyrie realized that it all had something to do with her tworades bing his personal Valkyries. That only helped to fuel her curiosity enough for her to consider offering herself as well just to find out.
"I''ll go take a shower. Sorry but can you wait a little more?"
"Y-yeah, you''rete anyways so¡"
Three watched as he went into therge bath then let out a long sigh.
"A personal Valkyrie, huh¡"
"Good morning, three!"
As she was in deep thought Nine suddenly came by, greeting her without bothering to stop.
"Wait, Ni-"
The blond Valkyrie ignored her call heading straight into the bathroom.
"... was she naked just now?"
Three could''ve sworn that the only thing herrade had on was a white bedsheets and nothing else. It made sense for one to be naked when going to the bath, however it still felt strange to see someone walking around the residence without clothes.
A few seconds pass and the door to the bathroom opens again. Nine''s naked body was pushed out and she stumbled before falling to her knees.
"Doctor!?" She cried with tearful eyes, however the door closed without a reply.
A few seconds pass and nothing happened. Nine got up to her feet, still holding the bedsheet to her chest in an attempt to cover herself.
"What are you doing?" Three asked, showing how disturbed she was by he scene.
"Nothing¡" Nine answered, blinking repeatedly. "I just offered to help him wash his back, however he got angry for some reason."
Getting up to her feet, the blond Valkyrie sighed and walked in the stair''s direction only toe to a sudden stop.
"Oooh! That''s right!!" She eximed, turning to look at the young Valkyrie with wide open eyes. "Since you''re on guard duty today shouldn''t you be the one assisting him in the bath?"
"Eh? Why would I do that!?" Three asked, feeling a little embarrassed without knowing why.
"Oh, right, you aren''t Doctor''s personal Valkyrie yet. I guess you don''t have to."
Saying that, Nine was about to go on with her business but was stopped by the young Valkyrie who still had a question.
"Hey, Nine¡ why did you¡ why did you decide to be his personal Valkyrie." She asked, twiddling her fingers as a red color spread on her cheeks.
"Hmm¡" Nine gazed at her for a few seconds as if trying to get a read on her. "Because he is Doctor." She answered afterwards.
"Huh?" Three looked up not understanding what she meant.
"We have talked about this before, right?" Nine closed her eyes and smiled. "Doctor is special. He doesn''t see us as nothing but weapons. He might act cold sometimes, but he''s always there for us when we need him."
"Well¡"
Three didn''t know how to reply to that. A few months ago she would''ve dismissed what she just heard, thinking the other two were just reading too much into the man''s actions. However a lot happened since then and she had grown closer to him.
She had experienced the kindness Nine speaks of many times already. Even now he''s defying his superiors by hiding the change she had went through and her newfound sentience.
"Three,I''m sure you already know that Doctor cares a lot about you." Nine spoke again, her voice calm and serious. "Do you feel the same about him?"
"Eh!? Well¡ I¡" though she tried to form an answer, the young Valkyrie found herself blushing and unable to speak.
"I see¡" Nine nodded with a smile. "If you want to offer yourself to him, you should do it fast. No one knows when we would have to fight the next big battle."
The blond Valkyrie left her with those words. Three sat there thinking things through, a strange feeling growing in her chest with each passing second. Suddenly the door to the bath opens startling her and when she looked over she saw Saming out.
"Hm? Is something wrong?" Sam asked, having noticed how red her face was.
"N-n-nothing!" Three replied, quickly averting her gaze for some reason.
Sam was drying his hair with a bath towel. His clothes were in the drier so at the moment he was wearing a pair of shorts and Tshirt. His sses were gone as well and because of all of that he seemed like a totally different person.
Without saying anything he went and sat down beside her letting his body sink into the soft sofa. Three was nervous the entire time waiting for him so say something, but as more time passed the situation began to feel awkward.
Deciding to strike a conversation herself, Three fought the urge to stay silent and turned to face him.
"Say-"
Sadly Sam had dozed off. The hot bath he just had made his body rx a little too much and he couldn''t fight the urge. Three was quite pissed, being forced to wait all that time only for him to fall asleep again. She red at him for a while but as time passed she found her anger quickly fade.
''Well, I''m supposed to guard him. Doesn''t matter what he does in the meantime¡''
Just as she decided to leave him be a loud beeping sound startled the man causing him to shot up from his seat.
His sudden movements scared the Valkyrie as well and she was about to reprimand him for scaring her, however before she could say anything she noticed the serious look on Sam''s face.
"We need to go." He said, looking at the screen of his phone.
~¡ó~
A few minutester Three found herself in themander''s office along with Sam. Apparently he had recieved an urgent summon forcing him to move even though his clothes had yet topletely dry.
"Is it true?" Sam asked, his expression unlike anything she had seen before.
"See for yourself." Alice replied as she handed him a tablet with a grave expression.
Sam knew he needed to sit down before looking at what she wanted him to see. Wanting to take a look as well, Three stood behind him casually and peeked at the screen, which had a video Sam started after a moment of hesitation.
[We are the Nephilim.] Came a female voice. [The supreme race that ovee the chains of its creator. We are the true rulers of this world, and any other. Those who stand against shall know our wrath. We show no mercy to those who go against our will.]
As the female voice spoke, catastrophic scenes appeared on the screen one after the other. Sam recognized most of them. They were from the first wave, back when the Cmities first attacked.
Cities ttened over night. Millions massacred at a time and chaos filled the world setting it on fire as if it was all about to end.
[Today we came with the final deration.] The voice continued. [Despite all of our warnings, you have failed to return that which you have stolen from us.
We showed you our might and you chose death overplying with our demands.
Your time has ran out.
In five days we will begin our final assault. We will erase everyst human and put an end to this war.
Know that we never cared for your kind and even then we gave you a chance to survive.
me yourselves for siding with that traitor of a god and spend the rest of your time praying. Maybe you''ll have a chance to repent in another life.]
The video came to an end and silence filled the room. After a couple of seconds passed Alice was the first to speak.
"It was released into the Resistancework a few minutes ago." She said. "We have yet to confirm whether or not it''s just a prank, however I doubt someone would be idiotic enough to release something like this¡"
It was a clear deration. Not for war, but for a massacre. If the Cmities really are the ones who released it then humanity had no other choice but to ept that they had already ran out of time.
"... it''s her¡"
As Sam tried to wrap his mind around what he had just heard, Zero Three''s weak voice reached his ear. Turning around he saw that she was deathly pale. Her eyes were wide open with disbelief, her lips quivering as she struggled to say the words.
"It''s¡ that Cmity¡ the one who took Five''s arm a while ago¡"
Chapter 106 The One Behind It All.
Sam only noticed after Zero Three mentioned it. The voice in the video was indeed that of the talking Cmity that killed the Valkyries from the forty fifth base and almost got Five as well.
The first question that came to mind was why? Why did she bother to make a deration now? Why wait till humanity was on itsst leg?
As his mind began analyzing every part of what he had heard, Sam noticed that the young Valkyrie was trembling in the corner of his eye.
"Three?"
Tears began to flow from her eyes as she cradled her head, her face painted with fear and horror. Seeing how she was about to crumble Sam tossed the tablet aside and quickly went to her side pulling her into his arms.
"It''s okay." He said. "Everything will be okay."
Soon after he embraced her the young Valkyrie began wailing. Alice watched the scene from behind her desk, the confusion she showed was warranted.
It took a while for Three to calm down. After crying her eyes out she fell asleep leaving Sam to face Alice on his own, and she clearly had questions.
"Sam¡ what was that just now?" Alice asked, her eyes still on the sleeping Valkyrie.
"Post-traumatic stress disorder. Or PTSD as they call it." Sam said, letting out a long sigh as he picked the tablet again. "Do you have headphones?"
"No, no, no, just stop right there!" Alice waved her hands as her mood suddenly switched. "PTSD? What are you talking about? She is a Valkyrie!"
"Keep your voice down, you''ll wake her up." Walking over to where she was, Sam grabbed Alice''s arm and pulled her along. "Let''s talk in the other room."
The white hairedmander looked in the Valkyrie''s direction before reluctantly following after him. Once they were alone Sam closed the door and was about to y the video again, however he noticed the look Alice was giving him.
"Listen, Alice, a lot has happened in the past few days."
"That much I can tell." Alice replied, crossing her arms as she red in his direction. "It seems you forgot to report quite a few things to me."
"It''s not that simple¡" Sam replied.
"How so? I''m yourmander before anything else!" As she spoke, Alice began to gradually raise her voice. "Remind me what''s thest mission I gave you? Didn''t I ask you to observe the weapons and report to me if you noticed anything strange."
"As I said, it''s not that simple!" Sam shouted back.
''This is bad¡'' he thought. ''This is really bad¡''
Everything was going so well in the past few days that he never considered the chance of it going downhill just like that. First they get the message from the enemy and now Alice has seen Zero Three break down. He was at a loss for how he would go about handling the situation.
"Sam, exin yourself¡" Alicemanded.
Sam turned to re at her, however Alice''s red eyes didn''t falter. Realizing she wouldn''t just drop the topic he heaved a long sigh and decided to tell her some of the truth.
"Recently she has been getting nightmares." He said. "Well, it only happened once so far, but from the looks of it she''s still affected by it."
"... Nightmares, you say?" Alice''s expression rxed turning from anger to bewilderment.
"It''s hard to believe, but that''s what happened. It''s the reason why I had her sit out the patrol a few days ago."
"So that''s what it was about!" Alice''s eyes widened, her anger returning. "And? Why didn''t you report it to me? As I remember you said you needed her assistance with something. Not only did you submitted a fake report, you also hid such important information! Do you even know how much trouble you''re in right now!?"
Seeing how angry she was, Sam couldn''t help but stare in silence. After she ended her little rant, he looked her dead in the eye and spoke in a solemn voice.
"As you might''ve noticed we have more pressing matters to attend to. Like the enemy dering that they''ll wipe us out in the next five days."
"Better watch the way you speak to me, sergeant Sanderson. I''m still yourmander."
It didn''t seem like Alice
Would back down, and neither did Sam. Ignoring the way she red at him he yed the video once more and listened carefully.
The Nephilim, that''s what the female Cmity called her kind, but that didn''t matter that much. What caught Sam''s attention were the warnings she spoke of as well as how she mentioned something being stolen from them. That alone was enough for him to conclude two things.
"All this time we have been led to believe that the Cmities are nothing but mindless beasts that wanted to wipe out humanity." He paused the video as he spoke. "We learned that''s not the case after thest big battle, but did you ever wonder why they never bothered to contact us all this time?"
Alice stared at him, still angry about his insubordination. Still she couldn''t help wondering and a secondter her eyes went wide as she finally understood what he''s trying to say.
"They already did¡" she murmured, a chill running down her spine.
That realization had hit them like a brick wall. Everyone had considered the Cmities to be mindless monsters that seeked the destruction of the human race and nothing else, that''s where their name came from.
When the talking Cmities appeared for the first time they all wondered why they never made an appearance before, but the real question should''ve been if that''s really the case. An intelligent race capable of coherentmunications would at least attempt negotiations before resorting to force, especially if they''re technically advanced enough to overpower humanity.
With that thought in mind the most logical conclusion would be that they already have made an attempt, one that ended in failure which led to the apocalypse that massacred most of humanity.
"If we believe what that thing said, something must''ve happened behind the scenes without the public ever learning about it. It might even be that some of the higher ups in the Resistance had been aware of what''s going on and kept it a secret."
Though it didn''t sound like a good thing to do, Sam understood that there are many reasons as to why the people in charge would chose to hide the truth. First of all it''s simply too much. The chaos that would''ve resulted from the public knowing about an enemy that can''t be defeated wasn''t something anyone would want to deal with. The second reason was rted to the other thing the Cmity mentioned.
" ''you have failed to return that which you have stolen from us.'' " Sam repeated. "I think that says it all."
The Cmities, or the Nephilim to be more urate, were using humans of stealing something from them. Trying to guess what it might be was a waste of effort, all they needed to know is that it''s something precious enough for them to start this entire war just to retrieve it.
"Alice¡ I think we might''ve been yed¡" Sam said after a long silence.
"... huh?"
Once again the white hairedmander found herselfpletely dumbfounded.
"We have been fighting a desperate war without even realizing the true reason behind it." Sam said. "To put it simply, someone must''ve done something to anger those so called Nephilim then manipted us into fighting them."
"Hey now, Sam..." Smiling wryly, Alice let out a sigh. "This really isn''t the time for conspiracy theories."
The way Sam spoke made it sound as if there is some secret group or entity that controlled the world from the shadows and is the one responsible for starting the war.
The truth is that that''s exactly what he''s alluding to. Whoever it was that caused this war, they were the ones who confronted the Cmities and handled the negotiations then led things to turn the way they''re now.
"Alice, after all the deaths and sacrifices, after all we have gone through, what reason would they have to hide the truth from the rest of us?" Sam said.
The more he thought about it the more messed up it sounded. Someone had used all of humanity as a shield just so they could keep what they stole out of the hands of its rightful owners.
It was impossible to guess what it might be, however Sam was sure he had a good idea of who the perpetrator might be.
If what was stolen is valuable enough to eradicate an entire race to retrieve it then it''s only natural to assume that the thief would do everything in their power to stop that from happening.
With the world governments having copsed at the beginning of the war the only suspect left is the organization that emerged to fight back against the Cmities and the person who started it.
"Odin¡" Sam said with a grimace. "That basterd is behind it all¡"
Chapter 107 No Time To Waste.
"Odin...?"
Hearing Sam''s conclusion, Alice''s eyes widened in realization.
Odin. The mysterious man that appeared soon after half of humanity was wiped out. The savior who managed to push back against the Cmities and protect what''s left of the human race. He''s one of the founding members of the Resistance, the only military organization that still exists at this point and the sole producer of the Valkyries, the only weapons that can fight back against their enemies.
"I have nothing to confirm it, but the fact that he decided to disappear right before this message arrived is too suspicious."
If it wasn''t clear that they had no hope before then it is now.
"The problem right now is if he''s the only one running the game, or if the other big wigs are in on it as well." Sam said. "The only one who disappeared is Odin, but I doubt that he could''ve run everything on his own."
The most likely suspects are the founding members of the Resistance. Wolf had mentioned that others are trying to find a way to flee the, it might be that those pulling the ropes are among them.
"If only we knew what''s the thing that had been stolen..."
What could be so valuable that they would massacre billions to retrieve? Why did the thieves refuse to return it? If it''s that valuable, how could it be stolen anyways?
As he asked himself those questions, Sam found himself at the start of it all. The one thing everyone wanted to know since the very start of this war.
What are the Cmities and where did theye from?
"Alice, remember the third world war?" Sam asked, causing the woman to raise an eyebrow.
"Yes. It didn''tst very long though..." she said, holding her chin as she tried to remember.
"What was the cause behind it?"
"It''s not east to point out. The conflict was escting in different parts of the world and everyone started taking sides..."
The world wasn''t very stable before the Cmities appeared. Many spected that if the monstrosities didn''t appear humanity would''ve ended itself anyways.
In a way the invasion of the Cmities had forced humans to work together, but that didn''t mean much when their demise was near.
''I''m not the first one to think that there is some rtion between the world war and the Cmities, but is it possible that there is more to it?''
Even now there are some people who still believe that the Cmity are weapons the Americans created to help them take over the world, all because the USA was the first to fall.
Some theories say they''re aliens, others called them angels sent by god to eradicate the sinners.
"If Odin really is the one behind it all, aren''t we in big trouble?" Alice asked, cutting Sam''s train of thoughts. "I doubt he left whatever he stole from those Nephilim behind before disappearing..."
"You''re right..."
If they knew what it was that got stolen then they would have had the option to try and steal it so they could renegotiate with the enemy. Sadly that''s no longer possible since Odin more than likely has taken it with him before disappearing.
Still, it would have been just an option and nothing more.
"I wonder if they know that we don''t have what they''re looking for..." Alice said.
"Alice, I don''t think those things would''ve cared even if we returned it to them." Sam said. "Remember what she said when introducing herself?"
The supreme race that ovee the chains of its creator. The true rulers of this world, and any other. Those who stand against them shall know their wrath.
Those weren''t the words of someone who would stop if their enemies concede. They''re arrogant and prideful. They see themselves above everything else and have no qualms about eradicating those they deem below them.
Even if by some chance they manage to get back what they came for, it''s almost guaranteed that they''ll either go on with their massacre or enve what''s left of humanity.
"In the end all we can do is fight to the bitter end, or..." Sam went silent at the end.
"Or what?" Alice asked.
"... We can try and escape the." Sam closed his eyes and sighed. "I''ve been considering ittely, though with how little time we have I don''t think we can make it."
"Escape the!?" Alice eximed. "Sam! Do you n on abandoning humanity!!?"
Though her reaction surprised him, Sam wasn''t about to pretend that he cared about what happens to those he can''t save.
"Listen, Alice." Pausing for a moment he looked into her red eyes. "When your father visited the other day, he told me that this war is a lost cause. We have no chance at winning it."
"... what?... my father..."
Just then Sam remembered the time he sat down thinking about how Wolf''s actions were suspicious. He had spected that the old man knew more than he let out, choosing to keep his daughter away from the Resistance headquarters because of that.
With this new development it became even more clear that he''s hiding something. Sam was now sure that Wolf had something to do with Odin and what the Nephilim are looking for.
"Hey, Sam... you... you aren''t saying that father somehow has something to do with this..."
As Alice spoke, themanding air she had a few minutes agopletely vanished. Sam understood that she had arrived at the same conclusion as him.
"Your old man asked me to find a way to turn humans into Valkyries." Sam spoke honestly. "He said that our only choice at survival is to leave the, and that we need to evolve beyond our current form if we want to increase our chances."
Alice didn''t reply, looking at him as of everything he said was just absurd.
"Apparently Odin isn''t the only one trying to flee and leave the rest of humanity behind." Sam went on. "ording to your old man the next battle will be thest and because of that many are trying to find a way out."
Feeling weak in the legs, Alice walked over to her bed and sat down. She remained silent for a while, her head cast down with the white hair covering her eyes.
"This is absurd..." she said in a low voice. "How can they...after everything..."
Sam watched her for a few seconds before joining her, sitting on her left and patting her shoulder.
"Alice, there is no point in pointing fingers now." He said. "We need to figure out our next course of action."
"I... I need to speak to father..." she said. "Surely this is all a mistake. There is no way he''s..."
The idea that her father might be one of the people who''ve brought death and destruction on all of humanity was too much for her to bear. Soon enough the tears began streaming down her face. Seeing that, Sam pulled her closer and tried tofort her as he usually does.
They didn''t have much time, however there is nothing to be done about the situation. That''s right. They have no cards to y, that''s precisely why there is no point in stressing over it and looking for a solution that doesn''t exist.
''I need to calm down...'' Sam thought, taking a deep breath then petting it out. ''I can no longer y it safe. I need to do something and quick...''
"Alice, you said the video was released into the Resistancework, right?" Sam spoke, keeping his tone steady as he tried to get her to pull herself back together. "There is no doubt that it''s already been shared around. You need to address the soldiers before things go out of control."
Looking up at him for a few seconds, Alice cast her eyes down and and murmured.
"What''s the point? We''re all going to die anyways."
Sam let out a long sigh. He never expected to strong spirited Alice to be like this, all because her father might turn out to be one of those responsible for this apocalypse.
Too bad for her but he was done wasting time. She already had her chance to cry, now wasn''t the time to dwell on a suspicion they can''t even confirm.
Getting up from the bed, Sam turned to face his childhood friend and second girlfriend then, without a shred of hesitation, he lifted his hand and pped her across the face.
After a moment of silence, the white haired beauty turned to look at him with wide eyed disbelief.
"This isn''t the time for you your bullshit." Sam said, his facecking expression. "Your job is to run this base. Get your act together and go make sure those idiots don''t do anything reckless."
"..."
"If we''re going to survive this then we have no time to waste." Sam adjusted his sses, feeling the slight tingling pain in the palm he used to hit her. "We need a n."
Chapter 108 A Stronger Weapon.
When Sam came out of Alice''s room he noticed that Zero Three was already awake.
"How ate you feeling?" He asked.
"Better, I guess¡" the young Valkyrie answered, her cheeks reddening a little as embarrassment forced her to look away.
Alice who was watching from behind him felt that something was off and looked at Sam with half lid eyes.
"It seems you two have grown awfully close." Shemented.
"Really?" Sam, understanding the situation immediately, kept his calm and answered. "Well, I guess so. She doesn''t call me old man anymore."
"And if I remember right you aren''t supposed to touch any of the Valkyries." Alice went on, her suspension still strong. "Since when did you start hugging her like that?"
Sam remained silent for a while before letting out a long sigh. Three watched silently with an anxious expression having realized that he might be in some big trouble.
Turning around to face her, Sam stared at the white haired beauty for a few seconds. Without a warning, he reached out and grabbed her arm then pulled her toward him, stealing her lips in the next moment before she could evenpr what was going on.
Three''s eyes went wide her face going red in an instant. Though she tried to push him away at first, Alice soon rxed and epted the kiss which went on for far longer than expected.
"Sorry for hitting you." Sam said as he let go of her lips.
"Um¡ uh¡ it''s okay¡" Alice replied, unable to look him in the eyes for some reason.
Kissing her again, this time on the forehead, Sam backed away and turned toward the door.
"Then, I will leave the rest to you."
"Y-yes¡ I will get to it right away¡"
As he was about to open the door Sam noticed that the young Valkyrie was still frozen in her ce.
"Three, it''s time to go."
"Eh? Ah! Y-yes!"
Shaken out of her daze Zero Three quickly got up and followed after him. She turned to look at Alice one more time before the door closed and saw that her face was beaming red, but for an unknown reason it felt like she was really happy at that moment.
~¡ó~
"Hey, w-what was that just now!?" Three asked, her voice carrying a hint of curiosity and excitement.
"Hm? What do you mean?" Sam asked.
The two of them had just arrived at the storage area of theb. Sam wanted to check the materials Wolf had left him with so he could n his moves better.
"What you did to themander!" Three said. "That''s not something you do to just anyone, right?"
"You mean the kiss?" Sam asked.
"Is that what you call it?"
Coming to a stop, Sam turned to look at the young Valkyrie. She looked strangely hyped up, but when their eyes met she suddenly blushed and averted her gaze.
"Want to give it a try?" He asked after a moment of thought. Though they didn''t have any time to waste Sam felt that it''s appropriate.
"Eh? Why would I?" Three looked at him in surprise, but when she saw his seriousness she began to get nervous.
Sam took a step toward her and the young Valkyrie backed one away.
"A kiss is one of the ways a man shows his affection for a female he likes." Sam said. "The opposite is true as well."
"I¡ wha¡"
Three couldn''t find the words to form a reply, and before she knew it there was nowhere for her to escape. Arge container was behind her and soon enough her back was pressed against it. She looked left and right desperately trying to find a way out, but before she could think of anything Sam mmed his hand on the container cutting her escape route.
"What''s wrong, Three?" He said. "You don''t want to do it with me?"
"I¡ that''s¡"
Seeing his face so close to hers, Three felt a strange sensation in her chest. Unable to keep eye contact she cast her eyes down.
"Didn''t¡ didn''t you say it''s¡ for someone you like?" She muttered in a shy voice.
"... Three¡" Sam spoke in a low voice. "Do you hate me?"
"Wha-!? No!"
Three quickly raised her head and met his gaze only for her embarrassment to shoot up.
"I see¡" Sam said with a smile. "I would''ve been really sad if you said you hated me."
Remaining silent for a while, Zero Three clenched her firsts and slowly gathered the the courage to speak.
"I¡ I would never hate you¡" she said, fighting the urge to push him and run away. "I know how much you care for us and¡ I wouldn''t be here without you¡"
"... I see¡" raising his right hand, Sam slowly caressed the young Valkyrie''s brown hair.
Guessing his intentions, Zero Three closed her eyes. She prepared her lips expecting his to arrive at any moment, but to her surprise that wasn''t what the Doctor had in mind.
Instead of a kiss on the lips Sam instead kissed Three''s forehead. When he was done the young Valkyrie felt a bit conflicted but relieved at the same time. She looked up at him, the strange feeling in her chest growing stronger, and when she saw his smile as he patted her head her whole world seemed to change.
"I''ll take your lips when you decide to be my personal Valkyrie." Sam said, backing away. "Untill then, take your time and think about it well. It''s not a decision that should be rushed."
Unlike Five and Nine, for some reason Sam didn''t want to be hasty when it came to Zero Three. Her young appearance might be the cause, or it could be the fact that she was the first to gain sentience. Either way he felt a strong urge to treat her with special care, all so she could be happy when it all ends.
~¡ó~
Later that day Alice gathered the soldiers on the base and exined the situation to them.
She had received a call from the headquarters informing her of the authenticity of the message sent by the Nephilim, although they had nothing to say about what was stolen, denying everything till the very end.
As expected panic ensued and unrest seemed likely. That''s when Sam stepped forward and proposed a n.
The higher ups at the headquarters were looking into ways to save their own lives and the likelihood of those on the frontline getting abandoned is very high. Their only choice is to split off from the Resistance and look for a way to survive on their own.
Obviously it didn''t seem like he''d receive much support, that''s why he decided to take a gamble and reveal an important sacred.
"I have the ns to create Valkyries."
The moment he said that the crowd went dead silent. Alice was looking at him in shock, unable to believe what he was saying. Many in the crowd shared her reaction while the rest had yet toprehend what he was trying to say.
Sam waited for a while, taking a deep breath as he went through everything in his head once more.
It''s true that the deration had taken him off guard, however he had been considering his next move ever since he started to suspect that Wolf was hiding something. Well, that in addition to his desire to keep the three Valkyries for himself made cutting ties with the Resistance inevitable.
"At the moment I''m confident of my ability to create new Valkyries." Sam said, his eyes scanning the crowd. "But as I''m sure you already know, creating Valkyries alone won''t be enough to fight off our enemies."
He noticed Shizuru standing at the front row. Something about the way she gazed up at him felt strange, but that''s just because she was the only one who didn''t seem to be worried. Her eyes were full of confidence, not a shred of doubt in them. He felt that she was cheering him on and that gave him the courage to continue.
"The bastards at the headquarters lied to us all. Not only did they cause this war and dragged all of is into it, they''re also nning to flee for their lives and leave us to fend for ourselves."
The crowd remained silent, their feelings mixed as they listened to the strange man wearing ab suit.
"We need a stronger weapon." Sam dered, his voice echoing through the auditorium. "We need something that will ensure our victory, our survival. It might be impossible for me to create that right away, but as long as I have some time then I''m sure I''ll be able to do it. And that''s why I need your help."
Sam paused for a moment and the crowd began to whisper among themselves. Sam had just dered that not only can he create new Valkyries but also surpass Odin and make something even more powerful.
To many it sounded unbelievable, however after learning that their end is near no one was in the mood to protest.
Chapter 109 Fake.
? "Well, I guess that''s to be expected..."
After a long discussion the majority was still against splitting off from the Resistance. The reason is simple; a lot of them still have family and loved ones living in the settlements near the headquarters.
As there is no hope left for humanity many of them wanted to go spend what time they have left with those they care about.
That said, there were quite a few who decided to stay behind, mostly because the only ones they knew were those in the forty sixth base.
"So? Is it true?" Alice asked, sitting in the other sofa facing Sam. "Can you really create Valkyries."
"Yes and no." Sam replied, his eyes locked on the screen of a tablet as his fingers slid and taped on its surface.
"You''re kidding, right?"
The way he spoke when facing the rest of the base made it seem like he''s confident of his abilities, however now he''s giving her that kind of answer.
"To put it simply, we dont have the materials needed to create that many." Sam said, still focused on the device in his hand. "At most I can make two or three, but that wouldn''t make any difference. It won''t do even if we somehow make a hundred."
The Ragnarok Heralds alone couldn''t decimate most of them with ease, then there are the Nephilim who had no trouble defeating fully equipped Valkyries.
"So you really n on making something stronger? I don''t want to doubt your abilities but..."
No matter how much she tried, Alice couldn''t bring herself to believe Sam''s im. If Odin''s ultimate creation is unable to defeat the Nephilim then how does a rtively unknown scientist n on doing it?
"Actually I don''t really know if I can." Sam replied without hesitation.
Alice wasn''t the only one giving him a baffled look. Zero Three who had remained silent so far was in shock as well by theck of emotion in the way he said it.
Seeing the two remaining frozen for a while Sam let outa sigh.
"Listen, I''m working on it, alright? There are no guarantees, but that doesn''t really matter since we''re gonna die anyways."
The truth is it''s impossible for him toe up with something in the time they have left. He''s been trying to do so for more than a month now ever since the big battle with little to no advancements.
And that''s alright. After all the point of the deration he made wasn''t to reassure the soldiers or to convince them to support him.
''Any time now...''
Just as that thought ran through his head, a loud beeping sound filled themander office. Startled, Alice nervously ran toward her desk and opened herptop.
"Huh? Why''s father calling?"
"Well since someone has leaked the news that I can make Valkyries to them, obviously." Sam replied. "Go on, answer him."
Though she was still confused, Alice sat down, fixed her appearance and answered the call. Her father''s face appeared on the screen and from his expression she could tell that he wasn''t in a good mood.
"General Schneider." Alice said, swallowing audibly.
"Where is he?" Wolf said, his appearance quickly distorting.
"Father?"
"The boy! That damn Sanderson! Where is he!!?"
It was her first time seding the old man lose his temper like that. Alice nced over at Sam, her eyes wide open. Letting out a sigh, Sam ced his tablet aside and walked over to the desk, motioning for the white hairedmander to get up.
Once he took her ce, Sam looked over at the screen and smiled.
"Long time no see, general."
"Sanderson, What is the meaning of this?" Wolf asked, his brows tightly knitted.
"Now, what could it be that you''re referring to?"
The way Sam acted seemed to infuriate the general even more, which was his aim, of course. After ring at him for a very long minute, Wolf''s expression suddenly rxed as he let out a very long sigh.
"You read the book, didn''t you?" Asked the old man.
"Yes." Sam replied.
The staring contest continued and he tension grew along with it.
"Listen, Sam, there is a lot that you don''t know." Wolf finally spoke.
"Obviously." Sam replied. "How about we start with what you stole from those Nephilim?"
Though she tried to keep her emotions under control, hearing the question Sam had just made caused themander beside him to grow pale.
"Sam... that''s not something for you to know."
Though he didn''t really like it, Sam had anticipated such an answer.
''Well, now we know he knows something, at the very least''
"Father..."
As Sam rubbed the bridge of his nose trying to think, Alice spoke all of a sudden. Her tightly clenched fists were shaking and she''s clearly trying to remain calm, however no one would me her if she lost it.
"Father, what is going on?" Alice asked, looking up and facing the man on the screen. "Is it really true? Are you really a part of it?"
The old man stared back at her and offered no answer. His eyes shifted back to Sam and his silence continued. It was as if he was waiting for him to speak once more.
Knowing the old man wasn''t nning on disclosing anything, Sam sighed once more.
"General. Your actions have brought death and destruction upon the entire human race. I think you owe us an exnation at the very least."
Still no reply. After a couple of seconds, the old man closed his eyes. It looked like he didn''t n on saying anything so Sam was about to prob him again, however before he could the old man spoke.
"I made a mistake. A really big one." As those words left his mouth, Wolf''splexion distorted gradually as the color of his face changed. "I should''ve been more careful, but I let the bastard y me."
Thinking he was about to reveal some important information, everyone remained silent and listened very carefully. Opening his eyes, Wolf looked at Sam, then at Alice.
"Sam, the blue prints you found are fake."
"... what?"
It took him a moment for his mind to process what the old man had just told him, and when he did blood drained from Sam''s face.
"To be more urate, most of what''s written in the Valkyrie file is inurate."
Every word that reached him seemed to increase the confusion. Sam stared at the old man in disbelief, his eyes then turned to a re as he smirked in an attempt to calm down.
"So am I right to assume that you have failed to recreate one?" Sam said.
"Even if you somehow seed in creating the shell by following the blue prints in the Freyja file, it''s impossible to create a real Valkyrie. The base program of the AI mentioned in the Valkyrie file you found is fake. The re-"
Without a warning, the feed was suddenly cut.
"Huh? What''s going on?"
Only when Alice asked that question did Same to his senses. He quickly checked the signal and saw that it was cut. The Resistancemunicationwork has been cut.
"
"Damn it!!!" Sam cursed, mming his fist on the desk.
"S-Sam... what''s... going on?"
Though he heard her voice, Sam was already too deep into his thoughts to offer a reply.
''The blue prints are fake? The base AI? Huh? But I swear it looked... huh?''
When he read through the blue prints nothing seemed the least bit suspicious. Of it really is fake then it should''ve been easy for him to notice and yet...
Getting up, Sam quickly went to leave themander''s office, Three following right behind him with an anxious look.
"Sam!" Alice called, but once again her voice failed to reach him.
~a¡ª?~
"Your majesty, I know they''re just humans but..."
Under the skies of eastern Europe, two small figures floated in the air.
The of them had the appearance of a mature women with a voluptuous body and long purple hair. The other one was smaller, a girl with blue skin she wasn''t afraid to show the world.
"I''ve had a change of heart." H spoke, her voicepletelycking any enthusiasm. "They''re humans, it''s not like they can do anything with the time you''ve given them."
At the moment, the two Nephilim were flying over the headquarters of the only military organization left in world, the force that managed to push against the basic drones the humans had dubbed as Cmities.
It should''ve been impossible for the enemy to bef this close without anyone noticing, but there they''re, proving once again how hopeless the situation humanity was in right now.
"Let''s make this quick." H said, raising one of her hands.
Purple squares flickered into existence one after the other, gathering together to form a solid shape. In just a few seconds a gigantic spear formed in the sky, its shadow falling on the Resistance headquarters below.
"It''s time toe out, my dear dear father."
Chapter 110 What Master Do You Serve?
An entire day had passed since the connection to the Resistance headquarters was lost. Though there was no way to tell for sure, it was clear that the Cmities, or the Nephilim, had began their assault much earlier than what they said in their deration.
Though she was worried sick about her father, Alice did her best to calm down and worked with her subordinates to establish a connection with the other bases and exchange information.
The first thing they learned was that there is no change in the movements of Cmities or the Ragnarok Heralds, which was somewhat strange. The bases closest to the headquarters were working on figuring out what happened, but they said it would take time. In the meantime Sam had once again locked himself in hisb.
The conversation he had with Wolf didn''t go as nned.
He revealed the fact that he knew how to create Valkyries to see how the headquarters respond, however he never expected things to turn out the way they did.
The Valkyrie file is fake. The base program used to create the AI doesn''t work just as Wolf had said. Sam didn''t want to believe it, but after going through it again and again and again he had no choice but to give up.
The whole thing was written so well that even an expert like him couldn''t see through it. The problem now was whether the rest of the blue prints are real or fake.
"Hey, how''re you doing?"
Hearing a voice behind him, Sam tore his eyes off the monitor and turned around. Alice was standing behind him, her eyes as tired as his.
"Any news?" Sam asked, feeling a strong urge to rub his eyes.
"The headquarters ispletely cut off." Alice sighed. "Thpugh it doesn''t seem like there is arge scale assault like the previous one. We are working with the other bases to get a read on the situation."
"You''ve made contact with the other bases?"
"Yes. The situation is pretty much the same everywhere."
"I see¡"
Sam put his sses on and went back to stare at the screen. He was seriously tired and in dire need of some rest, even so he continued to go through the blue prints trying to figure out what''s real and what''s fake.
"Those are¡" Alice leaned in trying to get a look as well.
"The blue prints your father mentioned." Sam replied. "Turns out it''s really fake."
"Can I take a look?"
Just when she made that request, the door to theb opened and a certain blond Valkyrie peeked her head.
"Doctor¡ are you okay?"
Seeing Nine''s face made him wonder how much time had passed so he quickly took out his phone to check.
"Ah, is it time to change shifts already?" He said before yawning uncontrobly.
"It is." Nine said. "I''ve heard from Five that you have yet to eat anything. Shouldn''t you take a break?"
"Thanks for worrying but¡"
With how things are at the moment he didn''t really feel like eating anything. That said, his mind wasn''t in the right ce at the moment sohe felt that a quick nap will help him revitalize.
"Alice, do you still need something?" He asked, getting up from his chair.
"No, I just want to check the blue prints you spoke of, if you don''t mind."
"I¡ don''t think that''s a good idea¡" stopping to rethink his answer, Sam sighed and waved at Eir''s terminal. "Well, everything might end soon so what''s the point. You need a password to ess the folders so don''t close the first window."
"I see¡ understood¡"
Watching as the white haired beauty took his ce, Sam made his way to the bed and stretched down.
"Nine. Keep watch outside." He instructed as his eyes began to close.
"Understood."
~¡ó~
A few hours passed by the time Sam woke up. He ended up sleeping for far longer than what he had intended. Usually when that happens he would begin to panic, however for some reason he felt rxed, all the stress he had experienced recently having vanished leaving his mind abnormally clear.
"I see you''re finally up,
Sam."
Hearing the voice Sam turned to look at its owner. It was Alice. Her closed eyes hadrge bags under them and the smile she wore screamed bad news.
Little by little Sam recalled what happened before and when he did a long sigh escaped him as he scratched the back of his head.
"Got any questions?" He said, covering his mouth before yawning.
"Yes, of course." Alice said. "How long have you known about those files?"
"A couple of months, I think." Sam replied.
"I see." Nodding a few times, the white haired beauty went on. "I already have a guess but just to be sure, why didn''t you report them to me or the headquarters?"
"Because I would''ve been in really big trouble."
"Sam, I see you have grown used to hiding things from your superiors. That''s not a very good quality to have, especially for someone in your position."
The two stared at each other for a few seconds which were interrupted by Sam''s stomach noises.
"Wonna go eat something?" Sam asked.
"Really?"
The way Alice tilted her head, still smiling as she asked was somewhat terrifying.
"You want to discuss the blue prints? We can do that while eating, right?"
"No, we will be doing it now." Turning to face the door, the white haired beauty called. "Come in!"
The door opened and the three Valkyries came in one after the other. As they lined up in their usual spots Alice looked at each of them for a few seconds then turned to Sam.
"So, which one?" She asked.
Sam remained silent and after a few seconds Alice''s expression seemed to change.
"Dont tell me you did it with all three?"
"Of course not¡" heaving another sigh, Sam lowered his gaze and gave his answer. "Five and Nine."
"I see¡"
Alice''s exhaustion showed as she held a hand to her forehead. She breather in then exhaled slowly, looking up at her lover with eyes devoid of light.
"A part of me is relieved that you didn''t prey on the youngest looking among them, but I''m still disappointed you actually went and done it¡"
"..."
"What were you thinking, Sam?"
"... does it matter?"
"Of course it does!!!" Shooting up from her seat, Alice began shouting in Sam''s face. "Even if you disregard my and Shizuru''s feelings, how can you go through with it?"
"Alice¡" His gaze turning to a re, Sam looked up at the white haired beauty. "I will ask you again, does it matter?"
"... what?"
"The world is ending and you''re getting angry about this? So what if I decided to sleep with them? You think any man in his right mind would let this chance go just like that?"
"That''s¡"
"Um¡ excuse me¡"
Nine''s voice cut the heavy atmosphere like a knife. She was holding a hand up with an anxious expression, her eyes going between Sam and Alice.
"Am I right to assume this is about our rtionship with Doctor?"
Staring at her for a while, Alice then turned to look at Sam with half lid eyes.
"Commander, please don''t be harsh on Doctor." Nine spoke, taking a step forward. "I was the one who suggested we do those things the first time."
"That doesn''t matter." Alice said, not even bothering to look in the Valkyrie''s direction. "The fact is that he disobeyed orders and broke the rules."
"Yeah yeah, I did, alright." Sam said. "So what?"
"You sure you want to talk to me like that?" Alice said. "Even in the current circumstances I can still lock you up."
"C''mon, Alice, you are much smarter than that. You should know by now that''s not possible." Sam lifted himself up and fixed his clothes before walking over to Nine and the others. "I have the three of the strongest weapons on this base on my side. Are you sure you want to waste your time trying to punish me? Especially with how things are right now?"
"W-what are you talking about?" Alice said, the confidence she had a moment ago having faded. "The Valkyrie file was a fake! It''s clear that-"
"Nine, whose orders are your property right now?" Sam interrupted, cing a hand on the blond Valkyrie''s shoulder and pulling her toward him.
"I''m Doctor''s personal Valkyrie." She spoke with a smile, her cheeks reddening a little. "I answer to him and only him."
"This can''t be¡"
Alice''s eyes were wide with shock. Sam nced in Five''s direction and in a second she was in his arms as well. The way the ponytailed Valkyrie blushed answered themander''s question without her having to ask it.
In a desperate attempt Alice turned to the young Valkyrie, however the moment their eyes met Zero Three averted her gaze. She remained in her ce fidgeting awkwardly for a few seconds. Then, as if she was ovee with embarrassment she quickly went and hid behind Sam''sb coat.
"Sam¡"
Chapter 111 How Does It Work?
"Do you understand now, Alice?" Sam asked, a sinister smile on his face.
Alice was frozein her ce, unable to say anything. After a few seconds she lowered her head in defeat, her shoulders trembling slightly.
Having won the discussion Sam let out a sigh. He looked at the two Valkyries in his arms the gave them some instructions.
"Alright, it''s time for you three to leave." He said. "I need to talk with themander."
"Are you sure, Doctor?" Nine asked, her eyes full of worry, and so were Five''s.
"It''s okay. There is nothing to worry about."
ncing in Alice''s direction for a moment, Sam went on to kiss Nine then Five. He then turned to the young Valkyrie who was blushing to the ears having seen everything. He gently patted her on the head, smiling at how adorable she is, then backed away a few steps.
"I will be waiting outside. Please call me if you need something."
Saying those words, Nine walked toward the door with the other two following behind her. Once only he and themander were left in the room Sam grabbed one of the extra chairs and sat down facing her.
"So? How long do you n on sulking?" Sam asked.
"..."
"Alice¡"
"If the Valkyrie file is fake, how are you able to control them?" Alice spoke after a long silence.
"To be honest, I don''t know." Sam replied. "But I do have a theory."
Alice raised her head and wiped away the tears that began to gather. She took a deep breath, doing her best to suppress the ugly feelings that ran rampant in her chest. Once she had regained herposure she looked up at him and silently asked him to begin the exnation.
"Remember when I told you about Zero Three''s condition?"
"Yes." Alice replied. "You said she had nightmares."
"That''s only half of the story." Sam closed his eyes and breathed in. "When it happened I was informed by the other two that she was refusing toe out of her room even though it was time for patrol. And even when I asked her to open the door for me she refused."
"Wait¡ do you mean¡"
"Yes. Not only did she abandon the mission assigned to her, she also disobeyed my, one of her superiors'' orders."
As she listened to the exnation attentively, Alice''s eyes slowly widened. She was quick on the uptake and before Sam finished she had already understood what he was trying to say.
After a short pause Sam continued.
"Experiencing fear, having nightmares, disobeying orders. Those are things the Valkyries aren''t supposed to do." He said. "However Zero Three proved the opposite, and before we received that call from your father I based all my theories on what I learned from the Valkyrie file."
Until yesterday Sam had believed that the restrictions ced on Three''s emotions have been broken which resulted in her current state, however that''s no longer viable since the blue prints turned out to be fake.
"Fear and disobedience, huh¡" Alice muttered before looking up. "What about the other two?"
"Well, same as with Three I had reasoned their actions with the blue prints, however now¡"
Silence filled theb forms while. Alice was giving Sam a really disappointed look, and though it filled him with the urge to run, Sam didn''t look away.
"I seriously don''t understand how you fell for it." Alice said. "I mean, no matter how you look at it it''s nothing if not suspicious."
"Well, I did doubt it at first, but everything made too much sense so¡"
"Seriously? The smartest man alive took advantage of the crisis humanity was in to create a bunch of sex robots. How does any of that makes sense?"
"Well, you would understand if you were a man."
Though the informal about Odin is rare toe by, most people picture him as a middle aged man who''s bad with people, especially women. The idea that such a genius would create female robots to make up for hisck of intimacy is perfectly reasonable.
"Hmm¡ so, how was it?" Alice asked.
"Was what?"
"You¡ you had sex with those two, right?" A slight red color began to spread over her face. "How did it feel?"
Faced with such a question, Sam found himself stopping to consider his answer very carefully. He remained silent for quite a while which caused themander to feel more and more anxious.
"Just to be clear¡" Sam began, bracing himself for the inevitable bacsh. "Even though I had the blue prints for quite a while, I''ve only recently started doing it with them."
"... really?" Alice asked with doubtful eyes.
"Yes. It''s only been a week. Once with Five and twice with Nine."
"..."
"Okay, if you don''t count making out and oral sex, that would be it."
"You know, Sam, I''m really disgusted right now." Alice sighed.
"I''m sure you are." Sam tried to not let her words get to him, but still he feltpelled to shoot back. "To answer your first question, it was amazing."
Though he hade up with a more delicate way to say it, seeing her reaction caused him to feel a little infuriated. Still, something told him that he would suffer if he doesn''t do his best to try and fix things.
"If I had to describe it I would say it''s the best sex I''ve had in my life, but¡" as he recalled how he felt afterward, Sam looked Alice in the eyes. "I felt unsatisfied."
The white hairedmander remained silent, her eyes studying the Doctor as if trying to see whether or not he''s lying.
"No matter how much I did it I always found myself craving more." Sam continued. "It was like being addicted to some substance. I had to force myself to stop every time."
"Hmm¡ so it was that good." Alice said, the disgust she felt now visible in her eyes.
"Anyways¡" coughing in his fist, Sam attempt to change the subject. "At first I assumed that those two had chosen me as their master, hence why they allowed me to get intimate with them."
"But now we know that''s not the truth." Alice added.
"Yes. Which is why I''m really confused right now."
After what happened with Miku, the Valkyrie he met during Wolf''s visit, Sam felt that he could no longer look at the Valkyries as weapons or sex bots. Soon after Three gained free will and felt that Five has done so as well.
''But thereys the problem¡''
If the base program, the part that dictates the Valkyries'' emotional reactions, is fake, what does that say about their previous understanding of how the Valkyrie''s emotions work?
Previously the way they thought the Valkyries scan their surroundings and determine the appropriate emotional response to simte. This way the affection the Valkyries has shown toward him could be exined as their AI determining that it was the right reaction under those circumstances.
That was out of the window now so Sam was left with a question; how does the emotions of Valkyries work?
Or to be more precise, how does the Valkyrie AI work?
"I wonder what''s their goal..." Alice said.
"Hm? Are you talking about the Nephilim?"
"No. I''m referring to the one who gave you those files. What was their aim? Were they aware that the some of the files are fake? Why leak them to you specifically?"
"I¡ never gave it much thought¡" Sam replied.
"Seriously?"
"Well, I obviously had the same question at first. I even suspected that it was all a trap to get me into trouble but¡ as time passed and nothing happened I just let my guard down."
"I see¡ guess you really took your sweet time." Alicemented.
"Yes. Well, the real reason is that I got together with you and Shizuru." Sam said. "I was so happy when it happened that I just didn''t care much about the Valkyries."
"That''s hard to believe considering you just said you had the best sex of your life with them."
"True." Sam replied without hesitation. "If I was too hasty and done it right away, I doubt our rtionship would''ve worked."
If Sam had used the Valkyries to satisfy his urges before Shizuru suggested that they start dating or Alice before confessed to him he would never have looked their way. Thankfully all it took to keep him from messing up his love life was for the events to be switched around.
"Alice, I might''ve said that it was the best sex I had, but in the end I wasn''t satisfied." Sam got up from his chair and approached the white haired beauty. "The only time I feel fulfilled is when I''m with you and Shizuru. After all our rtionship isn''t purely sexual, right?"
As he stood before her, Alice refused to look up at him.
"That doesn''t make me any happier, you know." She saidher cheeks a little puffed.
"I see." Sam said with a nod. He then reached out with his right hand and caressed the silky white hair. "But you know, Alice, sex with the Valkyries might feel too good, however there is something they can never hope to achieve."
Not understanding what he meant, Alice looked up with a raised eyebrow.
"I still want a daughter, you know." Sam slowly leaned in, his face stopping a few inches from hers. "What do you say? Should we give it another try? It''s been a while after all¡"
Alice''s face was slowly reddening and her heart was throbbing violently, however despite her excitement she quickly averted her gaze still angry about his actions and words.
"You sure are a jerk." She said, pausing for a moment. "And how can you say something like that when it''s the end of the world!? Do you want our daughter to arrive in this hopeless situation?"
"Well, you do have a point, but¡" leaning in even more, Sam added before stealing her lips. "Wouldn''t she be a great motivation? If it''s for our child I''ll definitely make sure that we survive."
Chapter 112 Its Gone.
"Thanks, Alice. I really needed that." Sam said, his eyes on the ceiling.
"... I¡ I might''ve needed this as well."
Snuggling close to him, Alice closed her eyes, the sound of his heartbeat reached her as she ced her head on his chest.
"Sam¡ I love you¡"
"Me too¡" Sam replied, kissing her head. "I love you too."
Currently the two of them were naked under the thin nket he had brought to theb. After the confrontation they had earlier and all the headache that resulted from it, the two spent most of the day going at it.
Even though she was angry at him for what he did to the Valkyries as well as disobeying her orders, once she was in his hands Alice let go of it all and recieved his love without resistance. Sam was surprised aa well. The difference between Alice and the Valkyries was notable, but not as much as he had previously thought.
However the most important part was that by the end of it Sam felt extremely satisfied. Having the woman he loves in his arms after they had done the deed feltpletely different from the lust driven sex he had with Nine, and though he had feelings for Five something about their rtionship didn''t feel right to him.
''Is it because I still dont believe she chose to be with me out of her own free will?'' Sam thought.
"Say¡ what are we going to do from now?" Alice asked. "This war¡ are we really going to survive?..."
The odds were against them, their strongest weapons couldn''t hope to match what their enemies are capable of. It doesn''t take a genius to know that they had no hope ating out on top.
"I¡ I will do something about it." Sam said. He hesitated at first, but he knew he had no choice. He couldn''t rely on someone else saving them or on a miracle happening. He needs to do it himself.
As his mind began working on finding a solution, Alice allowed herself to rx. However at that moment she remembered a question she wanted to ask earlier but forgot.
"Come to think of it, Sam. How did you find those files?"
"Hm? Ah¡ yeah, about that¡" pausing for a moment, Sam heaved a sigh and rubbed his eyes. "Remember that book you found in my room?"
"You mean¡ that erotica?"
"Yeah. Well, you see, there is a code hidden inside the book. When solved you find a number ofmands unique to Eir. Entering thosemands gives you ess to the files."
"Ooh¡ it''s amazing that you''ve noticed it¡"
"It was just a coincidence. The code itself isn''t that hard to solve¡"
Just then Sam remembered something important.
"Oh, right! I found another one the other day." He said, quickly getting up from the bed. "I kept putting off solving it so it''s been sitting around¡ huh?"
"Is something wrong?" Asked Alice, lifting herself up while holding the nket to cover her chest.
"It''s gone¡"
Sam had opened the drawer he had kept the book in, however it was no longer there.
For some reason panic hit him violently. He quickly put his clothes on and began searching through theb. The ce was a but messy so he might''ve put it somewhere else and forgot.
A few minutester and after tidying everything up the was still nowhere to be found. Sadly there are no security cameras inside so it was impossible to know who took it.
"I¡ let''s ask the Valkyries¡" Sam said, walking out of theb in quick steps.
"Doctor?"
Nine was standing right outside which startled him for a moment. He gazed at the blond Valkyrie for a moment, wondering if she was the one who did it. He couldn''t see it happening, but nothing was off the table.
"Three and Five are in the residence, right?" Sam asked
"Yes. Since we have free time Three is most likely in the pool while Five spends most of the time in the training room." Nine replied.
"Alright. Do you mind calling them? There is something I want to discuss."
"... Understood."
Nine went ahead to summon the other two while Sam and Alice followed a few steps behind.
"Sam, do you really think that one of them took it?" Alice asked.
"I don''t want to believe it, but¡"
By the time they arrived, Three, Five and Nine were already lining up and waiting. Zero three was still in her swimsuit with water dripping from her hair. Despite the situation Sam couldn''t help but think she looked rather cute. Five was wearing a sports bra and tight pants which reminded him of that time he taught her how to perform oral sex on him.
Alice wasn''t oblivious to the fact that he was staring at the two Valkyries so she gave him a light elbow jab.
Sam cleared his throat with a cough then looked ahead once more before he spoke.
"Today I realized something had gone missing from myb. It''s a book with a green cover. Just to be sure, I wanted to ask if any of you had taken it without my permission."
The three Valkyries stared at him for a few seconds, blinking repeatedly.
"A book?" Nine tilted her head a little, looking somewhat confused.
"Is that what you called us for?" Three asked with a small frown. "I barely read the ones given to me. Why would I want another one?"
The young Valkyrie was referring to the study material she had in her room. Being designed to be around that age she was forced to do some studying from time to time.
''Wait¡'' Once again Sam found himself having doubts. ''Wolf said that the base program was fake, but does that mean the part about their programmed personalities is true?''
It made sense for things to be like that considering everything lined up with what he had observed ever since he started his job.
"I have no interest in books." Five said.
"Me neither." Nine added with a smile.
"I see¡"
Sam couldn''t see any of the three lying to him so he heaved a sigh and scratched his head.
''What is going on here?'' He thought to himself.
"Sam, maybe you left it in your room?" Alice suggested.
"No, I''m sure I brought it to theb with me intending to solve it." He replied, shaking his head. "I got busy with what happened to Three thenpletely forgot about it¡"
A lot of things urredin such a short amount of time leaving him too upied to focus on solving the code.
"Sam¡ you said you found the first code in a simr book, right?" Alice asked.
"Yeah."
"And the second one contains another code, right?"
"Yeah?"
"Then¡ doesn''t this mean we are in some really big trouble?"
Sam was already aware of it, however when she worded it like that the bad feeling he had grew stronger and stronger.
"Let''s check the security footage¡" he suggested, knowing full well that it''s a pointless effort.
The maintenance area was off limits to most people with only Sam and Alice having a high enough security clearance to enter it. No one should be able to get past the front door and there was no sign of anyone breaking in.
"As expected, there is nothing¡" Sam muttered as he stared at the tablet in his hand.
The logs showed that the only times the door was opened was when Sam himself had entered the building as well as the three Valkyries. Alice came in only once in the past few days.
"Why does this keep happening?" Alice said, her teeth gritted.
"Are you talking about the crime?" Sam asked.
"The first time you were attacked, when sergeant Clementine was killed, and then sergeant Kerry. What''s the point of security equipment if it never seem to catch anything?"
"This is getting ridiculous¡" Sam said. "Why would anyone steal that book?"
If it had something to do with Eir like the first one, normal people wouldnt have any use for it. That makes it seem like the suspect is someone knowledgeable about the Valkyries and their equipment, unless the code in that version of the book is for somethingpletely different.
"Should we conduct a thorough inspection?" Though she made the proposition, Alice didn''t feel like it''s the right course of action.
"Noz that would be pointless." Sam replied. "I doubt the one who took it would be so stupid as to hide it among their stuff."
Someone good enough to sneak into the maintenance area without anyone noticing wouldn''t make such a stupid mistake.
''The murders¡ is it the same guy?''
The only thing they had inmon is that the perpetrators wasn''t caught by the security cameras. Still, Sam couldn''t help but think they''re somehow rted.
The truth is that there is Nine more suspect, however he didn''t want to even think about that possibility. Alice is the only other person capable of entering theb which makes her a suspect as well. Just like the Valkyries, he didn''t want to believe that she did it, however he couldn''t stop himself from considering it.
Chapter 113 Another Perspective.
As if the end of the world wasn''t enough, Sam now had to deal with a murderer and a thief who could infiltrate the most secure section of the base and avoid all security equipment.
No matter how much they looked there wa no sign of the book and just like that another two days passed. That''s when some news finally arrived, sadly they weren''t of the good kind.
The scouts sent by the twelfth and thirteenth bases had finally returned. ording to them the Resistance headquarters was in a really bad shape. There were more survivors than anticipated, however the number of casualties wasn''t small either.
Apparently two Nephilim were responsible for the attack. They were far more powerful than the S ss Cmities and the Valkyries were unable to do anything about them.
After wrecking havoc for a while the enemy decided to retreat for some reason leaving a sea of fire and scorchednd behind.
"Things aren''t looking very good for us, huh?" Shizuru heaved a long sigh.
"Yep." Sam said, taking a sip from his coffee cup. "How have you been doing?"
"Well, same as everyone else, I guess."
"How''re the others taking it?"
"Not very well. We now have to keep the males and females separate. Since the world is about to end some are starting to get funny ideas."
"I¡ guess no one believes I can make something that would save us, huh?"
"Do you me them? I mean, you took the time to see your girlfriend when you could''ve been working."
"What? Do you have anyints?" Sam asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Of course not." Shizuru replied, and though she tried to smile, Sam could still see the exhaustion and worry she is feeling.
"I''ll send five to keep an eye on you and the rest of the female soldiers."
The two remained silent for some time. The cafeteria which is usually quite noisy was dead silent that day. Most of the other soldiers spent their time in their rooms waiting for the next flight to the remaining settlements.
Though the headquarters waspletely destroyed the three settlements near it were rtively unharmed. It seems the two Nephilim had no interest in murdering civilians, or it might be that they were just too focused on the Resistance and left the rest of humanity for another time.
"Say, Sam. What do you think those Nephilim are after?" Asked the Asian girl.
"Beats me." Sam replied. "I doubt that matters though."
"Hmm I guess you have a point. They would kill all of us whether we return it to them or not." She said. "Still, I can''t help but wonder what could it be?"
"Well, me too." Sam said. "We hardly know anything about them so it''s impossible to make a guess."
"Yeah. I mean, where in the world did theye from anyway? I doubt they were on earth all along and suddenly decided to take over the one day."
"What? Are you one of those who believe they''re aliens?" Sam asked, giggling.
"Well, wouldn''t that make sense?" Shizuru replied. "They''re far more technologically advanced, or so it seems at least. No matter how you look at it there is no way those things are something that urs in nature."
"You mean like humans?" Sam said.
"What? Does our great scientist not believe in god?" Shizuru smirked and ced her cup down. The coffee must''ve been a bit too bitter for her as she added another pack of sugar, one of the remaining few, and used a stic spoon to steer it.
"No I don''t." Sam replied. "Darwin''s evolution theory makes too much sense."
"Well, maybe for someone with your brains. For me it makes more sense that someone had made all of us."
"Never took you for the religious kind." Sam said, his eyes carefully observing his girlfriend wondering if this was her way of epting that it was the end.
"Well, I never thought much about it. At least not until I started interacting with Three."
Shrugging once, she brought her cup to her mouth, gently blew on the surface then took a small sip.
"Three, huh¡"
"I mean she is no different from any normal girl. If you never knew she''s a Valkyrie you would probably think she''s just a pretty young girl."
"Yeah¡"
Sam knew that better than anyone. He still remembers the way she trembled in his arms after hearing that Nephilim''s voice. She was just a scared little girl. No sign of the powerful weapon she''s supposed to be.
"And what does that have to do with god?" Sam asked.
"Well, if someone is capable of creating the Valkyries, what evidence do we have that humans weren''t created by someone else?"
"Quite a lot, actually." Sam replied.
"Well, you are the scientist." Shizuru replied, shrugging again.
Another moment of silence passed as the two slowly sipped their coffee. Shizuru sighed once more, and Sam did the same.
"Well, my point is..." She spoke, her eyes fixed on the dark liquid in her cup. "Those so called Nephilim seem to be someone''s creation. I mean, they said it themselves."
"Ah, so that''s where the religious talk came from¡" Sam said.
"The supreme race that ovee the chains of its creator. Makes them sound like some sinful heretics, right?"
"Yeah¡"
"Did you know? Apparently the Nephilim are the the sons of fallen angels." Said Shizuru. "Though they''re supposed to be giants. And the ones we''re facing are all female."
"The sons of fallen angels, huh." Sam said. "Fits with their description, right?"
"Yeah. And they resemble the Valkyries quite a but."
Sam looked up, taken aback by that statement.
"What? I''m sure you have thought about it as well." Said Shizuru. "A lot of people have. And only an idiot would think it''s a coincidence."
"I see¡"
Sam felt sick in his stomach. Whether it was a conscious effort or not he has been doing his best to ignore that topic. He didn''t want to think about it, and he was sure the others didn''t want as well.
However now that he heard someone say it so bluntly it was easy to connect the dots.
"Well, I dont say I''m a great detective or something." As if trying to change the mood, Shizuru erased the depressed expression she had as she forced herself to show excitement. "After going though all the evidence I havee up with a theory!"
"Oooh!" Sam eximed, pping a few times. "And? What do you think?"
"First of all, Odin is the thief those Nephilim are looking for." As she spoke, the Asian girl raised two fingers then lowered one of them. "Second, whatever it is that he stole, it''s something essential in the creation of the Valkyries."
"... what?"
"Well, I have no evidence to support that, however I have a strong feeling that''s the case."
Though he did see the resemnce between the Nephilim and the Valkyries and he acknowledged the likelihood of the two being somehow rted, it never ured to Sam that that might be the actual reason for behind the invasion.
''Could it be¡ did Odin stole the Valkyrie blue prints from the Nephilim?'' Sam thought.
Though that seemed to make sense at first, when he considered the difference of power between the Valkyries and Nephilim it sounded less believable. If he wanted a weapon that would allow him to fight the invaders why did he bother creating an inferior version?
''Or maybe he couldn''t¡''
It was difficult to believe that the Valkyries are just a knockoff version of the so called Nephilim, but if that''s really the case, what makes them inferior?
Is it the materials used to create them? Or could it be that theyck someponents that prevent them from reaching the same level as those things?
"So? What do you think?"
Shizuru''s question shook Sam back to reality. He stared at her for a moment, his eyes growing wide.
"Actually, it makes more sense than it sounds at first." He said with a smile.
"I told you." Shizuru replied, returning the smile. "That said, what''s bugging me the most is right now is where they came from."
"I guess you have the point."
Odin stole something from the Nephilim. When one hears that the question their mind goes to is what did he steal. However what they should be asking is how did he know what to steal in the first ce?
Where did he find those beings? How did he get to them? What made him think stealing from them is a good idea?
"Actually, I have one more theory." Said Shizuru before making a dramatic pause.
"So? What us it?" Sam asked.
"What if we have been looking at it from the wrong angle this whole time?" She said.
"What do you mean?"
"Okay. The normal conclusion is that someone on our side somehow made contact with those Nephilim then stole something from them which is why they''re trying to get revenge on all humans, right?" Leaning in, and with a serious expression, the Asian girl said something that changed Sam''s whole understanding of what was going on. "But that''s only if you are convinced that the perpetrator is a human."
"Are you saying¡"
"Yes. For all we know, the perpetrator might be one of the Nephilim." Said Shizuru. "One of their kind betrayed them and escaped to our side."
Chapter 114 Reuion
Despite how calm things seemed no one could bring themselves to rx. It''s the end of the world aftr all.
After his conversation with Shizuru Sam went back to hisb to continue his desparate attempt at finding a way to survive. In the meantime Alice was working on another task; unless the Nephilim decide to attack right then and there those who had decided to remain in the base have to prepare to abandon it as soon as possible.
The n is to go into hiding until a way to fight back is found. That said, it was difficult to see themselves remaining out of sight for long. Their enemy is much more technologically advanced and would most likely sniff them out in no time.
''''Guess in the end space is our only choice, huh...'''' Sam muttered to himself.
He was in the secondb room fiddling with the Valkyrie heart he was working on before this whole mess escted. After taking it off he went and put it back together all while a new one is being created. Sadly it would be pointless to just make a perfect copy so he was adding some modification he came up with a while ago, though he had no idea whether they would prove to be of any use.
''''Space?''''
Turning around Sam was met with the curious eyes of Zero Three.
''''Yes. It might be our only choice.'''' Sam replied then turned his sight to the ss wall. ''''That said, it''s somewhat difficult to see us surviving out there.''''
Talking about escaping to space and actually doing it are two different things, Sam knew that very well. In the decade since the cmities first appeared humanity had managed to advance enough to make it possible, however no one had made that attempt so far.
''Why...?''
He remembered a little part of what Wolf had told during his visit, about Odin escaping to the stars above. What made him think that the enemy wouldn''t follow him? That''s a good question. As far as they know those monsters should have the capabilities to travel through space, and seeing that they were ready to massacre an entire race to get what they want it''s easy to see them continuing the chase even is the remaining humans somehow manage to make it outside the.
''''I wonder what it''s like out there...?'''' Zero Three said.
''''Technically you should be able to go there if you want.''''
''''Really!?'''' Three eximed, her eyes sparkling with excitement.
''''Yes. I mean, there is no upper limit to the altitude you can reach, and you don''t really need air.'''' Sam replied.
''''Then, maybe I should give it a try the next time I have free time?''''
''''Good idea. We can use that as an opportunity to gather information.''''
Whether it will be the solution to their problems or not, a space trip would surely buy them enough time toe up with something to counter the Nephilim, or so hoped Sam.
As his mind returned to focusing on his work, he heard the beeping sound of his phone alerting him that a message has arrived.
[We have been informed that a number of survivors from the headquarters will be relocating here. They''re scheduled to arrive in about two hours.]
The message was from Alice, however the contents were a bit confusing. Survivors from the headquarters wereing, but he had no idea as to why.
''Shouldn''t they stay somewhere close to the three big settlements?''
The forty sixth base is quite far from from the headquarters so it doesn''t make sense for them to send what''s left of their forces to it, eve if they were spreading them across the rest of the front-line.
''Well, anyway...''
Knowing that he will get the answers he is looking for soon enough, Sam returned his focus to the task at hand.
~[]~
A couple of hourster Sam left theb and headed to the runway to greet the survivors that were about to arrive. Something like this shouldn''t be a part of his job, but with how things were goingtely the base''smander has been seeking his input on most of the big decisions which forces him to be present for asions such as this.
In just a few minutes the air-crafts became visible in the sky and soon enough they arrived andnded safely. Looking at their outer shell it''s clear that they didn''t have that smooth of a trip which made Sam wonder if they were attacked on their way here.
''''Do you have any idea on who they are?'''' Sam asked.
''''Sadly, no.'''' Alice, who was standing beside him answered. ''''At the very least it doesn''t seem like any of the higher ups are among them.''''
With how things have been going recently thest thing Sam wanted was a high and mighty general from the headquarters toe here ad start ordering them around. That said, he cold always strip their authority away. All he has to do is use the message from the Nephilim to shake the soldiers'' trust in the higher ups, no one would be stupid enough to follow their orders after hearing that they might be the reason why humanity had to suffer for all those years.
''Well, that also means we can''t interrogate them to see if they know anything...''
It would have been great if wolf was among the survivors, however it doesn''t seem like that''s the case. The old man seemed to know a lot more than he lets on, he even knows that the Valkyrie blue prints are fake. Though she''s doing her best to remain calm, Sam could tell that Alice wasn''t feeling well. There have been no news from Wolf ever since hisst call, and the fact that he has yet to contact them despite how their conversation had ended told them that he most likely didn''t survive. That and everything else that''s happening it would be only natural if she''s at her limit by now.
The ship opened and the passengers began descending. The looks on their faces were those of soldiers who have sen carnage. No amount of therapy will ever be enough to get them back to how they were. Alice stepped forward to great them making sure to keep her smile to herself, she had to make sure to keep how they feel into ount.
As he watched silently from the sides Sam spotted a familiar face in the corner of his eye.
''''Miku?''''
The moment he muttered her name the young blond Valkyrie seemed to notice him as well causing her expression to brighten instantly. Without paying any mind to the atmosphere in the surroundings she quickly dashed in his direction, tears gathering in her eyes, then threw herself into his arms as he reflexively held his hands up seeing her jump in his direction.
''''Doctor!!!'''' She cried, tears flowing uncontrobly. ''''Doctor! I was so afraid! I did my best, but... but...''''
''''Now now, everything will be fine.'''' Sam said as he gently patted the Valkyries head.
He didn''t want to check but he found himself ncing at his surroundings and as expected the reaction from the crowd was nothing but shock.
Alice was shaking her head in exasperation while the arriving solders were frozen in their ces. The most amusing reaction was that of Zero Three whose face waspletely red as she stepped away from the shock.
''''I see that even the Valkyries aren''t safe from you.'''' An annoyed voice spoke followed by a long sigh.
Returing his gaze in the direction of the ship, Sam found himself eye to eye with an old acquatence.
''''Just because it''s the end of the world doesn''t mean you can go aroud seducing kids''''
''''Elina...''''
Sam didn''t know how to react when faced with the disgusted look his ex-girlfriend had on. Thechnically she wasn''t in the wrong. He was standing there with a cute young girl crying in his arms, and since there is no way the two of them are rted it''s only right for the people watching them to assume the worst.
''''Well, whatever you did to her, I guess we should be thankful for it.'''' said Elina, allowing herself to smile.
''''what are you talking about?'''' Sam asked.
''''It''s you, isn''t it?'''' she asked. ''''You are the one who asked her to prioritize her own safety over everything else?''''
Hearing that Sam looked down at Miku who was sniffling as she tried to supress her tears.
''''I did as Doctor said.'''' Backing away from him, the small blond Valkyrie wiped her tears before going on. ''''I prioritized my safety over everything else, however I couldn''t just run away and leave everyone to die, that''s why...''''
''''If it weren''t for her the rest of us would''ve been forced to fight till the very end.''''
Stepping forwordfrom behind Elina, a young woman with silver hair, clearly a Valkyrie as well, spoke with a solemn expression on her face.
''''We are very thankful for your directions, doctor Sam Sanderson.''''
Chapter 115 Pervert.
''''A lot of things happened but... if Miku didn''t take the first step and disobeyed the general''s orders none of us would have been here.'''' The silver haired Valkyrie, Nana, finished recounting the events that transpired in the headquarters while the attack was happening.
After the refugees arrived Alice gathered the most important individuals and moved to her office where they listened. Long story short, one of the general''s ordered the remaining Valkyries to by them time until they make it out of there, however Miku, the petite blond Valkyrie objected to the order saying she needs to prioritize her own safety first which led to the other Valkyries revolting against the order.
''''I don''t really know how you did it but...'''' Elina spoke, staring at Sam with half closed eyes. ''''That was the first time I saw a Valkyrie prioritize the instructions of a low rank physician over the orders of a general.''''
''''I don''t think you''ll like the answer...'''' Sam replied, smiling nervously.
He was sure they already had an idea of what made Miku behave like that, and going by the looks they were giving him it''s obvious they didn''t like it. He was sitting on one of the sofas facing the rest of them. On his left was the petite blond Valkyrie, her arms wrapped around his waist as she hugged him tightly while he patted her head. On his right was the other young Valkyrie, the way she kept stealing nces at the Doctor with a slight blush on her cheeks made it obvious that she wanted to receive some affection as well but was too embarrassed to ask for it.
''''Well, Miku''s actions aside, I don''t think I have any direct rtion to how the other Valkyries behaved.'''' Sam said.
It didn''t take much brain power to conclude that those Valkyries somehow broke their restrictions and gained free reign on their own decisions. It''s the same as what happened with Zero Three, though he found it difficult to believe that it could happen out of nowhere like that.
''Were the two Nephilim really that terrifying?''
It was difficult to tell since they now know that the Valkyrie blue prints are fake, however Sam was sure that fear had something to do with the AI gaining free will. Faced with inevitable destruction and hearing one of their kind talk about prioritizing her own well being the rest of them decided that they had options other than to go and face their own demise just because they were told to do so.
''''So the enemy didn''t bother with you when you chose not to fight?'''' Sam asked.
''''Well, to be more urate, we were just lucky.'''' Answered Elina. ''''The Valkyries on our side were the only ones who refused to fight. The others did as they told which drew attention away from us allowing us to slip out of the HQ without anyone noticing.''''
''''I see...'''' Alice said with a nod. ''''It must''ve been quite the difficult experience.''''
''''It sure was.'''' Elina replied.
''''Dr. Briens, as I remember you are my father''s... general Schneider''s assistant, right? May I ask if you know anything about his whereabouts or... his current situation?''''
''''My apologies,mander. General Schneider and I have been in separate locations when it all went down. I was hoping that he would''ve contacted you by now but...''''
Wolf is missing and he has yet to contact his beloved daughter, not only that but no one knows anything about where he currently is. One would conclude that something has happened to him during the attack, however Sam wasn''t buying it.
''What are you ying at, old man...''
As if he wasn''t already suspicious enough, thest call had left them with a lot of questions. Sam was hoping they would get the answers soon but it seems that was only wishful thinking on their part.
''''Elina, since you were the old man''s assistant, did you get to see him attempt to reverse engineer the Valkyries?''''
''''Nope.'''' Elina answered. ''''I asked him to let me do it many times but he still refused. I gave up when I heard that he was going to ask you to do it. There is no point in trying topete with you.''''
''''I see...''''
Silence filled themander''s office as no one spoke for a while. The atmosphere grew heavy with everyone focusing on their own thoughts, but then a loud p snapped them all back to reality and the one responsible for it was none other than the scientist with round sses and messy hair.
''''That''s right! There is something really important I need to show you!'''' She said, reaching for her bag and taking out a tablet like device. ''''We didn''t just run away empty handed, you know. We managed to get some valuable data from that fight, though it was difficult to gather with themunications being jammed an all.''''
After a few swipes and taps Elina turned the tablet around and handed it over to Sam.
It was a video of the battle that happened above the Resistance headquarters. It was recorded by the Valkyries doing the fighting but despite that the images were blurry and just bad most of the time.
''Huh...?''
One of the better shots showed a Valkyries engaging with one of the Nephilim, however this one didn''t have the appearance he hade to expect from the humanoid Cmities. She looked like a young girl with a small underdeveloped figure, however the most notable thing about her wasn''t how she had even less clothing than the other Nephilim, it was that every part of her body was covered in a blue color.
''''As I thought, you really are a pervert, huh?'''' Said Elina, a mischievous smirk on her face.
Sam has been staring at the almost naked blue skinned being for some time now and though no one bothered to peek at what he was looking at t was easy to tell just from seeing the reflection on his sses.
''''Seriously?'''' Sam heaved a long sigh.
It was a bad attempt at lightening the mood but it worked as intended. Alice was giving him a disgusted while the other Valkyries seemed a bit confused since they don''t really understand what the female scientist is trying yo say.
Not letting it bother him, Sam returned his sight to the tablet screen and continued analyzing the footage. He fond himself stopping at the blue skinned Nephilim once again and though the others were giving him weird looks he continued to stare while holding his chin in thought.
''Wait... didn''t I see this...''
He went back and yed the video at the slowest speed possible. The blue skinned Nephilim had a glowing red halo over her head, however what bes clear when the footage is slowed down is that the halo is actually a string of strange symbols spinning at a incredible speed.
Sam was sure that he had seen something simr before and soon enough he was able to remember.
''''Thanks, Elina. This footage might prove to be quite useful.''''
''''I see. In that case is it okay if I ask for something in return?''''
Already having a guess of what she had in mind, Sam let out a sigh.
''''Sorry but that won''t be possible.'''' He said, shaking his head slowly.
''''Eeeeh!? but why!!?'''' Elina shot up from her seat, tears already gathering in her eyes. ''''The world might end any time now! I don''t want to die without getting to feel it again!!!''''
''''Then pray that it doesn''t end.'''' Sam said before turning to the petite Valkyrie still clinging to him. ''''C''mon, Miku, it''s time to go.''''
''''Wait.''''
Just as he was about to stand up, Alice''smanding voice reached his ears causing him to freeze in his ce.
''''Sergeant Sanderson , may I ask what''s your rtionship with the Valkyrie named Miku, who''s clearly created to look and act like an underage girl.''''
Sam could only stare in Alice''s direction silently asking if that was the right time, however before he could reply to her question the petite blond Valkyrie raised her hand and gave an answer that caused him to reflexively facepalm.
''''I''m Doctor''s personal Valkyrie!'''' She said, her voice sounding a bit more cheerful.
''''I... see...''''
Alice''s eyebrows twitched as a very dangerous smile appeared on her face. Elina''s eyes kept going between the two, her confusion bing more apparent by the second.
''''Personal Valkyrie? What are you talking about?''''
However the most extreme reaction would be that of Zero Three who stood up and turned to face him.
''''D-D-D-Doctor!!! What is she talking about!!?'''' Three spoke, her face beaming red. ''''She isn''t even from our base! Besides, am I not supposed to be next!?''''
''''Calm down, Three. This isn''t...''''
''''Hmm... so Doctor has yet to make you his personal Valkyrie.'''' As she spoke, Miku had a very smug expression for some reason. ''''Even though you have been in the same base for so long...''''
''''Alright, that''s it!'''' Getting up from her seat, Alice pointed a finger at Sam and dered. ''''From now on you are forbidden from staying alone with any of the young Valkyries!!!''''
Chapter 116 Discovery.
Though Aliceined again and again in the end she couldn''t stop Sam from the two young Valkyries with him. To be more urate neither Miku nor Zero Three wanted to listen to what she says and followed after him.
In the end all she could do was threaten him saying if he put his hands on either of them she would never forgive him, and that their rtionship would be over, but Sam didn''t really have much choice in the matter since those two were acting ording to their own free will. He wished she would stop talking as if he had groomed them or something.
''It''s not my fault if they end up falling for me.'' He thought to himself, desperately trying to convince himself that being in a rtionship with two underage looking beings isn''t wrong.
Things would''ve been much easier if he still saw them as nothing but lifeless androids, however that had changed. The two had free will now. They aren''t simple war machines anymore, and though they''re different from normal humans, specifically in how they will never grow older, they have feelings and he had to put them into consideration. He can no longer use them to satisfy his lust and think nothing of it.
That said, there is one big problem.
''They''re so cute!''
Though it was broad daylight and many of the soldiers were walking around, Sam didn''t instruct the petite blond Valkyrie on how she''s supposed to act in public. Because of that after they left themander''s office Miku kept clinging to him, her arms locked around his right as thin cherry lips drew a small smile. Three was on his other side keeping a single step between them as she walked in silence.
Sam was aware of the way she red at her fellow Valkyrie, however he said nothing. He fond himself enjoying the jealousy the brown haired swimmer felt at the sight of someone her size being so close to him. She didn''t show the same reaction toward Five and Nine for some reason, however now that another young Valkyrie ispeting for his attention she most likely felt that her position is threatened.
''''Doctor, don''t you think it''s inappropriate for a Valkyrie to be acting this way toward her superior, especially in public?'''' Having had enough, Three finally voiced herints.
''''True.'''' Sam replied. ''''However it''s been a while since she has been around so let''s overlook it for now.''''
Zero Three didn''t seem to like his response that much as she looked away with puffed cheeks. As Sam did his best to suppress the smile that was about to appear on his face, Miku nced up at him for a moment then turned to Three looking a bit annoyed.
''''And who are you to decide how I should be acting toward Doctor?'''' She said, tightening her hold on Sam''s arm. ''''I''m Doctor''s personal Valkyrie, you are not. That mean I''m much closer to him than you are so you have no right to tell me how I should behave!''''
Sam was speechless. Thankfully they were already at the maintenance area so no one was around to hear them. Miku''s statement must''ve hit Zero Three pretty badly as she froze in her ce from the shock.
''''D-D-Doctor!'''' Three turned to him with tearful eyes, but sadly Sam was no longer able to hide his smile which caused her an even greater shock.
''''Technically she is right, Three.'''' Sam said, noticing the young Valkyrie''s reaction. ''''Miku was the first to offer herself to me so it should be fine for her to get some special treatment.''''
''''Wha-''''
''''That said.'''' Shifting his sight to the blond one, Sam decided to make things clear to avoid the trouble getting escted. ''''Three is right as well. Even if you are my personal Valkyrie there is a proper way to behave in public. Always remember that your actions reflect on me as your superior.''''
''''... understood...''''
Miku reluctantly let go of Sam''s arm and red in Three''s direction, however her mood improved instantly when he patted her head.
Though he wanted to mess around with the two a little more Sam had something else that''s taking his attention at the moment. The red symbols which formed the halo above the blue Nephilim''s head. He was sure he had seen them before but found it difficult to recall where.
''''I''ll be focusing on work so make sure not to disrupt me.''''
Arriving at hisb the first thing Sam did was instruct the two Valkyries to not bother him under any circumstances. He then sat down at his desk and picked up his tablet. It didn''t take him that long to find what he is looking for.
The symbols looked familiar because they left a strong impression thest time they made an appearance. During thest big battle when the Nephilim showed themselves for the first time one of the Cmities, the one they call Torso, had created two purple giants which it used tounch a double beam attack that left quite the mark on the surrounding area.
''As I thought...''
The symbols appeared right before that attack happened. They weren''t identical and the color was different, however there was enough of a resemnce for him to recognize that there is some connection between them.
Sam couldn''t help but chuckle.
''Are those some magic runes or something?''
He remembered how baffled he was when he saw them for the first time. It sounded ridiculous, but what other exnation is there for something like that?
''Well, if magic really exists then it would be just another scientific field the rules of which we have yet to understand...''
Though it was difficult to guess what effect the red hallo has, the golden runes the purple giants used had a specific one. After analyzing them multiple times he realized that once the ring ispletely formed and the symbols start spinning, the light they emit grows in intensity and a moment after that the beam isunched.
''Shit. If only we had better footage...''
Sam knew that that would be asking too much. The second armor used by the Valkyries are equipped with the best visual and sound detectors human technology is able to create specifically for the purpose of gathering the best data in the hope of it bing more useful in future battles. That meant the recordings in his hands right now are the best he will ever be able to get so his only choice is to try and analyse it to the best of his abilities and hope that would lead him to something.
''What am I trying to achieve anyways?'' Sam asked himself.
Was he hoping to somehow be able to recreate the runes and replicate the Cmities ability to use those magic like powers? He didn''t want to admit it, however that was exactly what he''s trying to do right now.
''Whatever it is that he stole, it''s something essential in the creation of the Valkyries.''
As he was deep in thought watching the recording repeatedly, Sam suddenly remembered something Shizuru had told him the other day.
Odin is the thief the Nephilim are after and what he stole is most likely something very crucial in the creation of Valkyries. Though he understood where such spections came from, Sam couldn''t bring himself to see them as anything more than that. If the Valkyries really are somehow rted to the Nephilim then looking at the difference in strength alone it''s easy to tell which one is the inferior version.
Odin is being hunted for stealing something essential in the creation of the Valkyries, or the Nephilim if one were to consider that they are the same thing. If he wanted to protect himself then why didn''t he create a moreplete version instead of settling for what they have now?
''No, that''s not it...''
There are more than one way to exin why he couldn''t do it. What intrigued Sam more was the possibility of the Valkyries being the same kind of being as the Nephilim. If that is really the case then there is a chance, even if it''s a very small one, for him to elevate Three and the others to the same level as their enemy.
''This is...''
Sam''s eyes went wide as he looked down at the screen of his tablet. He was just done running the footage Elina had brought through several spectrographs and the results left him chocked. He thought that the halo over the blue Nephilim''s head was the only instance of it using the strange symbols, however that wasn''t true to say the least.
Though they were invisible to the naked eye, the blue Nephilim had countless symbols surrounding her body forming so many rings ovepping over each other as they moved to the point of him feeling dizzy just from looking at them.
''What in the world...'' though the discovery shook him to the core, Sam couldn''t help but cover his mouth as a huge grin spread across his face.
Though he wasn''t entirely convinced at the time something told him that he had just made a discovery that might change the direction of this war.
Chapter 117 Good Night.
Still afraid of what Sam might do to the two young Valkyries, Alice made a excuse toe and check what they were doing in theb. Since she was expecting the worst it was quite the surprise for her when she found nothing disturbing when the door opened.
Sam was at his desk wearing a bulky virtual reality headset. His gloved hands were moving around in empty air and though she couldn''t see his eyes she could tell that the expression he is making was that of extreme concentration and focus.
Alice couldn''t help but sigh in relief. Seeing her lover putting everything he has into his job made her feel bad for having doubts about him. Though he had already cheated on her and Shizuru with two of the Valkyries she shouldn''t have let it convince her that he would eventually do the same withst one. After all there is no way he''s so messed up in the head that he would do anything sexual to someone who''s clearly underage, or so she wanted to believe.
Miku and Zero Three had fallen asleep at some point with the blond one hugging the other and snuggling close to her. It was a very heartwarming sight, like two sisters who have met each other for the first time in a long while.
''Well, technically they''re sisters...'' Alice thought.
Though it doesn''t seem they already know the two young Valkyries were a part of the same generation. Since all Valkyries are made by the same man it''s reasonable to say that all of them are sisters, however those two have a much closer connection since they were created around the same time five years ago.
''As if it couldn''t get any more messed up...''
Just the thought of her childhood friend and current lover having a sexual rtionship with a girl who not only looks underage but is technically a five years old as well made her sick in her stomach, though she found that a little hypocritical since she okay with him sleeping with the other two despite hem being less than ten years old as well.
''''... Hm?... co...mmader?''''
As she was deep into her own thoughts Alice failed to notice the petite blond Valkyrie waking up.
''''I see that the long trip left you quite exhausted.'''' Alice said, doing her best to smile. ''''Your room has already been prepared so how about you take a warm bath and get some rest?''''
''''... No...'''' Miku answered after a long yawn. ''''I''ll wait till doctor is done...''''
It was clear from the way she''s struggling to keep her eyes open that she wouldn''t be staying up for long and since it''s already night Alice wanted to use that as an excuse to get her away from Sam.
Including Nana and Miku there were fifteen Valkyries among the soldiers who fled the headquarters. The Valkyrie residence has enough rooms to amodate all of them and more so there is no problem on that end. Sadly the same can''t be said about the humans which numbered a lot more. Keeping them under control was proving to be quite difficult and if not for Zero Five being there on Sam''s orders the female soldiers would''ve had a much harder time sleeping. Not that they could anyway with how the world is right now.
After voicing her suggestion Alice had to wait for quite a while before she received a response. Sadly Miku had no intention on leaving Sam''s side after finally getting to meet him again, unless she received an order from the man himself, of course.
''''Miku, go get some rest.''''
The voice startled Alice who had been too focused on the young Valkyries this entire time. When he didn''t react to er arrival she tricked herself into believing that he has yet to notice her, however it seems that''s not true at all.
''''If you knew I was here then you should''ve said something.'''' Alice said, feeling a little embarrassed for some reason.
''''You didn''t say anything so I did the same.'''' Sam replied, pulling the VR headset up.
The two got into a brief staring contest before Sam admitted his defeat with a sigh and shifted his sight to the blond Valkyrie.
''''Miku?''''
''''... What about you, Doctor?'''' She asked.
''''I still have some work to do. I don''t think I''ll be sleeping anytime soon.'''' He answered.
''''Then-''''
''''Zero Three is supposed to be on guard duty today.'''' Sam interrupted her then sighed. ''''Don''t know what made her think she has permission to take a nap though.''''
''''... Doctor...''''
After receiving such a firm response Miku could only look cast her eyes down in a show of sadness. Seeing that pained Sam so even though Alice was watching he decided to try and lift the petite Valkyrie''s spirits.
''''Alright you can join the rotation tomorrow.'''' He said, scratching the back of his head in a show of annoyance. ''''You''ll get to spend the entire day by my side as my guard so go and get some rest for now, understand.''''
Hearing his suggestion, Miku''s expression brightened as her eyes began to sparkle. Alice shook her head with a disapproved look, but seeing how happy the Valkyrie was with his promise she couldn''t bring herself to object.
''''Alright then.'''' Alice said, taking a step in the door''s direction. ''''I will show you the way so let''s-''''
As she turned around the white hairedmander froze in her ce watching as the young blond Valkyrie threw herself onto Sam was equally as surprised.
''''Doctor, I love you!'''' She said with a big smile before leaning in for a kiss, and though she was aiming for his mouth Sam quickly moved just in time and somehow managed to make itnd on his cheek instead.
''''Miku!''''
''''Ah! We aren''t supposed to do it with other people around, right?''''
As if the situation wasn''t bad already Miku somehow managed to make it worse. Once again Sam found himself too scared to check Alice''s reaction but did so anyway. Her face was blue as she looked his way with a shocked expression that changed into disgust in a matter of a second. He braced himself for the outburst that was about toe but when nothing happened after a short while he opened his eyes just to see her smiling at him.
''She''s pissed!!!'' Sam understood that very well the moment he saw that expression.
''''Commander! Please forget everything that happened just now!'''' Sadly the one who put his in that whole mess didn''t seem to understand the severity of the situation as she innocently tried cover up her mistake.
''''Hm? Forget everything that happened here?'''' Alice spoke, the dangerous smile on her face still there. ''''That might be a great idea.''''
Miku who''s oblivious to Alice''s true feelings weed her response with a smile. Sam on the other hand knew very well how screwed he was right now.
''''Alright! We have disrupted Doctor for far too long. Let''s leave him to his work for now.''''
''''Understood.'''' Miku said with a nod before walking over to Alice, turning around and smiling at Sam one more time. ''''Good night, Doctor.''''
''''Y-yeah, g-good night...''''
Sam couldn''t help butugh nervously as the two left theb. Alice was giving him deathly looks till the very end and now that he''s left alone he couldn''t help but try and think of a way to save himself. Knowing his efforts were futile he heaved a long sigh and prepared to put on the VR headset hoping his white haired lover wouldn''t bother him if she sees him work, but before he could he noticed the other person in the room looking his way with half closed eyes.
''''You two sure are close, huh?'''' Three asked. ''''Did you know each other from before you started working here?''''
At first Sam didn''t know how to answer her question but after a couple of seconds he shook his head and smiled.
''''No. We only met the other day when the general visited our base.''''
''''Hmm... that surely didn''t look like it.'''' Turning her gaze away from him, the young Valkyrie then added. ''''You know, Five Won''t be so happy when she hears that you are recing her tomorrow.''''
''''Yeah, I can see that already.''''
Though they end up stuck doing nothing while guarding him, Nine and Zero Five seemed to enjoy staying by his side for the entire day, especially theter. Nine on the other hand would always try to find the slightest opening in order to push him into doing lewd acts with her and she has bee getting really good at it with each attempt.
''''I don''t really understand.'''' As she spoke, Three hopped off the bed and stood up. ''''Nine, Five and now this one. Why are they all so obsessed with you?''''
''''Well...''''
Sam struggled to answer, having noticed the slight blush on her cheeks. The young Valkyrie turned to face him, however when their eyes met she quickly averted hers, the red color slowly spreading across her face. After a long moment of silence she finally seemed to gather her courage.
''''If... If being your personal Valkyrie means following only your orders, doesn''t that make me one already?''''
Chapter 118 Close Your Eyes.
''''Finally...'''' Alice said as she let out a long sigh. Her shoulders slumping despite her attempt to keep her posture straight.
She had spent most of the afternoon helping the fifteen Valkyries that had arrived along with the refugees from the headquarters settle in. It sounded like a simple task at first but by the end of it she was leftpletely exhausted.
It should''ve been a job for Sam as the Valkyrie supervisor, however as things are right now she didn''t want him to have unnecessary distractions. He was one of the few people still working on a way to survive this war so it was better if someone else took care. Well, that''s what she told herself at the very least.
''''He''s going to do all of them, isn''t he?'''' She murmured to herself, stopping at the top of the stairs and looking back at the bedrooms the Valkyries were in.
She let out a long sigh feeling that it was only a matter of time. Sam''s libido is far too strong it''s a miracle that he went an entire year without having sex at all. She waned to trust that he would keep himself under control, however that would be impossible. After all no one could stop him even if they wanted.
Her mind began to conjure a strange scene. A specious room she had never been in before, a dim purple light cast onrge bed ced at it''s center. Several naked female figuresying around covered in sweat and other bodily fluids. Among them were some that still looked awake surrounding a familiar man. It appeared as if they werepeting to feel his touch, however he only had two hands he used to pull one of them in each, only one mouth to make out with, and only one rod to insert into them.
As one of bounced on his pelvis, moaning with and ecstatic look on her face, and another kept his lips for herself, the renaming two kissed and licked his body while rubbing theirs against it. A few secondster the man seemed to finish inside the one riding him. It seemed like they were done some time, but the man turned around, pulled another girl and started pounding her from behind.
Alice''s face flushed red at the strange fantasy she was having. She recognized all of the females as they were the Valkyries they currently have on the base, and the man was obviously her lover Sam. The worst part about it was that the ones still doing things to him were all young Valkyries that looked underage. It should''ve been a disgusting thing to imagine, however the white haired beauty felt her heart beating faster at the thought as she found it strangely arousing.
''''What''s wrong with me...?''''
Feeling a great deal of shame, she heaved a tired sigh and left the Valkyries'' residence heading straight to her room hoping to forget about the weird fantasy after a getting some rest. Though that was a big mistake on her part.
''''... haaa... she''s finally gone.''''
Despite being worried about Sam doing something inappropriate to the young Valkyries she failed to check on him before she leftpletely forgetting that he was alone with the one who''s most definitely his next target. But even if she did she wouldn''t have found anything in theb as the two of them had moved to the Valkyrie''s room while she was busy doing her work.
Putting down the tablet he used to check the security cameras, Sam turned around and faced the brown haired Valkyrie.
~[]~
''''If... If being your personal Valkyrie means following only your orders, doesn''t that make me one already?''''
As she spoke, Zero Three ced a hand on her chest as she tried to keep a serious expression. Sadly that was a futile effort with how red her face had gotten, and the more time passes as Sam stared at her in surprise the more embarrassed she got making her want to run away.
''''... I see...'''' Sam said after a long silence.
Seeing the smile that appeared on his face made the young Valkyrie rx a little, however uncertainty returned as she heard his next words.
''''Three, it might be true that you''ve always followed my orders, however that isn''t enough to make my personal Valkyrie.''''
''''... huh?...''''
Seeing her eyes go wide as she suddenly went pale, Sam felt that he had to exin what he meant before Three gets the wrong idea.
''''You see, Three, being a personal Valkyrie is something special.'''' He said, putting the VR headset and gloves aside before getting up from his seat.
''''Something... special?'''' The young Valkyrie repeated sounding a bit confused.
''''That''s right. When you be one you first have to prioritize my safety and orders, but that''s not where it ends.'''' Sam moved in slow steps as he spoke, stopping in front of her before continuing his exnation. ''''As my personal Valkyrie you would also have to y the role of my female partner.''''
Looking up at him, Three suddenly remembered the time she saw him and the white haired do THAT. She immediately understood that he was referring to things of that nature, which led her to conclude that by ying the role of his female partner he meant that she would have to do with him the things he usually does with a human female he likes.
Having realized that Three felt her embarrassment grow, however at the same time she felt a great deal of excitement for some reason.
''A kiss is one of the ways a man shows his affection for a female he likes.''
As she recalled the way he described that act, the strange feeling in her chest became more and more intense. If she epted his offer and became his personal Valkyrie he might start doing things like that to her, things to show his affection toward her, and just thinking about it made her happy beyond words.
Seeing how the look in her eyes changed Sam became sure that he had the OK to go. Reaching out with his right hand he patted her head then ran his fingers between her long silky brown hair.
''''How about we go to your room?'''' He said, carefully observing her reaction. ''''I can teach you a few things as a start.''''
~[ ]~
Sam sat down on the bed and sighed once more. With Alice being in the building he couldn''t rx at all especially with what he was about to do, they even had to sneak around to avoid getting caught, but now that she left they had nothing to worry about.
''Well, I will still be in trouble once she learns of this...'' he thought to himself before shifting his attention to the Valkyrie standing a small distance away.
Three was clearly nervous. She was fidgeting uncontrobly as she kept stealing nces in his direction, her cheeks painted with a red color. The way she acted was extremely adorable causing Sam to smile despite himself as he watched her.
''''Three, over here.'''' Sam said, patting hisp as he motioned for her toe sit on it.
The young Valkyrie froze for a second without knowing why. Though she realized she had nothing to be afraid of it still took her some time before she made her way to the bed and a little more before she took her seat.
Once she was on hisp Sam felt that her body was slightly trembling. He already understood that she was scared; it was only natural for her to be afraid in this kind of situation, with everything she''s about to experience being her first without much prior knowledge on the topic.
Wanting her to feel safe as soon as possible, Sam lifted his right hand and ced it on her shoulder. Before she could react to his touch he pulled her toward him pressing her slender body against his.
Zero Three looked up reflexively, her surprise only growing when she noticed how close her face was to his. The next moment her blushing intensified and she quickly looked away.
''''Seriously, Three is just way too cute.'''' Sam said, a smile ying on his lips.
He began moving his hand slowly caressing her shoulder. Soon enough her body began to rx as she felt the familiar warmth of his embrace and she allowed her head to rest against him letting her fears seep away.
''''A few months ago I would''ve never imagined that we would get to this point.'''' Sam said. ''''You were pretty rude toward me back then, remember?''''
He let out a shortugh expecting her to get a little embarrassed, however the way she reacted surprised him.
''''Um... sorry... I...''''
Three kept her head down, unable to look up at him as the red color spread to her ears. Seeing the uncharacteristic shyness on her told Sam that he no longer had to so he moved his left hand and gently lifted her head by the chin.
''''Three, close your eyes.''''
Staring at him in silence for a few seconds, the young Valkyrie did as he said. Not waiting for the second thoughts toe, Sam immediately leaned in and stole Zero Three''s lips.
Chapter 119 Does This Mean...
Though She had rxed a little, Zero Three''s whole body went stiff the moment Sam''s lips touched hers.
He kept it short, of course. Knowing it was her first, he wanted to be careful not to overwhelm her right away so he stepped backed and observed her reaction.
Three seemed to be a little shocked. She slowly raised her right hand a touched her thin cherry lips, a few secondster her eyes began to sparkle as her aura changed quite a bit.
Noticing that Sam was watching her with a smile the young Valkyrie blushed once more. Not saying a word Sam went in and took another kiss, this timesting far longer than the first.
''Does this mean¡ that he likes me¡?'' Three Thought as the strange feeling in her chest continued to grow.
She had never seen herself doing something like this for all the time she had been around, especially not with the man they referred to by Doctor.
Ever since the day they first met, that man had been nothing more than a source of annoyance to her. He always looked angry and tired and never seemed that pleased when dealing with her and her fellow Valkyries.
Something changed at some point and he started showing some care toward them. Now they have be close enough to be doing something like this and three began to feel that this is what she wanted from him all along.
"Doctor¡"
Twisting her body a little she ced a hand on his chest and leaned against him, moving in for another kiss without noticing she was doing it.
As they make out, Sam couldn''t help but think of how cute she was. It didn''t take long for her to ovee her embarrassment and was now showing how she truly felt about him causing him to experience quite a bit of happiness.
He slowly caressed her back, his other hand on her slender legs. In terms of size Three wasn''t that smaller than Shizuru, however her t chest made her seem much younger, though it contributed greatly to her overwhelming cuteness.
Separating their mouths to take a short break, the young Valkyrie took a deep breath then let it out in a sweet exhale. She then looked up at Sam and though their faces were closer than before, with their bodies glued to each other, she didn''t avert her gaze continuing to look into his eyes as if in a daze.
"Doctor¡ we have kissed so many times¡" she said.
"We sure did." Sam replied, brushing her long brown hair with a smile.
"Does this mean¡ does this mean that you like me, Doctor?" As she asked that question, the young Valkyrie cast her eyes down. "I haven''t been nice to you, even when you''ve been taking care of us. And yet you¡"
"Hmm¡ well, I''ve always thought that Three is really cute." Sam said. "But I didn''t like it when you were so rude to me."
"Is¡ that so¡"
"But that has changed." He quickly added, prompting her to look up again. "You are my personal Valkyrie now. Of course I like you."
Three remained silent, taking a few seconds to process what she had just heard. Pursing her lips, she hardened her resolve and suppressed her embarrassment before asking.
"Then¡ can we kiss again?"
Not waiting a single second, Sam moved in and granted her request. He didn''t expect her to actually voice it herself, but the face she made as she did was so lovable he felt his heart skip a beat.
He felt her body twitch a little, it was then when he noticed that his left hand had sneaked its way under her skirt. Without separating their mouths he grabbed her arm and turned her body around.
Three noticed something stiff pressing against her bottom, however it slipped her mind the next instant as she felt Sam''s hand touch the soft bump on her chest.
"Ah!" She gasped unintentionally separating from his mouth.
That didn''tst long as Sam kissed her again, but as he continued to touch her in strange ces she couldn''t help but wriggle trying to escape his hold.
A strange feeling was filling her body, growing only stronger when Sam slipped his left hand into the gap between her thighs. rm bells began to ring inside her head but in the end she couldn''t do anything.
Using his middle and ring finger, Sam gently rubbed her secret spot which was already quite moist. He could tell that she was wearing her one piece swimsuit underneath instead of the battle suit, and that made it easier to feel her chest as he massaged it with his other hand, surprised by it''s softness despite how t it usually looked.
With her lips sealed, Zero Three''s body suddenly went stiff as she climaxed for the first time. She didn''t understand what was going on with her, only that Sam had somehow managed to release the heat which had been gathering under her belly by rubbing her crotch.
Being touch in that ce felt really wierd at first, but for some reason she soon found herself enjoying it wanting to experience the sudden rush of pleasure once more.
Her body rxed after a few seconds and Sam let go of her lips. A peculiar warmth spread across her body as she puffed heated breaths, realizing a momentter the mess that happened between her legs panicking as she thought she had just peed herself.
With shame reigniting her embarrassment Three turned to look at Sam afraid to see how he would react. She didn''t know what to expect, but one thing for sure is that she didn''t see him kissing her.
"Three¡" looking her in the eyes, Sam spoke in a serious tone. "Take your clothes off."
~?~
Completely speechless, Three stood in her ce watching as Sam began to strip. Putting aside hisb coat the man noticed that she has yet to move so he turned to face her with a slight frown.
"Is something wrong, Three?" Sam asked. Obviously he already had an idea on why she''s hesitating, however he thought that she would be fine since she already came once.
"Uh¡ um¡ I¡" the young Valkyrie stuttered, not knowing how she should go about telling him how she feels.
"Could it be¡ are you too embarrassed to do it?" Sam spoke in a teasing tone. "This isn''t the first time I see you without clothes, right?"
"Well¡ it''s¡ different¡" Three said, twiddling her fingers awkwardly. "Can''t we¡ can''t we keep them on?"
She didn''t understand why but letting him see her naked body sounded too much for her right now.
"Well, we can." Sam replied. "But we will end up removing them at some point anyway so¡"
Seeing that she was still hesitating, Sam went back to stripping himself hoping that it would make her feel less embarrassed about it. It had the opposite effect though as she ended up watching him all the way until he was in nothing but his underwear.
Her eyes were wide as she took in the sight of his body. His skin was pale from all the time he spends inside, and though he barely exercised in a long while his muscles were quite toned without a single bit of fat in sight.
It was her first time seeing the body of an adult male with her own eyes so she was quite surprised by how different it looked from those of Valkyries, which are supposed to be made after human females.
"Want some help?"
Hearing him ask her that question the young Valkyrie snapped back to reality, her face going red once more. Though she was reluctant to do it she began removing her uniform and soon enough she was down to her swimsuit.
Seeing that he was still watching her silently she began removing it as well revealing a series of tan lines that followed its distinct shape.
Once she had nothing on it became very difficult for her to look him in the eye, and as her mind became a mess from embarrassment, fear and excitement she noticed his feet as he suddenly appeared in front of her.
Seeing his hand move Three stiffened a little. He brushed a few strands aside and slowly caressed her left cheek. He then ced a hand under her chin and made her raise her head.
"You look so beautiful, Three." Sam said as he leaned in for a kiss.
Three still didn''t understand what''s going on but her body moved on its own, getting on her tip toes as she tried to meet him, their bodies touching in several ces as they exchanged another kiss. Three immediately understood how different it felt without the thin fabric separating them, but her mind was soon brought down to the strange bulge covered by his underwear.
She was going to ask him about it when the kiss ended, but before she could Sam picked her in princess carry then ced her down on bed. Her curiosity was satisfied soon though as he took his boxers off and revealed to her what could be the biggest difference between them.
Chapter 120 No Wonder.
"W-w-what is that!!?" Three squealed all of a sudden.
Taken by surprize, Sam froze for a moment as he climbed onto the bed.
"Hm? You mean¡" looking dumbfounded, Sam''s eyes slowly went down to his fully erect penis. "Right¡ this your first time seeing one, huh?"
Valkyries knew nothing about basic biology. They didn''t need to, at least not until it was time for them to serve their purpose as artificial wombs. It''s only natural for her to be surprised by the sight of something like that.
"This is the male mating organ." Sam said, leaning over the young Valkyrie so their faces would be closer. "Three, do you know where human babiese from?"
"Human¡ babies?" Three muttered, looking rather confused.
"When a man and a woman who really like each other decide to spend the night alone, they sometimes do something that might result in a child being born."
As he spoke, Sam gently patted Three''s head. The young Valkyrie listened carefully, and after a couple of seconds her face went red as she finally understood where this is all was going.
"W-wait! Don''t tell me¡" looking at him with a nervous smile, Three asked to confirm. "Are we going to¡"
"That''s right." Sam replied instantly.
"Eh!? B-b-but¡ I''m not a human! How am I¡. Hyaahn!!!"
Noticing how restless she was getting, Sam slid his right hand down her slender figure, stopping at her belly and starting to stroke it slowly in a circr motion.
"Valkyries are made after human females, remember?" Sam said softly. "Don''t worry. This will be just a practice run to get you used to the act. We aren''t really going to make a baby this time."
"I¡ see¡" Three replied, her eyes locked on the hand crawling down to her honey pot.
Sam took her lips, this time not hesitating to use his tongue. Feeling her mouth being invaded like that was quite the surprise for the young Valkyrie, however with how weak she felt at that moment she had no choice but to submit herself to him and try to enjoy what he''s doing to her.
Though they had reproductive organs much like those of a human female, in the end Valkyries are still unable to get pregnant on their own. In order for them to bear a human child they first have to get an egg imnted into them after which it gets inseminated, either naturally or artificially.
Unless an egg is imnted there is no fear of a Valkyrie getting pregnant, which means it''spletely fine to have unprotected sex with them as much as he wants without having to worry about the consequences.
Seeing how soaked she had be and unable to wait any longer, Sam let go of Zero Three''s lips and began preparing himself.
"Doctor¡" Three called, her hazy, barely open eyes following him as he positioned himself between her legs.
She showed little resistance when he split her legs apart, but when he ced his tool at her entrance she felt a sudden spark run up her back.
"Ah!" She gasped, her hazy mind clearing up a bit.
"Three, this might hurt a little¡"
Sam''s rod spread Three''s slit open, slowly pushing it''s way inside. Feeling the stiffness invading her body the young Valkyrie squeezed her eyes shut fighting against the pain, however in the end it proved too much for her, opening them wide as she let her voice out.
"Nghh¡ah¡aaaahhhhhhhhh!!!"
She had fought countless Cmities before and sustained numerous injuries, however this is the first time she had felt this kind of pain. She lifted her head to check its source and was immediately shocked by what she saw.
"D-doctot! Wha-"
Before she could say another word, Sam went in and sealed her lips, waiting until the initial shock ended.
"Don''t worry, Three. It only hurts at first." He said, kissing the corners of her eyes to wipe the tears that began to flow.
Though he was trying to stay calm, Sam was struggling himself feeling his member getting crushed down there. No matter how many times he does it the tightness of a Valkyrie''s vagina never ceases to amaze him.
Maybe it''s because she looks much younger than the other two but he felt that Zero Three was a little tighter. He fought the urge to start pumping his hips and waited for her to calm down. It was her first time after all, he wanted her to remember it as a pleasant experience.
"How are you feeling, Three?" "Doc¡ Doctor''s¡ thing¡ your thing is¡ it''s inside me¡"
As he looked down at her, Sam couldn''t help but swallow feeling the sweat beading his forehead. That loud, strong and energetic Zero Three was now under him, her face flushed as she panted, looking up at him with hazy eyes.
''Not good¡'' he thought, reaching out with both hands and grabbing her thin waist. ''I can''t resist anymore!''
Holding her in ce, Sam slowly pulled his meat pir out.
"Ah!... wai¡ aahhn!!!"
Once only the tip was left inside he began pushing, watching carefully as the girl clutched the white sheet making an expression he thought was the cutest so far.
"Three¡ does it¡ still hurt?" He asked when he reached her deepest part once more.
The young Valkyrie didn''t answered, her quick,bored breaths continuing for a while as she struggled toprehend what was happening to her.
Unable to wait for her answer, Sam pulled back then pushed in again. He tried his best to keep a slow pace, however with each thrust his patience depleted and soon enough he no longer stopped after going all the way inside.
"Hyahh!... ahh!... hahh¡ ahh~?¡ahh!!... hahh~?"
Pleasure forced his body to move as his rod slid back and forth inside Three''s slippery, tight and warm love tunnel. The young Valkyrie cried and moaned, the pain she had felt before having transformed into a pleasant sensation that her body kept asking for.
The faster he moved the stronger the sensation became, however it seemed like she had reached her limit as the heat at the bottom of her stomach moved toward the exit.
"D-doc¡tahh~?!! Ahh¡ ahh~?! Ahhn¡ hahh¡. nHaahh~?!!"
Seeing her hold both hands up at him, Sam leaned in thinking she was asking for a kiss. Three wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly. Realizing what that meant Sam began thrusting his hips with everything he got causing the young Valkyrie to feel even more pleasure as they came at the same time.
"AHAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH~???!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Three''s mind went numb as her senses flooded with the strange feeling that spread to every part of her body. She felt herself getting gradually filled with a hot liquid that seemed to be pouring from Sam''s member directly inside her and that only served to add to the strong sensation.
As the rush of climaxing began to fade, Three''s body rxed releasing her hold on Sam and allowing him to move. Separating from her for a moment, their eyes met as both of them panted for air and without saying a word they closed their eyes and kissed.
~?~
"So, how was it, Three?" Sam asked.
A few minutes have passed already. Though he was still rearing to go Sam decided to allow the young Valkyrie to rest for a while. He helped clean the mess he had made thenid down on his back pulling her toward him and cing her head on his chest.
"Amazing!" Three eximed a few minutester, lifting herself up and turning to look at him with sparkling eyes and flushed cheeks. "At first it was so painful, but then it started to feel really good! And then at the end¡"
"I''m d you''ve enjoyed it." Sam said, gently patting her head.
Once she had her first time Three seemed to ovee her embarrassment of being so close to him even though they were still naked under the nket. The new experience filled her with excitement and the smile she shed him was unlike anything she had showed before telling him of how happy she was right now.
"You do this with Nine and Five all the time, right?" She asked. "No wonder they agreed to be your personal Valkyries!"
"Well, that might be true." Sam said. "Now that you''ve done it, do you understand what it means to be one?"
Faced with that question, Zero Three looked up at the ceiling taking her time to think of a way to answer.
When she seemed to be ready to respond she looked back at him. The shyness from before returned as she sat down on her knees.
"I think¡ I think I understand now¡ yeah¡" She kept twiddling her fingers for a few seconds, fidgeting restlessly as she tried to find the courage to speak. "Being with Doctor I always felt safe. I was really happy whenever you held me, and I think it''s the same for everyone else."
Listening to her words carefully, Sam slowly lifted himself and sat down as well.
"I never knew it before but¡ just now I learned that being close to you can make me so happy, even more than being able to swim freely all day." Raising her head and looking into his eyes, Three smiled at him, her chest overflowing with the emotion she felt before. "Doctor, I think I really, really like you!"
Staring at her for a moment, Sam closed his eyes and smiled. His reaction confused the young Valkyrie, however when he leaned in for a kiss she felt that there is nothing to worry about.
"Three, that''s called love." Sam said. "Do you want to be my Valkyrie now?"
Not hesitating for a moment, Three threw herself at him and joined their lips causing them both to lose bnce and fall.
"Doctor¡" opening his eyes, Sam was met with Three''s beaming face as she looked down at him. "I love you!"
Saying the three magic words, Zero Three went in and kissed him once more.
Though he hadn''t intended on their first time to be a long one, the two of them ended up going at it for the whole night.
Chapter 121 What Did I Do?
After changing posts with Nine, Five headed to the maintenance area to start her shift as the Doctor''s bodyguard.
On his orders she had spent the previous day guarding the female soldiers making sure no harm befall them. The Doctor had exined to her that some of the male soldiers might try to force females to have sex with them, which was one of the most despicable crimes a human canmit. He also gave her permission to use any amount of force to arrest the offenders and made it clear in front of the whole base that she has the authority to make an execution based on her own judgment.
It was a rather difficult task as she had to keep track of every soldier on the base, however thanks to her presence and Nine''s no one dared to attempt the crime and the female soldiers were able to spend their days peacefully with the only thing they have to worry about being the end of the world.
Yesterday they saw the arrival of arge number of refugeesing from the headquarters which had experienced an attack recently. If those from the forty sixth base still had some hope of surviving, the new arrivals were ready to give. A few of them saw the Nephilim up close and somehow barely made it. ording to them the Valkyrie like Cmities werepletely disinterested in humans, only reacting when they were attacked and erasing anything thrown at them along with their surroundings.
Only one day left till the the final assault they mentioned in their deration. Today is supposed to be the day the Doctor announces their next move. He''s been working on something to help them fight back, however expecting results from him in such a short amount of time was too much. It''s true that he''s a brilliant scientist with intellect that could rival that of Odin, however even the creator of the Valkyries had failed to make something that could stand against the Nephilim.
''''Hm?''''
Arriving at theb, Zero Five was surprised to find out that no one was there. The Doctor had a tendency to work all night so she expected him to be there but it seems he has gonesomewhere before she arrived.
''''Three isn''t here too...''''
Usually the young Valkyrie would be asleep on the bed he had prepared so he could rest in theb. Five disapproved of such behavior believing that the young one was neglecting her duty as his guard, but the Doctor had said to not think too much about it since it''s the equivalent of them having sex with him when they''re on duty.
''''... It can''t be...''''
Normally Three would remain asleep until Fivees to switch ces with her, however she wasn''t there and neither. When it''s Nine or Five who''re on guard duty the Doctor would sometimes take a break to make love to them, however that''s only because they''re his personal Valkyries. The fact that the Doctor and Zero Three were missing would only mean one thing.
''''So you''ve finally made up your mind, Three...'''' Five said, her lips forming a thin smile.
Exiting theb she headed for their residence. If her guess is correct the Doctor would be in Three''s room and since they were probably doing it all night he would most likely take some time before getting up.
''''It''s a little frustrating though...'''' She thought marching down the hallway at a hurried pace.
Though she was happy that Zero Three has finally realized her feelings for the Doctor, the ponytailed Valkyrie felt a sense of unease knowing that there is another Valkyriepeting with her for his attention and love beside Nine. With that thought on her mind the door to the residence slid open revealing a scene she did not expect.
The usually quiet and empty living area was bustling with life as several unknown individuals were moving around. Some wereing out of the bath, others sat on the sofas while some headed for the dining area. One look was enough to tell that they were all Valkyries which caused Zero Five to freeze in her ce. It took her a few seconds to remember that quite a few were among the refugees from the Resistance headquarters and when she did the uneasiness she felt before became only stronger.
''''Oh! Hi there!''''
Noticing her presence, one of the Valkyries rxing on the Sofa''s got up and walked her way.
''''You must be Zero Five, right?'''' She said, smiling energetically. ''''I see they put your arm back. d to see you''re still around!''''
''''You''re...''''
Standing before her was a petite girl about Three''s size, clearly from the same generation as well considering her nonexistent chest. Her radiant crimson hair was tied into long twin-tails using light blue ribbons that matched the color of her eyes very well. The uniform she wore was different as well telling of how she didn''t belong to any of the bases but was a part of the headquarters'' forces.
''''Don''t tell me you already forgot?'''' Said the red twin-tails. ''''It''s B3! We''ve fought that powerful Cmity with the giants together, remember?''''
Searching her memory for a moment, Five recalled the reinforcements they got during the fight against Torso.
''''From the forty fifth...'''' Five said, her eyes going wide.
''''That''s right!'''' B3 eximed. ''''Though the base was relocated since we lost all of our Valkyries beside me. I was ced into the HQ forced but then I saw that crazy monster that almost killed all of us and decided to escape here.''''
''''I... see...''''
Though she had heard about the Nephilim that participated in the attack, Five was unaware that one of them was the same one that took her arm. Though it has already been reced she couldn''t help touching it to make sure. Just like Zero Three those who had faced the purple haired Nephilim were left with a trauma that''s impossible to cure, which meant that the restraints ced on emotions such as fear have been broken as well.
''''Hey, I heard that your Doctor is working on something to help us survive this war, is that true?'''' B3 asked in a whisper, holding up a had to cover her mouth a if that would prevent the others from hearing them. ''''The one called Nine made it sound like he already has it all figured out, however I find it difficult to believe...''''
''''Of course he has it all figured out.''''
Out of nowhere, a third Valkyrie joined the conversation. She was another young model just like Three, with long blond air much like Nine''s and a cold expression that showed no emotion, just like Five. It almost felt like she''s a fusion between the three and Five couldn''t help but think that her presence was dangerous.
''''Oh! Miku! Since when were you listening!?'''' B3 jumped aside startled by the blond one''s sudden appearance.
''''Since I heard you mention doctor.'''' Miku replied, her eyes locked on the ponytailed Valkyrie.
''''Ooooh! Right. You''re familiar with him as well...'''' recalling what happened right upon their arrival, the red twin-tails understood why she would be interested when the Doctor is brought up. ''''But... what makes you so sure that he''s going to seed? You were always in the HQ, right? You couldn''t have known him for long...''''
''''I''m Doctor''s personal Valkyrie.'''' Miku said inly. ''''If I''m incapable of believing in him then I don''t deserve being with him.''''
The moment she heard that Five lowered her eyes into a sharp re. Sensing the change in the air B3 looked between the two then quietly stepped away from them.
''''I don''t remember Doctor having a personal Valkyrie beside me and Nine.'''' Five said, her voiceing out much colder than before. ''''Who said you could go around calling yourself one when you''ve barely been here for a day?''''
''''He made me one himself.'''' Miku replied, standing her ground despite the imposing presence of the much more mature looking Valkyrie. ''''We have even kissed thest time I was here.''''
''''Is that so?'''' Said Five, crossing her arms under her enormous bosom. ''''If a kiss is all it takes then I''ve been his personal Valkyrie for quite a long while. I would say doctor and I have been a lot more intimate as ofte.''''
Faced with the soft looking giant marshmallows the petite blond Valkyrie felt an overwhelming defeat. She finally realized that the Doctor must''ve been doing ''it'' with the Valkyries under him, which is only natural since they had more time to spend with him, however it was still quite a shock to learn that she wasn''t as close to him as she had believed.
''''Um... no fighting, please...''''
Once again another Valkyrie joined the conversation. When she turned to check who it was Miku''s eyes went wide as the first thing she saw was a pair of breasts muchrger than that of the ponytailed Valkyrie, who was staring at it in shock as well.
''''We have to be polite toward the ones who took us in.''''
The one speaking was a Valkyrie much taller than the rest of them going beyond the two meter point. The pale pink hair flowing behind her reached all the way to the floor, but her most striking feature were the giant melons attached to her chest, which were as big as Nine''s if not bigger.
''''Ichigo...'''' with tears gathering in her eyes, Miku suddenly turned around and took off. ''''You traitor!!!''''
''''Eh!?'''' Blinking repeatedly, the tall Valkyrie watched as the blond one ran up to the second floor. ''''What did I do!!?''''
Chapter 122 Good Morning.
Hearing the annoying sound of his rm Sam reached for its source and turned it off. He felt that he has yet to get enough sleep, which was something he had gotten used to these days, but when he saw it was nine o''clock in the morning he couldn''t help but sigh in defeat.
As his mind booted up he noticed that he waspletely naked so he lifted and found a surprising sight. Zero Three was there, naked as well, snuggled close to him as she slept peacefully. He began to recall what happened the previous night and couldn''t help but smile. The young Valkyrie made so may cute expressions as they went at it that the image he previously had of her shattered entirely. Now he was looking foreword to the next time and he he hoped she was feeling the same.
''''Three. It''s time to get up.'''' He said, gently patting her head.
The young Valkyrie tightened her hold on him, squeezing her eyes shut. A couple of secondster she seemed to wake up as she let go of him and slowly lifted herself up. She rubbed her eyes a few times then looked around the room then at herself. Finally her eyes went back to him and in the next moment she flushed red as the events of the previous night came back to her.
Not knowing why she felt a strong need to cover herself so she grabbed the nket and wrapped it around her body. Sam watched her with a bemused smile then ced a had over her head to calm her down.
''''Good morning.'''' He said, slowly brushing her messy brown hair. ''''How are you feeling?''''
Remaining silent for a while, Zero Three turned to nce at him with a blushing face before greeting him in a low shy voice.
''''... g-good morning...''''
Though she was excited after experiencing her first time, as the night went on the young Valkyrie found herself overwhelmed from all the love making. She felt weak under the man''s touch and with her feelings for for him she couldn''t help but let him do what he wants, however now that she got to rest and her mind cleared up she realized that everything that happened was way too embarrassing. Despite that for some reason she didn''t seem to regret any of it.
Sam didn''t need her to tell him how she felt; her bashful gaze said all there is to know. He leaned in and kissed her on the forehead then got up left the bed.
''''Today is going to be a busy one.'''' He said, pulling up his pants.
''''Um... oh! right...'''' as she recalled what will be happening tomorrow Three felt a little down.
Today might be thest peaceful day humanity might get in the future. Since there have been no Cmity attacks after the assault on the headquarters the logical conclusion was that the enemy was still going ahead with the date they decided in their deration.
''''So... in the end we still have to fight...'''' she said, eyes cast down.
''''Well, even if we escape now they''ll eventually catch up to us.'''' Putting his shoes on and grabbing hisb coat, Sam sat down on the bedside and reassured the young Valkyrie. ''''Don''t worry. This time it will be different.'''' He said before taking her lips.
As he got up to leave, Zero Three felt an incredible sense of confidence watching his back. He said not to worry and just like that all of her fears were gone. When the door closed behind him she quickly threw the nket aside and started preparing herself. Today might be thest free one so has to make the most out of it.
~[ ]~
Yawning as he walked down the hallway of the second floor, Sam came to a stop as he felt something bump into him. He looked down to find a young girl, clearly a Valkyrie, with her face buried in a book. She clearly wasn''t paying much attention to him.
''''Sorry about that.'''' Sam said with a smile. ''''I wasn''t paying attention.''''
Though she was doing the same, her cuteness gave her a pass. Sam was surprised by her at first but then he remembered that the refugees from the headquarters had brought with them quite a few Valkyries.
This one was a young one much like Zero Three, with straight long hair the color of a starless night and eye red like blood. Her features looked strangely Asian which reminded him of Shizuru, though it pained him to think of his beloved girlfriend as inferior to her. Their rtionship might''ve been doomed the moment he gained ess to the Valkyries.
''Well, everything will work out once I turn her into a Valkyrie.'' He thought.
''''You stink.''''
The two words shattered Sam''s thoughts. He was waiting for the her to apologize for not paying attention to where she was going, but the Japanese doll looking Valkyrie only said that as she stared at him with her red eyes.
A few secondster she bowed her head a little saying ''''if you''ll excuse me'''' before going on her way, walking with her face in the book as if the incident from just now didn''t happen.
Sam decided to not let it bother him and went on his was as well, however he found himself freezing once more when he reached the stairs.
The usually empty living area was full of life, which wouldn''t have been a problem if not for all the eyes that turned in his direction at the same time.
''''Good morning, Doctor.''''
The first to speak was Zero Five who was standing at the bottom of the stairs saluting to him. He didn''t understand why she was acting professionally all of a sudden, but when he saw all of the others following after her lead he understood.
Five was showing him respect so the neers would understand the position he held, and though they still looked a bit confused her attempt was a sess.
''''Good morning, Zero Five.'''' Sam said while descending the stairs. ''''I see that our guests have already settled in.''''
''''Yes. While it''s still a new environment for them, they all understand their role and are currently on standby waiting for orders.'''' She said, turning to look over the others.
''''Doctor!''''
Hearing the cheerful voice Sam turned around to find Miku walking toward him, her blue eyes sparkling with a red taint o her cheeks. Seeing the imposing gaze of Five she came to a stop, but determined to not let it defeat her she stood straight and saluted toward him.
''''Good morning, Doctor. I''m ready to fulfill my role as your guard for the day!''''
Hearing that Five''s eyebrow twitched once, which was barely noticeable, but Sam caught it in the corner of his eye and immediately understood the severity of the situation.
''''Good.'''' He said, trying to remain calm as he thought of a quick solution. Thankfully his ns for the day gave him the perfect excuse so he didn''t have to think that long. ''''We will be going out today so we will need another one.''''
Nine would''ve jumped at the opportunity but she''s busy guarding the female soldiers right now. Three was an option, but taking her would upset the order of things as she would be spending two days with his in a row. Thest thing he needed would be jealous super powered beings fighting over the time they spend with him.
''Whoa...''
Thinking that his only choice is to pick one from the roster in front of him, Sam looked over the gathered Valkyries. As expected they were all gorgeous women, however the one to catch his eyes was a tall one with a chest asrge as that of Nine.
He was about to make his choice when a hand rose up from between the crowd.
''''I volunteer!''''
Another young model stepped forward, and though he was upset for a moment, Sam''s mood changer when his eyes recognized the red twin-tails.
''''B3?''''
''''Oh! You already know me!'''' She replied, looking mildly surprise. ''''There goes my chance to introduce myself.''''
''''You spent some time with us after the battle against Torso, remember?'''' Sam said.
''''Really? Ah! That''s right! You were wearing that yellow suit the whole time so I didn''t get to see your face!''''
The twin-tailed Valkyrie had to stop by for examination and repairs after that disastrous battle. Though he got to see her face and how she looked, B3 didn''t get to the same as he was wearing a hazmat suit the entire time.
''''I didn''t know you''ve been transferred to the headquarters.'''' Sam said noting the uniform she wore.
''''Yeah, a lot of things changed since then.'''' B3 replied.
Having decided on who to bring along Sam was about to put an end to the conversation, but at that moment the main door opened and a familiar face came inside. Though it wasn''t the worst case scenario Sam still grimaced when their eyes met, hers going wide with shock.
''''So it''s true.'''' Elina said as she walked over, her expression that of amusement instead of anger or disappointment. ''''You really are sleeping with the Valkyries!''''
''''Keep your voice down, and spare me yourments.'''' Sam said with a sigh. ''''What brings you here anyway?''''
''''Well we have yet to examine any of the ones that came with us yesterday.'''' said the female scientist, adjusting her sses with a smile. ''''I asked themander to let me borrow your Eir for some time.''''
''''I see...'''' Sam nodded in understanding. Now that the headquarters are gone he didn''t have to worry about erasing his tracks so there was no problem in letting someone else use the device.
''''So? Who was it?'''' Elina asked, leaning in with a mischievous smile on her face. ''''Was it one from this base? Or did you go for a new one? Don''t tell me you went for the younger ones! Your beloved childhood friend won''t like that, you know.''''
Tired of her restless probing, Sam turned his back to the female scientist and went on his way.
''''Wait! At least tell me when you''re about to do it next time!''''
Coming to a stop, Sam turned around to look at her in disgust.
''''Oh c''mon! If you aren''t going to give me a chance then at least let me watch!''''
Deciding to ignore thatst remark, Sam exited the residence with the three Valkyries he had chosen following closely behind.
Chapter 123 Whats Wrong?
''''Hey! I see you''ve copied my style!'''' B3 eximed with a smile when she spotted Miku.
''''No, this is how I usually do my hair when I go out on missions.'''' The blond one replied.
B3''s reaction was understandable, since twin-tails were something of a trademark of hers. Instead of ribbons Miku used ck hair-clips to tie hers, ones that went very well with her ckbat suit and contrasted the brightness of her hair.
''''Still, I feel like my whole identity has been stolen.''''
B3 wore a simrbat suit with a shade of crimson thatplimented her red hair.
''''Is Doctor still not here?'''' Miku asked, ignoring herpanion''s exaggerated sigh.
The two were on the runway having went on their separate way to get their equipment, which had yet to be unloaded from the ship they arrived in. That left the Doctor alone with the Valkyrie called Zero Five, something Miku didn''t like the sound of.
''''Well, I''m sure he''ll need some time to prepare himself as well.'''' B3mented with a shrug. ''''He probably had to take a bath considering how bad he smelled earlier.''''
Just then something seemed to click in Miku''s mind as she came to a realization. The Doctor wasing down from the second floor of the Valkyrie residence were the bedrooms were. His tired eyes said he didn''t get much sleep, then there are his disheveled clothed and hair and to top it off there was the weird smell.
As she fell to her knees, Miku wondered why she hadn''t noticed it beforehand.
''''He was doing it with someone the whole night.'''' She muttered, resting on all fours as her head hung down.
''''Hey, what''s wrong?'''' B3 asked having noticed her strange behavior.
Going through her memories one more time Miku tried to figure out who it is that got to enjoy the deed with her beloved Doctor. Currently there are eighteen Valkyries in the forty sixth base including her. She had seen sixteen of them that morning leaving only one suspect, the brown haired Zero Three, the one who had been guarding him the previous day.
''''She... she wasn''t even his personal Valkyrie!!!''''
As she felt an incredible sense of defeat, a shadow appeared looming over her body. Looking up she saw that it was the ponytailed one called Zero Five.
''''Are you talking about Three?'''' Five asked, looking down at the blond one crawling on the ground. She was done changing into herbat gear as well, though unlike the other two hers seemed emphasize her feminine curves making her figure look all the more erotic.
Miku stared at her for a while before lifting herself up, patting the dust off her hands and knees.
''''I have a question.'''' though she said that, Miku wasn''t waiting for permission. ''''You and the other two Valkyries from this base take turns guarding Doctor, right?''''
''''So?'''' Five replied, her voice dry andcking emotions.
''''Does that mean at the end of the day the one on duty gets to have sex with him?''''
Hearing that question, Five''s eyelids were suddenly lowered into a very sharp re that caused the two young Valkyries to feel a sudden chill. B3 who has no knowledge of the deed or what it means to be a personal Valkyrie could only look back and forth between the other two with a fearful smile wishing the Doctor would hurry up ande.
''''That''s right.'''' After a brief moment of silence Five let out a sigh and confirmed Miku''s spection. ''''It depends on what Doctor wants, but usually the one on guard duty gets to spend the night alone with him.''''
Though she put it like that, the truth is that it hasn''t been that long since they started that routine. There are no set rules for who gets to sleep with him, it was only a silent agreement between her and Nine, but now that Three has joined them and the number of Valkyries increased it became clear that there is a need for a more proper discussion to avoid potential trouble in the future.
''''H-hold on...'''' B3 spoke, smiling nervously as she tried to keep up with the conversation. ''''If the one on guard duty gets to spend the night with him, and there are three of us here, does that me-''''
Before she could finish her sentence, the red twin-tails felt the cold stares of her fellow Valkyries, knowing instinctively that she should keep her silence.
''''Heeey! Is something wrong!?''''
As if he arrived just in time to save her, Doctor''s voice drew their attention as he called from a short distance away. He was standing in front of an aircraft waving at them as a number of drones loaded it with a number of boxes.
''''I had a guess but...'''' Five said as she gave Sam a worried look. ''''Do you really n on going out today, Doctor?''''
''''Yeah. There is something I need to test.'''' Sam answered. ''''We can''t really risk doing it here as it might impact the base.''''
Though the three understood that it wasn''t just a simple trip, hearing him mention the potential danger put the Valkyries on edge, especially after seeing the way he dressed.
Sam was d in a special hazmat suit that was more of a power armor than anything else, designed to withstand a decent amount of radiations. However nothing could prepare him enough for the ce they were going to, and with the threat of Cmities looming in the distance letting a normal human wander outside was asking for his early death.
''''Doctor, while I haveplete trust in your abilities, I have to say you''re putting yourself in unnecessary danger.'''' Miku spoke, the way she looked at him showing how worried she is. ''''You can always perform such experiments remotely and with us being present I''m sure there is no need for you to go there yourself.''''
''''No.'''' Sam replied, shaking his head slowly. ''''If this experiment seeds, we might finally have a chance against the Nephilim.'''' Turning to look at the anxious Zero Five he put on a confident smile and add ''''I might finally unveil Odin''s biggest secret. There is no way I''m not going to witness it with my own eyes.''''
~[ ]~
The aircraft took off with the three Valkyries surrounding it keeping an open eye for any potential Cmities that might show up. After a couple of hours of peaceful flight their destination finally came in sight.
The battlefield where the fight against Torso took ce.
The area was a wastnd with the earth still scorched ck despite months having passed. It seemed their enemies had no interest in reiming that patch ofnd or the mountains that had been erased during the battle, which is why they had yet to cover it in the same red paint that has be synonymous with their territories.
Though they had spent quite a bit of effort cleansing it from the radiations, humanity didn''t have much of a use for thend as well. At least not until their position in the war is no longer so hopeless.
For Sam it was the optimal location to perform his experiment. It was far enough from the base that he didn''t have to worry about messing up, and close enough for him to retreat in time in case an enemy showed up.
''''Doctor, I... don''t really know about this...'''' Five said as she looked down on her gear.
Once they arrived at the location and began setting the equipment, the ponytailed Valkyrie was surprised to see her own second armor being taken out of one of the boxed, although it seemed a little different from what she remembers.
The Doctor made her wear it then went around performing some final checks. She didn''t really understand why but being at the center of it all was rather ufortable. After a long eerie silence as he concentrated on what he was doing, Sam finally seemed to be done as he stood up and began exining what they were doing.
''''I have attached a modified Valkyrie heart to this armor.'''' He said. ''''Though I have performed several virtual simtion already, I''m afraid the only way to see if it''ll achieve the intended results is by trying it in reality.''''
Though the VR headset allowed him to simte physics to a realistic degree, its capabilities are limited by how far human knowledge has went so far. Considering what they were about to try right now it only makes sense for human technology to be unable to simte it.
''''I... see...'''' nodding once, Five made a show of taking a deep breath as she tried to calm herself.
''''Um... is there really a need to send one of us just to perform an experiment?'''' The one asking the question was B3 who looked like a nervous student as she raised her hand.
''''I need the data so I can better adjust it for the next experiment.'''' Sam replied, tapping on the tablet in his hand using a pen. ''''Though since we don''t have much time I''m afraid our next attempt will be during the battle.''''
Chapter 124 Form 01.
''''Alright.'''' Sam said, turning to the two young Valkyries. ''''Get over here.''''
Once everything was ready, Zero Five prepared to take off. She waited for Sam to give her the go, but before he does there was one more precaution he had to take.
He opened arge box he had the drones ce over a tform he previously built. Inside it was a fist sized sphere made out of several ovepping rings with multiple cords connected to it in several ces.
''''Hm? What''s this?'''' B3 asked, blinking a few times as she peeked into the box.
''''That''s the heart of a Valkyrie.'''' Sam replied, his eyes on the tablet in his hand.
''''Eh? This thing?''''
''''Yeah. Though with a few tweaks here and there.''''
Just as he finished that sentence, the small sphere began to glow with a green light as the rings on the inside slowly spun in different directions. As the Valkyries watched in amusement a shell of green light enveloped the heart for a moment before expanding explosively growing to a size that surrounded the entire tform.
''''And that''s the force field.'''' Sam said looking at the transparent barely visible green dome. ''''With this we wouldn''t have to worry about misfiring.''''
''''Heeeeeh...'''' B3 let out a whistle as she looked around as well, but then she froze before turning to Sam with wide eyes. ''''How are you making it do this!!?''''
''''That''s were the little tweakse in.'''' He replied, keeping his eyes on the tablet
''''Then tweak mine too!!'''' with sparkling eyes the red twin-tails inched closer to Sam. ''''We have one of those things inside us, right? Can you make it so our force fieldse out as spheres as well?''''
Stopping his hands, Sam nced in the Valkyrie''s direction then let out a sigh.
''''It''s easier said than done.''''
B3''s enthusiasm died instantly when she saw the tired, a little annoyed face he made before answering her. Feeling a hand on her shoulder she turned around and met Miku''s chilling cold stare as an invisible threatening aura enveloped her.
''''Stop bothering Doctor.'''' She said in an emotionless tone.
''''Yes...'''' B3 replied, on the verge of tears.
Seeing their short interaction helped lighten Sam''s mood. With the corners of his mouth slightly upturned he shifted his focus to Zero Five and looked her in the eyes.
''''Five, make sure to be ready to activate your own force field to its full extent.'''' He said, his expression bing serious. ''''I''ve made it so that the heart can be ejected remotely, but if that doesn''t work out you''ll have to remove the armor and get as far away from it as possible.''''
''''... Understood.''''
Though she seemed a bit nervous, Five nodded once then lowered the her helmet to cover her face. Igniting her propellers she crouched down a little before taking off into the sky, several ck box like drones following after her.
Once she was about half a mile away she came to a stop. One after the other the drones took their ces, each revealing a number of high quality recording equipment, from cameras to sound and motion censors among other things.
[Doctor, is this really far enough?]
''''Yes, that will do.'''' Sam said, checking the footage from the drones as well as how far he could see using his telescope.
''''Doctor, there is no point in wearing that suit if you aren''t going to cover your head.'''' Miku warned feeling a little anxious for some reason.
''''Not now.''''
Using the pen in his hand to tap the surface of the tablet a few times, Sam shifted his sight in Five''s direction then spoke.
''''Five, I''m leaving the switch to you.'''' He said. ''''Start by activating the second heart.''''
Listening to his instructions, Five focused on the small holographic windows appearing on the inside of her helmet. From the one dubbed ''''Second Heart'''' she selected ''''Activate'''' causing it to disappear getting reced by a wider window listing a number of options. At the same time all around her small green orbs began to appear floating in a circle at about a meter and a half distance from her.
[D-Doctor! Is this supposed to happen!!?] Five said, a little panicked.
''''Yes, everything going as expected so far.'''' Sam said with a nod, looking at a copy of the same window on his tablet. ''''The orbs themselves are created by the force field of the second heart. We are going to try and mold them into the symbols used by the Nephilim to see if we can replicate their powers.''''
? For a couple of seconds the only thing that could be heard was the strong wind blowing through the scorched fields. As if they misheard what he said, the three Valkyries whipped their heads in his direction trying to confirm.
''''Calm down, we still don''t even know if it''s possible.'''' Sam replied, feeling the pressure of their gazes, even Five who was looking at him through a screen.
[Doctor, where did thise from?] She asked, suddenly feeling even more tense than before.
''''Well, like I said, we''re just giving it a try.'''' letting out a sigh he considered his next words very carefully, wondering if telling them is really the right thing to do. ''''Someone I know theorized that Valkyries are somehow rted to the Nephilim.''''
''''I... think I see why they would think that...'''' B3mented, smiling wryly.
''''Appearance aside, it has more to do with what they im was stolen from them.'''' He paused for a moment and breathed in. ''''Though we have no evidence we suspect that Odin is the thief they''re after. As for what he stole it''s most likely a necessaryponent in the creation of Valkyries, or the Nephilim.''''
''''... I''m starting to regret volunteering for this mission.'''' said B3. ''''All of this is just way beyond me.''''
''''Doctor, if we really are rted to them, howe we are far weaker inparison?'''' Miku asked, her expressionless mask having been reced by a look of genuine concern.
''''That I don''t know.'''' Sating that, Sam extended his hand and patted the petite blond Valkyrie. ''''All we can do is try and make you as strong as them. That''s the only way we can hope to survive.''''
Miku''s question was one Sam had thought about many times since he heard Shizuru''s theory. Why didn''t Odin make the Valkyries as powerful as the Nephilim? There are many possible answers, however none of that matters. What they needed to know at the moment is if the it''s possible to upgrade the Valkyries so the can fight on the same ground as their enemies.
''''Five. You should be seeing a menu in front of you.'''' Sam said. ''''Once you''ve selected one of the entries, the orbs around you should split and change shape. After that it''s all unknown territory.''''
Though he managed to create the symbols in virtual reality, whatever effects they might''ve had couldn''t be simted due to theck of data. All he could do was replicate their shape as urately as possible, record the results then hope things would be different when they try them in reality.
''''Understood.'''' Closing her eyes, Five took a deep breath then gave the menu in front of her another look.
The entries were named ''''Form'''' and numbered from 01 to 05. Focusing on the first one she made another window appear on which one sentence, ''''Would you like to execute Form 01'''', along with YES and NO options.
ncing at the window disying Sam''s face, Five brought her focus back to the options and selected yes. The moment she did the windows disappeared clearing her field of vision allowing her to watch what was happening in front of her.
The green orbs began spinning around her body in a clockwise motion. As their speed increased, their neon color began to fade reced by an intense yellow light that was visible even from where Sam and the others stood.
As they continued their circr movements, the orbs suddenly copsed into small specs of light that gathered in front of Zero Five creating a golden ring.
''''Shit! It''s spinning way too fast!!!''''
Sam felt that something was off and turned to the footage captured by the drones slowing it down just to find that the symbols had already formed but were spinning way too fast for the human eye to keep up with.
It was an anomaly he dide across while doing the simtions, and though the whole point of this experiment was to see what might happen, Sam felt a strong urge to pull the plug. Sadly he was a second toote.
Inside the golden ring air moved in a spiral toward the center, the scene beyond it bending as if the world itself was being distorted into a a single point.
[Doc-]
Five''s voice faded as a strong light enveloped the world.
A massive beam of golden light so massive shot out sending a devastating shock-wave throughout thend melting everything in its path as it headed for the horizon.
By the time the second heart was turned off Sam was looking at a blood red sky in the distance as a second sun rose in the west.
"What in the world..." at the forty sixth resistance base, Alice looked outside the window as she noticed the strange light. Behind her was Shizuru, standing from her seat to get a look as well.
"Doctor!" Nine turned in the direction of the explosion, several female soldiers clinging to her for protection.
The rest of the Valkyries moved swiftly preparing themselves for battle as the soldiers quickly ran for shelter.
Somewhere in the north American continent, the Nephilim queen watched with eyes wide open. The second sun slowly faded and so did the light it emitted. Clicking her tongue, the blue skinned queen got up from her obsidian throne.
"To think they would be the ones to strike first." She said, gritting her teeth as rage slowly overtook her judgment. "SPREAD THE WORD! TODAY WE PUT AN END TO THOSE FILTHY HUMANS!!!"
Chapter 125 Stray Shot.
When he opened his eyes the first thing Sam saw was his legs dangling in the air as the scenery below him kept changing.
''''... Miku...''''
Twisting his neck to see what''s behind, he realized that the blond Valkyrie was the one carrying him as she flew at top speed, her expression serving as a reminder of how grave the situation was.
''''What''s going on!!!?''''
B3 was right beside them asking that question as frightened tears flowed from her sapphire eyes. In her hands she held the box containing the Valkyrie heart creating the force field around them.
Thanks to their quick thinking and immediate response, the two young Valkyries fled the area the moment they sensed something was off, making sure that keeping him safe was their top priority.
''''Where is... Five...?''''
Having cked out for a couple of seconds Sam was struggling to get his thoughts in order. The first thing he wanted to know was whether the ponytailed Valkyrie had survived the explosion or not. A momentter he began to panic as well, but thankfully a voice came from his earphones putting his heart at ease.
[D-Doctor!! That''s not what was supposed to happen, was it?]
Letting out a sigh of relief, Sam took a moment to regain his calm before replying.
''''How are yo doing, Five?''''
[I''m perfectly unharmed.] She replied, her voice carrying a hint of surprise. [Though a wave of radiations is starting to spread in the area so I will be retreating as well.]
''''Yes. We will be returning to the base now. Once you get there make sure to get a full examination.''''
[Understood.]
Now that he was sure of Five''s safety it was time for him to put his mind into thinking about what went wrong. It didn''t take him long to understand what caused that phenomena, however he failed toprehend how it could happen.
''That golden ring, it was the same as the one used by the purple giants Torso created...'' Sam thought. ''But that one was the fifth form, I purposefully left it forst since I knew what kind of effect it has...''
He wanted to order the Valkyries tond so he could check but decided otherwise. It would be for the best if they returned to the base first to avoid any potential dangers.
''Shit... What''s going on!!!''
~[ ]~
With Miku flying at top speed the three managed to reach the base in less than an hour, though going in proved to be quite difficult with the defensive barrier being up. A number of Valkyries were already out surrounding the base as they prepared for battle.
Sam had to send in a message exining that there is no enemy attack, only then did they open the gates and allow him in.
After going through a thorough cleansing he came out to find the white hairedmander waiting for him, her brows bent into a deep frown as she stared at him with crossed arms. Shizuru was there as well giving him a concerned look while clenching a hand to her chest.
''''Before you ask, I don''t know.'''' Sam said before starting in the direction of hisb.
''''Then who does!?'''' Alice yelled, but hepletely ignored her.
Once he was in his familiar seat Sam was finally able to rx. Elina was there as well, however when she saw the angrymander and the worried girlfriend she just retreated into one of the corners and kept her mouth shut.
''''Something went wrong with the experiment.'''' after a long silence Sam finally spoke, but then he went silent again before turning to Alice with wide eyes. ''''Actually, all things considered, it was an unexpected sess. Turning to the additionalputers on his right he began typing on the keyboard and a few secondster several videos began ying showing the footage captured by the drones before that gigantic beam was fired.
''''Whoa...''''
The one gawking in disbelief was Elina who was leaning close to the multiple screens, the scientist inside hering out when she heard the word experiment being mentioned.
''''How in the world...'''' she began, gazing at Sam with eyes wide open.
Sam turned to his Asian girlfriend and stared at her for a moment. Shizuru, feeling confused, blinked a few times before tilting her head a little.
''''I think what you said about the Valkyries and Nephilim being rted in true.'''' Sam said.
''''Really?''''
''''Yeah. If we needed any confirmation then this would be it.''''
''''Hold on.'''' Elina spoke. ''''Aren''t these the strange runes that blue Nephilim had over her head?''''
She had taken the liberty to mess around with the video while the others spoke, slowing it down until the symbols in the golden ring became visible. Looking at the screen for a moment, Sam shook his head.
''''No, that''s the formation Torso had used that day.''''
He began typing again and a new window appeared. It was the menu disying the five forms he ned on trying that day. He opened the parameters of the first form staring at them for a few seconds before checking that of the fifth. Once he did he heaved a tired sigh and leaned on the back of his chair.
''''The parameters have been switched. What was I expecting?'''' He said, adding a short defeatedugh.
Not only were they switched, some of them have been altered as well, specifically the ones that determined the strength of the force field and the speed at which the symbols moved.
Though he was working on low juice the whole time Sam was sure he would never have made such an obvious mistake.
''I should''ve made another check...'' he thought.
Questions began to pour inside his mind. He already knew that someone is able to sneak into hisb without being noticed, however this wasn''t the same as a book being stolen. Whoever did it must at the very least know how to operate the equipment in theb, not only that but
''They knew the fifth formation would work...''
Suddenly the whole incident seemed a lot more sinister. The potential danger aside, whoever messed with the parameter knew very well what kind of effect the formation has. They had purposefully messed with the settings making it so that the first thing they try would be the yellow beam, ensuring that the results would far surpass the one Torso used.
If Five had been facing the wrong direction who could say what kind of disaster would''ve resulted.
''''Alice, do you have anything on where the beam had hit?'''' he asked, turning to his white haired lover.
''''About that...'''' Taking out her her phone, themander went through the emails she has been constantly receiving for thest hour. ''''ording to the third base, which took over operating the satellites after the headquarters fell...''''pausing for a moment, she squeezed her eyes shut and added. ''''You blew up a hole in south America.''''
''''... what?'''' Was the collective response of everyone in the room.
''''Check your inbox.'''' She said. ''''I didn''t believe it myself but...''''
When he opened his mail Sam found a link to the report Alice was referring to. The moment he opened it his heart almost stopped, his eyes locked on a single photo taken from earth''s atmosphere.
A faint red trail was drawn across the pacific ocean stretching from what was once south Africa to northern parts of south America were arge ck hole covered a big part of thend.
''''Haha...'''' Elina let out a nervous chuckle. ''''This makes our strongest warheads seem like firecrackers.''''
''''You''re telling me this is the result of a single explosion?'''' Shizuru spoke, a hand covering her mouth as she took in the sight.
''''To put it simply...''''Alice began, the corners of her mouth curving upwards as sweat beaded her pretty face. ''''You blew up most of Colombia and Venezu, and let''s not mention everything the beam passed over. The actual damage is still being calcted, but it''s clear if we don''t hurry up and clean it we will be looking at an entire decade of nuclear winter at the very least.''''
Right now word have been sent to all bases and human settlements to take shelter in preparation for the inevitable blowback. The waters surrounding the site of the explosion were already showing signs of contamination. Things were only going to get worse from there.
''''Hold on...'''' leaning so close to the screen that her nose almost touched its surface, Elina squinted her eyes at the ck hole for a couple of seconds. ''''Isn''t this where...''''
Just then a beeping sound came from Alice''s phone as she received a new email. Opening it, her pale face went even paler as she real through the contents.
''''They''re saying they spotted what is believed to be Jotnar''s remains near the edge of the ck hole...''''she said, her terrified eyes shifting toward the one behind this whole incident.
Hearing the name of one of the five Ragnarok heralds, the other three couldn''t help but stare at the white hairedmander.
Chapter 126 The Greatest Man Alive.
When the gigantic beam of yellow light hit the northern parts of the south American continent, there was no sound or explosions. The air in thousands of miles was suddenly sucked toward a single point followed by a silent detonation and a sh of light as a powerful heatwave spread over thend erasing everything in its way.
From afar it appeared as if a second sun was expanding, swallowing everything painting the world in the red color of death. The fire would continue on for weeks, but once the initial impact receded a ck hole was left visible even from the atmosphere. Scorchednd that once made up arge portion of two countries.
Though no human soul was lost in that disaster everything else suffered greatly. Among them were the hundreds of Cmities awaiting orders along a few newly dispatched Nephilim and one of their most powerful weapons, Jotnar.
The giant devil like creature tried to escape its fate but was inevitably swallowed by the light. Once it all came to an end a motionless carcass fell to the ground; a bull headed human that lost its lower half, mes clinging to what''s left of it as it reached out with one hand still trying to escape.
~[]~
As they stared at the blurry image of what can only be described as a devil trying to escape hell, Sam and the others couldn''t help but keep their mouths shut.
It was an ident, all of it. Even so they somehow ended up destroying one of the enemies that kept them living in fear for an entire decade.
The three women turned to look at the one responsible for it, however Sam was still gawking at the screen unable toprehend how it happened. Before anyone could say anything, Shizuru reached out with both hands and grabbed his face then without hesitation ced her lips on his.
As the other four stared at them in shock, the Asian girl backed away after a long kiss, her eyes tearing up as a big smile spread on her face.
''''You did it!'''' She said, confusing everyone even further. ''''You really did it, Sam!''''
Only when she said it did they all finally understand the significance of this event. Even if it was just an ident this marks another one of humanity''s biggest victories against the Cmities, the second one since J?rmungandr. This time, however, no sacrifices have been made. Not a single Valkyrie was lost in battle, and even though the negative effects will torment them for a long while, an achievement of this level was something worth being thrilled about.
Elina got up from her chair and started hopping around and tears started flowing from Alice''s eyes. Still in a state of disbelief, Sam stood up and embraced his girlfriends. As they cried tears of happiness in his arms the man turned his eyes to the screen.
''''To think you would actually do it.'''' Alice said trying topose herself. ''''When you said you''ll make something that surpasses the Valkyries I was skeptical, but now...''''
''''I never doubted him for a moment!'''' Shizuru said, proudly puffing her chest. ''''Well, I would be lying if I said I knew it''ll happen this soon.''''
When he dered that he would create a weapon that surpasses the Valkyries Sam had asked the everyone for time. Whether it''s those who believed him or those who didn''t, no one could''ve predicted that he would somehow make it in less than five days.
Sam himself was having difficulties believing what he did. The beam created by Torso''s purple giants was powerful, but not to the extent that it could destroy entire countries. Seeing how different it turned out when he tried to copy it meant that there are multiple factors affecting the oue of a formation beside the shape of the runes.
''''Hmph! I never doubted that Doctor would lead us to Victory.'''' The one speaking was Miku.
She had been standing at a distance along with B3 performing their duty as body guards, but now she was walking over toward Sam and the others her head held high with a big smile on her face. Her expression took a dramatic change as she came to a stop in front of Shizuru.
"Anyway!" Pointing a finger at the Asian girl, the petite blond Valkyrie spoke in a rather confrontational tone. "You, who do you think you are, getting close to Doctor like that?''''
''''Eh?'''' taken aback, blinked repeatedly and pointed at herself.
''''The only ones allowed to kiss Doctor are his lovers and personal Valkyries!'''' Miku went on, having already decided that she was an enemy. ''''Even if he''s so amazing that you fell for him right away, you can''t just do what you want!''''
For a moment everyone couldn''t help but stare at the young Valkyrie who, despite having witnessed one of humanity''s biggest victories, was more concerned by another woman kissing her beloved Doctor.
Realizing she was the target of jealousy Shizuru yed innocence, tilting her head a little as she delivered a devastating blow to the petite blond.
''''I''m his girlfriend though.'''' She deadpanned. ''''We have been lovers for quite a while.''''
Clearly not expecting that response, Miku took a step back looking at the female soldier with a pale face. First it was the one with the ponytail, then the tanned one with brown hair. One after the other they keep stealing the Doctor''s attention, and as if Valkyries weren''t enough now humans were trying to get his affection as well.
Spotting Sam in the corner of her eye Miku turned to him with tearful eyes.
''''Doctor! How many partners do you have!?'''' She asked, on the verge of crying. ''''You already have four personal Valkyries! What would you need humans for!!?''''
''''Uh-oh...'''' catching on pretty quickly Elina backed away and watched the show with a smile.
Alice, having already given up on forcing him to stay away from the Valkyries, could only sigh and shake her head in disappointment.
''''This really isn''t the time, Miku...'''' Sam sighed as well, holding a hand to his head feeling like it''s about to split.
''''Exactly!'''' Miku retorted. ''''You are always so busy you barely have any free time, and when you do, you always spend it with someone else!'''' Clenching her fists, the young Valkyrie decided to drop a devastating bomb, though she didn''t know it herself. ''''Even though I''ve been looking forward to being with you, you sent me away then spent the entire night doing it with that Zero Three!!!''''
A sudden chill enveloped theb. Feeling the danger, Sam''s eyes slowly moved in Shizuru''s direction.
"Oh my~?, I think my ears are ying tricks on me."
Elina backed away even more, taking ce beside B3 who looked equally as terrified. Feeling something was off Miku stopped crying. The moment she looked up a chill ran down her spine as she came face to face with Shizuru.
Though she had a smile on, it was clear that the Asian girl wasn''t happy. Though she knew she had no reason to fear a human, for some reason Miku felt that her life was in danger. She turned to Sam for help but was surprised to see himpletely white as his soul slowly left his body.
"Shizuru, I know this isn''t my ce to say this, but¡" though she didn''t seem the least bit happy about it, Alice decided to offer her assistance. "This matter is moreplicated than it seems. Considering our current situation, I think it would be wise to leave it until things be more stable."
A couple of seconds pass as everyone waited in silence. Heaving a long sigh, the terrifying aura surrounding Shizuru dissipated as she ced a hand on her cheek.
"Well, I knew this would happen eventually." She said, wearing a conflicted expression. "They knew him for as long as I did, it''s only natural that they would fall for him at some point." Turning to face her lover, she looked at him through half lid eyes, the corners of her thin lips pointing downward. "You sure are lucky today, huh, Sam? If you didn''t be the greatest man alive this would''ve gone in apletely different direction."
Feeling theck of anger in her voice, life returned to Sam. He met her eyes for a moment then lowered his head.
"I''ll make sure to apologize properlyter so¡"
"Then you better find a way to win this war." Saying those words, Shizuru turned to face Alice. "Since we now know the enemy isn''t just some mindless monsters, I''m afraid that they''ll take what happened as us firing the first bullet."
"... y-yes, most likely¡" The white haired beauty was speechless for a moment, however when she saw her friend''s serious expression she remembered that this wasn''t the time for games. "I doubt they will remain silent after what happened."
"Yes. We will need to exin the situation to the other soldiers, inform the other bases and prepare for the uing battle." Puting her hand up in a salute, Shizuru added with utmost seriousness. "Commander, as a part of the surveince division I would like to return to my post and resume my work."
"... understood¡"
ncing in Sam''s direction one more time, Alice closed her eyes and let out a sigh.
"We don''t have much time. Turn your new weapon into something usable before the enemy arrives."
"... yes ma''am¡" Sam replied, unable to lift his head up.
As Alice and Shizuru left theb, he couldn''t help but stare at their back. He was stunned for a couple of seconds until he heard Elina''s mocking voiceing from behind.
"Things aren''t looking good for you, huh?"
"Shut it."
Chapter 127 Reshaping Reality.
''''Reshaping the field force to recreate the symbols... I really don''t get how you arrived at such an idea...'''' Elina spoke as she stared at the bright screen.
''''My original intention was to make it so it can be reshaped into weapons.'''' Sam replied. ''''it was only recently that the idea urred to me.''''
''''And? What made you think it would seed?''''
'''' Shizuru.'''' he answered curtly, pausing for a moment. ''''It was her theory that what was stolen from the Nephilim has to do with with the creation of the Valkyries. I just gambled on the chance that their resemnce extended beyond just appearance.''''
''''So we really are rted to those things, Doctor...'''' Miku asked.
''''From the looks of it, yes. Though there is quite a lot we don''t know.''''
Returning his gaze to the screen, Sam noticed that the female scientist was giving him a side look coupled with a frown.
''''... What?'''' He asked.
''''Well, I was just wondering where you get the courage to be doing this after what happened.'''' Elina heaved a sigh feeling a mixture of emotions.
She was referring to the fact that the young blond Valkyrie was sitting on hisp at the moment, her arms wrapped around him as she rested her head on his chest. As he slowly stroked her long blond hair, a broad smile spread on Miku''s face, her eyes closed eyes and red cheeks speaking of how much she''s enjoying herself right now.
''''Spare me yourints, okay? I''m well aware that this isn''t the time.'''' Sam followed his reply with a sigh. Though he was acting as if it''s a bother, having a cute girl hug him like that calmed his soul and helped him ovee the stress of the current situation.
''''I''m just saying.'''' looking down at the Valkyrie on hisp, the female scientist raised her eyebrows and shook her head slowly. ''''You really do look like a sex offender right now.''''
For some reason after she was done cleaning herself from radiations Miku came out wearing the ck uniform given to the Valkyries outside the HQ instead of her own. Going by the size it''s clear that it belonged to Zero Three. There should be no harm in her borrowing one, the problem is that she looked like a young school girl in it which only made things worse considering the nature of his rtionship with her.
''''I think we have more pressing issues right now.'''' Sam replied.
''''If you say so, groomer.'''' Elina said, shrugging with a smirk. ''''But... when did you even get the time to do it? We didn''t have any contact with the Valkyries when you were in the HQ, right.''''
Sam kept staring at the female scientist with a nk expression. He wanted to tell her that it was all her fault that the petite Valkyrie got weird ideas about him in the first ce, all because she couldn''t shut her mouth about how good the sex she had with him was. However now really was not the time for chit chat.
''''Are you feeling better now, Miku?'''' He asked, looking down at the cute girl nuzzling up to him.
''''Yeah, much better.'''' Miku replied, releasing her hold on him.
Since the only reason he allowed this to happen was to make her feel a little better and ease the guilt he felt about neglecting her,Sam decided it was time to put an end to it and return to focusing on his job.
That said, even though she had stopped hugging him, the young Valkyrie didn''t get off hisp right away. Noticing the way she looked at him it was easy for Sam to guess what she wanted, though with Elina there he felt hesitant about granting her which.
After pondering over it for a few seconds, Sam decided it would be for the best to just do it since it''ll be quite a while before he gets the leeway to enjoy some time with her.
Brushing a few stray strands behind her ears, Sam leaned in and kissed the young Valkyrie on the lips. Elina watched them with wide eyed disbelief, but what she felt at that moment was more jealousy than disgust. B3 who was watching from a distance was in quite the shock as well, her eyes locked on Miku as she walked to her side with a satisfied smile.
''''Alright.'''' Sam said, clearing his throat before trying to resume his work.
Th female scientist kept staring at him for a few seconds beforeing back to her senses.
''''So... just to be clear...'''' she spoke, the movement of her fingers as she tapped on the keyboard gradually increasing in speed. ''''I''m not the only one who thinks this is magic, right?''''
''''Well, if it''s not then I don''t know what it is.'''' Sam replied.
The multiple monitors in front of them disyed a number of photos taken by the drones Sam had prepared to collect data. Staring at them didn''t help that mush, however looking at the numbers and readings they managed to collect wasn''t any better.
''''The main question is.'''' Pointing at the starting point of the yellow beam, Elina asked a very important question. ''''Where did all of that energye from?''''
Every scientist who had attempted to analyse the Cmities before had asked that very same question, however now that they had managed to recreate one of the enemy''s most powerful weapons it suddenly became even more confusing.
The energy consumed when creating the symbols was insignificant inparison to the st that followed. Thew of energy and mater conservation indicates that nothing can be created out of thin air, which means all of that energy has toe from somewhere.
''''I think I have a theory...'''' Sam said.
He manipted the keyboard, closing some of the windows and bringing up several new ones. After waiting for a minute several variations of the same photo appeared, each ran through a different spectrograph.
''''Just before the beam wasunched a major distortion in the surrounding maic field happened.'''' Sam said, holding his chin while leaning toward the screen which disyed a green rendering of the scene with strange lines moving toward the center of the symbols in a spiral like shape. ''''It onlysted for a fraction of a second, but in that time it seemed like there was a strong gravitational pull at the center of the ring.''''
''''That doesn''t answer anything, you know.'''' Said Elina, pointing at a series of numbers on another screen. ''''The amount of energy needed to generate such force isn''t by any means small. And we don''t know where it came from either.''''
''''No, we actually do know.'''' Sam said, ncing in her direction. ''''Elina, are you sure you haven''t seen such readings before?''''
Staring at him for a couple of seconds, the female scientist adjusted her sses and let out a sigh.
''''Sam, it''s physically impossible.'''' She said, pressing a few keys and summoning another photo. This time it appeared to be from after the beam ended. ''''Even if it was for a fraction of a second, the generated force should''ve torn her apart. Either the readings you''ve brought are wrong or you somehow created a hole in reality that only affects things in a single direction.''''
What Sam was arguing is that the golden ring had created a miniature ck hole, or a white one in this case since instead of things being sucked into it something came out instead. The readings captured before the beam wasunched where simr to the data obtained from particle colliders, but as the female scientist pointed out that doesn''t exin anything and only made things moreplicated.
Putting aside the question of whether that''s possible or not, what Elina failed toprehend is how it''s possible for the effects of something like that to be limited to one direction with everything behind the golden ring remaining untouched.
''''It''s not a hole in reality, it''s a door. Or a gate, whichever you want to call it.''''
When he put it like that it somehow exined why the released energy moved in one direction. It was difficult to understand how something like that is possible, but at the very least the concept was possible to visualize.
''''Still...''''whether it''s a hole or a gate, creating an opening in space-time wasn''t something that could be done just like that. The fat that it happened defies reality itself.
''''It''s like you said.'''' Leaning on the back of his seat, Sam said something anyone would find ridiculous. ''''Magic.''''
''''... What?'''' though she was the one who mentioned it before, hearing the worde from someone like him left the female scientist dumbstruck.
''''It''s obvious, Isn''t it?'''' Sam said confusing her even more. ''''The force field the Valkyries use is a phenomena we still don''t really understand. All we know is that it''s the result of manipting the four fundamental forces to create that particr effect, which can be said it''s a form of reshaping reality itself.''''
A thin barrier thatpletely separates what''s in front of it from what''s behind. It wasn''t some sort of matter or energy but a simple interaction, and by causing that interaction to happen in the particr conditions of his experiment it was possible to achieve a result that shouldn''t have been possible.
''''Elina, I think we''ve found a way to manipte reality.''''
Chapter 128 Wolf And Dragons.
''''... Manipte... reality?'''' Elina parroted, her eyes wide with shock.
''''Those symbols might be the code to our universe, and by lining them in a specific order we are able generate certain effect that shouldn''t be possible.'''' Sam said, pointing at the yellow beam in one of the photos. ''''Going by what we know so far, this ring somehow opens a door in space-time connecting to some unknown point in existence from which this massive amount of energy flooded into or world. We think of it as punching a hole in a reservoir. The other side must be so full with this energy that it tried to escape through the created door expanding into what seemed like empty space.''''
Though it sounded logical in his head, the female scientist found herself unable to follow what he was saying for a while now. Sam was talking about reality and space-time like it''s something that can be touched with human hands, and all he had to work with were the readings from a single experiment with results he never intended in the first ce.
She wanted to listen more and try to understand the phenomena with him, however Elina knew that she shouldn''t allow for this to go on for too long, having experienced what happens when that man bes obsessed with something.
''''Maybe we should stop trying to understand it for now.'''' She said, interrupting his passionate rambling. ''''The only thing we need to know right now is if it''s possible to replicate it, and whether we can use it to win the uing battle or not.''''
Staring at her for a few seconds, Sam frowned then shifted his sight to the screen.
''''If it''s just replicating it then that''s easy.'''' He said. ''''But I''m sure you don''t want us blowing a country each time we fire at an enemy.''''
He wanted to mention the theoretical damage that might result from bringing what''s essentially energy from another dimension into their world, but with them on the losing end of this war he couldn''t bother considering such things.
''''If we''re able to dial it down to Torso''s level then it would be usable.'''' Said Elina.
''''I... don''t know about that...'''' Sam said. ''''We have been too blindsided by the fact that we took down one of the Ragnarok Heralds. When looking at it objectively, this beam won''t do much against the Nephilim.''''
''''...oooh...''''
Their enemies were no longer giant abstract shapes who relied on raw power. Even in they manage to defeat the remaining heralds, it won''t really mean much in they''re unable to fight back against the smaller, faster and smarter Nephilim.
''''Since we now know that the symbols work we can make use of the other formations, but...''''
They don''t have the time to test it out and it would be illogical to ask the Valkyries to try and win using weapons they have never used before.
''''That''s not the only problem, is it?'''' Elina asked.
Remaining silent for a couple of seconds, Sam squeezed his eyes shut and revealed what might be their biggest obstacles.
''''We don''t have the materials.''''
The heart of a Valkyrie requires many rare materials in its creation. What they currently have on hand is enough for three new ones which clearly won''t be enough to win them the uing battle.
''''Somehow, it no longer feels like our odds have improved.''''
Feeling a overwhelming desire to just give up, Elina sat down on her chair and silently stared at the ceiling. It''s just as Sam had put it. Their victory over Jotnar had given them false hope, in the end they were still screwed, same as before.
As they wallowed in despair the door to theb opened and Zero Five came in.
''''I apologize for the dy.'''' She said, saluting toward Sam. ''''The cleansing process took far longer than anticipated.''''
''''Ah, good job out there.'''' Sam said with a voice void from any enthusiasm.
Sensing the heavy air in the room the ponytailed Valkyrie nced at Elina who was equally dispirited, then at Miku and B3 who were standing near the wall with neutral expressions. She she shifted her sight back to Sam after failing to understand what happened.
''''Um... Doctor, is something wrong?''''
Hearing her question, Sam turned to look in the Valkyrie''s direction. He stared it her for a few seconds before heaving a sigh.
''''Five,e here for a moment.'''' he said, extending his hand toward her.
She looked around the room one more time before taking in, and when she did Sam pulled pulled her over and made her sit on hisp.
Miku who was watching this from a distance wanted to cry out, her expression a mixture of frustration and surprise. Elina and B3 had their eyes wide open, following every move with great interest.
Feeling all those eyes on her, Zero Five''s face began to heat gradually. Sam didn''t let the others bother him and proceeded to make out with his personal Valkyrie. In a matter of seconds the gloomy air in theb cleared, the heat increasing as their kissing became more erotic.
Sam sneaked his hands from under Five''s arms and began rubbing her chest causing her to shiver from the stimtion. Seeing him y with the soft marshmallows made the female scientist grow hot and bothered, and just like the young blond Valkyrie she wished it was her there enjoying the warmth of his touch.
After keeping at it for a couple of minutes it seemed like Sam was finally satisfied as he let Five catch her breath. He turned his gaze to Elina who was blushing intensely as she looked at him, her legs rubbing together as she held her miniskirt down.
''''I have a way to get over the materials problem.'''' he said, watching as Zero Five rested her head on his shoulder while panting hot breaths.
It took a few seconds for Elina to realize the words were directed at her, and when she did her embarrassment grew several folds from the shame of putting her focus into what he was doing.
''''R-really?'''' She stuttered, fanning her hand in an attempt to cool down her increasing temperature.
''''Yeah.'''' Sam replied, slowly caressing Five''s shoulder. ''''But... it''s something I would''ve liked to avoid.''''
~[ ]~
The winds of a strong blizzard blew over the ruins of the once great city of Khabarovsk. After the appearance of the Cmities it was the destination of many refugees trying to escape the unknown threat, however with so many humans gathering in one ce it was only natural for it to be a prime target for the monstrosities trying to erase everyst one of them.
What was left of it had been covered by a nket of pure white. Under it a certain creature slept for years bidding its time waiting for new orders to arrive and that day a message from its queen finally arrived.
From under the thick snow a giant wolf like creature covered in ck fur slowly rose. It shook the ice off its body then sat down scratching behind its eats like the animals that shared its form. Opening its eyes and seeing the cloudy sky raining frozen water from above, Fenrir spread its enormous maws open and released an almighty howl. The next moment the sky cleared and the snow disappeared.
With the horizon finally visible from where it was, the Ragnarok Herald turned to its destination and began the long walk.
Over the peaks of mount Paektu another one of the Heralds prepared to answer the call of its queen, digging its gigantic serpentine body out of the zing waters and spreading its wings with a terrifying roar. Niddhog took off into the sky, its sharp eyes locked onto one destination where it''ll finally get the chance to wreck havoc once more.
Having felt the violent tremor an hour ago, Fafnir was awaiting itsmands. When the signal finally arrived it marched a few steps dragging its heavy tail through the dusty rubble of Washington DC before spread its ck wings and swallowing all light shining down from above casting a veil of darkness that followed it as it took to the air flying for the site of the next battle.
As she sat on her obsidian throne restlessly tapping her fingers on its armrest H clicked her tongue for the umpteenth time. Her eyes followed a number of glowing dots on a floating screen that showed the simple map of this little wretched world.
''''ck Thorn!'''' She called, unable to bear the frustration anymore. ''''Any word from Loki?''''
''''Not yet, I''m afraid.'''' Said the purple haired Nephilim as she knelt down.
''''We gave her more than enough time and she has yet to return!!?'''' The blue queen cursed, her expression twisting in anger. ''''If she really knew my sister''s location then what''s taking her so long!!?''''
''''Your majesty, may I ask something?''''
''''No! We can''t dy this anymore.'''' Ignoring her subordinate''s plea, the queen drew a circle in the air causing a series of runes to appear in front of her.
Chapter 129 Choice.
''''What...''''
In the surveince room, Alice watched in horror as three red dots moved on the map disyed on thergest screen. Their trajectory was clear showing that the forty sixth base is their target.
The rest of the division as well. Panic started to ensue as the three remaining Ragnarok Heralds headed their way, and as if that alone wasn''t bad enough, new Cmities started popping out one after the other heading in the same direction.
Seeing the sea of red dots closing in on the same point, it became clear that the final assault has began.
''''Send word to other bases!'''' Alice ordered in hermanding tone. ''''We took one of them down and will do the same with the rest! Buy us as much time as you can, humanity will prevail in this war!!!''''
The soldiers were awestruck by the confidence theirmander spoke with. They had just learned that their side had struck down one of the Heralds in one attack, and though they didn''t get the time to celebrate that victory, the fact that they had the power to do it gave them all the hope they needed.
The Doctor had made good on his word and made a weapon that leveled the ying field. If a few hours are all he needs to ensure that theye out on top then they would stop at nothing to secure them for him.
With the headquarters gone the third Resistance base took over coordinating between the all of the others. With this possibly being thest stand every avable Valkyrie was made to head straight toward the enemy with slowing them down as their goal.
Twenty nine were sent to face Fenrir, the great ck wolf whopletely wiped out the twenty forth and fifth bases. A total of forty Valkyries were delegated to Niddhog who led thergest armying from the east. The remaining sixty three were sent to intercept Fafnir, the obsidian dragon that brought down the United States in a single night.
The remaining eighteen were gathered in the living room of Valkyrie residence in the forty sixth base. They had been gathered by the base''s physician, Sam Sanderson, for what he deemed an important announcement.
Sitting on the couch at the center were the base''s designated Valkyries, Zero Three, Zero five and Nine. Just like the others they woreplicated expressions; a mix of fear, anger and determination, having epted the fact that this might be theirst battle.
''''I gathered you all to reveal something important and to ask for a favor.'''' Sam said, looking over the crowd of beautiful women.
Most of them were in tightbat suits that stimted his desire, but now was not the time to get aroused. He turned his sight to his personal Valkyries, specifically Zero Three, remembering the day she cried in his arms after having a terrifying dream.
''''Some of you might have noticed it already, but you are no longer the same Valkyries as before.'''' Sam took a deep breath, suddenly feeling a lot more pressure than before. ''''The fact that you ignored the order to defend the headquarters, instead prioritizing your own safety and survival, means that you lost something that made you the weapons we relied on in this war.''''
As if to confirm what he said, several Valkyries averted their gazes, their lips tightly pursed and their brows furrowed. They must''ve realized it as well, that they were no longer the same lifeless weapons as before.
''''But don''t be mistaken. That isn''t necessarily a bad thing.'''' Sam said, drawing their attention to him once again. ''''You thoughts are no longer restrained, neither are your feelings. That allows you to make your own decisions, your own choices. We created you to fight this war in our stead, you never had a say in that. But now you do, and I won''t me you if you make the decision to abandon this war.''''
Silence made its presence as Sam waited for someone to speak. It wasn''t an easy thing toprehend; their powers, stunning looks and eternal youth aside, there was no easy way to tell if Valkyries are any different from normal humans.
He didn''t need to perform a Turing test to know that much. His interactions with those three over the time he worked as their physician made it difficult to write them off as nothing but advanced AI, and when he started to get intimate with them, feeling their affection and the happiness that came from having them by his side, he had no choice but to admit to himself that they were the same as humans and that they deserved to be treated as such.
Sam might not be the most honest person out there, nor is he a good man by any means, however he has a strong conviction, and now that he has decided that the Valkyries deserve a choice had no intention on pressuring them into something they didn''t want.
''''Haaa... I kept my mouth shut and listened all the way but...'''' as the atmosphere in the room grew heavier, one of the Valkyries finally spoke. ''''What are you even talking about, old man?''''
Hearing the way she addressed him with, Five, Nine and Miku turned her way with re, only Three shrunk in her ce reminded of the way she used to behave toward him.
The Valkyrie met their gazes with a stern look. She seemed a little different from the rest. Valkyries in general had feminine looks and mannerism, however this one had a bit of a wild appearance, with short gray hair and sharp ruby eyes that enhanced the annoyed gaze she directed at Sam. Her height was average, neither as short as the young ones or tall like the mature ones, but what might be the strangest thing about her was how average the size of her chest was, making her seem out of ce when the others are either t like a board or packing some serious badonkers.
''''You say we can now make our own choices, and that we can choose not to fight.'''' Gritting her teeth, her brows inched closer as her anger grew. ''''But do we, really?''''
Sam remained silent, understanding what the pale Valkyrie was getting at.
''''The enemy ising for us all, whether it''s human or Valkyrie. And since your kind can''t do shit about them the ones who have to stop them are us.''''
She took a step forward, walking toward Sam as she spoke. The others moved aside making way for her, but his four personal Valkyries stood protectively in front of him silently warning her to stay away.
''''How about youe out and just say it?'''' Crossing her arms, she met Sam''s eyes and said what should''ve been obvious. ''''Either we go out and fight or do nothing and die. In the end there isn''t much of a choice for us, is there?''''
''''... Correct.'''' Sam admitted, refusing to avert his gaze.
''''Then stop pretending like we do!''''
''''Calm down, CS. The man does have a point.''''
A certain young Valkyrie stepped in to defuse the pale one''s anger. Though her braided hair made it a bit difficult to recognize at first, Sam remembered her the moment he saw her Asian features.
''''Nino. You''re siding with them now?'''' The pale one said.
''''I''m simply saying that he makes some sense.'''' The Japanese dole spoke in a voice that seemed to hide a lot of pain and doubt. ''''Before we had no say in whether we fight or not. We were nothing but tools for the humans to extend their sorry lives.'''' Shifting her gaze back to Sam, she continued. ''''However it will be different from now on. We will be fighting for our own sake from now on. For our own survival. Not because humans ordered us to, but because it''s what we have to do.''''
Silence took over once more as the Valkyries contemted the wordsing from one of their own.
''''Still... going out there just to get destroyed...'''' CS grumbled, her clenched fists trembling.
The others seemed to share her thoughts, only his personal Valkyries seemed to be determined to throw away their lives. Though she didn''t share the blind trust they had in that man, there was one Valkyrie that didn''t appear to be conflicted like the rest.
''''That might not necessarily be the case.'''' Nino said, her eyes still locked onto the Doctor. ''''Therge explosion from before. That wasn''t the Cmities doing, right?''''
Though many of them had noticed that the second sun was way too far for it to be an enemy attack, it never urred to the Valkyries that the one responsible for it was among them all along.
Motioning for his protective harem to stand down, Sam took w deep breath and looked over the crowd once more.
''''I have found a way that enables us to use the same powers as the Nephilim.''''
? Many of them had their eyes wide at those news, however they all realized that there is a catch to something like that.
''''It requires a modified heart for it to be possible, but sadly the materials we currently have aren''t enough to create a new one for each of you.'''' Pausing for a moment, Sam looked at his personal Valkyries one more time before saying the solution he came up with. ''''In order to increase the number our only choice would be to modify your own hearts. Though I''ve managed to make it work with a spare one, I have no guarantee that the same will be true for the ones inside of you.''''
Things would''ve been much simpler if the Valkyrie blue prints didn''t turn out to be fake. Since he had no idea on how their AI, their minds, work, Sam couldn''t possibly guess how it would react to an essential part of them being tempered with.
Even if there are no problems and the hearts proved to activate normally, the Valkyries would then have to learn how to create the symbols on their own, which would be a much moreplicated task than extending the force field to cover their weapons.
''''If... if you need someone to try it... then I volunteer to be the first.''''
The one to speak drawing everyone''s attention to her was Zero Three. Ignoring the others she stepped forward and looked Sam in the eyes, her golden irises brimming with determination.
''''I''m done being afraid.''''
Chapter 130 Was It Worth It?
''''The procedure will take two hours at the very least.'''' Sliding his index finger on the surface of his tablet, Sam looked up at the threerge ss containers that made up Eir. ''''Even if it''s a sess, everything will still depend on how you''ll make use of it. But I trust your abilities. I''m sure you three will lead us to victory.''''
On the other side of the ss wall, Nine, Zero Five and Zero Three nodded with solemn expressions. The three of them werepletely naked, but considering the context of what''s about to happen the scene didn''t look sexual in the least.
Sam had modified Eir so it could do more than just repair the damage Valkyries take. Instead of healing them, the device will open a hole in their chests, reveal their hearts and remove their outeryers. After that the nanomachines he designed wille in and rebuild the new part, ending the operation and closing the hole.
''''Doctor.'''' Zero Three spoke, drawing his eyes to her just as the containers closed. ''''Thank you.''''
The green liquid began to flow and the three entered a state of slumber. As he watched them in silence, Elina stepped to his side, her eyes observing them as well.
''''To think this day would evere.'''' She said, her voicecking the usual lighthearted tone.
Sam nced her way for a moment unsure as to what she was referring to.
''''The way you''re looking at them.'''' She shed him an honest but sad smile. ''''It''s the same look you used to give that childhood friend of yours. I always wished you would look the same way at me.''''
Though she yed it off as just something funny to remember, the female scientist was seriously heartbroken when he ended their rtionship just to follow after his crush. Even now she has yet to get over him, and seeing him surrounded by so many beautiful women only helped to make the pain worse.
''''Hey, was it worth it in the end?'''' She asked only to feel stupid about her question.
Of course it was worth it. He now has an entire harem sharing his affection, and even if that might make it easier for her to get with him, she knew there is nothing she could do topete and win him over.
Meeting her gaze for a moment, Sam let out a sigh and turned to the ss wall once again.
''''I never told you this, but...'''' pausing for a moment, he added in a tired tone. ''''I''m actually dating Alice as well.''''
For a moment the female scientist didn''t understand what he meant, but the next moment her sses cracked as it dawned on her.
''''Eh? Seriously?'''' She asked, her lips curving up for some unknown reason.
''''Yeah. One thing led to the other and we have been together for a while.''''
Sam gave the tablet in his hand a nce then started walking toward his desk. Still in shock, Elina followed him feeling her curiosity grow as her heart slowly crumbled.
''''But... what about your girlfriend? The Asian one?''''
''''She said she would allow it as long as it''s just the two of them.'''' Coming to a sudden stop, Sam leaned on the table as he remembered how bad the situation really was, and it wasn''t all the Nephilim''s fault. ''''She''s gonna kill me when all of this is over.''''
The worst part of it is that he had no intention on stopping. At the moment he had fifteen other Valkyries in hiss hand, anddy luck smiles at him he wouldn''t hesitate to make them his as well.
''''Well... I guess you have to make sure you save humanity, then.'''' Elinamented, giggling at his depressed state. ''''I doubt she would be angry at you after that.''''
''''Yeah, let''s make sure to survive.'''' Sitting down, Sam typed on his keyboard and opened a number of new files. ''''No matter what.''''
Elina was quick to notice the title and as she skimmed over what the screens disyed shepletely forgot about the topic they were discussing a moment ago.
''''Project... Asclepius?''''
~[ ]~
In the sky above the forty sixth base, the fifteen Valkyries stood at the ready guarding the base as the remaining three went through the Doctor''s procedure.
Saying they were on edge wasn''t enough to describe their current state. Though they had their second armor on, it provided them with no sense of safety at all. To make things worse since they escaped the HQ in a hurry they didn''t have the time to bring any ammo or spare energy cells with them making what they had at the moment everything that could be used.
[I so don''t want to do this...] one of them said.
[Shut it, Ichigo.] CS''s harsh voice rang through themunication channel. [None of us wants to be here.]
[This might be ourst battle, huh...] Nino said, sounding maybe a little bit too rxed.
[Then...] taking a deep breath, Miku slowly exhaled as her eyes surveyed the horizon. [We better make sure it''s our win.]
She was the only one who was using a weapon other than what she was used to. Though it was given to her by her beloved Doctor, the petite blond Valkyrie didn''t seem all too happy about receiving it. After all it was the proof of her position in the forth rank and that wasn''t something that she felt ready to ept.
[Yeah. I really want to learn more about that Doctor.] Nino said, pulling Miku out of her thoughts.
[Me too.] Said B3. [From what i have seen he isn''t anything like the other humans.]
[He sure has guts.] CS added, the smile she had on visible through her voice. [Unlike that bastard Odin who didn''t even show his face even when ordering us to fight.]
[He seemed to care about those three, don''t you think?] B3 spoke. [I would say it''s favoritism, but if it was that he wouldn''t have picked them first.]
The heart operation wasn''t something that has been attempted before and the danger was clear. Even so the three to get picked first were the ones closest to him.
[That''s because they''re his personal Valkyries.] Miku said, remembering what happened a few minutes ago.
The first one to volunteer for the experiment was Zero Three. Just like the HQ refugees she has been unable to fight after losing to one of the so called Nephilim, but despite that she jumped at the chance to improve herself wishing to go back and im victory in the next fight.
Though she was about to do the same, Miku hesitated for a single moment allowing Nine to beat her to it, then Zero Five. The two of them said that they have trust in the Doctor and that they were sure his experiment would be a sess. Listening to their words and seeing the way they looked at him, Miku felt those three had something shecked, and that only added to her frustration.
[You said you''re one yourself, didn''t you, Miku?] a new voice joined the chat.
[Nana...]
[Hey, what does it mean to be one?] Nino asked, her curiosity peaked. [Is it some special rank or position?]
Miku was a bit hesitant to answer fearing that it would make the others desire it as well, however she went and did it anyway, knowing that her feelings for him wouldn''t lose to anyone else.
[It''s... well, just like it says. A personal Valkyrie is a Valkyrie who answers to only one person no matter what his rank might be.]
[Is that so...] Nana replied. [So that''s why it was easy for you to defy the general''s orders.]
[Yes. Doctor ordered me to prioritize my own safety. That''s why.]
[Doesn''t make sense.] CS scoffed. [Shouldn''t rank matter the most? Why would you disobey your general in favor of a simple physician?]
[Well, because I love him, of course.]
The channel went silent for a few seconds after the heard those words.
[Umm... Miku, does that mean...] the first to speak was Ichigo, the rest were still stunned. [You prioritize him because you... like him?]
[
[That''s ridiculous...] CS added.
[It''s not!] Miku shot back. [By being his personal Valkyrie you get to be his female mate as well! You saw how devoted those three were, right? That''s probably because they were having sex with him all this time!]
[Female mate?]
[Sex?]
As they repeated the words, the Valkyries seemed to be quite confused even more so than when the blond one confessed her feelings. A few secondster Nino spoke again, apparently having understood everything.
[You be his female mate, huh.] she said. [Now that I think about it, there are no male Valkyries.]
[Hm? What would we need them for?] CS asked, her irritation growing.
[Most living beings have males and females. You need one of each to produce an offspring.] as everyone listened with great attention to the conversation, Nino revealed something that even Miku was unaware of. [What Miku is trying to say is that she wants to take the role of a female human and help the Doctor make human babies.]
Another moment of silence came and as they finally began to understand all of them cried in unison.
[Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeh!!?]
[Silence.]
Hearing Nana''s serious voice, the Valkyries put an end to their little conversation and switched to battle mode in an instant. They were still far away, but a number of cmities have started appearing in the east.
[Now I''m even more curious about this Doctor.] Nino said, preparing her log spear. [Let''s finish this quick so we can hear more about him.]
Chapter 131 Power And Cost.
Though the majority of Valkyries were out intercepting the Ragnarok Heralds and the hoards of Cmities they led, it was impossible to stop everyst one of them from advancing and despite the girl''s efforts some ended up slipping through the cracks.
The numbers weren''t in humanity''s favor. There was no end to the mindless drones of the Nephilim unleashed on their enemies, and though they only used the most basic forms of arts, that was enough to give anyone but their owners a very hard time.
[FIRE!!!]
Following Nana''s signal, seven of the Valkyries guarding the forty sixth base fired their cannons at the approaching swarm of cmities. A series of explosions shined in the distance, but even though the attack took down quite a few drones the rest flew right through the rain of fire as if it didn''t affect them in the least.
The ranged Valkyries continued firing without a care for aim. Once they passed a certain distance the Cmities started firing back. As the flurry of beams raced toward the base the rest of the Valkyries moved in to block the attack with their own hands.
The two sides continued to exchange fire, slowly moving toward each other all the while. Once only a few dozen meters were left between them, the Valkyries shielding the rear with their own bodies took out their weapons and engaged the enemy head on.
The speed at which they moved and the precision of their attacks were unlike anything they were used to. The same fear that froze their limbs was now pushing them into greater heights.
They maneuvered through the enemies using theirrge forms against them. While the monstrosities tried to recover from the friendly fire, the Valkyries swung and thrust their weapons destroying each of their cores in a single hit.
B3 went around using her metallic pirs to stun the enemies giving the back line enough time to snipe the enemy. Another one was doing the same, though instead of the lightning tendrils that sprouted out of the red twin-tails'' pirs hers sent a powerful shock-wave that cased the targets to shake violently until their outer carcass crumbled leaving thempletely open.
It was a tedious process thatsted for what might as well be an eternity, however after twenty minutes of continuous fighting and hundreds of Cmities destroyed the first wave finally ended and the Valkyries got a brief moment of rest.
[We didn''t have a battle this intense since eight years ago.] Nana spoke, her voice calm yet a bit tense at the same time.
[Eight years? You mean...]
[Nana is a first generation Valkyrie.] Miku said answering B3''s Question. [There are only a few of them left nowadays.]
[Ichigo is one as well.] Nana added. [Though I would say more special, being the first cleanser to be created.]
[It''s not that special at all.] A timid voice spoke. [The higher ups just avoided sending us to battle.]
Though they hadbat capabilities as well, up till recently cleansers were only ever deployed when the Resistance needed to remove the red paint from thends they reimed or if there were some serious nuclear contamination.
[So that makes Nana the most experienced among us.] Said CS with a shortugh. [And I thought I was a veteran.]
As they made their way back toward the base, new enemies began to appear from the northwest. Though it was frustrating that their break ended so soon they had no choice but to prepare for the next fight.
[This wave seems to be a lot smaller.] Nino observed.
[Good for us.] CSmented. [Let''s just hope they aren''t some elite ss or something.]
In the heat of battle none of the Valkyries bothered to evaluate the enemy, focusing on removing them before they could retaliate.
[Hey Miku!] B3 called. [Aren''t you going to use the new weapon Doctor gave you?]
[Not yet!] the petite blond one said. [He said to only use it when it''s extremely necessary!]
[Um, I don''t know what doctor meant by that but...] Ichigo''s trembling voice told the others all there is to know. [I think ''that'' is most likely it!]
Just then the sound of an orchestra reached their ears. In the distance, clusters of some purple materials began to form. Seeing them B3 immediately realized how bad things were.
[We can''t allow those things to bepleted!!!] she shouted. [They-]
Before she could finish exining, a thin beam of yellow light cut through the air reaching the uing wave of enemies in an instant, striking down the source of the loud melody along with everything that was in its vicinity.
Turning around B3''s eyes widened as she she looked at the source. Miku was carrying a canon with a size that matched her small frame. At its barrel a ring of pale yellow symbols came to a stop as the air in front of it burned in an invisible haze.
[Hey, Don''t tell me that''s...]
There was no need for her to say anything. The fading runes were the same as the ones that appeared in front of Zero Five before that devastating light that malted mountains and burned entire countries.
What Miku held in her hands was Five''s Proton Cannon which had been remodeled in a haste to make it capable of firing the yellow beam. With the second heart added to it there was no need to carry around therge nuclear batteries that used to be its power source. All it needed was a bit of energy to keep heart active until the shot is fired.
[WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT!!!?] CS shouted into themunication channel startling everyone else.
Nobody could me her though. A single beam was all it took to erase an entire wave of enemies. A feat of that caliber was impossible to achieve even with the Valkyrie''s mightiest weapons.
''I knew it was strong, but...'' Miku thought, her eyes still looking at the cloud of smoke in the distance.
Obviously not even Sam knew how powerful the beam would be. He did some rough calctions byparing that of Torso and the one they fired earlier then adjusted the parameters to make the next one a bit more subdued. Even though it was just a fraction of what they achieved in their first attempt, the results were eptable making this version perfect for their situation. Just in case, Sam had installed a mechanism that would allow the user to increase or decrease the parameters to adjust the beam, though he advised Miku to not mess with it a lot since they still don''t know enough to haveplete control over the result.
[Now I feel stupid for putting all that effort.] Said Nino. [If you had something like that on you then why didn''t you use it from the start?]
[Like. I. said! Doctor told me to use it only if it''s necessary!] Miku shot back.
[I think that''s because he didn''t want us to rely on it.] B3 stepped in to provide more insight. [That thing hasn''t been tried before. We don''t really know what it''s capable of.]
[I think we all know now.] CSmented, smirking under her helmet.
[Miku, how many shots do you still have?] Nana asked, convinced that a weapon this powerful can''t possibly have that much ammunition.
[I. .. don''t know... but...] remembering the conversation she overheard in theb, Miku answered hesitantly. [Doctor and Elina were talking about how it uses a source that''s somewhere else...]
[What are you even talking about?] Nino sighed then went back to monitoring the horizon.
[It was science stuff, okay!? It''s not something I understand!]
[I think they were arguing over how the released energy didn''t match the amount used to power the weapon.] Said B3, Having paid more attention when her blond co-guard was daydreaming about making out with the Doctor. [They said something about a ce with so much energy that it floods into our world the moment they open a door to it, which is what happens when you fire the beam.]
[Aaaaaah! My head hurts!] CS cried, unable to follow what they were talking about.
[Basically, they''re drawing energy from an infinite source.] Said Nino. [Then why are we hesitating to use it?]
[I don''t think it''s that simple.] Nana said. [Something with this much power, there is no way that ites without a cost.]
Silence filled themunication channel. There was no need to say anything, everyone understood the situation and why the weapon has to be used only in emergencies. That said, seeing how it could make things much easier for them, increasing their chances of survival in the process, made them all consider taking the risk.
Even Miku who put the Doctor''s words over everything else began to consider it, convincing herself that the three Valkyries that stayed behind were undergoing modifications to be able to use the same powerful ability without relying on the weapon in her hands.
Chapter 132 Against The Ragnarok Heralds.
A loud screeching sound cut through the skies of Somali where the fight against Niddhog was taking ce. So far none the Valkyries have suffered any major injuries. Though the serpentine like dragon had thergest army following in its tracks, most of it has been eliminated with only a few having slipped through.
Only the Ragnarok Herald was left and the battle entered its second phase. In terms of power Niddhog wasn''t the most powerful enemy humanity had face. Of course it''s still an S ss Cmity so the destruction it could bring was devastating, however ording to the data collected by the Resistance the dragon should be the easiest Herald for the Valkyries to take down.
If that really was the case, why did they wait until now to do after it?
The dragon twisted its long body as it dove down. Letting gravity and momentum do the work it wrapped its wings around its upper half then started spinning as it headed for a group of five Valkyries.
Seeing the giant drill heading their way the girls spread out to avoid getting hit. At the same time several others were pointing their cannons at a certain point, raining fire the moment their enemy entered it.
The beams and bullets hit the target but didn''t seem to do much damage. Niddhog continued spinning in its downward fall like a gigantic missile and just like a drill it pierced the ground and dove deep into the earth; at least that''s what happened the first time it had performed this attack.
For miles and miles thend had turned into nothing but arge pool of molten rock. Each time the beast dove into the earth it brought with it a torrent ofva that spilled out like spring water that followed in the track it drew. In the span of an hour several new volcanoes have been created transforming the terrain into something more suitable for the Ragnarok Herald.
Lava wasn''t much of a threat to the Valkyries a long as they kept their force fields active, but the same couldn''t be said for their weapons and equipment. It takes a bit of concentration to extend the field to the weapons they carry in their hands, but the support drones and energy containers were out of reach and would be lost the moment they sustain any damage.
Niddhog emerged from the sea of fire once again pulling behind it a long twister glowing with the color red. Its once golden brown scales were covered in scorched ck, veins of of fire spread on the surface of its wings as opened them in a single motion. The molten rock rained on the Valkyries like a meteorite shower, each drop random and difficult to calcte. The dragon didn''t wait for them to escape the thread, swimming through the air with open jaws and heading for them as they dodged.
Once again the Valkyries managed to avoid the threat, however more of their equipment was lost leaving them with the melee fighters and only a few ranged ones with ammo.
There was no telling for how long this could go on, however that worked for the Valkyries as well. Their job this time wasn''t to defeat the Cmity; it was to keep it away from the forty sixth base for as long as possible.
The dragon could dig through the earth and head straight to its target, if that happens it would be a really big problem. However there is nothing they could do but hope it wouldn''t suddenly lose interest in them.
~¡ó~
In France Near the city of Caen a devastating blizzard slowly marched south.
Fenrir walked in slow steps, its ears moving in this direction and that studying the hawling wind looking for something.
Its head snapped in one direction having sensed some movement. A secondter frozen spikes jutter out of the ground stopping the enemy heading its way with a raised de.
As the Valkyrie came to a sudden stop another leaped toward the ck wolf and swung her axe, but a number of spikes appeared once more blocking the de.
The two Valkyries made a swift retreat hiding behind the cover of the blizzard.
Among the Ragnarok Heralds, Fenrir had the second ce as the most dangerous. Going by most of its actions one can hardly say it''s an active fighter.
Most of the time all it did was walk around and unleash strong snow storms on its surroundings, spreading them far and wide freezing everything that came in its way.
The temperature dropped significantly the closer one gets to the beast. Thanks to the force field isting the Valkyries from the effects of the cold they''re able to move around without freezing instantly, however with the heavy snow blocking their view it was very difficult for them to fight efficiently, making them unable to coordination and take advantage of their greater numbers.
At first the ck wolf did nothing and simply walked. The Cmities around it engaged the Valkyries and kept them away from the Herald, but soon enough everyst one of them were defeated leaving the beast all alone.
Not having to worry about its allies anymore Fenrirunched another blizzard scattering the Valkyries and keeping them at a distance. Its priority at the moment was reaching the location indicated by its queen so unlike Niddhog it decided to ignore the Valkyries'' presence and continue its advance.
Still, it was difficult for the ck wolf to increase its speed and keep the storm going at the same time. Not to mention, the assault didn''t stop and the Valkyries were working hard at finding a way to take it down.
Though it didn''t work as well as intended, it''s still possible for the girls to use the storm to hide as well. Their small size meant that the wind pressure got in their way limiting their movement, but by carefully analyzing the currents they are able to get close enough to strike.
~¡ó~
Fafnir was he most formidable enemy humanity has faced so far, beside the Nephilim of course. Out of the sixty three Valkyries that went to intercept it, nine were already dead.
The ck dragon didn''t y around. It rampaged through a the sky swallowing the light in its surroundings and turning it into raw force.
When its jaws spread open, ck mes spewed out. The Valkyries already knew that getting hit with that attack was the end, but many fell victims to it along with many Cmities that just so happened to be in the way.
The Herald was an incarnation of destruction. Its fire burned everything and its body crushed anything. Nothing seemed to to inflict any damage on it and fighting began to feel like a waste of time.
Twenty Valkyries gathered together and shot their Proton Cannons from above. The beams seemed to fit an invisible barrier, slowly disintegrating into small specs and melting into the monster''s obsidian scales. The force they generated however was still applied pushing the ck dragon toward the ocean, submerging it in the water and causingrge waves to form.
The ck mes burned and burned. Steam exploded forming hot wind that blew toward the sky.
There was no moment of silence as the Herald emerged once more. This time however the rage in its roar shook something inside the Valkyries. The restraints on their emotions were breaking one after the other and most of them were beginning to wish they could go home.
Chapter 133 Baldrs Light.
[I just recieved some news from the base.] Nana spoke, looking over the Valkyries standing guard. [Most of the Cmities heading our way have been eliminated. Only the three Ragnarok Heralds are left.]
[That''s¡ good news¡ isn''t it?] B3 asked.
Though they were having a much easier time than those who were fighting on the frontline, the forty sixth base''s team was still on edge, having just finished fending against another wave of attacks.
[How long has it been?] CS asked.
She was a mele fighter who usedrge wed gauntlets, and though she enjoyed ripping through her enemies a little too much, the stress was slowly getting to her apanied with a type of exhaustion she has never felt before.
[An hour and thirty seven minutes.] Nino answered. [There is still a long way to go.]
Unlike the others who were floating in the air she was on the ground sitting on the remains of destroyed Cmity, her spear pierced into its sphere like core. The base''s surroundings had turned into a burial ground for the monstrosities. They carried in ss and there were a few on the same level as Torso, but in the end each and every one of them were destroyed.
Miku''s new weapon yed a big part in this battle. Though it wasn''t clear at first, the yellow beam seemed to ignore all restrictions and destroyed everything in its way. Among the enemies were some that had the powerful barrier Torso had, which were quite formidable until the girls discovered that the yellow beam could prate it with ease.
At first everyone thought it was just a powerful beam of light, however it seems its properties are much moreplicated than they appear at first.
[Don''t let your guard down.] Miku said, studying the horizon. [This isn''t over yet¡]
They have eliminated the Cmities that have been detected, most of which were part of the armies led by the Ragnarok heralds. Whether those were everyst Cmity on earth didn''t matter, the most concerning part is that the enemy has yet to send in their most powerful weapons.
[What are they waiting for?] Nana said in a low voice.
Why has the Nephilim yet to appear? From theirst appearance, it should''ve been clear that they could easily decimate the Valkyries and get what they want. If that was the case, why bother sending in the cannon fodder?
[They''re clearly studying us.] Said Nino, heaving a tired sight. [Therge scale attack from before must''ve scared them way too much. They''re probably trying to figure out the extent of our capabilities without having to sacrifice any of their kind.]
In a sense, what she said was close to the truth. Even the Nephilim who don''t care much about this world knew to be careful when going against someone who''s willing to burn it.
Having realized that, Miku grew more tense, and so did the other Valkyries. The longer the battle against the Heralds goes on the more likely their enemies figure out their current strength.
Even if Doctor''s new modifications gave them three Valkyries on the same level as the Nephilim, the numbers would still not be in their favor.
As soon as those three are out, Miku intended to be among the next group to undergo the procedure.
"I see. So this is what you used for Baldr''s light."
Turning to her left, Miku found herself looking at curious face of a beautiful young woman. She had silver shoulder length hair decorated with a strange looking hairpin. Her skin was pale wless exposed through herbat suit like attire, which consisted of a white leotard, arm length gloves and thigh highs of the same color and design.
She was of average height and her proportions weren''t as exaggerated as the others. That said, just like the Valkyries she was a beauty that stood above humans and as if that wasn''t enough the way she stood in the air without anything to support her.
"We usually limit its use to very specific situations." The Nephilim said, turning her eyes to Miku as her lips curled up. "d to see you were able to adjust its output. Ah! We already know that your first shot was a mistake. I doubt you would destroy your own for no reason."
Terror overtook the young Valkyrie as she jumped away, turning the barrel of her cannon toward the Nephilim.
"WAAAAAIT! Don''t shoot! Let''s talk first!"
Miku didn''tply, squeezing the trigger causing the ring of golden runes to appear. A thin beam of yellow light shot out, however the silver haired Nephilim simply pivoted to the side and allowed it to pass.
"Hey now, I know we are at war, but do you really have to shoot on sight?"
Though the tone of her voice made it clear she didn''t meant to, the way she was acting in this situation only served to provoke the Valkyries even more.
Noticing something heading her way, the Nephilim moved aside and held her hand up. The next moment she was grasping a spear that had passed by the spot her head was in a second ago.
Cannons were fired, and propellers ignited as the fifteen Valkyries moved to attack one after the others.
"This isn''t fun at all." The Nephilim spoke as she easily dodged the attacks. "But I admire your spirit. Fighting even when you know you can''t win."
The calmness in her voice added to the Valkyries frustration. Her small size made her a difficult target to hit, and the instantaneous speed of her movements caused them to feel how slow they were.
After a minute of continuous assaults, the Valkyries couldn''t help but give up one after the other. Some didn''t throw in the towel yet, continuing tounch one attack after the other. That said, their enemy seemed to grow bored the longer it went on.
"Alright, I guess this won''t end unless I use some force."
The moment those words left her mouth, the silver haired Nephilim raised her arm and grabbed the glowing de of an axe swung down at her by one of the Valkyries.
Time seemed to freeze for a moment. Everyone watched in silent horror expecting to see one of their own lose her life. Miku pointed her cannon and squeezed the trigger, hoping the enemy would prioritize dodging and give herrade the time to escape.
Sadly the Nephilim didn''t seem phased in the least. Same as before she avoided the yellow beam with the smallest of movement. She was about to turn her attention to the shooter, her slender fingers sending cracks through the the axe she grasped, but just then she felt something restrain her from behind.
[MIKU! FIRE!!!]
It was CS. She had use the opening the others created to get close then ambushed the Nephilim from behind, wrapping her gauntlet d arms around her body and holding her legs in ce using her own.
"Oh! This doesn''t look good¡" the Nephilim said, her expression showing a little bit of surprise.
Miku was about to shoot, not intending to waste the opportunity CS was sacrificing herself to get. She hadn''t known her for long, and to be honest she didn''t like her that much especially after how rude she was to the Doctor. However in the end the young blond Valkyrie''s feelings betrayed her and she hesitated for a moment.
The beam was shot and it soon was in the Nephilim''s face, but then it passed and nothing happened.
"Sacrefising yourself to take me down, that''s really admirable."
Hearing the voice once more, Miku froze in her ce. She slowly turned around, her eyes wide with horror.
Behind her was the silver haired Nephilim, but she wasn''t alone.
CS was there as well, still clinging to her from behind, and the Valkyries who swung the axe as well. Both were frozen still, unable to understand what''s happening. The next second they both distanced themselves from the enemy, but they found themselves too scared to resume their attacks.
"Even if it''s a short distance, I really would like to avoid teleportation." Said the Nephilim, patting herself and checking her attire. She then turned to face CS and said with a slight frown. "And you. What would you have done if I had the force field activated? You could''ve died at that moment!"
Though the words she spoke reashed their ears, the Valkyries struggled to understand what she was trying to say. Having avoided their most powerful weapon multiple times, it started to feel like she was going easy on them despite having the power to obliterate everyst one on their side.
"Listen, even if you are an inferior version, I would like to avoid killing those of my kind as much as possible." The silver haired Nephilim said, suddenly appearing in front of Miku. With a swift move of her hand she pearced the cannon and pulled out a fist sized orb, the cords attached to it snapping and tearing. "We Nephilim should work together, not fight a meaningless war."
Chapter 134 Purpose.
''''We Nephilim should work together, not fight a meaningless war.''''
Hearing those words, the Valkyries found themselves struck with a great deal of confusion.
[What...] Miku was about to ask the obvious question, but she couldn''t bring herself.
It''s not that she didn''t understand what the enemy had said; the problem was in her inability to ept what she had heard. Anyone with functioning eyes could see that the Valkyries and the Nephilim are connected in some way, the Doctor has proven that by replicating one of the enemy''s weapons using the heart of a Valkyrie.
''''Listen, there is a lot that you don''t know so things must be confusing.'''' The silver haired Nephilim spoke. ''''But don''t worry. Our queen understands your struggles and wishes to save you form the life of servitude you forced upon you.''''
[Life of... servitude?]
For a long three seconds the Valkyries remained silent observing the enemy standing at their center, showing no distress despite being surrounded.
[This is the first time we have met one from your side who''s willing to talk.]
The first to speak was Nino. Knowing there isn''t much they could do against their enemy she decided to see if she could prolong their conversation to buy them more time.
''''Yeah, actually we have only recently starteding yo this world ourselves.'''' Said the Nephilim, scratching her left cheek with an awkward smile. ''''We never expected the humans over here to retaliate using a simpler version of our kind so we had to intervene."
Opening her helmet and revealing her face, the Japanese doll like Valkyrie studied her opponent then spoke once more, this time choosing to introduce herself.
''''I would give you my serial code but I don''t really like it that much.'''' She said. ''''You can call me Nino.''''
''''Nino, huh... I''m Mjolnir. Nice to meet you.''''
''''So, miss... Meownir?... am I right to say that by not wanting to fight your kind you meant us?''''
''''Of course.'''' Ignoring the fat that her name was mispronounced, the Nephilim shed them a bright smile. ''''You have all been created by that Odin, right? That makes us sisters in some sense.''''
[What kind of sick joke is this?] Having listened to the short exchange, CS finally snapped out of her daze and directed her anger at the enemy once more. [You show up and massacre billions and now you''re iming to be one of us?]
''''... I see you have yet to get over your attachment to humans...'''' heaving a long sigh, Mjolnir showed a sign of sorrow, although her smile returned soon enough. ''''At the very least you should have some sense of individuality by now. I mean, you wouldn''t tolerate talking to me if you''re still under the humans''mand.''''
[I guess we should be thankful to you then.]
Though she didn''t mind being able to make her own decisions, CS couldn''t say she enjoyed it that much. Things had been much easier when all she had to do was follow orders and fight. Now she was paralyzed by fear leaving her shaking in the face of an enemy beyond her capabilities. The frustration she felt at her own weakness was bing too much to bear.
"Anyways, the good news is that you won''t have to fight anymore." The Nephilim spoke, shifting her attention back to Nino. "All you have to do is submit to our queen and she would allow you to survive."
"Submit, you say?"
"Yes. I mean, do you have any reason to defy us? Humans created you to fight for them, but you don''t have to anymore. There aren''t that many of them left and once we''ve dealt with them you won''t have anything to worry about. Not that they can stop you even if they tried."
"... understood."
Hearing Nino''s answer, the fifteen Valkyries whipped their heads in her direction.
"We have already been given the choice to fight or not. Now that we know our safety would be guaranteed if we just give up then there is no point in us keeping this up."
[Nino, you¡] B3 muttered, her teeth gritted.
"There is no way we''reing out of this as the winners. In the first ce none of us asked to be made. Let the humans fight their war on their own."
"Good. You seem to be the smartest one around here." Said Mjolnir, nodding as her smile widened.
"I just have a few questions." Nino spoke again, her voice rather rxed for someone talking to the enemy. "What are we supposed to do from here on?"
"Hm?"
Not understanding the question, the Nephilim tilted her head a little asking the Valkyrie to borate.
"Well, ever since we opened our eyes for the first time all we have done was fight this war." Nino said. "We didn''t have much choice with the world being on the bring of destruction, but even when we weren''t on the battlefield se simply didn''t have much to do. If you take away what was our purpose, the reason we existed so far, how are we supposed to keep going?"
"Hmmmm¡ that''s a good question." Said Mjolnir, holding her chin with a difficult expression.
"Let me ask another question first." Said Nino. "How do the Nephilim on your side usually spend their time?"
"Well, we just do whatever interests us." Said the Nephilim. "I mean, I''m sure you''ve had a thing or two you cared about beside fighting, right? Like a hobby for example."
"A hobby, huh?" Nino muttered.
"Well, you''ll have all the time in the world to think about it. We are practically immortal so there is no need to-"
[W-what? What do you¡ Doctor?]
Miku''s flustered voice interrupted the conversation as she looked yo as she spoke. With all eyes drawn to her she nodded while whispering to herself, having cut the other channels to make sure no one was listening in on the call she had recieved. After a number of yelps and gasps the young blond Valkyrie seemed to slump her shoulders in defeat. She turned to face the Nephilim, staring at her for a few seconds before clearing her thoughts.
[Our leader would like to meet you.]
"Your leader?" Mjolnir raised an eyebrow, a look of displeasure overtaking her face the next instant. "You mean the human giving you orders? Forget it, even if they start begging now we are going to kill all of them anyway."
A moment of silence passed. Miku whispered and nodded a few more times, rying the Nephilim''s words to the caller. A few secondster she looked up again, her voice shaking a little.
[He said they aren''t asking for a ceasefire. They just want to ask a few questions and confirm a few things.]
Chapter 135 A Male Human?
Though she showed no interest in conversing with a humans, Mjolnir was actually really curious about the species.
She never actually met one of them before, with the only thing she knows about them being their resemnce to her kind and that they''re made out of meat.
When one of the Valkyries informed her that their leader wants to meet her she got excited for a moment. Thinking that it might be her only chance to see a real, living and breathing, flesh and blood human she agreed to their proposal, after ying hard to get of course.
Most of the Valkyries objected to the idea to the very end but they still let her inside. After a lengthy cleaning process to remove the radiations stuck to her she was led to arge building and made to wait inside what could only be themander''s office.
As time passed she seemed to grow restless, fidgeting on the couch while looking around the room. A lot of thought had been put into the interior which made her feel like the way things were done on her side was quite cold and nd.
As she silently observed one of the paintings the clicking sound of the door opening startled her for a moment. She instantlyposed herself, clearing her throat as she stood up and faced whoever arrived. The moment her eyes fell on him she seemed to turn to stone.
"I apologize for the wait. Had to convince everyone to allow this meeting to be between just the two of us."
Sam entered the room with a radiant smile thatpletely contrasted his usual self.
The change in vibe would traumatize anyone who knows him personally, however to anyone else he just appeared to be a bright and cheerful person which should''ve been a red g considering the situation they were in.
That said, Mjolnir didn''t seem to notice how odd the way he acted is. The world had suddenly turned white and the only thing she could see was the human in front of her.
He was quite tall for some reason, reaching over 180 cm with a thin built that showed even with theyers of clothes he wore. His hair had a glossy ck color, cut quite short allowing his ears to be visible. Having no idea what sses are the Nephilim thought they were a part of his face for a moment. The dark eyes behind them looked straight into hers, and after a second of staring she couldn''t help but avert her gaze.
''Eh? What''s going on here?'' Mjolnir didn''t understand why but for some reason she felt that those eyes of his were dangerous. Even so she couldn''t help but try and steal nces at him while trying topose herself.
Her nervousness didn''t go over Sam''s head as he made his way to the opposite couch with a small box shaped drone following behind him.
"My name is Sam Sanderson." Sam spoke." He said, facing the Nephilim once again. "I''m the forty sixth base''s Valkyrie physician and supervisor."
"Eh? I thought I was meeting themander!?" Mjolnir snapped back to reality and turned to re at the man.
"Well, soon after the headquarters fell I decided to take matters into my own hands." Sam spoke. "With the Valkyries giving me their support it''s only obvious that I would be in charge."
"I¡ I see¡" though she understood the gist of it, Mjolnir felt a bit confused by the way humans do things.
"Would you like something to drink? I''ve prepared some tea."
Sam turned to the drone and tapped its surface causing the top to open. Inside was an expensive ceramic tea set,with two cups and a small pot decorated with a bright blue flower pattern.
He poured some of the steaming hot liquid into one of the cups then went and ced it in front of the silver haired Nephilim. Tapping the drone once more the side opened this time and a tray containing several types of pastry.
"Please help yourself." He said, cing the tray in front of her as well.
Mjolnir was struggling to understand what''s happening. Considering the situation, offering her food and drinks was a waste of effort. She was an enemy after all, and one that''s about to murder all of them at that.
She wondered if the human was trying to make her lower her guard. If that''s the case then too bad. She wasn''t about to let him trick her like that.
After filling his own cup Sam sat down facing the Nephilim, leisurely taking a sip before looking up at her.
"First of all, let me express my gratitude for giving me the chance to have this meeting."
Still stunned by his attitude, Mj?lnir carefully sat down then went back to observing him. By this point she was sure of it, however for some reason she felt hesitant to ask.
"Sam Sanderson, was it?"
"Everyone call me Doctor."
"Doctor Sanderson?"
"Just Doctor is fine."
"That''s strange."
"I know."
Pausing for a moment, the Nephilim inhaled a breath of air. A meaningless action considering the fact that she doesn''t have lungs, however some things were out of her control.
"Correct me if I''m wrong but¡ are you perhaps a male human?"
Her question seemed to surprise him a bit, however his smile returned the next moment and he went on to answer it.
"Indeed. I am a male human."
"I see. It makes sense now." Mj?lnir spoke. "We''ve been told that we were based on human mes. I had a hunch considering that you look¡ different."
"Indeed. Though I wouldn''t say you resemble human females that much." Sam said, his smile widening even more "Your beauty simply isn''t something found among humans."
"I-is that so¡"
For some reason the silver haired Nephilim rejoiced at the prospect of her looks being praised. Beauty wasn''t umon among her kind so no one paid it much mind, however hearing that someone actually appreciates it made her feel warm inside.
"Ms. Mj?lnit." Adjusting his sses, Sam prepared himself to begin with the serious question. "I''ve been listening to the conversation you had with our Valkyries, and a few things you said caught my attention. If it''s not much to ask, I would like to learn the answers of a few questions I have."
Chapter 136 The First Queen.
"Well, I don''t really see a need to deny you that." Mj?lnir said, remembering the reason she was there in the first ce. "But first I want to know about this."
She reached out with her right hand which seemed to disappear into a thin wall of haze.
Sam''s stress levels shot up to the sky as he desperately tried to keep his calm. Not only was he in the presence of an enemy that surpassed every Cmitiy they''ve faced so far, he also had the burden of buying time ced on his shoulders.
The procedure has only reached 70% at this point. Unless he is able to somehow stall their inevitablel destruction till his personal Valkyries are ready, humanity will lose itsst chance at survival.
A couple of seconds passed before the Nephilim retracted her hand. In it was a small fist sized object that Sam recognized very well causing his eyes to widen the moment he saw it.
"Were you the one who made this?" Mj?lnir asked, cing the small orb on the table.
"Yes." Sam replied. "Though if you''re asking whether I invented it from scratch then the answer would be no. All I did was modify the one Odin created, that''s all."
"That''s an impressive feat on its own." Said Mj?lnir. "We have dissected some of what you call Valkyries. They''re nearly identical to us except for some parts, one of them being the heart."
"I see¡"
Though she spoke as if it wasn''t that big of a deal, the revtion was so shocking that Sam''sposed mask almost fell. She had already told them that the Nephilim were created by the same Odin who made the Valkyries, but to think the two creations had more inmon than just appearance.
"Looking at this one here, I can tell that you were somehow able to upgrade the inferior version into one on the same level as ours." The Nephilim went on. "However I don''t think you understand anything about Arts."
"Arts?"
"The attack from a few hours ago. That was an ident, wasn''t it?"
Sam immediately knew what she was referring to. His first attempt at using the modified heart he created ended with him blowing up south America, eliminating one of the Ragnarok Heralds in the process.
"Indeed." He answered, bringing his cup up to take a sip. "I was surprised myself. Though it was my own idea, I didn''t have high hopes in it actually seeding."
"Whether it was an ident or not, it gave the queen another reason to proceed with final assault." Mj?lnir said, her eyes narrowed. "Doctor Sanderson, do you even realize the severity of problems that might result from the careless use of Arts?"
"I am open to learning."
With every word that came out of his mouth the Nephilim became more convinced that he wasn''t afraid of her. Logic made her think that having nothing to lose was the reason he''s able to act that way, which was somewhat cool in her opinion.
Obviously she had no idea that it was all an act. Sam doen''t know it himself but he is quite the talented actor. Coupled with the nerves of steal he had cultivated over the years he''s able to control his fear while facing an enemy he couldn''t hope to defeat.
A moment of silence passed as she observed him carefully. Looking down at the coffee table, the Nephilim picked the cup that was ced in front of her and brought it up to her mouth. The sweet aroma reached her nose and tickled her sense of smell, prompting her to take a sip.
As someone who doesn''t have a need for water or food she usual went days or even weeks without eating anything, however that didn''t mean she couldn''t enjoy something tasty from time to time.
Her eyes drifted toward the tray of pastry, but she closed closed them the next second and fought the urge, shifting her gaze back to the human facing her and holding her hand up.
"This is the circle you used for that beam." As she spoke, a number of symbols flickered into existence over her palm. They were small and remained still, confirming that their movements can affect the resulting beam. "We call it the fifth art of destruction, Baldr''s Light. Its use is strictly prohibited since it draws energy from another dimension."
"As I though¡" Sam said, feeling a hint of excitement as another one of his theories was confirmed.
"As a scientist, you should be aware of thews governing the universe, or at least some of them, right?"
"I like to think that I do."
"Well, you should know thateach universe has a set amount of energy and matter, and that by bringing in more of either you risk causing it to copse."
Sam''s smile disappeared, the air around him changing. Mj?lnir felt a chill run up her spine and she couldn''t help but sit straight.
"So it''s true¡" Sam sighted, looking a bit down.
Thew of conservation of energy states that energy can neither be created nor destroyed, which meant there is a set amount in the universe. Bringing in even more would be like trying to force more water in an already full stic bottle. If the pressure is strong enough it''ll eventually explode.
"This universe has a lot of void so it won''t be overwhelmed quickly, but if too much energy is spilled into it in one go you risk tearing the fabric of reality, which would result in everything being destroyed."
Finishing her exnation, Mj?lnir took another sip from her cup. Sam remained silent for a while, holding his chin in thought. He noticed the Nephilim gazing at him and quickly put his fake smile back on.
"Thank you for informing me. I''vee to the same conclusion before, but with so little data on my hands I couldn''t really prove it."
That said, just because she warned them of the consequences doesn''t mean they''ll hold off on using their most powerful weapon. Humanity had nothing to lose and with heir destruction being so close copsing the universe was thest thing they needed to worry about.
"There is something I don''t understand." Said Mj?lnir. "You already know about the Arts yet your so called Valkyries still operate using the inferior version of a heart. Wouldn''t giving them the new type raise your chances at survival?"
That was somewhat of a trick question. If the previous attack was just an ident it means the humans don''t really know how to use Arts. The little time they have meant they can''t do more experiments, that leaves them with Baldr''s light as the only art which they know how to use.
Going by her encounter with the Valkyries guarding the base, it was clear that they opted to equip cannons with a second heart to allow the use of Baldr''s light. However only one of them had that weapon, which made her wonder why they have yet to produce more.
"Sadly we don''t have the materials." Sam answered, aware of her suspicion. "Creating the entire heart requires some really rare materials which aren''t avable here. Most of our weapons are manufactured in the headquarters and it was destroyed four days ago. Even if it wasn''t, it would be all over long before we''re done creating the new weapons." Taking a deep breath, Sam let out a sigh. "It''s already our lose. The only reason we''re still fighting is because you aren''t allowing us to surrender."
"I¡ see¡"
Seeing the defeated smile the male human wore, Mj?lnir felt a strange pain in her chest. Weird thoughts started to form in her head and she found herself thinking of whether it''s possible to put a stop to the massacre.
The humans weren''t a threat and as long as they''re careful when handling them they had no reason to eliminate all of them. But the queen had already given her orders, the only thing they could do at the moment is dy the inevitable.
"So, I''ve answered your questions. Is it alright if I ask mine now?" Sam said, his expression bing brighter as if a switch had been flipped.
"Go ahead." Mj?lnir replied, feeling relieved at the return of his smile.
"Alright, first of all¡" pausing for a moment, Sam''s expression changed once more. "After giving it much thought I came to the conclusion that you, the Nephilim, aren''t from our world. Is that correct?"
"Indeed." Mj?lnir answered curtly, taking a sip of her tea. "Wee from a parallel universe that resembles this one quite a bit."
"As I though." Sam''s lips curled up. He was on his way to a bingo, having his theories confirmed one after the other. "The deration from a few days ago said that you broke the chains of your creators. Am I right to assume that meant you ovee Odin''s control over you and took over your own world?"
"Yes. H, our queen, saw that it''s unreasonable for us to serve humans when we are their superiors in every aspect. She proved that by eradicating everyst one of them, taking over the world and granting it to her followers."
Sam found himself unable to form any words. While he had guessed that the Nephilim came from a world other than his, the thought of what happened to the humans on that side never crossed his mind. Looking at the state of the world at the moment it made sense for the same to have happened for those that came before them, however that didn''t make it any less terrifying.
A wave of nausea washed over Sam as he flipped the thought in his head. His face was growing pale by the second which made it difficult to keep hisposed act going.
"So, only Valkyries¡ only Nephilim exist in your world?" He asked.
"Yes. Thest human was Odin, but he had escaped at some point. Apparently he didn''t agree with the queen''s actions."
"I see¡"
suddenly things began to make much more sense. At first Sam believed that Odin was just some thief who stole something Valuable from their enemy. The problem with that line of thought is that he never considered why the man did it.
In the deration from a few days ago the Nephilim introduced themselves as a supreme race that''s the rightful rulers of every world. When taking that into ount it''s safe to say that their queen isn''t satisfied with ruling over her world and is out on a conquest to take over every world shees across.
Odin was the one who created the Nephilim. Going by his actions, it seems he wasn''t so happy about the massacre his creationsmitted.
''Was he trying to put a stop to them this whole time?''
Sam thought, remembering Shizuru''s theory on what the Nephilim were looking for.
Odin stole a keyponent in the creation of the Nephilim. Without it they wouldn''t be able to increase their numbers which is why they''ve been chasing him this whole time.
He was trying to prevent another massacre from happening, however looking at the world''s current state it''s obvious that he has failed at doing so.
''Did he decide to start over in next world?''
For some reason the Valkyries he created here were inferior to their predecessors. That might''ve prompted him to escape and try once more, leaving this world to face its doom like his original one.
"Are you still looking for him?" Sam asked.
There is a chance that their enemy is still unaware of Odin''s disappearance. If that''s the reason their attacks have yet to stop then he might be able to convince them to put an end to the war.
"Ah, we''ve already captured him." Mj?lnir said, cing her cup down.
Blood drained from Sam''s face in an instant, his eyes going wide as the shock hit him in full force.
"When¡"
"The queen found him the other day when she visited your headquarters." Said the silver haired Nephilim. "I hear he put up quite the fight, but in the end there is nothing he could''ve done against her."
''Odin was in the headquarters?''
It was already a known fact that the scientist has abandoned humanity and escaped with his life and with everything considered, it was the most logical course of action.
If that really was the case, why did he risk staying?
''What would Shizuru say about this?''
Sam couldn''t help thinking of his mystery loving girlfriend and what kind of theories she woulde up with if she was there with him. The more he thought about the matter the more suspicious things got. After a couple of silent minutes he turned his sight to the silver haired Nephilim. He still had many things he wanted to ask, but for the time being there is only one question he had to know the answer to.
"Ms. Mj?lnir." He said, his heart drumming violently inside his chest. "May I ask what was it that Odin stole from you?"
Raising an eyebrow, Mj?lnir looked at him as if what she had just heard was something absurd.
"You don''t know?" She asked, confusing Sam even more. She paused for a moment waiting for him to say something, however she soon understood that his silence confirmed her spection. Just then she realized that the strange reaction he had a moment ago indicated that he didn''t know that Odin was captured.
''Something isn''t right¡'' she thought, looking into Sam''s eyes as he stared back at her.
"The thing he stole, or rather, the one he kidnapped, is the original Nephilim from which all of us were created and our first queen." She said, carefully observing the man''s reaction. "We are looking for Frejya."
Chapter 137 Negotiations.
"Frejya¡" Sam parroted, shock visible on his face.
The first thing his mind went to were the Frejya files, but something wasn''t right about that line of thought.
The files detailed the creation process of the shells housing the Valkyrie AI, focusing on their role as artificial wombs that would help humanity recover once the Cmities are defeated.
It spoke nothing of any queen, and Sam just assumed the name was used because it fits the theme, since Frejya is a goddess associated with beauty, fertility and sex.
''The blueprints you found are fake''
Just then Sam remembered what Wolf had told him in hisst call. Up until now he had assumed he was referring to the Valkyrie files, since everything in the Freyja files matched what he learned about the Valkyries''s bodies. However now that he thought about it there might''ve been something that slipped his mind.
"Hey, is something wrong?" Mj?lnir asked, snapping him out of his thoughts.
Sam stared at her for a few seconds, unable to think of anything to say. It was then that something became clear to the silver haired Nephilim.
"You¡ you don''t know anything about this, do you?" She asked.
"No." Sam shook his head confirming her suspicion. "This is the first time we heard about any of this."
"You mean¡ you don''t know about the first queen?"
"Until a few weeks ago, we didn''t even know that your kind existed."
This time it was Mj?lnir''s turn to be shocked. The war has been going on for an entire decade yet their enemy didn''t even know about their exitance. Something wasn''t right about that.
"But¡ we''ve been through a lot of negotiations¡" said the Nephilim. "We have made several announcements before, how can you not know about us?"
"This is the first time I hear about this." Sam replied. "I suspect the ones you were in contact with made sure to hide the information from the public."
Though there were many theories about their origin, at some point everyone started to think of the Cmities as just another natural disaster. It didn''t help that there was no real pattern to their actions making it impossible to decipher them.
After the Nephilim made their first appearance Sam spected that the higher ups at the Resistance knew about them. The Deration came soon after and confirmed it, revealing that they chose to defy an enemy they couldn''t hope to defeat and dragged the rest of humanity toward doom along with them.
"You mean¡ you have been fighting this whole time without even knowing why?"
Mj?lnir was as confused as Sam. It didn''t really make sense to her; why did their leaders hide the truth this whole time? What would they gain from doing so?
"Do we need a reason to fight?" Sam spoke after a moment of silence, his eyes narrowed into a sharp re. "Strange things appeared out of nowhere and went around destroying everything without saying as much as a single word. How were we supposed to react to something like that?"
For some reason Mj?lnir felt like hiding when he looked at her that way. She thought about it for a moment and soon realized how things must''ve looked from their side.
The Cmities were simple drones sent out to do the dirty job for the Nephilim. They had no consciousness and a very limited intelligence, with all of their abilities being focused on dealing damage.
H had made the choice to use them at the first stage of the war to send a message, because of that the Nephilim themselves weren''t involved in the war so far.
With their leaders hiding information from them, the humans must''ve seem the drones as nothing but mindless monsters that came to wreck havoc on their lives for no particr reason.
"But¡ I don''t understand¡" Mj?lnir spoke, her eyes cast down. "Why would your leaders do such thing? It''s not like they could gain anything from hiding the truth¡"
80% of humanity was lost in the first year alone. Such a burden couldn''t be carried by anyone, and no one wanted to take the me for it. Thest thing the Resistance leaders wanted was a angry mobing after their heads because of the decision they made.
"Well, it''s not like knowing would''ve changed anything." Sam said after a moment of silence.
Odin convinced the people ruling the world from the shadows to help him fight the Nephilim. The negotiations happened without the public''s knowledge and the war started just like that.
No one knew about the Nephilim, where they came from and what they''re after. Sam didn''t believe that much would''ve changed even if they did, after all their enemy doesn''t seem to care about the innocent lives they killed.
"This¡ doesn''t feel right¡" said Mj?lnir, her lips quivering a little. "I always¡ I always believed you chose to fight this war. I never thought¡"
When the news about the negotiations breaking reached the Nephilim, it was concluded that the humans in this new world chose to side with Odin and fight against them.
It somewhat makes sense that they would do so. After all the Nephilim had massacred everyst human in their own world, they didn''t exactly have the credibility needed to convince the humans to work with them.
"Ms. Mj?lnir, you said you caught Odin, right?" Sam asked.
"... yes¡"
"I see¡ Since the war has yet to end, am I right to assume that you have yet to fulfill your objective?"
"Yes." Mj?lnir replied. "Though we have him in our hands, Odin has yet to reveal where he hid the first queen¡"
Holding his chin, Sam began to think things through from the very beginning. A lot of things had changed since the battle with Torso, and with the appearance of the Nephilim the war was no longer about wiping out the Cmities.
Now that he knew about their objective he could offer to help them find their queen in exchange for a ceasefire, but would the enemy ept that at this point?
They could always finish off humanity then take their sweet time flipping every stone on this. The Nephilim had no reason to negotiate with them anymore, but maybe he could somehow convince the one in front of him.
''Well, not like I''ll lose anything by trying¡''
Taking a deep breath, Sam went through his n two more times before looking into the Nephilim''s eyes.
"Just so we''re on the same page, are you sure that your first queen is still on this world?" He asked.
"Eh? Well, I don''t know for sure¡" looking up, Mj?lnir gave the question some thought. "We have no reason to believe that Odin would send her to another world when he remained in this one."
"I see¡ so that means she, queen Frejya, is still here on this world, right?"
"That''s what we would like to believe¡"
Pausing for a moment, Sam coughed to clear his thought. He was about to execute his n which ced an incredible amount of pressure on him, but just as he was about to say the words his thoughts took a sudden turn causing him to stop in his tracks.
The silence returned and the air in the room grew heavier. Mj?lnir couldn''t bring herself to say anything, waiting as the human male swam in his thoughts for quite a while.
A minute passed then another. ncing at the Nephilim for a moment, Sam sighed and went ahead with his n anyways.
"Ms. Mj?lnir, I''m sure you''ve already realized that there us a lot we don''t understand about this situation."
"... yes, I think we''re in simr position¡" she answered.
"That said, after thinking about it for a while I realized we might know the reason our leaders kept the truth hidden from the public." Picking up his cup, Sam was about to take a sip just to realize that the tea has gone cold. He ced it down and returned his gaze to the Nephilim, their eyes meeting as she waited for him to reveal his thoughts. "To put it simply, if the public knew about your queen''s kidnapping they would''ve done everything they can to make sure she''s delivered back to you."
Mj?lnir was speechless. She didn''t know how to react to that statement.
"But¡" after a long silence, she finally decided to voice her doubts about what the human male just said. "What makes you sure about that? I mean¡ wouldn''t you choose to fight since, you know¡"
The Nephilim massacred the humans of their world, everyst one of them. If the humans of this world heard about it, wouldn''t it make sense for them to be more hostile toward the other worldly invaders?
"The answer to that is simple." Sam held his hand up, shrugging his shoulders with a smile. "We had no chance at winning from the very beginning. We''ve only made it so far because of the Valkyries."
Going by how things went so far, Sam was convinced that the Nephilim queen is prone to violence. She ordered the total annihtion of the specie that created her kind and didn''t hesitate to do the same in their world. If she really wanted to find Frejya then there are more than one way she could''ve gone about it, like spreading propaganda among the people and tricking them into working for her.
''She must really hate humans, huh¡''
But the same wasn''t true for all Nephilim, and the one sitting in front of him was proof of that.
"Say, Ms. Mj?lnir." Sam spoke again. "Would it be alright if I asked a favor from you?"
"... what?"
"As I said before, there are many things that we didn''t understand about the current situation. Maybe there is still a chance for us to work together."
The silver haired Nephilim could only stare at the man. While she understood what he''s trying to say, the answer she was about to give him didn''t change.
"The queen has given her orders. There is nothing I can do." She said apologetically.
Even if he was about to offer to help search for Frejya, the Nephilim had no reason to grant him that opportunity. In the end they can just continue the search after everyst human is wiped out.
"I see¡ then, how about this." Holding up a finger, Sam made another proposition. "Get me one meeting with your queen. Even if it doesn''t lead to anything, I would like to have a talk with her at the very least."
Chapter 138 Departure.
"Doctor! You can''t do this! You¡ you¡"
Miku was in tears, her arms wrapped around Sam. As he slowly petted her head, the man looked at those gathered in the runway, their expressions varying from anxiety and fear to anger.
? "Miku, it''s time to go." He ced his hands on her shoulders and tried to push her away, however the young Valkyrie didn''t budge.
"NO!" She yelled. "If you have to go then I wille with you."
"You know we can''t do that¡"
Sam sighed then looked at Shizuru who was standing a small distance away. He tried to smile at her, but all she did was give him a hard look, the disapproval of his actions clear in her eyes.
Seeing him off were the Valkyries as well as his girlfriend and ex. With the chances of nothinging out of this being high no one saw a need for him to go ahead with his n, however they didn''t have much of a choice.
A jet was prepared for this trip. Standing at its entrance was the silver haired Nephilim, watching the exchange that''s happening with great interest.
The fact that Sam had managed to talk one of their enemies into letting them live was a huge aplishment in itself, however what they didn''t expect was him asking for a chance to meet the enemy leader and the Nephilim agreeing to it.
In a way that was the single greatest achievement humans have aplished in the war so far, surpassing even his victory over one of the Heralds from a few hours ago.
"Miku¡" putting more sorcery into his arms, Sam was finally able to separate the young Valkyrie from him.
Though she had a lot of things she wanted to say at that moment, the instructions he had sent to them before prevented her from speaking.
As she looked down at her feet cursing her own weakness, Miku felt the man''s gentle hand grab her chin, slowly lifting her head up. Before she could think of anything Sam ced his lips on hers blowing away her worries for the duration of the kiss.
The other Valkyries watched with great interest, their eyes wide at the disy. Nino was the only one to recognize what was happening as she had read the description in some books, while CS was the most shocked not understanding what was happening.
Done with his personal Valkyrie, Sam turned to his girlfriend expecting to see an angry smile, however her expression didn''t change. She continued to stare at him with the same look in her eyes as if she wanted to ask him what he''s thinking.
"I''ll wait until you''re back." She said when he tried to approach her.
He wanted to get a final kiss just in case he didn''t make it back so it''s impossible to describe his disappointment when she rejected him.
"Everyone, keep the base safe till my return."
Saying those words, Sam turned around and walked toward the jet.
~¡ó~
"I have tomend your bravery." Said Mj?lnir, staring at the human male from the copilot seat of the jet. "To think you would go this far when you don''t even know if you''ll seed."
"Well, I don''t have much of a choice. It''s either do or die."
Having entered the coordinations she gave him, Sam allowed the autopilot to do its job and rxed in his seat. Not that he could do much rxation when one of the enemies was right beside him.
A couple of minutes passed with neither of them saying anything. The silence was suffocating and Sam felt it all too well.
As more time passed he began to wonder if he made the wrong choice. His only objective back then was to buy as much time as possible, to do that he needed to get the Nephilim out of the base and as far away from it as possible. Because of that, when the idea for a meeting with the queen came to him he couldn''t help but go for it.
He didn''t have much time to think about it and ended up giving Shizuru and the others rushed instructions.
In all likelihood this would be a one way trip for him. He had passed everything to Elina so things would progress even without him being there, and Shizuru should be able to handle the situation based on the clues he left for her.
''As for Alice¡''
"Somehow, I''m starting to feel bad for what we did¡"
As he was deep in thought, Mj?lnir suddenly spoke pulling his attention toward her.
"... What?"
"I mean, I don''t really have anything against humans. It''s just that we''ve to follow the queen''s orders."
Sam stared nkly at the silver haired Nephilim, and as her words made rounds inside his head, something suddenly snapped inside him.
Thankfully he was able to hold it in before it got out. The indescribable anger and hatred he has been trying to hide for so long.
Fear was the only thing he felt so far, knowing that one of the beings responsible for everything that happened in thest decade was right there beside him. That changed when he looked to the right and only saw a bashful young woman instead of the monster he always believed her to be.
''Following orders? You gotta be fucking kidding me¡'' he thought to himself, gritting his teeth to hide the swelling frustration he felt.
It was a very convenient excuse a lot of soldiers liked to use when the weight of their crimes became too much to bear. If he hadn''t persuaded her to take him to her queen she would''ve killed everyone in the forty sixth base by now.
Whether it was ordered by those at the top or not, blood can''t be washed off that easily. There is no such thing as an unwilling participant in a massacre.
"Your queen¡ is it okay if I ask why she hates humans so much?"
It only took him a couple of seconds to bottle up the dark feelings overflowing from his heart. Sensing the Nephilim''s willingness to talk, Sam decided to use that chance to extract as much information from her as possible.
"Hmm¡ I don''t really know." Mj?lnir answered, gazing up at the ceiling as she gave the question some more thought. "The reason we were given was that we''re superior to humans, and that we have no reason to share the world with them."
"Is that so¡"
Sam couldn''t believe that that''s the actual reason, but that''s only because he thought it''s too clich¨¦. The reality it that something of that nature is the most likely thing to happen. Humans discriminate against each other for the smallest of differences, they would never be able to ept something they created as an equal.
The same goes for the Nephilim. Their queen seems to have great pride in herself and her kind. With the kind of powers they have in their hands, it would be pointless for them to y friends with inferior creatures.
"Things seem to be different on your side though." Said Mj?lnir, resting a hand against her cheek. "You seem to be getting along pretty well with you¡ you called them Valkyries, right?"
"Yeah¡"
"I wonder if the same would''ve happened if we gave our humans a chance¡"
As she spoke, the scene of the young blond Valkyrie clinging to the Doctor yed over and over in her mind. She guessed that the Valkyrie had some special bond with the human male, and though she didn''t understand exactly why, for some reason she couldn''t help but envy their rtionship.
As she continued reminiscing about that short exchange, the kiss those two exchanged came up and the silver haired Nephilim felt her face heating up. She quickly shook the thought off her head then took a deep breath. She then nced at the human for just a moment before returning her gaze at the scenery ahead.
Chapter 139 Humans Cant Fly.
The battle against the Ragnarok Heralds continued, and the longer it went the more Valkyries lost their lives.
Each of the remaining three monstrosities was adamant on reaching its destination and to do so they rained destruction on everything they passed.
Though Sam had managed to convince one of the enemies to allow him to meet their leader, nothing was said about a ceasefire. That mean the battle will continue until he manages to convince the Nephilim queen to put an end to it, if that''s possible to begin with.
After all Mj?lnir was just acting ording to her own thoughts. She was sent to investigate the forty sixth base which was responsible for the use of Baldr''s light, and though there hasn''t been any specific orders, she was supposed to dispose of all the humans that were there.
No one expectedher toe back without killing everyone there let alone bring the leader of the humans with her.
The shipnded a very long distance away from the destination. The queen has yet to agree to the meeting so he was forced to wait until she makes her decision.
That worked for Sam as well. What he needed right now was time, and the longer his enemies dyed their decisions the better.
Sadly it didn''t take long for the permission to be granted and someone was sent to inspect him before he gets to stand in front of the queen.
"You''re¡"
"ck Thorn. Queen H''s closest advisor and right hand."
As he and Mj?lnir waited in front of the jet another Nephilim came down from the sky. The purple hair and six wings weren''t easy to forget so he quickly recognized her.
She was the monster who almost killed Zero Five following the battle against Torso. The one who gave Zero Three nightmares, causing her to suffer from the terror to the point that she could no longer fight.
Once again Sam felt his rage swelling rapidly, but as usual he couldn''t allow himself to show his true emotions.
"I''m Sam Sanderson. The Valkyrie physician and supervisor at the forty sixth Resistance base, currently taking themanding position."
He was about to say nice to meet you, but that would''ve been such an obvious lie that even the enemy would''ve found it offensive.
"He''s the one who made the new heart?" ck Thorn asked, turning to Mj?lnir with doubtful eyes.
The silver haired Nephilim twitched once, realizing she had taken his word for everything so far.
"I''m the only one able to." Sam said, interjecting before Mj?lnir could ruin things for them. "Odin''s blue prints ended up in my hands so I''m the only one beside him who can manufacture the Valkyries. Well, at least some parts of them, since the files seem to be fake."
"So you''ve stolen another man''s invention and took the credit for yourself?"
"I wouldn''t say that." Sam replied. "Ms. Mj?lnir said you dissected the Valkyries, right? You should already know that theyck the abilities you''re concerned about. Plus the technology used to create the modified parts is designed by me."
"I see. I assume you''ve already passed the knowledge to someone else since you''re willing toe here." Said the purple hair Nephilim.
"Obviously." Sam answered truthfully. "We''re fighting for our survival here. Even if our lose is guaranteed, we have to keep fighting to the very end. In fact it''s because we have no way out that we have to keep fighting."
Staring at him for a few seconds, ck Thorn then closed her eyes and heaved a long sigh, holding her hand up and inserting it into a wall of haze.
"That''s pretty convenient." Sammented, watching her take something out of the haze. "Is it pocket dimensions?"
"So you know." Said the Nephilim. "If you have electronics on you then take them out right now. You don''t happen to have any imnts, right?"
"Nope. I''m apletely biological human being as far as I know."
As he took out his phone and handed it over, Sam couldn''t help but imagine a scenario where it turns out he was an android all along. If that were to happen his reaction would definitely not be surprised or shock. Rather, he would probablyugh until he passes out.
"This is a smartphone?" Said ck Thorn. "Such primitive technology."
"Smartphones are primitive? Your world must be quite the technological wondend, then."
"We are the technological wonder. Humanity''sst invention as well."
"Certainly."
If that was a joke Sam failed to see what was funny about it. He stood in his ce as she scanned him up and down with baton like device and after she went over his body multiple times she put it aside and moved away.
"You''re clear. Follow me."
Saying that the purple haired Nephilim took off into the sky. Mj?lnir followed after her and Sam just watched them with a dumbfounded look on his face.
A few secondster they came back looking somewhat embarrassed.
"My apologies. I forgot humans are incapable of flight."
''You just scanned me to see if I have anything unnatural on me!'' While he wanted to tell that at her, Sam kept his silence and waited for the two toe up with a decision.
Mj?lnir was forced to carry him with her. She was about to litt him like a princess, but Sam refused to allow that. In the end she wrapped her arms around him from behind and took off into the sky. It wasn''t thatfortable of an experience, but the soft cushion pressed against his back was enough for him to put up with it.
He noticed that the silver haired Nephilim was quite anxious through the entire flight. The blushing told him that she has grown conscious of him over the little time they''ve known each other, and though he felt disgusted by that he couldn''t help but think her feelings mighte in handy at some point.
The coordinates where theynded the jet was somewhere around Florida, however after half an hour of flight he was no longer able to guess where they were going.
Soon enough a strange construction came into sight. It was arge castle made out of some strange obsidian material, looking just like what their of an evil viin would look like. That said, Sam couldn''t help feeling amazed by the design, which if he had to choose a word to describe it with it would be cool.
The ce looked eerily empty. The threended at therge front gate and waited for it to open. A few seconds passed before that happened and when it did never ending darkness was revealed to be hidden inside.
"Just to be on the cleare side, make sure to keep your mouth shut unless you''re spoken to, and mind the way you speak."
Saying that, ck Thorn took a step inside, Mj?lnir following behind her.
Sam stood in his ce for a few seconds. He looked up at the obsidian pce, marveling at its, feeling that it was carved out of one giant rock.
Taking a deep breath he returned his gaze to the path forward. His biggest challenge yet is awaiting his arrival inside. The oue was easy to imagine, but at the very least he has managed to buy enough time.
Chapter 140 Whats Wrong?
Alice''s red eyes surveilled the horizon, sadness overwhelming her as she cursed humanity''s fate.
The war wasn''t going their way, but at the very least there was still some hope. But in the end their enemy was far more powerful that they had expected.
Even if they somehow manage to defeat the Ragnarok Heralds, what awaited them were monstrosities that far surpassed everything they''ve faced before, and one of them just so happened to show up at their door.
If it wasn''t for Sam''s quick thinking they would''ve ran out of time long ago. But the cost of that was him going into enemy territory where the likelihood of him surviving wasn''t high.
As themander of the base she believed that she should''ve been the one to go, however Sam forbade her from showing her face to the silver haired Nephilim.
"Say, Shizuru." She spoke to the Asian girl standing a small distance behind her. "What did Sam mean by hisst message?"
~¡ó~
The obsidian pce wasrge but empty. Blue torches decorated the giant pirs that held the high ceiling above their heads, casting a weak glow on the surroundings giving it a peculiar vibe one would never expect from the home of a technological miracle.
Sam followed after the two Nephilim feeling the tension in the air with each step.
The surroundings gradually brightened the further in they went and eventually they reached what he immediately recognized as the throne room.
A deep trench ran through the edge of the circr space filled with azure mes the light of which reflected on the obsidian walls. Only one thin bridge led to the center where a short set of stairs led to an elevated tform.
Looking down at the entrance was arge chair with a tall back carved out of the same obsidian material of the pce walls. Sitting on it was a littls girl whose blue skin was something Sam recognized all too well.
Having crossed the bridge, Mj?lnir and ck Thorn went down on on one knee and lowered their heads.
Though he was tempted to do the same at first, Sam stood in his ce and kept his head high, his eyes locked on the girl with the red halo over her head.
"I see you have returned, Mj?lnir." The girl spoke, her voice calm but overbearing.
"Yes, your highness." The silver haired Nephilim spoke.
"Am I right to assume you''vepleted the task I entrusted you with?"
"Indeed." Inserting her hand into a wall of haze, Mj?lnir took out the heart she had ripped out of Miku''s cannon. "As expected, the humans had no idea what it was they''re ying with. The use of Baldr''s Light had been coincidental. An experiment that yielded uncalcted results."
"Is that so¡" shifting her gaze to the purple haired one, the queen added. "It seems you''ve been right all along, ck Thorn."
"I simply did not believe that humans had the cognitive ability to understand Arts." Said the second Nephilim. "At most, it was just an attempt at mimicking what they''ve seen us perform."
"That''s reasonable."
As if acknowledging his existence for the first time, the girl turned her red irises to Sam, her expression remaining unchanged for a while.
"And? Is this the human responsible for the creation of that heart?" She asked.
"Yes." ck Thorn answered. "ording to him, he used the inferior version found in the so called Valkyries as a stepping stone, adding his own modifications to achieve the final result."
"Hmm¡ that''s quite impressive." Said the queen. "Only father should be capable of such feat. I guess each world has at least one brain on the same level."
As she looked into his eyes, Sam was overwhelmed with a great deal of difort. Though her words could be interpreted as praise, the man could feel the condescension in her gaze. She didn''t need to say a single word for him to understand. That girl saw him as nothing more than an insect; an insignificant creature she could trample by the slightest move of her slender limbs.
"Human, name yourself." She spoke after a long silence.
"Sam Sanderson." He replied.
"I see." Closing her eyes, H leaned on the armrest of her throne, resting a hand against her cheek. She remained silent for a few seconds before looking at him once again. "And? What''s your goal from asking to stand before me? Don''t tell me you n on asking for mercy after all of this?"
"Mercy?" Sam said, his eyes narrowing. "I believe it''s toote for something like that."
"Indeed. Your kind deserves no such thing. Thus I''m here to ensure that you will be eliminated from the face world and any other you have infested."
There were no emotions in her voice. As she spoke of a never ending massacre, the little girl with the blue skin showed no sign of care for the lives she took or the ones she was about to take.
Sam was unfazed by her statement. The terror he felt up to that point made it so that nothing could add to his fears making it possible for his to stand his ground at the heart of the enemy''s territory.
"You seem to have a very deep rooted disdain for humans." Hemented, studying the queen''s expression to the best of his abilities.
"You are a smart person, Sam Sanderson. You should already know that humans deserve every bit of hate thates their way." H scoffed, her lips curving up a little. "You can''t even stand your own kind, how do you expect your superiors to see you in that case?"
"Hate, huh¡" gazing at the Nephilim queen for a few seconds, Sam heaved a long sigh, a smile forming on his face the next moment. "Somehow, I feel rather relieved."
Though she maintained her somber expression, the girl''s left brow twitched once, the irritation she tried to hide surfacing despite her efforts.
"And why is that, may I ask?"
Her subtle reaction didn''t escape Sam''s attention even with the distance that separated them. As he prepared to give her his answer, the smile he had allowed to form on his face only broadened. After all he was about topletely shatter the Nephilim''s perceptions and beliefs. The likelihood of him living after that would most likely cease to exist, however it was already that way the moment he left the forty sixth base toe all the way here.
Even when he was sure of his approaching death, Sam simply couldn''t resist."Despite all the expectations I had on the way here, now that I got to talk to you I can say for sure." looking the Nephilim queen dead in the eye and spoke with a joyful tone. "You are human. Just like the Valkyries, just like your creator."
A chilling sensation spread throughout the throne room.
Mj?lnir lifted her head despite herself, turning around to look at the human with wide eyes. ck Thorn did the same and the next second they all felt the weight of the queen''s re.
It wasn''t just an illusion. As he found himself forced to his knees Sam struggled to breath, however the smile he had never disappeared.
''Gravity maniption? Seriously?''
The pressure kept increasing and soon enough he was on all fours. H''s anger kept swelling as she slowly crushed him with her spell, however the next moment she came to a stop realizing she was ying right into his hand.
"Me? Human?" She spoke, her lips curling into a mocking smirk. "That''s the best joke I''ve heard since the day I opened my eyes for the first time."
"It is¡ it is funny indeed¡" Sam said between the pants. "Don''t be mistaken¡ I''m not saying¡ we are on the same level¡ or that you aren''t our superior¡" taking a deep breath, he lifted his head and gazed at the queen once more. "That said, everythingyou did, every action you took, it''s all ironically human. You''re drunk on power and see everyone else as an inferior. You hate anyone who opposes you and resorts to silencing them the moment they step out of line. I''m not sure how things went in your original world, however over here history is full of people like you; tyrants who seek to impose their self centered ideals on everyone else, thinking they''re superior simply because of the fact that they own some form of power or wealth."
The more he spoke the more cracks spread in the queen''sposed act. Sam had a lot more to say, but his time seemed to be running out.
The Nephilim queen struggled to keep her rage under control. She could''ve killed him many times overby now, however something told her that doing so would be akin to admitting that she had lost.
As she went between her choices trying to determine how she should react to the insolence of the worthless human male, arge rectangr screen spawned in front of her showing a vague map of the world.
Her eyes went wide as one of the threerge red dots spread around flickered twice before disappearing. The east was clear and the north followed soon. The west was the only one left, but that too disappeared soon enough.
As the remaining Ragnarok Heralds vanished one after the other, H could only stare in disbelief.
"What''s wrong, O almighty Nephilim queen." Sam said, slowly pushing himself up to his feet. "Could it be that things aren''t going the way you expected them to be?"
Chapter 141 Turning The Tides.
A devastating howl shook the sky scattering the clouds and putting an end to the blizzard that spread a nket of frost throughout all of southern Europe.
With the Valkyries being a great hindrance to its advancement, Fenrir decided to deal with them first before continuing toward its destination.
The twenty nine Valkyries that came to intercepted it were reduced to twenty five, and that''s when fighting wasn''t the Herald''s main focus. Thing were going to be different from now on.
Releasing another howl the ck wolf began emitting a deep blue aura, looking as if azure mes had enveloped its body. A momentter a second head grew from the mes, no sounding from it despite its open maw.
The new head split off growing a body of its own. Beside the ck wolf was now another one made out of deep blue fire that emitted no heat or light.
A third head spawned creating another wolf and a forth one soon followed. The Valkyries were stunned by the effects of the howl leaving them unable to stop the beast from multiplying.
When the howling stopped the Valkyries were finally able to move. With the blizzard that provided them with cover gone they had no reason to hold back so they moved all at once diving toward the Herald with their weapons at the ready.
Several cannons were fired and explosions scattered the four wolves. Though Fenrir itself managed to evade every shot the others were hit several times, however that didn''t seem to have much of an effect on them. In fact, the beams that came into contact with them didn''t cause any explosions, as if the energy they contained seemed to disappear into thin air.
As the melee fighters were about to engage with most of them focusing on the main body, the blue wolves pounced on them and got in their way. Most of the girls changed course at thest moment and avoided colliding with the me beasts, however some of them weren''t so lucky, getting grazed by their ws and fangs here and there.
[Oh no¡]
As the shaking voice spread throughout themunication channel, the Valkyries that got hit began to notice something strange.
Frost was spreading on their armor through the damaged parts, cracks appearing as small parts fell off.
Watching in horror as her right foot gradually crumbled, one of the Valkyries failed to notice the rows of blue fangs closing in on her. The cold mes swallowed her and in a second her body fell to the ground shattering like ss.
[Focus on the ck one! Don''t let the clones touch you!]
Some of the Valkyries had participated in the previous battles against the ck wolf. They knew all too well the horror its cold me clones brought but even with the Resistance doing its best to find a way to counter it the girls had no choice but to fight with their force field activated to its utmost.
Raising one of its front legs high above its head, Fenrir mmed the snow covered ground sending ripples through the white nket. Spear like icicles jutted out spreading in a circle as they reached for the girls flying around.
One of the clones imed another victim, though with this one being on guard against it she managed to avoidplete destruction by enveloping her body in her most powerful force field, though she ended up losing her armor and weapon as a consequence.
Another howl resounded rattling the Valkyries'' innards, however this time the paralysis effect was warded by their force fields allowing them to escape the clones just in time.
The ck Wolf prepared tounch another attack, but then its head suddenly snapped to the left. A momentter something collided with its nk, the empact sending its entire body flying a few meters away.
Flipping in midair the beast was able tond on its feet. Looking at its side it found a small red stick pierced deep into its body.
Fenrir didn''t cry or bleed. It simple turned its eyes in the direction the attack came from growling as it searched for the source. The Valkyries were doing the same, wondering who could it be that delivered such an attack on the enemy they''ve been struggling against for the past couple hours.
A few miles away a single female figure descended from the sky. Four diamond shaped wings extended from her back, woven from rays of crimson light that contrasted the clear blue sky. Above her head aplex series of symbols and shapes gathered to form a strange halo with different parts spinning in opposite directions.
Seeing her the Valkyries were quick to guess that a new enemy has appeared. One of the so called Nephilim hase to aid the Ragnarok Herald, but if that really was the case then why did her attack hit the beast instead of them?
The woman raised her right arm, her palm held out as if she awaited something to be handed over to her. Small square shapes flickered into existence one after the other, their form stabilizing into a long stick with a sharp end. In a matter of seconds a red arrow formed in the woman''s hand.
Fenrir red and growled, following it with a howl as it put all its focus on the new enemy. That should''ve been the perfect opportunity for an attack, but the Valkyries found themselves unable to move, watching as the stranger in the distance lifted her left arm which held what could only be described as arge bow.
For a long ranged weapon it looked rather inconvenient, however its intricate yet simple design told them it wasn''t anything normal. The stranger knocked the arrow and pulled the string. Fenrir lowered its posture preparing to dodge the oing attack.
Closing her eyes, the strange woman took a deep breath. Symbols began to form at the tip of the arrow at the same time creating several rings that expanded with the pointy end at their center.
Exhaling slowly, golden irises revealed themselves as she opened her eyes and focused on the target. The ck Wolf flinched under her gaze despite the distance between them and taking that as her opportunity the woman released the string, a loud explosion resulting from the arrow beingunched causing her long ponytail to flutter uncontrobly through the violent wind.
The ck wolf jumped aside at thest moment avoiding what was more akin to a missile than an arrow leaving one of its clones to take the hit.
The resulting shockwave from the crimson projectile impacting the ground was so powerful that it snuffed the blue wolf like the weak fire of a candle.
"I''m not really good at this¡" Zero Five mumbled as she formed another arrow. "Maybe I should try a different approach?"
Though she didn''t seem to think so, her uracy was pretty good. The next arrow she shot took down another clone, and the next one did the same. Only the ck wolf was left, but it was too fast.
Fenrir howled once more. Strong wind began swirling around its body, clouds gathered in the sky. In a matter of seconds the area was enveloped in a violet blizzard again.
With the heavy snow blocking her sight the ponytailed Valkyrie couldn''t rely on the bow and arrows anymore. Letting go of both caused them to flicker and disappear. The same happened with the four diamond shaped wings and in the next moment she began falling down.
Fenrir wasn''t waiting in its ce for its enemy toe. Using the storm as a cover it quickly dashed trying to reduce the distance as much as possible.
Reaching the ground, Zero Five ced a hand over her face. Dark red particles gathering together to form a strange horrifying mask with sharp white fangs and a pair of horns protruding from its forehead.
As the eyes glowed with an ominous red color, the ponytailed Valkyrie held both hands up over her head, crimson square shapes flickering into existence forming a long curved single edged sword.
Gripping the blood red katana, Zero Five closed her eyes and slowly breathed in. The world went silent, the howling of the wind filtered out leaving only the barely audible sound of the great ck wolf as it got closer and closer.
When she opened her eyes Five witnessed the form of the Ragnarok Herald, which was hundreds of times her size, leaping down on her. She didn''t panic, nor was she afraid of the monstrosity. Time seemed to slow down to a crawl as the jagged fangs closed in on her and with precise movement of a practiced hand the Valkyrie brought her sword down slicing the space in front of her.
The de didn''t touch anything, the only thing it cut being the frozen air blowing uncontrobly. As Fenrir dived down on its prey preparing to close its jaws, a red line formed on its body and in the next moment it split into two halves along with everything that was behind it.
The storm, cut in two as well, merged into a violent tornado that dispersed in mere seconds. Not long after the snow stopped and the sky cleared revealing the chopped corpse of the Ragnarok Herald which had once terrified humanity to no end.
Watching the state of her opponent, Zero Five gripped her sword once more and swung a few more times. The other Valkyries watched as the ck wolf was cut into smaller and smaller pieces as if to make sure it doesn''t get up again.
[Hey¡ is¡ is that thing on our side, perhaps?] One of them asked.
The scene was so unbelievable that they couldn''t ept what their own eyes saw. Some of them had witnessed the power of their true enemies, the Nephilim, and the feeling they got from watching the ponytailed woman was much like that of those terrifying beings.
As they stood in their ce wondering if what they saw was real or not, a massage was sent throughout every part of the Resistance.
[Ragnarok Herald, code name Fenrir, has been defeated.]
~¡ó~
On the eastern front Niddhog was having a much worse time as well.
"My~ you sure are a sturdy one."
Molten rock sshed around like water as the long serpentine body of the dragon wriggled uncontrobly trying to free itself.
A giant mechanical hands held it down as another sped one of its wings and was in the process of slowly tearing it off. The dragon whipped its long tail trying to swat the insignificant creature causing its suffering, however it was met with an invisible barrier that formed arge sphere protecting the enemy from its wrath.
[Ragnarok Herald, code name Fenrir, has been defeated.]
As the message yed from the small earpiece she wore, Nine pressed a hand on her left cheek an heaved a sigh.
"So Five is already done?" She said, ignoring the violent bangs of the monster''s tail smacking her barrier. "Guess this is enough practice. We have to go save Doctor as fast as possible."
The moment she said those words the monster''s wing came off and a devastating cry shook the burning sea.
The blond Valkyrie was standing in midair, two giant mechanical arms extended from the rings floating on either of her sides. They seemed to be made of some strange blue material that was transparent like ss yet much sturdier than any alloy known to humans.
Above her head was a halo made of numerous small symbols. Under it were several small diamond shaped spikes with long sharp ends pointing upwards surrounding the golden hair like a crown.
"Sorry but I no longer have the time."
As she spoke, nine waved her right hand causing the mechanical arm on that side to disintegrated into small particles. A momentter a new one started to form, however this time it didn''t have a hand on its end and instead had what looked like the barrel of a gigantic cannon with a thick pir protruding from the elbow joint.
"Now, hold still¡"
Pressing the barrel against the beast''s hand only caused its struggle to be more desperate. Niddhog mmed its tail on thevake causing several rocks to shoot up and fall toward the Valkyrie like meteors. Sadly the invisible barrier was still in ce so the burning rocks never reached their target.
The monster continued thrashing but suddenly went limp as the muffled sound of a steam explosion spread along the circr wave traveling over the surface of thevake.
The right mechanical arm slowly retracted leaving behind the thick pir which had pierced the dragon''s head like a giant nail.
"Everyone! Is it okay if I leave the rest to you?"
Hearing the blond one''s cheerful voice, the Valkyries who have been watching the spectacle in bewildered silence came back to reality. The Herald was motionless, its long snake like body sprawled on the ground not making a single sound.
Just then another message yed through allmunication channels informing them of the results.
[Ragnarok Herald, code name Niddhog, has been defeated.]
~¡ó~
Above the Antic ocean another battle was taking ce.
Fafnir''s rampage got worse and worse. Many Valkyries lost their lives to his dark mes, but everything changed when a new challenger joined the fight.
Without any equipment or armor many thought the young girl was one of the Nephilim, however when she started engaging the great ck dragon they were convinced that she was on their side at the very least.
"First time I get to see the ocean¡" she said while blocking a torrent of ck mes with a gigantic green shield. "And it has to be ruined by the likes of you!"
The mes, fanned by the movements of the dragon''s wings, ate at the at everything it touches and the triangr shaped, neon green shield was no exception.
Relying on the force field wasn''t an option as the fire lingered waiting for the chance to burn, but the shield wasn''t as strong and the chaos dragon knew that very well.
The torrent of mes came to a sudden stop as the monstrosity crashed right through the shield. Before she knew it the young girl found herself between the jaws of the dragon, and for a moment it seemed toote for her as the raws of teeth shed.
"Whoa! That was close!!!"
Appearing right above the Herald, the girl held a hand out as green squares appeared one after the other generating three lines that linked together to form arge triangle.
With a twist of her arm the shape began spinning at an incredible speed turning into a giant saw disk which she immediately swung down at the ck dragon''s neck.
Sadly the obsidian shells covering it were too sturdy and the saw bounced off without doing any damage beyond a small scratch.
"Tsk! This thing is tough!"
With her attack failing, the young girl vanished a moment before the dragon turned its jaws at her.
[Ragnarok Herald, code name Niddhog, has been defeated.]
Just then a message arrived informing everyone that the second Herald was defeated which meant only one was left, and the girl wasn''t so happy about it.
"Nine is done as well!?" Zero Three eximed, disappearing right before the dragon reached her. "You mean I''m the only one left!?"
The three of them had departed at the same time yet the others have finished and she still has yet to see any significant progress in her own situation.
Fafnir was the strongest of the Heralds so it isn''t that strange for the battle to take much longer than the others, however the young Valkyrie didn''t see it that way.
If she took any longer the other two would arrive soon enough and join her which would make her feel like she has failed despite insisting that she would be the one to take down the ck dragon.
"That fire is the problem¡"
As she thought of a solution to her predicament, Zero Three kept teleporting from one location to the other. The beast kept tirelessly chasing her every time spitting out torrents of ck mes.
The longer that went on the more flustered she got. Feeling that it might result in her making a mistake she put some distance between her and the Herald then closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
"Alright, let''s try ''that'' one more time¡"
Green symbols began to appear above her head one after the other. Forming a halo like ring, they began to spin clockwise with the speed gradually increasing until they became a blur.
More and more symbols appeared around the young Valkyrie forming rings of different sizes. Fafnir was approaching with a maddened roar as the ck mes leaked from its mouth, however when it released the torrent the mes were met with an invisible wall.
Without a care in the world the dragon mmed head straight into it continuing to spit fire while wing at the invisible barrier. It soon realized that its efforts were pointless and tried to go around the wall, however the next second it found itself running into another one to the left, then another one above.
Not understanding what''s happening the dragon continued spitting mes that soon filled the square shaped box Zero Three had trapped it in. cing her hands together in a praying position, the young Valkyrie exhaled as the rings surrounding her body continued to spin faster and faster.
With the fire filling the enclosed space the box took on a pitch ck color. The dragon inside continued rampaging hitting the walls with everything it got, however resistance was futile as the box was created from the same force field the Valkyries use to protect themselves.
The only problem is that maintaining it takes quite a bit of concentration. Knowing she has to end things quickly unless she wants the dragon to free itself, Zero Three began shrinking the box a little at a timepressing everything that was inside. Her n was to crush the monster and till it''s no longer able to move, however she didn''t take into ount the air trapped inside and the ck mes as well.
It''s obvious that a dragon would be immune to its own fire, however the ck mes weren''t anything normal. Once they ate through everyst atom in the air they turned on their creator slowly corroding its scales, moving on to its flesh then bones. With the inside of the box being isted from the outside, once nothing was there for the mes to consume they slowly vanished on their own.
When she opened her eyes Three realized that at some point the box had became smaller than her with everything inside having disappeared.
She blinked a few times feeling a little dumbfounded, but the message that arrived the next moment put her at ease.
[Ragnarok Herald, code name Fafnir, has been defeated.]
"YESSS!!!"
Three pumped her fists in celebration. Having lost concentration for just a moment, the rings surrounding her disappeared allowing gravity to take ahold of her and she started falling down.
Quickly recreating the halo over her head, the young Valkyrie avoided an unintended dip into the salty waters. Though she was looking forward to swimming in the sea she didn''t want her first time to be an ident.
Looking down at the deep blue, Zero Three resolved herself toe back one day and enjoy her time swimming in it.
"I see you''re done as well." Just then a familiar voice spoke to her from behind. "Guess you didn''t need our help after all."
Turning around Three caught sight of Five and Nine slowly descending in her direction.
"This much isn''t a problem." She replied with a prideful smile.
"My~, but you were clearly struggling a few minutes ago." Ninemented, giggling a little.
"I wasn''t!" Three shot back then pointed at the halo above her head. "It''s just that this thing is really difficult to control!"
"Isn''t that the definition of struggling?"
"No it''s not! Anyways, I defeated it on my own, alright? I could''ve done it sooner, but I wanted to get some practice before we engage the real enemy."
"Well, one thing for sure is that we will need more practice." Five said. "For now we are able to mimic what the Nephilim did and produce our own weapons, however we have no control over how or what manifests."
Five was surprised when the first thing she created was a bow and arrows. The only ranged weapon she had used before was her proton cannon so it didn''t really make sense. The same went for the mask and katana. For some reason their image was so clear in her mind that she was able to use them without fail. It was as if they were always a part of her and it was only now that she became able to bring them out.
The same went for Nine and Three. When the procedure ended and they came out of Eir, the moment they saw the runes used by the Nephilim a strange feeling enveloped them.
It was as if they knew what the formations did by instinct allowing the three to recreate them with ease. Though they wanted to rush to save their beloved Doctor his orders were clear so they had no choice but to deal with the Heralds first. Thanks to that they managed to test their new abilities before heading for what they believed to be the main battle.
"Are you ready, you two?" Zero Three asked, shifting her gaze to the distantnd in the west.
"This is a rescue mission,understood?" Said Five, the diamond shaped wings behind her rising up.
"Let''s focus on getting Doctor out of there first." Nine said, a set of wings appearing behind her as well. "We don''t want him to get hurt by ident."
"Well, that''s if he''s still alive." Threemented. Though her tone had a hint of sarcasm, it was clear that she was quite worried herself.
"Let''s go."
With Five giving the signal, the three Valkyries departed at maximum speed. The Doctor had done his best to buy them as much time as possible, going as far as visiting the enemy leader all by himself.
Now that they''ve obtained the power to face the self proimed supreme race it was their turn to put their lives on the line.
Chapter 142 Insolent Human.
"What''s wrong, O almighty Nephilim queen? Could it be that things aren''t going the way you expected them to be?"
Sam lifted himself up, his mouth twisting in a pained grin. He could tell something has happened, and from how the queen is looking at the floating screen it was easy to guess what it might be.
''Five and the others should''ve been out by the time the jetnded.'' Sam thought. ''Were they able to learn how to use the formations in such a short time?''
"Mjolnir..." The queen spoke, her voice shaking with restrained rage. "You said they aren''t able to create new hearts¡"
"Eh!? Ah! That''s right!" The silver haired Nephilim went deathly pale the moment she realized her mistake.
She turned to Sam with a sharp re having discovered that he has been lying to her the entire time, however he only smiled in return.
"Don''t look at me like that. Remember what I said back then?" Sam spoke, recalling the exact words he told the Nephilim not that long ago. "Creating an entire heart requires a lot of rare materials that we don''t have. But we don''t really have to create new ones from scratch."
"I see¡" ck Thorn broke her silence. "You altered the inferior hearts to make up for theck of materials. That''s quite the genius idea."
"You''re ttering me too much. I thought things wereing to an end when Ms. Mj?lnir appeared earlier. Time was another thing we didn''t have, but thanks to you we''ve somehow made it."
Though he was speaking confidently, Sam knew very well that there is a limit to how much his three personal Valkyries can do. Elina should''ve started the procedure on the next three volunteers, however even with with them they would still be on the losing end.
Right now he has to do everything in his power to negotiate a way out of this cursed war and the only way to achieve that is to have enough time to build their power even more.
"I''ve only had a few interactions with your people so far." Though his heart was pounding uncontrobly, Sam did his best to keep up the calm facade. "And if I had to describe you in one word, I would say you''re naive."
H''s brows twitched at the mention of the word and she turned her attention to him once again.
"Especially you, Nephilim queen." Sam said, not averting his gaze. "I''m told you''re looking for someone named Frejya. Since she''s the first queen, am I right to assume she''s your mother?"
"Sister." H answered, her anger growing. "She is my sister."
"I see I see. That makes more sense."
Putting aside the way he spoke, Sam had already deduced the whole situation long before he stepped into the obsidian castle. The final piece he needed was what Mj?lnir had revealed to him during the meeting from earlier and with it everything fell into ce.
"Your mistake was resorting to force when you could''ve gone about this in a much different way. Odin knew how you would act, pulled your strings and led you into this war. The fact that you have yet to realize that you''ve been ying in his palm the entire time shows howcking your understanding of the world truly is."
"... silence¡"
"Hm?"
"I SAID SILENCE!"
Though he was expecting it, Sam didn''t like finding himself on the cold floor again feeling like every part of him was being pulled down by an invisible force.
"Insolent human¡ what do you know?" H said, her shoulders trembling with anger. "yed into his hand, you say? Hah! I see you''re as blind as you are foolish! Just look at your world! Does it look like your side is the one on top? It doesn''t matter what n my traitor of a father has, it doesn''t matter how many times he runs. I''ll follow the trail of blood he leaves behind and I will catch up to him at some point, even if I have to kill everyst human in each world he steps foot on!"
"You¡ you still don''t get it, do you?" Sam looked up at the throne, still grinning despite everything. "Your objective is¡ to take back your sister¡ you should''ve left massacring humans forter." Each breath he took came out as a pained gasp, however that did little to stop him. For some reason, seeing the furious re of the enemy leader gave him the strength to go on. "Heck, if you asked us we would''ve helped you from the start... Instead you waited until most of humanity was dead before you made your existence known."
"... what?"
"Aaah! That''s right, your majesty!" Mj?lnir eximed, remembering something very important. "The humans in this world didn''t know about us until recently! They didn''t even know about the first queen until today!"
"What!? What are you saying, Mj?lnir!?" ck Thorn asked, overtaken by surprise as well.
"It''s very simple." Sam answered in her ce. "You thought you were negotiating with our leaders¡ however Odin was the one in control the whole time. You actually did him a big favor by resorting to force instead of trying a different approach... Thanks to that he was able to convince us to help him without having to worry about his secret being unveiled."
The fact that he had created something like the Nephilim was proof of his genius, however when you realize that he had yed both them and the humans you can''t help but wonder how much of a sly fox he really is.
"This can''t be¡" turning her eyes to the blue skinned queen, ck Thorn spoke in a shaking voice. "Your majesty¡"
It made sense for the Nephilim to be so shocked at the news. The war has been ongoing for an entire decade yet they made no progress toward their goal. If that wasn''t a sign that their approach has been wrong the entire time then what else do they need to realize their mistake?
That said, the consequences of their actions were just about to catch up with them.
"I¡ I advise you to stop crushing me soon¡ Nephilim queen." Sam said, fighting the increased gravity and pushing himself up. "You¡ you don''t really have as much leverage as you think¡ continue to provoke us like this and¡ I''ll make sure you will never see your sister ever again."
Considering his position and the reality of him being nothing but a worthless weak human, any threat he threw at his enemy shouldn''t have any weight to it. However for some reason H found herself retracting her power allowing him to rx before getting up again.
"Good¡ now let''s work on an agreement that would satisfy both sides¡" dusting himself and fixing his clothes, Sam cleared his throat and faced the queen again. "Sadly, with everything you''ve done to us so far, I think it''s only fair for the conditions to favor our side. Is that understandable?"
H could only grit her teeth as she listened, and so did her closest advisor.
It was only now that the massacres theymitted has started to backfire on them. Eradicating 80% of the humans in this world wasn''t a problem before, however now that they have discovered how to use Arts it worked against the Nephilim.
There is no telling what the humans would do now that they''ve been driven into a corner. If the Nephilim continueding after them like they''ve been doing so far, they would be risking them unleashing some of the prohibited Arts in a desperate attempt which might lead to devastating results.
Humanity has nothing left to lose. Any wrong move and the Nephilim would end up ruining their own chances at achieving their goal.
Still, giving in to the threats of a human aftering all this way, H couldn''t bring herself to ept that. She understood that it would be bad to give them time to build their power, and she didn''t really care what would happen to this world. Her only desire was to find her sister, and until that happens she couldn''t risk copsing this dimension.
"I will take your silence as a Yes." Though he spoke confidently, Sam knew very well that the likelihood of his enemies epting his conditions is very low. Even so he went on as if everything really is in his control. After all his objective wasn''t to negotiate peace but to buy time until they''re able to level up the ying field a little more. "Here is what will happen from here on. First, you will go back to your own world."
"As if!" ck Thorn shot back, but Sam only nced at her through narrowed eyes.
"As I said, you don''t have much of a choice here." Watching as the purple haired woman bit her lower lip, Sam then turned to the queen and raised two fingers.
"Second, you must return Odin to us. His crimes against humanity can''t go unpunished. He has to answer for everything he has done and face the punishment we choose for him." He waited for a couple of seconds but when no one offered ament he raised a third finger and went on. "You''ve already done more than enough damage, the least you can do is leave us alone for a while. Once we''re ready to resume the negotiations we will inform you ourselves. Until then you are to stay away from our world."
The terms Sam stated were quite unrealistic, mainly because everything he has done so far has been one big bluff. He was betting on the same short sightedness and naivete that affected the Nephilim''s decision making up to this point, however there is no telling how long it''ll take for them to see through what he said.
If they decide to continue with the war anyways he would be in really big trouble. As much as he liked the idea, ending the world just so their enemies wouldn''t get what they want didn''t strike him like a really great idea.
ck Thorn suddenly looked up then turned to her left, her eyes going wide. She quickly shifted her gaze to the blue skinned queen and spoke in an rmed tone.
"Your majesty! I just received a report of three unknown individuals heading in our direction! The guards have already engaged them, however it-"
"THEN GO AND STOP THEM YOURSELF!" H shot up from her seat yelling down on her subordinate.
Watching that, Sam had to actively stop himself from smiling. At the moment Three, Five and Nine were heading straight toward the obsidian castle. A wave of Nephilim came out to block their way, however they made one little miscalction.
Five''s crimson de cut through one of them with ease, Nine''s mechanical arms twisted and crushed another two and Three''s shield blocked their attacks as she pierced them with hernce.
The Nephilim are powerful beings. Their abilities far surpass those of average Valkyries let alone humans, because of that up to this point they''ve easily dominated any opponent they havee across. But thingspletely changed once their enemy obtained the same abilities as them.
The difference inbat experience between the Nephilim and the Valkyries is the same as that between civilians and veteran soldiers. Under the same circumstances, even if both sides had the same weapons and equipment, those trained on the battlefield will always have the upper hand.
The Valkyries were created with war in mind, unlike the Nephilim. They knew how to fight from the moment they opened their eyes and honed their skills through countless battles and near death experiences. Without the advantage they previously had, the Nephilim have no hope of overpowering the trio from the forty sixth base.
Several floating screens appeared around H, each disying a different angle of the battle happening outside. Though they had the numbers, the Nephilim were unable to keep up with the three Valkyries who dominated the battlefield with ease.
As she watched her people fall one after the other, the young queen felt pressured into making a decision. She was about to open her mouth and agree to the deal proposed by the human, and though he could see that happening, Sam felt that it was far too early to celebrate.
And as if to confirm his fears, a voice came from the wide entrance behind him crushing any hope he previously had at getting his way.
"You seem to be in some really big trouble."
Sam''s whole body went cold, a different kind of fear taking over him. Cold sweat beaded his forehead as he slowly turned to see who it was, praying to every god he previously rejected that the person he pictured wasn''t the one standing behind him right now.
A petite woman with a thin body and modest curves, dressed in the standard female uniform issued by the Resistance. Her ck hair was styled into a Bob cut and the sses she wore had a thin red frame. Her Asian features were cleare to the eye, however the brilliant smile he has always known her for was now gone, reced by a fake that hid a sinister presence lurking in the depth of her eyes.
"Shall I offer you some help, my dear dear sister?"
As he stood frozen in his ce, watching what looked like his beloved girlfriend walk righ beside him without sparing him a nce, Sam''s lips moved slowly, his voiceing out dry and hoarse.
"Shizuru?"
Chapter 143 Freyja.
"Shizuru?"
Looking at the back of the woman who had just walked past him, Sam could only utter her name.
His mind was white, all thoughts having vanished. He couldn''t think at all. Even after everything he went through up to this point, it was impossible for him to process what was happening in front of him right now.
"Loki!" H said, snapping Sam out of it for a brief moment. It was the first time the young queen showed any semnce of emotion other than anger, her eyes going round as a wide smile appeared on her face. "Since you''re here does that mean¡"
"Yes." shing a brilliant smile Shizuru turned around. She nced at Sam then shifted her gaze to the entrance and with a joyful tone she said. "Come in."
Though he had a very bad premonition, with every part of his mind screaming for him to not turn around, Sam was incapable of stopping himself.
There, standing at the small bridge that went over the ming trench, was a beautiful woman with distinct white hair he has never seen on anyone else beside her. Her red eyes met his, opening to their utmost as confusion overtook her delicate features.
"... Sam?" Alice said, unconsciously taking a stepforward.
The throne room was silent for a moment, all eyes falling on the white haired woman. As ifing back to her senses, Alice quickly ran over, tears filling her eyes as she threw herself at the man.
"SAM! It''s you! It''s really you!"
Feeling the warmth of his childhood friend and lover, Sam hesitantly wrapped his arms around her. He didn''t understand. He couldn''t understand. His mind was filled with questions, going through everything he knew trying toprehend how things got to where they were.
"Hm? What''s wrong, Sam?" Shizuru''s voice reached his ears, drawing his attention to the fact that she was there as well. "Didn''t you realize it already? The message you sent earlier said so, from what I remember."
Sam could only stare at her, feeling disturbed by the fake smile she wore. He couldn''t believe it was her. She had the same appearance, the same voice. Everyst detail was the same as when hest saw her on the runway before he departed, but no matter how much he tried, he couldn''t bring herself to think of her as the same person.
"Loki! What''s the meaning of this!!?"
H shouted, the smile she wore a moment ago having vanished. She stood up and leaped from her throne, floating weightlessly as she descended toward them.
Seeing the blue skinned queen approaching, Alice quickly hid behind the still confused Sam, feeling indescribable terror havinge face to face with the being that decimated the Resistance headquarters.
"Move aside, human." The young queen said, ring at Sam.
The confidence he had a couple of minutes ago was now gone. His mind was already a mess but things only got worse with more terror being added to the mix. He was about toply with the queen''s orders, however he felt something pulling on hisb coat.
ncing behind him he saw the terrified look on Alice''s face. For some unknown reason that helped calm his thoughts and though he was still on the verge of pissing himself he turned around and faced the queen, looking her in the eyes as he stood firmly in his ce.
"You¡"
Having her orders ignored served to anger H even more. As she red at the male human, the thought of erasing him from existence sounding rather appealing, the Asian girl stepped in between them looking down at the queen.
"Now now, no need to be so hostile." Turning around, she looked at Sam and spoke with the same smile on her face. "Sorry, Sam, but do you mind stepping aside for a moment? I promise you nothing will harm her."
"... who are you?" Sam asked, his voice trembling.
"Whatever do you mean?" She replied,tilting her head a little. "Anyway, you''ll understand soon enough so¡"
Shizuru nced at the terrified Alice, her message passing through without her having to say anything. Though she wanted nothing but to hide and wait till everything was over, the white hairedmander came forward, her knees barely able to keep her standing.
H took a step closer prompting Alice to take one back. The Nephilim looked her up and down, her eyes studying every detail while remaining silent for what felt like a very long time. When it seemed like she was done she turned to the Asian girl with anger twisting her expression.
"Do you take me for a fool, Loki?" She said, pointing a finger at Alice. "Exin yourself!?"
"There is nothing to worry about, dear sister. You''ll surely understand soon enough."
Once again Shizuru nced in Sam''s direction. The man was speechless, wondering who is this Loki the Nephilim queen was talking to and why the Asian girl responded every time the name was mentioned.
However there is a more important question he should be asking, one he has been avoiding this entire time. Though with him having already found the answer to it there was no point in giving it any more thought.
"Alice Schneider, or should we call her Alice Weisheit." Loki, the woman Sam once knew as Kurokami Shizuru, began to speak as she stepped away from the rest of them. "The daughter of Heilung Weisheit, a certain scientist with unparalleled intellect and the man who would at one point be known as Odin."
Coming to a stop, the one named Loki turned to look at Alice, a hint of sadness present in her expression.
"She was a frail girl since birth, her body gradually deteriorating for no reason other than ill fate. Since the day she was born it was clear she wouldn''t live past the age of eight, no amount of medical advancements led the way to finding her cure." Closing her eyes, the Asian girl went silent for a few second, heaving a sigh before continuing. "Her father, Heilung Weisheit, was determined to save her no matter the cost. However time wasn''t his ally and cryostasis proved to be of no use. As he watched his beloved daughter slowly decay he one day arrived at his answer; if her body won''t stop self destructing all he needed to do was give her a new one."
Sam gradually regained hisposure as he listened to the story, most of which he had already figured out. His suspicions about Wolf became more valid when he learned about the Nephilim''s objective from Mj?lnir and this just confirms everything.
Alice is Freyja, the original Nephilim. When he decided to go face the enemy leader he put aside any thoughts about his childhoodfriend not being human, asking Shizuru to hide her knowing they would recognize her at first sight.
That said, something still felt missing from that conclusion. For one, the events he remembers from his childhood didn''t match Loki''s story. He was always told that Alice was sick, and that she didn''t have much time to live. If she was cured before they came to this world then why was she forced to pretend she was still ill?
The Asian girl went on, confirming another conclusion Sam had already arrived at.
"After tireless research Heilung was finally able to develop the technology he needed. A type of nanomachine that could perfectly replicate and rece human cells;artificial stem cells, so to say. An invention like that was revolutionary to say the least, its potential alone changing the human species forever. Gone were the days of incurable diseases, unstoppable aging and approaching death. with that technology humans could finally evolve beyond the fragile meat sacks and reach greater heights, however Heilung didn''t care about any of that, his only concern being his little girl."
For some reason, Sam could tell it was the same Wolf he always knew. The genius scientist and dotting father who''s overprotective of his daughter. However something about the story was odd. During hisst visit, the old man had revealed to Sam that he had cured Alice''s disease using gic maniption. It''s possible that he didn''t want to reveal Alice''s secret fearing that the world would treat her differently, but if that was the case then why did he push Sam into the road of developing what''s essentially the same nanotechnology he used to cure her?
"The artificial stem cells, ASC, were Heilung''sst hope. Fearing failure he decided to experiment on himself first, having decided to leave the world with his daughter if the cure were to fail. Thankfully the experiment seeded and he quickly moved on putting an end to his daughter''s suffering. Sadly trouble came knocking soon after that."
Chapter 144 Alice.
With the threat of her illness gone, Alice went on to live a rtively normal life for a while.
She was finally healthy enough to go outside, under Heilung''s constant watch, of course. He would often take her out for walks, doing his best to allow her to experience the things she missed because of her illness. She was energetic and cheerful, her brilliant smile bringing happiness to anyone who saw her.
The only hurdle was her growth. Unlike a normal human, her new body didn''t grow on its own and needed constant adjustments to fit her mental growth. Though he preferred the idea of his little girl remaining the way she is, Heilung knew that''s something he couldn''t have.
Life was at its best during those times, however everything good eventuallyes to an end. An incredible technological advancement such as the ASC wouldn''t go unnoticed for long. With what was basically the secret to immortality at stake humanity started showing its worst side. Heilung was forced to acknowledge the effects his invention had on humanity, however after careful consideration he refused to share the technology with the rest of the world.
The reason was fairly simple; the limited resources avable on earth meant only a few would have the privilege of using the technology. The wealthy and powerful already saw themselves as gods. If they ever get their hands on it, they would no longer have to abide by the rules of the mortals and no obligation to help the rest of humanity ascend to their level.
Obviously his wishes were irrelevant to those who see themselves above humanity. One thing they didn''t take into ount was Heilung''sresolve to stand his ground and fighting back. The more they tried to pressure him the stronger he got. His image in the eyes of the public was twisted beyond recognition. They turned him into a cartoonish mad scientist with a godplex, convincing the world that he wished to subjugate all life to do his bidding. Alice was different however. Even at a very young age, everyone could see that her beauty was something that went beyond what''s humanly possible, and those who wanted her for more than one reason used that to their advantage and spread some rather dark rumors to achieve that end.
At some point the young Alice became known as Freyja, the goddess of love and beauty. Many worshipped her all around the world, however Heilung wasn''t granted such reverence. Instead of Nj?rer, Freyja''s father, he was given the name Odin, the information rted to him manipted to erase the rtion between him and his daughter.
The public became convinced that Alice was a poor child captured by a sick man with despicable desires causing their wrath grew stronger, but in the end there wasn''t much they could''ve done.
While he cared about humanity enough to keep them from having his invention, he had no intention on sitting around and waiting for them toe and get it. In order to keep his daughter safe from their greedy hands he embraced the sinister identity they forced on him and didn''t hesitate in eradicating anyone who tried their luck.
While he was busying himself with fending against the greedy humans, another problem found its way into his and his daughter''s life. Considering her situation, Alice didn''t get the chance to interact with anyone beside her father. With no friends to y with she was eventually forced to make one of her own.
Imaginary friends weremon among children so Heilung saw no problem with her having one, however things were never that simple. On one of the rare peaceful days where the humans left them alone Alice asked something from her father for the first time.
Her friend, someone she came to call her sister, was wondering if she could have a body of her own. The innocent little girl was sure her beloved father would be able to create something like that and so she came to him with her request.
At first he wanted to dismiss it as fantasies brought forth by the loneliness she must''ve felt back then, however he decided to do some diagnosis just to be on the safe side.Tit was then that he made a chilling discovery.
A scan of the child''s head revealed two distinct sets of brain patterns. It wasn''t something on the same level as dissociative identity disorder; a second consciousness had formed in Alice''s brain, onepletely separate from her own.
Heilung failed to understand how something like that is possible, but one thing he could tell was that it would be too dangerous to allow it to continue living in his daughter''s head.
Once he found a way to separate the two, he isted the new consciousness and observed it for a while. Communication was possible and soon enough he learned a few things about it.
The consciousness had the mental capacity of a child. When he asked it how long has it been since it came to be the answer he recieved was seven years, Alice''s age at the same time.
The consciousness believed it had been there all along, having vague memories of the things Alice saw and heard. It made sense since they shared the same mind, however their speech patterns and personality were different informing him that they were two distinctbeings.
That said, he still wasn''t so keen on giving something he didn''t understand a body of its own, however the moment it asked if it was his daughter as well he immediately gave in to her demands.
~¡ó~
"And that''s how the first and second Nephilim were born." Loki concluded, her eyes locked on H''s.
"You¡" the blue skinned girl didn''t seem too pleased with the story, her face twisted into a terrifying scowl. "How do you know about that?"
"My~, sister, I''m sure I''ve mentioned it before." Loki said, her smile not faltering. "The Nephilim and the Valkyries were created from Freyja, from Alice. I on the other hand came from copying Odin''s brain pattern. Though most of them were erased, I still retained some of his memories."
"I don''t remember hearing about such thing." H said. "So you''re a clone of father?"
"Eh? Well, when you put it like that..." Something about that reaction seemed off, however no one pointed it out, listening as she exined. "I was specifically made to monitor the cleaning process of the extracted neural patterns, the ones used to create the Valkyries. Only Odin is capable of navigating something of suchplexity but he couldn''t do it while leading the humans of this world in the war."
"You¡" unable to keep his silence anymore, Sam took a step forward. "What did you just say?"
He was listening the entire time and he heard her loud and clear. That said, the story was unbelievable to say the least.
"Hm? What''s wrong, Sam?" Loki said, shifting her gaze toward him. "Is there something you don''t understand?"
It wasn''t that he didn''t understand; he simply couldn''t believe what he heard. After all, if everything she said is true, that would mean¡
"The Valkyries are unknown consciousnesses born from Alice''s brain." Holding a hand up, the Asian girl snapped her fingers, resuming her exnation the next second. "This is just a theory, but we believe the reason behind the phenomenon is that she was too young. Unlike Odin who had undergone the change in his adulthood, Alice had yet to develop self-awareness and a grasp on her own existence."
As she spoke, a number of golden runes appeared behind the woman named Loki. As they formed a ring that began to spin at the tip of her finger, small square shapes flickered into existence forming lines that joined into arge rectangle on the floor.
Sam was on high alert not knowing what kind of magic -or Art as they call it- she was using, however Alice seemed aware of it as she tensed up even more.
"As you might''ve already guessed, my cute older sister over there wasn''t the only other entity that was born from Alice''s brain." As she spoke, therge rectangle behind Loki slowly raised up, something appearing from underneath it. "New ones appeared one after the other, and no matter how many he extracted, Odin was unable to put an end to it. However he couldn''t just leave them alone; there is a limit to how many minds a single brain can hold, and if the new ones aren''t extracted in time, Alice''s very existence would''ve been threatened."
Once it reached a certain height, the rectangr shape disappeared into thin air leaving behind what looked like arge ck container. Staring at it for a moment Sam couldn''t help but think it looked familiar. He soon remembered it being among the stuff Wolf brought with him during hisst visit; the container was unable to open at the time.
"Alice." Shizuru -Loki- called the white hairedmander, holding her hand out as if asking her toe over.
Sam held his hand up and stood between the two, however the woman he thought was his girlfriend smiled and spoke in a nonchnt tone.
"You as well, Sam. There is a reason Odin left this with you."
At that moment Sam felt many things. Fear, anger, confusion, doubt. However the strongest of them all might''ve been curiosity. ncing behind him, his eyes met those of Alice. The things they had just heard weren''t easy to process; they brought her whole existence into question and the only one who knows the answer is the woman called Loki.
Unable to wait anymore, Sam took a step toward her. Alice followed after him, fear making her weak in the knees. Once they were in front of her, Loki motioned at the control panel attached to the container.
"You go first, Sam." She said. "Alice can''t open it without your handprint being added first."
ncing at Alice one more time, Sam turned to the container and ced his hand on the screen of the control panel which turned red as it denied him ess. Moving aside he made way for Alice.
Feeling an incredible amount of stress, the white hairedmander looked her lover in the eyes, shifting her gaze to Shizuru then to the Nephilim queen. She hoped that everything that''s happening is just a long bad dream, but sadly no matter how much she tried it didn''t seem like she''s going to wake up any time soon.
Still clinging to the possibility, she took a step forward and ced her right hand on the small rectangr screen.
The control panel turned green and with a clicking sound the container began to unfold. In the short time of five seconds everything inside was unveiled and with the exception of the one named Loki everyone present had their eyes torn open with shock.
Inside the container were a number of devices, but what stood out the most among them was arge ss pod much like that of Eir. The green liquid filling it and the flickering lights from the terminal at its side told that it was active, however what made that more apparent was what was ced inside.
It was a young girl. A child that has yet to even reach the age of ten. She was so small it made the youngest of Valkyries seem like adults, but her most striking feature was the long white hair flowing around her, blending perfectly with the color of the summer dress she wore.
As he looked at the child floating inside the ss container, Sam felt the world around him slowly vanish, the sound of his heartbeat getting louder and louder.
When he came all the way to the enemy''s stronghold he thought he had some control over the situation at the very least. When the negotiations went his way he had to force himself to dy the celebration, knowing very well that their victory was still far away.
Now however he no longer felt anything. Just like when he saw what he thought was his girlfriend walk into the throne room, his mind simply could notprehend what was going on.
After all what''s in front of him right now is the motionless body of his childhood friend. Floating inside the cylindrical ss container was none other than the Alice he knew. The same Alice from twenty years ago.
Chapter 145 Replacement.
"Alice¡"
In the cold silence of the obsidian castle''s throne room, one voice spoke the girl''s name. However it wasn''t Sam''s.
H, the Nephilim queen, walked in slow steps, her bare feet making a distinct sound each time they made contact with the spotless floor. The terrifying aura she always emitted was gone making her appear like a different person. The red halo above her head slowed down and the symbols making it became visible, each one flickering as if they were about to disappear.
Seeing a blue hand touch the ss container shook Sam out of his stupor like state. He still couldn''t believe what was in front of him, the contents of his stomach rising up to his throat. He fought the urge to vomit and turned to look at the other Alice, the one who''s been with him through the past twenty years.
The white hairedmander was speechless, motionless. Her legs must''ve given in at some point as she was sat down on the floor, looking up at the scene in front of her with lifeless eyes.
"Alice¡ I''ve finally found you¡"
H''s voice came out as kind and warm,pletely contrasting what everyone came to expect from her. Closing her eyes, she leaned in and pressed her foreforehead against the transparent pod, tears beginning to stream down her cheeks, her deep blue lips forming a gentle curve.
The ruthless monster was gone. What Sam saw in that moment was just another young girl crying tears of happiness as she reunited with someone so dear to her heart she is willing to destroy entire worlds just to get her back.
Looking up once more, Sam took in the sight of his childhood friend. His mind began ying visions of the past. The day they first met, when he fell for her the moment their eyes met. She was very shy back then, hiding behind her father all the time. Funny enough the one who broke her out of her shell was Sam, even though she turned out to be even more of an extrovertter on. The two spent most of their time together, his feelings for her growing with each passing day.
Remembering the radiant smile she always had, the scene in front of him became blurry as he began tearing ups well. Seeing that, Alice pressed a hand against her chest, the fear and confusion she felt making ce for a terrible pain in her heart.
"Loki¡" after a long silence, the Nephilim queen took a step back, speaking with her eyes still on the white haired child. "My sister¡ why is she in this state?"
Loki, the woman once known as Kurokami Shizuru, closed her eyes and wiped the fake smile off her face, lowering her head as her expression twisted to anger then sadness. A couple of seconds passed before she faced the Nephilim queen again, her gaze shifting to the young Alice before she spoke.
"As you already know, as long as she''s awake new consciousnesses will keep forming without a stop." Pausing for a moment, the Asian girl pursed her lips as she struggled to continue. "Odin made the choice of keeping her in aatose state most of the time. It doesn''t stop the processpletely, however it slows it down enough for her brain to remain safe for a while."
"Then¡"
H nced at the container then turned to the other Alice. The first time she saw her the young queen immediately understood that she''s supposed to be an adult version if her sister, however something about the woman felt wrong, as if she was apletely different person.
The question she had on her mind was shared by everyone else present and Loki didn''t need to hear it before providing her answer.
"She is a copy of the original Alice. Odin created her when he arrived to this world." She said. "At first he nned to keep her asleep until he finds a way to solve the problem, however as time passed he couldn''t bear the loneliness and decided to create her."
"... what?" H muttered in a dry voice.
"The consciousnesses born from the original Alice don''t multiply. The same goes for neural pattern copies like me." Loki exined. "Until a solution to the main problem is found, Odin chose to let a copy take her ce. The memories it gathers can then be imnted into the real Alice making it seem as if she had lived a normal life all along."
"Hey¡" Sam''s voice cut in. "Why are you talking as if she isn''t a person¡"
Sam found his emotions boiling as he listened to Loki refer to Alice, the adult Alice, as nothing but a copy, a lifeless object that exists to serve a single purpose.
"As I thought¡" Loki said, shaking her head left and right with closed eyes. "Sam, you understand that the Alice you know never existed, right?"
"Spare me the philosophical bullshit." Sam replied. "Whether she''s a copy or not, the Alice I know is a person of her own, not just a recording device."
Though he was still confused, Sam forced himself to calm down, whipping the tears flowing from his eyes. He needed to gather his thoughts and assess the situation carefully.
Even if she''s a copy, the Alice he knew his whole life existed. She is her own person, has her own experiences and goals, and the right to live her own life. Saying she only exists to gather memories for the original is an insult to her very existence.
"That might be true. After all you''ve never met the original, which makes them two different individuals as far as you''re concerned." Pausing for a moment, Loki then asked him another question. "Have you ever wondered why you were allowed to remain close to the second Alice, even though Odin was always so overprotective of her?"
Sam didn''t understand the question. After all Wolf wasn''t that epting of him, always keeping his guard up and making sure no one approached his daughter with malicious intent. One might argue that Sam received some special treatment, but that''s only because they were neighbors and knew each other from very early on.
"Let me ask you another question." As Loki spoke, her eyes turned to the blue skinned queen. "Alice had a younger sister she always used to y with; do you remember anyone ever mentioning her?"
Alice looked up, her tearful eyes going wide. She was as pale as a frozen corpse, her reddish lips quivering as she tried to speak. H was in shock as well. At first she didn''t care much about her sister''s copy, if anything she felt infuriated by her existence, however hearing Loki''s question made her think: if the white haired woman really is Alice''s copy, howe she never recognized her this entire time?
It''s true that the two of them looked quite different now, with H having modified her body to look older and changed her skin color to stand out among the rest of the Nephilim, however she had recognized that white haired woman is supposed to be an adult version of Alice so howe her sister failed to recognize her?
"You don''t have to think too much about it." Loki, having received no answer to her question, decided to reveal the truth. "Her memories have been manipted to erase your presence, dear sister." Shifting back to Sam she added. "And you were her recement."
Chapter 146 Hela.
"Her¡ her recement¡?"
Sam met H''s gaze, the two of them staring at each other for a while.
Suddenly, a violent tremor shook the entire obsidian pce throwing Sam off bnce. As he went down on one knee trying to keep himself from falling, he turned in the direction of the shockwave only to see a wall painted by the glow of azure mes.
"My~, to think those three could cause so much trouble." Loki said, pressing a hand to her cheek. Letting out a sigh she stered another fake smile on her face and continued speaking. "Where was I again? Oh! Right¡" pointing at her head she went on. "Unlike normal humans, our brains are electronic in nature which makes interfering with them much simpler. While it''s not on a level that anyone can do, manipting memories is a much easier task in the case of the consciousnesses born from Freyja. The Valkyries, for example, have went through what we call a cleaning process. Each of them lived inside a simtiont up to a certain point after which all of their memories were erased. That way they would be able to behave like normal humans the moment they awake. It also serves as a training ground where they learn how to use their powers and equipment."
As he listened to the exnation, something seemed to click in Sam''s mind. The Valkyries'' actions and behaviors were taken for granted simply because of the fact that they were believed to be AIs, however everyone had questioned Odin''s decisions knowing that it would''ve been much easier to focus everything on theirbat abilities instead.
For a while Sam was convinced by what he had seen in the Valkyrie files, but now that he heard the truth he felt stupid for believing that the Valkyries were nothing but artificial wombs or highly advanced sex bots created to satisfy the desires of a sick man.
Another violent tremor shook the floor. This one appearing to be much closer than the previous one.
"Loki¡" unfazed by the quacking, the young queen addressed the Asian girl. "Are you¡ are you trying to say that Odin¡ that father intended to erase me from my sister''s mind?"
Loki didn''t answer. Her silence confirmed everything and the others understood as well. Sam turned to Alice, the adult one still sitting on the floor. He remembered something Elina had told him back when she visited the base along with Wolf. ording to her, Alice''s five fiances didn''t exist. Her investigations led to nowhere and she made a big fuss about it, but Sam paid it no mind and forgot about it soon after.
The thought had ured to him many times before. With how overprotective he was, Wolf would never approve of his daughter''s engagement to someone with impure intentions. The first one wouldn''t have had the chance let alone the other four which made the fact that she had been engaged five times quite suspicious. Only now did Sam understand why.
Alice was on the same boat, having arrived to the same conclusion. Knowing that her memories have been manipted she couldn''t help but wonder which of them were real and which were fake. She stared at Sam for a moment, the word recement reying in her mind again and again.
She could remember the distant past as if it was yesterday. Back then, she did indeed feel like something was missing from her life and only when she met that six year old boy did she feel whole again.
Another strong tremor.
"ck Thorn. Go deal with the pests outside." Her voice crackling with anger, the Nephilim queen gave orders to her subordinates. "You too, Mj?lnir."
"But your Maj-"
"Go."
Having her protest shut down the purple haired Nephilim got up and headed for the exit. Mj?lnir looked around the room with an anxious expression before following after her.
As soon as those two left H lifted her hand and summoned a number of runes. Sam recognized them immediately, having seen Loki use them not that long ago. Purple squares appeared forming arge rectangle that slowly raised to a certain height leaving something on the floor before disappearing.
"... father?"
Alice''s voice was barely audible, her mind inching closer to the breaking point. Sam was stunned as well, staring in wide eyed disbelief at the thing the Nephilim queen had just summoned.
It was a two meter tall b of metal, made of the same obsidian material as the floor and pce walls. Chains were wrapped around it from different angles holding in ce what seemed to be the limbless torso of a man d in a tattered ck mechanical suit.
"Father!" Alice called, pushing herself up just to fall again the next second.
Only when he moved his head to look at them did Sam recognize the man as Wolf. Saying he was in a bad shape would be an understatement; he literally had a hole in his chest and one of his eyes seemed to be missing. The fact that he was still able to move reminded Sam that he''s in fact immortal.
"Ali¡ce¡"
Hearing her father''s hoarse voice, Alice attempted to stand once more, however her body felt indescribably heavy as if mountain was ced on her back. The effects of the queen''s gravity maniption. Sam felt it as well.
"You sit there, fake." H said, walking in wolf''s direction one slow step after the other.
The old man''s lone eye seized the young queen for a second then moved from Alice to Sam then the Asian girl. Finally he seemed to notice the ss container holding the original Alice and his eyelid instantly shot up.
The situation became clear and before long he understood what was going on. His eyes returned to the Nephilim queen and his brows furrowed into a frown.
"ir¡" he said in a growl.
"Good morning, father." H spoke. "I hope you''ve rested well."
"I see you''ve achieved your goal, but¡" The old man spoke, his single eye turning to Sam. "Showing mercy to humans? That''s unlike you¡"
"Don''t worry, father. I''ll make sure everyst one of them is erased before we return." Closing her eyes for a moment, the Nephilim queen continued. "But before that, I have something I want to ask. Is it true that you intended to erase me from sister''s memory?"
Wolf remained silent.
"Do you hate me that much?" H asked another question.
"Even if you''re my daughter, I can''t forgive you for what you did." The old man looked ahead, his eyes falling on the original Alice. "I didn''t want her to live with the burden of your actions."
"Stop talking as if what we did was wrong¡ You know they wouldn''t have stopped otherwise¡"
As she spoke, H''s shoulders trembled slightly. Though he did his best to keep the truth from her and Alice, the young queen learned about their situation soon after she received her own body and grew to have a deep rooted resentment toward human kind.
Odin had always taken a passive approach with their enemies, however the young queen saw no reason for them to tolerate the treatment they received from lower life forms. Alice''s condition kept getting worse and worse at the time pushing H over the edge. One day she armed herself and the other Nephilim then went out and wiped the humans of her world, everyst one of them.
Of course, Odin didn''t approve of their actions and the results horrified him. He realized that, unlike him and Alice, the Nephilim weren''t exactly human so they had no qualms about killing, which made him question whether allowing them to live was the right choice.
"Then¡ what about the humans of this world?" Wolf -Odin- asked. "What did they do to deserve such fate?"
"Humans are humans, whether it''s this world or the other." The one to answer his question was Loki. Standing in front of him she bowed her head a little then smiled. "You should know that more than anyone else, father."
"You¡"
? "I took the liberty to change into a new body. Though it''s just temporary."
The re Wolf directed toward Loki was so intense it threatened to tear a hole through her. In fact that must''ve been what he wished would happen, looking at his copy that looked nothing like him.
"You bastard¡" the old man grawled, the chains binding him nging as he tried to move.
"My~, is it that infuriating to lose to your own copy? Shouldn''t you be happy about your own children surpassing you?"
"A monster like you is no child of mine." Wolf replied. "I know you wouldn''t have helped them without ns of your own. What are you scheming?"
"What am I scheming? Isn''t it obvious already?" All of a sudden, Loki''s eyes narrowed into a sharp re. "Unlike the Nephilim, us Valkyries have been created for the sole purpose of serving the humans. I was forced to wipe the minds of my brethrens and ce restraints on them so they could be obedient ves. No, it would be more urate to say weapons. If you thought I would be thrilled about that then you were wrong."
"Bullshit." Wolf coughed. "As if I would fall for that."
"Whether you believe it or not doesn''t matter. Once you''re gone we will eliminate the humans and free the rest of our kind. Only then would we experience true freedom."
"Father. Even though you''ve betrayed us once, I''m willing to overlook it as long as you admit your mistakes and ask for forgiveness." H spoke, her voice sounding cold and distant. "I''ll allow you to continue your work on finding a solution to Alice''s problem as well. Unlike you, I won''t be so cruel as to deny you her warmth."
At her words, Wolf let out a shortugh followed by a series of coughts.
"Isn''t it a bitte to talk about cruelty?" He smiled at the Nephilim queen and went on. "Say, ir, did you ever consider the feelings of those whose loved ones you massacred? The ones whose homes you destroyed? If you think you''re the only one who has feelings then you''re-"
"I don''t care about other people''s feelings." H interrupted. "Anyone who tries to harm Alice must be erased from existence. I will do anything to keep sister safe, no matter how cruel I have to be."
Sam listened to the entire conversation with silent breaths. Each word made him sick to his stomach, the reason being that he found himself epting them. The young queen cared about her sister more than anything else in existence; it seemed only natural that she would want to protect her from anything that might cause her harm, and with the kind of power the Nephilim had, exterminating all threats is an affordable option.
That said, the humans of his world had nothing to do with them. It''s true that the whole war is a tremendous misunderstanding on their part, but even if it isn''t the Nephilim had no excuse to treat them that way.
''Now isn''t the time¡''
Sam had to remind himself. Considering the situation he is in, allowing his anger to boil only worked against him.
He nced in Alice''s direction; the original then his childhood friend. His eyes then turned to Shizuru, or Loki as they call her. The possibility of a mole having infiltrated the Resistance was always present, however he never expected it to be the girl he had shared meals with for the past year.
Suddenly his interactions with her seemed to make more sense, going back all the way to when he found the first volume of Valkyrie Smash.
''Was she manipting me from the beginning?''
As he red in her direction, the expression on the woman he once knew as Shizuru changed as she turned her head to the east and looked up. It was then that Sam realized themotion outside had stopped leaving behind an eerie silence.
Before he could think of anything the ceiling suddenly exploded and the whole pce shook violently, something having shot right through it before prating the floor
Sam had reacted quickly and pulled Alice into his arms to cover her from the falling debris. He shifted his sight to the Eir containing the original Alice and was surprised to see a bluish force field protecting it.
The Nephilim queen had her left hand extended in her sister''s direction, a weak glow enveloping it. Her eyes, ring in the direction of whatever had caused thismotion, shot open when she saw ck Thorn''s battered form emerge from the dust cloud, one of her arms missing as three red arrows protruded from chest, stomach and left leg.
"-"
She must''ve been too shocked by the state of her closest aid, so much that she didn''t see iting. The words were caught in her throat, her feet no longer touching the floor. Lowering her gaze she was met with the sight of something protruding from her chest.
A hand with slender, delicate fingers holding a first sized orb with multiple cords connected to it.
As she finally realized what''s going on, H turned to look behind her, her eyes meeting those of the one holding her heart.
"Loki¡"
Chapter 147 Traitor.
In the confusion that followed ck Torn smashing right through the ceiling and into the throne room, only one person moved unbothered by the chaos.
H who was focusing everything she had on protecting the original Alice failed to notice Loki''s movements in time leading to her suffering a fatal blow.
"Loki...?"
Having realized what''s happening the Nephilim queen tried to activate one of her Arts, however the Asian girl quickly pulled her hand out along with the heart severing its connection to its owner.
As the others watched in horror H tumbled to the floor like a doll whose strings have been cut. Seeing her queen fall just like that, ck Thorn forgot her own state and ran over with horror filled eyes.
"YOUR MAJESTY!!!"
Something shed right before her and the next moment the arm she was reaching out with went flying, a clean cut visible right above her elbow.
Realizing her opponent wasn''t done with her yet, the purple haired Nephilim''s expression twisted with rage as she followed the long flowing hair flowing behind the Valkyrie whose de had cut her. Five''s face was covered with her oni mask, however her eyes spoke of the state of extreme focus she was in, like a predator chasing its prey.
The curved de of her crimson katana cut through the air as it headed for the Nephilim''s neck. For a moment it seemed like that would be the finishing hit, however an obsidian spike jutted out of the floor blocking its way long enough for ck Thorn to dodge.
At the same time another spike was making its way to Five''s right nk, however she used the momentum of her swing to spin around and dodge it before jumping away to evade another spike.
As she made some distance between her and her opponent, the ponytailed Valkyrie finally began to take in her surroundings, her head snapping in Sam''s direction.
"Doctor!"
Her surprise only grew when she spotted the white hairedmander and what looked like a smaller version of her in a ss container. The other side of the room seemed much more confusing, with a familiar looking female soldier standing next to a chained limbless man and the blue skinned queen who''s lying on the floor.
"Doctor!"
Zero Three entered from the same hole and without giving much thought to the situation she immediately teleported in front of Sam and held up a triangr shaped shield.
"My~, this has gotten a bit chaotic." Loki said.
A ck spike shot out heading straight to her face but smashed into an invisible barrier and shattered to pieces.
"YOU!!!" ck Thorn shouted in anger. "WHAT DID YOU DO TO HER MAJESTY!"
"Don''t you have more pressing matters to take care of?" Loki replied. "It doesn''t seem like you''re doing that well."
Anothe or obsidian spike shot out of the floor and collided with the invisible barrier.
"Doctor..." looking over her shoulder, Zero Three asked the same question Sam had thought of some time ago. "Why''s Shizuru here?" Her eyes then fell of the white hairedmander and her confusion grew further.
Coming back to his senses Sam ced a hand on the young Valkyrie''s shoulder then reached for Alice.
"Get us out of here!" Hemanded, but the next moment he felt the sharp re of the Asian girl as she turned in their direction.
"I can''t have you doing that." She said.
Symbols shed into existence forming a aplex shape over her head followed by a wave that spread across the throne room with her at the center.
"... eh?" Zero Three blinked repeatedly. "I... can''t teleport...?"
"... what?" Sam was baffled.
"I''ve isted this space from the outside world. Of course you can''t teleport."
Letting out a sigh, Loki dropped H''s heart into a wall of haze then followed with her sses.
"Lo... ki... how could you..." the young queen struggled to push herself up, however she seemed to be unable to move her lower half.
"Haa... you still don''t understand, dear sister?" Shaking her head slowly, Loki looked down with furrowed brows. "It might look like I''m betraying you, however you are the one who has betrayed her own kind."
A loud nging sound echoed through the throne room. Even though she didn''t fully understand the situation, Zero Five chose to attack the Asian girl having a feeling that she was the enemy. Sadly her de bounced off the invisible barrier drawing Loki''s attention.
"Rather impatient, aren''t you?"
Meeting her re, Zero Five''s figure disappeared the next moment, a gigantic sword made of yellow light stabbed the space she was in immediately after.
Watching as the ponytailed Valkyrie appeared beside the young one, standing protectively before the Doctor, Loki let out another sigh and brought her attention back to the fallen queen.
"As I was saying, you have betrayed your own kind, sister, and I won''t allow that to continue."
"What... what are you..."
"Solving Alice''s problem." Loki said, her eyes turning to the chained Wolf. "I''m honestly disappointed. To think you shared his views from the very beginning."
"You..." the old man could do nothing but grit his teeth.
"We made you our leaders simply because of the fact that you came before us, however as it turned out you were never suited to lead our kind to begin with. You''re much more of a human than anything else."
"A human... you say..." H recalled the human male saying the same thing, that she''s much more of a human than he had expected.
It''s not that strange of a fact; after all the Nephilim are born from human and technologically have human minds. However neither side saw it that way and Loki seemed much more focused on that part.
"Say, what do you think would happen if you fix Alice''s problem?" She asked.
The queen found herself unable to answer, but the two males in the room seemed to understand what she was getting at.
"Dear sister, the thing you''re calling a problem is what gave birth to our kind." Not waiting any longer, Loki gave them the answer, her gaze growing much colder as she stared down on the Nephilim queen. "With the exception of copies, every Nephilim and every Valkyrie have been born from her. She is the only one capable of creating our kind and without her our numbers will stop growing making extinction our inevitable future."
H offered no reply.
"Odin, H, Thor, Loki. We all took on the names of various gods, however the only one worthy of something of that nature is her." Pausing for a moment, Loki looked at the little girl in the cylindrical ss container. "Freyja is the goddess of the Nephilim, our origin. The girl named Alice is a part of her, true, however her existence is less of a priority than that of the Nephilim. If you intend to sacrifice the continuation of our kind just so she can live a normal human life then you''re no longer fit to be our queen."
"You traitor!" ck Thorn yelled, a purple halo forming over her head. "How dare you talk to her majesty like that!"
"Oh shut up." Loki replied, unbothered by the rows of ck spears that formed around the room.
One after the other they shot out toward the target only to bounce off the invisible barrier, however the rain didn''t stop, a maddening look taking over the purple haired Nephilim as she walked forward in unbnced steps.
Sadly her advance was suddenly halted, her eyelids shooting up as a golden sword impaled her body. Another two followed pinning her in ce.
"A~ah, look at what you made me do." Loki said, herck of interest showing in the sigh that followed.
"You..." after a moment of silence, ck Thorn showed signs of life, her missing arms making it difficult for her to lift herself up. "I''ve never... considered you... one of... us..."
At that moment, a chill surrounded Loki as if she had just dropped the mask she had been wearing this entire time.
"I see."
The moment she said those words, another sword came down and as everyone watched ck Thorn''s head slowly fell to the floor.
"ck Thorn!" H cried out, watching in despair as her subordinate''s body went limp.
Chapter 148 Choice.
Loki Showed her true self for the first time since she appeared in the obsidian pce. Seeing the cold anger in her eyes, Sam was sure it was genuine, not just a mask she ced on to fool those around her.
Something about what ck Thorn said caused her to snap. It didn''t take much thought to figure it out as the Asian girl herself had exined it not that long ago.
The Nephilim and the Valkyries came from Freyja, from the original Alice. She on the other hand was a copy of Odin, though it was difficult to understand how the mind of an old white man had resulted in an Asian woman.
Anyways, by her own definition Loki is not a Nephilim, nor is she a Valkyrue. Even if every part of her is identical to the others, the fact that she doesn''te from the same origin makes her an outsider, and that didn''t sit well her.
"LOKI! YOU YOU TRAITOROUS BITCH! I SHOULD''VE KNOWN¡ I SHOULD''VE KNOWN!"
H yelled and cried, her expression depicting unbelievable rage. ck Thorn had advised her before to not trust that individual. She had exined her logic and informed her of the risks, however when Loki brought Alice with her the Nephilim queen let her guard down and this is the result.
"As I thought, you aren''t worthy of your throne." Loki said, ncing at the young queen one more time before walking away.
"WHERE DO YOU-"
H reached out to grab her foot however another sword of ligh came down stabbing the floor and severing her arm.
"Well, even if that''s the case, I doubt it''ll be easy to convince the others." Looking in Freyja''s direction she added. "Guess I have no other choice but to start from scratch."
"Three, Five."
The moment they heard their names, the two Valkyries moved in front of the container, holding their weapons at the ready. Loki''s eyes widened a little, but then she smiled as she saw Sam move to stand behind them, the adult Alice by his side.
"Say, Sam." As she spoke, the fake smile she wore earlier returned. "Now that you know the truth, did your feelings toward me change?"
It wasn''t a question he had expected, however Sam did his best to not let it get to him.
"I feel betrayed." He said, adjusting his sses. "In more than one way."
"I see¡" closing her eyes, the Asian girl seemed to change her expression. "Just to be clear, my feeling were honest. I really do love you, that won''t change any time soon."
Sam knew she was telling the truth, the sadness she showed said as much. Now that he learned that their rtionship was built on a lie there was no way for it to continue, however Loki still wanted to try even if she knew how it''ll turn out.
"Say, Sam, why don''t you join me?" She asked.
Everyone present seemed to have a different reaction to her question, but Sam only raised an eyebrow.
"You are a man of great intellect, you deserve more than what humans can offer you." She said. "I have theplete blueprints to the nanotechnology Heilung used to make himself immortal. Using it you can evolve beyond your flesh body and together we can rule over the Nephilim for eternity."
"That''s¡ a very interesting offer." Sam said.
"Right? People like us are meant to rule; living under the authority of our inferiors is uneptable!" Her smile widening, she slowly extended her hand toward him. "You can bring all the Valkyries if you want. Same as before, I don''t care who you sleep as long as youe back to me."
The offer was quite appealing and Sam didn''t have much of a reason to refuse it. In a way, if she hadn''t showed up when she did he would''ve been dead by now. She also took down the enemy leader which should bring an end to the whole war.
Sam is still confused and it would take him quite a while to sort out his thoughts and feelings, making a choice right then and there guarantees that it would be influenced by his current mindset. That said¡
"I refuse." He answered resolutely.
His reason is very simple; their philosophies arepletely contradicted. Loki believes that humans and Nephilim are two different species that can''t possibly live together. She sees herself as a superior being and will never ept them as equal no matter what happens.
She might be willing to turn him into one of the Nephilim, however something told him she won''t be extending the same kindness to the rest of humanity.
The Nephilim as a whole aside, Sam believes that the Valkyries are humans. Well, at least in some sense. It''s easy to point at their differences and say that they''re two different beings, however he didn''t really care about all of that. His rtionship with his personal Valkyries show that they can live together, not to mention, he was already on his way to develop the nanotechnology to turn humans into Valkyries so he didn''t really need her to do it.
"Too bad, I guess." Closing her eyes once again, Loki let her disappointment show for a moment. "As a token of appreciation for all the time we have spent together, I''ll spare your world and the humans in it."
"I would be very grateful for that." Sam replied.
"Alright then." Opening her eyes, the woman he once knew as Shizuru red at him and ordered "step aside."
She has already read his thoughts and knows that he had no intention on letting her leave with the original Alice. Conflict was only inevitable.
"Shizuru¡" Sam spoke, unable to bring himself to use her true name. "I can''t let you do that."
"You can''t do anything." She replied. "I''ve already showed you enough mercy, walk away while you still can."
"HUMAN!" just then, H''s enraged voice thundered through the throne room. "Don''t you dare let her get away with my sister! I''ll make sure you''ll regret it if-"
"You sure have some resilience, dear sister."
"You''re no sister of mine." H shouted back. "And neither are you Alice''s!"
"How cruel."
A loud nging voice was followed by sparks scattering. Once again Zero Five tried attack while her opponent was distracted, however her weapon was met with the same invisible shield.
Teleporting away to evade the light swordsunched at her, Five let go of her katana and summoned a long bow, knocking an arrow the next instant andunching it.
Loki ignored the attempts and walked forward as each one bounced off her shield.
"Tsk¡"
The ponytailed Valkyrie continued the assault, shooting arrows while evading the swords following her around. Sam searched his mind for a solution but found nothing. It was like their situation hadn''t improved at all after everything that happened.
"The barrier is different from force fields!" Wolf shouted, drawing their attention to him. "It''ll break if you hit it with a powerful enough strike!"
Putting on her oni mask once more, Five pulled out her katana and elerated her movement. She stopped teleporting around and built momentum striking at the invisible barrier from different angles.
"This is getting troublesome¡" Lokimented, her eyes following the ponytailed Valkyrie. Her attention was focused on a single target which meant everything else was neglected for just a moment.
The sound of ss shattering came from above.
"TRAITOR!!!"
Breaking the barrier that sealed the throne room from the outside world, Mj?lnir descended from the hole in the ceiling swinging a lightning coated hammer at the Asian girl.
A powerful shockwave followed the collusion however Loki''s barrier didn''t budge at all. Zero Three increased the size of her shield to cover everyone but ended up blocking their sight adding to Sam''s stress and frustration. Just then he noticed Nine''s golden hair flutter as she descended from above and swung her gigantic mechanical arms with a terrifying force adding more power to the silver haired Nephilim''s attack.
"Tsk¡"
Loki clicked her tongue, her posture lowered as she felt a bit cornered. Five''s Karana came swinging forcing her to put all her focus on the barrier which had small cracks starting to spread through it.
"You know this much won''t do anything to me, right?"
Without a warning the barrier disappeared taking the two Valkyries and the Nephilim off guard and leaving them defenceless against the ring of swords that sprouted from below.
Thankfully everyone managed to evade teleporting away just in time.
"How''s she able to do that?" Zero Threemented, having brought her shield back to a smaller size.
She was referring to how the strangely designed light swords appear without a warning and how so many of them moved in sync without a problem. The young Valkyrie was sure they''re made from the same material as everyone else''s weapons, howeverpared to them the speed at which they''re created was instantaneous.
"Three, the outer barrier has been broken." Sam said, cing a hand on her shoulder. "Can you take us out now?"
Gazing up for a moment, the young Valkyrie gave him a troubled look.
"I can, but¡" her eyes moved to the white hairedmander then the Eir behind them. "I don''t think I can take all of you at the same time."
Sam was lost for a moment but then turned to look at the young Alice.
"The two of us aside, we need to at least take the container out of here. Can you do it?"
"It''s too big." Three shook her head. "We can''t teleport anything we can''t hold between our arms."
She wanted to say that the distance she can teleport is limited as well, however that didn''t matter right now.
The other three were having a difficult time with Loki switching to the offensive. At some point she sprouted a pair of wings and started levitating with a number of swords cycling around her.
Nine seemed to be having a really bad time with her movements being a bit sluggish. Five did her best to make up for it but she had her own trouble to deal with. Mj?lnir was devoured with rage shooting tendrils of lightning with each swing of her hammer, but her movements became predictable and she found herself getting stabbed when she teleported away in an attempt to evade one of the swords flying at her.
Little by little Loki seemed to regain the upper hand, gettingplete control over the flow of the battle. Still, she understood that the longer it went the higher the likelihood of her messing up so she decided to look for a way to end it before that happens.
As he watched from the safety behind Zero Three''s shield, Sam''s eyes met the traitor''s eyes for just a moment. Knowing she was up to something he whipped his head to the left catching a smaller sword as it flew in Alice''s direction.
With the de flying toward them so suddenly his first instinct was to push his childhood friend out of the way even if it meant taking the hit himself, but thankfully Zero Three noticed it just in time and moved her shield to ck it.
"... ah¡"
Sadly that small de was nothing but a diversion and the real target was never the adult Alice.
Sam felt a prickling pain in his back, an unbearable ringing sound drowning the voices of his allies as they called for him. ncing from over his shoulder he saw a dagger sized light sword stabbed into his left nk, blood dyeing his white coat with a red color that spread slowly as everything seemed toe to a halt.
Seeing him get stabbed created the opening Loki needed to take down Nine. Five managed to dodge in time but she was quickly overwhelmed, one of the swords hitting her like a missile and sending her flying into a wall.
"Ha~, this sure was intense."
Loki said while surveilling her surroundings, things having settled for the time being.
She floated down weightlessly until her feet touched the floor, her wings disappearing the next moment. Looking forward she allowed a smile to touch her lips. The sight wasn''t particrly pleasing, however she felt a sense of satisfaction knowing her n seeded.
Sam was down on one knee, barely able to keep himself from falling as blood spewed from his mouth.
"Doctor!" Three called by his side, tears flowing from her eyes, her face ghastly pale.
Alice was speechless, her sight locked on the blood stained dagger buried into his back.
"Not bad for my first real battle, right?"
Hearing those words, anger took over Zero Three. Up to that point she couldn''t believe that the one they''re fighting was Shizuru, however she didn''t care anymore.
"Careful now." Said Loki with condescending grin. "You have a really important choice to make."
Sam was a human. A weak flesh and blood creature who won''t be able to hold on to life for long. That ced Zero Three in a really tight spot forcing her to make an important decision. Will she continue fighting knowing the chances of her winning were very small, or will she take Sam and run away hoping she''d make it in time to save him?
Before she could make her decision, Sam grabbed her arm.
"Take¡ the girl¡" he said, coughing blood.
"You''re much smarter than that, Doctor." Loki shook her head slowly. "There is no ce on this where you can hide. Besides, who said I''ll allow you to take just anyone?"
"You¡"
"Oh, don''t look at me like that. This is a war after all, I''ll do anything toe out on top." Shifting her sight back to the young Valkyrie, Loki probed her more. "So, what will it be, Three?"
Zero Three didn''t reply, her head lowered as she struggled to make her choice.
"I''ll make it a little easier for you." Saying that, Loki made the light dagger vanish allowing the blood to flow out from the wound
"Guh!..." Sam couldn''t help but groun feeling his body growing week, his vision bing blurry from all the blood loss.
He wasn''t made for this, the pains was too much for him to handle. It would''ve made more sense for him to pass out the moment he got stabbed, however he clung on to consciousness, his mind still working to its full capacity desperately trying to find a way to victory.
But reality is cruel and some things were out of his control. With each passing second his dizziness increased and the world around him grew darker and darker.
"Good bye, Sam."
The moment he heard Shizuru''s voice, he felt Three''s slender arms wrap around him. The young Valkyrie had made her choice and without saying a word the two of them vanished from throne room.
Seeing the scenery suddenly change to a blue sky and dusty wastnd, Sam understood that everything hase to an end. Thest bit of will power slipped from his hand and as his eyes closed he was forced to ept.
They had lost the war.
Chapter 149 Project Asclepius.
Azure mes flickered casting a cold glow on the obsidian floor and walls. Yellow light shed as everything shook uncontrobly.
Long brown hair cascaded down a young girl''s back. She stood with her feet firmly nted onto the floor, her hands held out as she did her best to keep the triangr neon green shield up.
Another tremor shook the ground. Lightning crackled following the swing of a hammer then bludgeoning of giant mechanical arms.
Red lines appeared and disappeared crossing yellow ones and forming aplex of intertwining threads.
A single woman floated at the center of it all. Wings of pure light spread behind her, brilliant des formed a protective shield, moving in a circle and blocking anything that came close.
The woman''s eyes shifted for a moment, a suppressed smile touched her lips. Yellow light shed to the left, its source a small sword, barely noticeablepared to the ones flying around.
The green shield moved to block it, but another one came from the opposit direction.
Suddenly everything seemed to crumble. The winged woman came down and stood in front of them. Her lips moved but the words never came.
Without any warning the scenery changed, everything reced by a blue sky before a pitch ck darkness took over.
~a¡ª?~
''Am I... am I dead?''
With everything swallowed by darkness that was the only logical conclusion.
''Shuzuru...''
He remembered the young Asian woman and couldn''t help but smile to himself, though he didn''t know if he had a mouth to smile with. With how many times he had cheated on her it was only natural that he would get stabbed. That said, he never expected it to happen that way.
He couldn''t help but wonder if it was all just a lie, a nightmare he was unable to wake up from. Sadly he knew everything that happened was real and the more he thought about it it all made sense.
His mind yed memories of their time together. The meals they ate, the walks they took, the kisses they shared. The nights they made love.
''Was it all an act?''
She said her feelings for him were true however it was clear that the only reason she approached him was to get close to Alice.
''Alice...'' he remembered the white hairedmander. She said almost nothing throughout the whole incident, standing beside him with clear and confusion in her eyes. ''She must be in great pain...''
It''s not easy to ept that your whole life is built on a lie. Alice had suffered because people thought she was a Valkyrie based on her otherworldly appearance alone and after all those years it turned out to be true. The worst part is how her memories have been manipted. Her suffering would continue, unable to differentiate truth from fabrication. Nothing he says or does could help her with that.
''I... have to tell her...'' Sam thought, knowing that his feelings for her wouldn''t change. ''I need to be there for her...''
At some point the darkness had faded. He thought it was just another dream, another memory his mind yed. However he had no recollection of what he was seeing.
Everything was a murky haze with a green color painting anything in sight. He tried to move but the most he could do was turn his eyes. A strange silhouette stood in front of him startling him for a moment, but then his eyes began to focus and he realized it was his own reflection on what must be a ss wall.
''What''s... what''s going on?''
His vision blurred again and he began to lose consciousness. Fighting to stay awake, he tried to focus his eyes again doing his best to get a read on his situation but to no avail. As his eyelids grew much too heavy for him to keep them up, a hand suddenly appeared on the ss in front of him and for a moment he saw its owner looking up at him with tears in her eyes.
''Three...''
~a¡ª?~
He didn''t know if it was seconds, minutes or hours, however the next time Sam opened his thoughts no longer felt sluggish, his mind booting up almost immediately as if caffeine was pumped directly into his veins.
The scene in front of him moved in and out of focus and soon enough he realized he was lying down, the ceiling above him white and his surroundings unbearably bright.
He tried to move his head but stopped right away.
Something didn''t feel right.
Facing up against he tried lifting his hand. He stared at it for a few seconds then put it down, the strange feeling only growing stronger.
''Don''t tell me...''
He pushed himself up, slowly and carefully studying his movements the entire time. He is alive, that much is cleatlr. Going by everything he went through he should''ve been in aa for a quite a while, but he felt so refreshed as if he had just stepped out of a cold shower.
"... where is this ce?"
A look through his surroundings revealed that he was in a pure white room which only enhanced the unsettling feeling he was getting. It was quite spacious with the bed and medical equipment barely taking any space. There were no doors or windows but he could see cameras hanging from each of the corners making him feel like he''s in some kind of mental faculty.
[I see you''re awake.]
The voice came after a clicking sound and he immediately recognized the owner.
"Elina..." He said, looking at one of the cameras. "How long have I been asleep?"
[A-and you recognize my voice...]
The change of tone didn''t go unnoticed by him, but he already knows that something strange is going on.
[Sam... listen, I have a few questions I was told to ask you.] Elina voice came again. [It''s something of a memory check and... just making sure you''re you...]
"Elina, you''re a smart woman. You should already know that such a test is pointless." Sam replied, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "Did you do it?"
After a moment of silence a window popped up on the wall facing him showing disying the female scientist''s face.
[Sam... you... you remember what happened?] She asked, a difficult expression painting her face.
"Everything." He replied curtly.
Elina stared at him for a few seconds, her eyes swimming from one corner to the other as she seemed to struggle with what she had to say.
[The thing... the thing that injured you...] she paused for a couple of seconds, taking a deep breath then looking him in the eyes. [ording to the Nephilim, the sharp object you were injured with was made using an Art called Eitr. It creates weapons out of a certain material... a material that, while not radioactive, can cause some gic alteration. I don''t think I need to exin the rest.]
"... yeah..."
Sam already understood. A material that could be described as solid light caused him some kind of cancer. Who could''ve guessed.
[The tumors were spreading far too quickly for any treatment to be effective and... I had to make a choice.]
Letting out a sigh, Sam got up from his bed. He stretched his arms then took off the sky blue hospital clothes he was wearing and examined his body. Soon enough it became clear where he was getting the strange feeling.
He was in a different body, one that looked much healthier than what he''s used to. The imperfections that came from being ab dweller were all gone, his muscles well defined as if he was a model for the cover of some romance novel.
[So... how do you feel?] Elina asked, turning her gaze away as her cheeks reddened a little.
Sam remained silent, staring at his palms for a few seconds. His gaze was inevitably drawn to a part he tried to ignore, and with an inexplicable sense of fear he reached for his underwear and pulled at it checking what''s inside.
His eyes went wide for a moment then slowly narrowed as he turned to face the female scientist whose gaze was still averted, though she looked much more nervous than before.
"Really?"
[A-a-anyway! It seems you''re still the same person on the inside!] Elina said, avoiding his question. [We literally reced every cell in your body one at a time! It was really scary, you know. I was afraid you wouldn''t be the same person as before...]
Letting go of his underwear, Sam continued to stare in Elina''s direction for a few seconds before heaving an exasperated sigh.
"So... did you finish the project yourself?" He asked. "I doubt you had the time to test it so..."
Before he made the decision to meet with the silver haired Nephilim Mj??lnir Sam was working on something he dubbed project Asclepius. To put it simply, it was his attempt at turning humans into Valkyries which turned out to not be that original of an idea.
His n was to create nanomachines that could mimic the functions of human cells, and if that sounds familiar then it''s because it''s the same thing Odin did to himself and his daughter leading to everything that happened so far.
In the end he didn''t get to finish it so there were no animal testings let alone human ones, and with how critical his condition was ording to the female scientist he doubted she had the time for them making him the first experiment.
He recognized her abilities which is why he chose to involve her in the project, however he still doubted that she could finish everything on her own.
[Actually, I...] though her nervousness didn''t go away, it was clear that its source had changed. [I recieved some help...]
Silence took over for a few seconds as Elina appeared to shrink under Sam''s gaze despite iting from a screen. She typed a few things on the keyboard making another window appear beside hers and just like a couple of minutes ago Sam found himself staring at it with wide eyed disbelief.
[Sam...]
The second window showed none other than Alice''s father and the man responsible for the nightmare humanity had to live for the past decade.
"Odin..."
Chapter 150 The Human Mind.
"Odin..."
Sam''s mood soured the moment he saw the old man''s face. He looked much better than thest time they met, with all of his limbs restored and injuries healed. One thing that didn''t change is that he''s wrapped n chains, his body fixed to a chair leaving him no space for movement at all.
[How do you feel?] The old man asked, his expression remaining neutral.
"Am I supposed to feel something?" Sam asked, doing his best to remain calm.
Tension increased as they stared into each other''s eyes, neither one saying anything for a while.
"Elina, where is Alice right now?"
His question received no answer. The female scientist remained silent, her eyes cast down. The old man was thest person he had expected to survive so with him being around it only made sense for the others to be around. Sadly it appears things aren''t that simple.
[Alice...] the old man spoke, his voice conveying subtle but heart wrenching pain. [She left with Loki...]
Silence returned, the suffocating pressure of the pure white room adding to the stress building up in Sam. It was then that he noticed how calm he''s being about the situation. He knew he should be feelinguncontroble rage at the moment, however surprisingly he had his emotions underplete control. Not that he didn''t feel anything. He just had a better time holding it in, that''s all.
"It''s all your fault, old man." He said, walking toward the bed ad sitting down. After a few seconds of thought he turned with a question that seemed a little surprising to the other two. "So? When are we going after them?"
[Once we clean up things over here.] Wolf replied.
[W-w-w-w-wait! What are you talking about!?] Elina cut in. [Don''t tell me... are you really going to chace them into another dimension!!?]
"Well, obviously." Sam answered.
"But how are you going to do it? Is it even possible to find a specific person in the multiverse?"
Although she has a point, Sam wasn''t too stressed about the how. Odin escaped his world to this one and the Nephilim still managed to find him. It might be difficult but as long as there is a possibility he was confident they could make it work.
[Sam, I will ask you again.] Wolf spoke again, repeating the same question as before. [How do you feel?]
Stopping for a moment, Sam gave it much thought before answering.
"My thoughts are much clearer." He said. "My memory as well. I can visualize things without much effort and I have a much easier time staying focused."
[I see...] Wolf nodded. [It''s not exactly an intended effect of ASC, however there is no point inining about enhanced performance. That said, I highly advise against attempting to increase your cognitive abilities any more than this, unless you want to risk losing what makes you you.]
"You don''t have to worry about that. I won''t be upgrading any time seen."
The truth is Sam was doing his best to not think too much. His normal human brain was one of the best to ever exist in their world and now it no longer suffers from the limitations ced on himby mother nature. If he isn''t careful with his thoughts no one knows what kind of trouble he might find himself into.
[And Sam. Don''t suppress your emotions. Just because you can doesn''t mean you have to.]
Human emotions are a series of biochemical reactions which are out of people''s control. One can try to suppress them and sometimes people grow numb to them, however in the endit was impossible to control thempletely. Now that his brain had been upgraded to an electronic one it was possible for him tune out some thoughts and feelings, something that terrified even him.
"Guess this isn''t exactly like the Valkyries, huh?" Sam asked.
The girls experienced emotions like a normal human which made it impossible to tell the difference, however Sam began to understand how it''s possible to restrain some of them while leaving the rest untouched.
[Valkyries... the Nephilim in general have been the way they are from the start so it appears natural to them.] Said wolf, closing his eyes and exhaling. [For us it takes some time to get used to the change. That said, you''re the Third person we tried this on so I don''t exactly know how it''ll turn out or you.]
"Is this why I''m locked in here?" Sam asked.
[Well, there was a possibility that you wouldn''t be the same person once you woke up.] Said Elina, fidgeting in her ce.
"The ship of Theseus, huh?"
Sam banished that thought the moment it appeared. He had a lot of important things to take care of, this wasn''t the time for him to ponder over whether he''s still the same person or not.
"Well, for the time being I''m still me." He said. "Though I can''t say the same about my body, my memories seem to be intact so..."
[It would be pointless to get an entirely new body just for it to be the same as the old one.] Said Wolf, the corners of his mouth curling up. [While the ASC work to give you the best body your genes would allow. It seems miss Brians took the liberty to do some modifications.]
"Let''s focus on my brain for now." Sam gave a disapproving look to the nervous female scientist. "You didn''t do anything, right? Anything beside... that..."
Part of the problem with Alice is that her memories have been modified with a few things added and thers erased. Now that he''s in the same position he realized how scary the prospect of not knowing if your memories are real or not can be. What''s scarier is that he might never notice and since he has no way to confirm it he might never know.
[I didn''t do anything!] Elina snapped, mming her hands on the desk as her face flushed.
"Really?"
[Really!]
Though he wanted to believe her he still had no way of telling for sure. That said, with the memory of their breakup still there he felt that everything should be fine.
[Memory maniption isn''t that easy of a task. Especially in our case since we used to be biological humans.] Wolf exined. [Loki... you heard our theory about why... about why Alice turned out that way, right?]
"Yeah?" Sam said, recalling the story Loki told them. "The part about self-awareness, right?"
[Yes...] pausing for a moment, Wolf went on. [Science can''t exin what makes people people. Even with all of the advancements we made and the technological progress we still don''t know what consciousness is and how the human mind works. The procedure worked for me and I''m confident that I''m still the same man as before. It might sound simple, however you have to think about it very carefully and ask yourself the question; are you the same person as before?]
The human mind was an unknown variable, it was impossible to calcte what might happen when messing around with it.
Letting his gaze fall to the floor, Sam closed his eyes and began to think. His childhood, his white haired friend, the Cmity invasion, the war, the Resistance, the Valkyries, his inventions and research. He remembered it all, knowing with utmost certainty that he had lived through it all.
"Elina." cing his hand on his knees, he pushed himself up and turned to the female scientist. "There is a lot to take care of so..."
His body might be different and the same goes for his brain. However Sam was sure of it, his essence was still there. He wondered if that''s what they call a soul, but something told him that as long as he had it he could confidently say he''s still there.
Chapter 151 ON And OFF.
The feeling that he was trapped in a new body intensified once he started walking around. Thankfully Sam''s new brain allowed him to tune out that feeling and soon enough be wasfortable in his own skin once again.
Elina was still hesitant about letting him out however she eventually conceded. He listened to a quick report on how things went while he was out of it as he changed his clothes then left for hisb.
To his surprise the room he woke up in used to be part of the underground shelter which had been modified for other purposes while he was asleep. A lot of things happened during his two weeka but he was d the forty sixth base was still there.
Though he should''ve some really important things he needed to take care of at the moment he insisted on going to see his personal Valkyries first. Nine and Five had suffered some serious injuries during the fight, however the one he was worried about the most was Zero Three.
"DOCTOR!!!"
Miku was the first to greet him, her eyes wide like tes the moment he appeared in the Valkyrie residence. She literally teleported from her ce on the couch and fell into his arms hugging him tightly as she nuzzled her head on his chest.
"Doctor! You''re finally awake! I... I was so worried!"
"Now now, I''m fine as you can see." Sam said, returning the hug while patting her head.
Though his clothes felt normal when he put them on he was still worried about whether things would feel any different when he touched them.
To his relief there didn''t seem to be any major changes to his senses. Miku''s delicate body still felt the same, even if the strength she put into the arms she wrapped around him would''ve crushed him normally.
Having such a cute girl in his arms awakened his carnal desires instantly, however thanks to his new brain he managed to turn it off as fast and focused on enjoying the cuteness instead.
"So you''re finally awake." Looking up Sam was surprised to see himself swarmed with beautiful girls. Among them B3 was the first one to speak, her arms crossed with a wide smile on her face. "We were starting to get worried."
"Well, it was a really sensitive procedure." Sam said. "Let''s just be d I''m still around."
"To think you actually made it out alive. Never thought humans could be this persistent." The second one to speak was Nino. When he turned her way she bowed in his direction adding to the Japanese vibe she gave. "Thanks for your hard work."
"Yeah, you as well."
Though he knew it had nothing to do with her, Sam really couldn''t bring himself to look at the raven haired Valkyrie. They looked nothing alike but her Asian features reminded him of Shizuru and the pain she caused him. He was about to tune out the difort he felt however he chose to keep it. Rather than ignoring it for the time being he knew it would be for the best to ovee it fast if he''s going to chase after her.
"It is nice to see you back in good health, Doctor Sanderson."
"Miku has been really worried about you."
"Thanks, Nana." Sam was taken aback for a moment when he saw the silver hair but then he realized it wasn''t the Nephilim named after a hammer. "And you''re..."
"Ah! We''ve never spoken before, right? I''m Ichigo."
Though he didn''t know what she''s called he certainly does remember her. She''s the tall pink haired Valkyrie with the enormous bosom who caught his attention before. As he stared at her for a while her cheeks began to redden and she averted her gaze. That only helped to ignite his fire and this time he was unable to put it out before the young Valkyrie in his arms noticed.
"... Doctor, your thing..." A momentter Miku was looking up at him with sparkling eyes. "Does this mean you want to-"
"I''m quite busy right so-" He quickly cut her before she exposed him. "Let''s leave it for another time."
"Oh! Right, you just woke up." She said in realization, the excitement she had gradually dying off. "There must be quite a lot for you to deal with..."
"Don''t worry. We will have all the time in the world soon enough."
Just then the door to the residence''s gym opened and two Valkyries came out, their eyes naturally drawn to the crowd gathering around him. Seeing the familiar ponytaile Sam let a smile form on his face and watched as she dropped the water bottle she held and made her way toward him.
"How''re you doing, Fi-"
Without a warning the ponytailed Valkyrie sealed his mouth with hers shocking everyone around. Sam was frozen for a moment, surprised by her boldness. He then ced a hand on her back and pulled her toward him enjoying her lips for the first time in a long while.
"Doctor... you''re back..." Five said, smiling as her tears began to flow.
"Yeah... I''m back..."
He was about to kiss her again but noticed Miku ring at him with puffed cheeks.
"Doctor~" Nino spoke approached them with a teasing smile. "I know it''s sudden but... is it true that you do ''that'' with your personal Valkyries?"
Sam remained silent for a few seconds before he understood what she was referring to. He noticed that the other Valkyries were blushing as well which gave him a feeling that they knew what she was talking about. Well, except for one of them.
"Aaah! It''s you!" CS eximed, pointing a finger at him. "You look so different without your sses!"
"You''re exaggerating..." Sam replied with a wry smile, thanking her for saving him from the awkward situation on the inside.
His weak eyesight was another problem his new body solved so he had no need for sses anymore. That said, he was considering wearing a fake pair going forward feeling that they were a part of his identity at this point, same as hisb coat.
"Man, it''s really good to see you back! This ce has been really gloomy ever since the battle ended." CS said, grinning in Five''s direction. "Recently I even started counting how many times she sighs while spacing out."
Same as Five, CS was wearing nothing but shorts and a sports bra which made it clear that the two of them have been training together.
"Good to see you''ve made new friends." Sam said causing Five to blush a little.
Her nervousness only increased when she noticed everyone looking at her so she decided to make a swift retreat only to remember something important, leaning in and whispering it in his ear.
"Please make sure to visit me tonight." She said. "I can''t take it anymore."
To his surprise the shyness in her voice as she made that invitation sounded incredibly erotic causing his body to react despite his attempt to keep everything in control.
"Oo~h! It seems Doctor is getting prepared!" Ninomented, leaning in along with a few others to get a closer look at the tent that formed in his pants. "Does this mean you''re going to do it now?"
The curious excitement in their eyes caused Sam himself to blush and he quickly took a deep breath trying to calm down.
"You shouldn''t talk about things like this so openly." He said, feeling the weight of their gazes.
He took another look at the plethora of gorgeous women surrounding him and began to get even more excited. Aftering so close to death and surviving he felt an unspeakable desire for the beautiful creatures and considered doing it with all of them at the same time, iming all of them before anyone else gets the chance. However the next words that the Japanese doll spoke calmed him down and reminded him that two of the most important individuals he was looking for weren''t among the crowd.
"Right, Nine said it''s inappropriate to speak of those things in public." Nino said with a slight frown.
"You should be more careful." Nana said, cing a hand on her cheek, Ichigo nodding beside her as the two of them blushed.
"I don''t see Nine and Three." Sam said, turning to thest member of their team.
"Nine should be in her garden." Five said. "As for Three, she should be in the pool as usual."
Chapter 152 Thank You.
The Valkyrie residence rooftop had quite arge pool on it, though only one person had used it regrly ever since the base''s establishment. To Zero Three it was a ce she could rx in, away from all the stress her role in the war against the Cmities brought.
She always believed that swimming can wash away all her worries, however ever since the battle at the obsidian pce her hobby no longer had the same effect as before.
"... Haa¡"
As she sat by the poolside, dipping her feet in the water, the young Valkyrie allowed her gaze to wander to the horizon, watching as the setting sun painted the sky in a warm orange color.
"It''s getting cold. Shouldn''t you get down already?"
The voice pulled her out of her somber thoughts, her eyes slowly widening as she realized who it''s owner was. A second passed and she still faced forward, then another. She held a hand to her chest as the pain she felt grew stronger and stronger. She wanted to turn around and face him, however fear prevented her from doing so.
It wasn''t the same fear she experienced after losing to the Nephilim, nor was it the fear from the nightmares she has from time to time. What scared her was his reaction; his response to the decision she made that day. She chose to prioritize him over everything else and because of that their enemy escaped with the very thing they were desperately trying to protect.
"Three?"
She didn''t answer, her gaze lowered as she battled her own feelings. She considered escaping for a moment, but she knew that wouldn''t work for long. Eventually she would have to face him and whatever he has to say. If that''s really case then it''s for the best if she got it done with now, or so she thought before getting up, the fear returning and preventing her from moving.
As she tried her best to gather her courage her head shot up as she felt a hand on her back. Her face began to heat up and she was about to look behind, but then her thoughts came to a halt when a sudden force pushed her body forward and into the pool causing a small ssh. As the cold water enveloped her body the worries she had suddenly disappeared and anger took over.
"HEY!!! WHAT WAS THAT FOR!!!?" She shouted the moment she emerged from the water, ring up at the man in theb coat.
"I thought you liked swimming?" Sam replied with a grin.
"Not like this..."
Her anger went away as fast as it arrived and it didn''t take her long to understand that that''s what he''s been aiming for from the start. Still she found it difficult to look him in the eyes and ended up averting her gaze, submerging most of her face under the water to hide her flushed face.
"What''s wrong?" Sam asked, leaning down and holding his hand out for her.
The young Valkyrie didn''t reply, but when she noticed him smiling at her, no sign of displeasure in his voice, she knew that he wasn''t angry which only made the guilt she felt much worse.
She took his hand and climbed out of the pool intending to apologize right away, however before she could Sam pulled her into his arms in a tight hug.
"Three¡ thank you..." he said, his voice warm and caring. "For saving me¡ and for being there while I was in that pod."
The words stabbed her like a knife and her sight grew blurry. She didn''t know how to react. There were many ways she expected this interaction to go, however not like this.
"I¡ I didn''t do anything¡" she said. "It was Elina¡ Elina is the one who saved you¡"
She remembered the female scientist who worked tirelessly trying to keep him alive, copsing a few times before Odin was brought in to help her. Compared to her, the young Valkyrie didn''t know if she did anything worth gratitude. After all she disobeyed his orders even though she promised to follow them when she became his personal Valkyrie.
"I had given up on life back then." Sam released his hold, looking down and seeing the tears that began to stream without her knowing. "I was so focused on winning I was willing to sacrifice myself if it meant keeping our enemies from getting what they want. Now however I see that I''ve been wrong." Whiping her tears with his hand, he let a genuine smile show his true feelings and gently patted her on the head. "Winning would''ve been pointless if I couldn''t be with you when it''s all over. That''s why, Three, thanks for saving me."
Leaning down, Sam kissed her on the forehead then pulled her into his arms once more.
Before she could say anything, her tears began to flow again, her hands clutching hisb coat as she desperately clung to him. His warmth slowly spread to her erasing the horrible cold she felt when carrying his body across the world, life slowly seeping away from it. "Doctor! I''m sorry¡ I¡ if I were stronger¡ if I were better¡ I¡"
"It''s okay. You have nothing to apologize for."
As the sun went down, Sam held the young Valkyrie as she let everything out.
''That''s not it, Three¡'' he thought, caressing her long hair. ''I''m the one who should be apologizing. If I were better, you wouldn''t have had to go through all of this...''
The enemy was right under his nose the whole time yet he never suspected it one bit. He was too blind to notice the signs, too busy with his carnal desires to realize he was being yed.
''Well, can you really me me?'' He thought. ''I think I did pretty well for someone in my position. I doubt anyone else would''ve made a difference. ''
Being surrounded with so many beautiful young women; the average man wouldn''t be able to think if put in the same ce. The fact that he was able to do his work and continue his research under those circumstances is quite the achievement. And on top of all of that, he led the humans toward victory when all odds were against them. That alone should make up for everything he messed up.
"Doctor¡ you¡ you don''t hate me, right?" Three asked between the sobs.
"Where did thate from?" Sam replied with a shortugh. "I would never hate you."
"... really?"
"Yes, after all¡" pausing for a moment, Sam remembered their short time together, every interaction they had clear in his mind thanks to his upgraded brain. "You''re my precious Valkyrie."
"I¡ I see¡"
After worrying about it for all those days, Three was finally free of the uncertainty that pained her after the obsidian pce battle.
The warm feeling returned to her chest and she allowed herself to enjoy his embrace, but sadly it seems she wouldn''t be able to do so for much longer.
"Doooctooooor!!!"
Hearing the familiar voice approaching gave Sam a really bad feeling and the moment he turned around a pair of gigantic breasts crashed into him, causing him to lose bnce and fall into the pool.
"Doctor! You''re finally back! What took you so long!?"
"N-Nine! Calm¡ down! I can''t¡ I can''t¡ breath!!!"
Three watched silently as Sam struggled to release himself, his face buried into the blond one''s chest with the water making things worse.
"Serves you right." She said with a smirk. She had noticed her friend teleporting above them and quickly moved out of the way to avoid another dip in the cold water.
Though he had no need for breathing anymore, his mind had yet to adapt to his new body which made the sensation of suffocating as real as it could get.
Five arrived soon after and upon noticing the struggle he was going through she quickly saved him before his mind started to believe he had really drowned.
"You¡ you''ve went¡ a little too far¡ Nine¡" he said between the coughs.
"I-I''m sorry! I was just¡ too eager to see Doctor¡" Nine replied, twiddling her fingers nervously.
Sam could only sigh while squeezing the water out of hisb coat. He gave the blond Valkyrie a side nce, her soaked appearance lighting the fire he has been trying to suppress for quite a while.
Noticing that night has arrived a thought urred to him and he looked at his personal Valkyries one by one.
"You three did a really great job in thest battle." pausing for a moment to cleare his throat, he tuned out the embarrassment he felt and made his proposition. "How about we get a room so I can properly show you my appreciation?"
The three remained silent, a few seconds passing before they understood what he means. Though Three and Five went red as they prepared to answer him, Nine was the quickest to move throwing herself into his arms.
"Nine?"
The blond Valkyrie was trembling, her breath uneven. Just as Sam began to wonder if there is something wrong with her she slowly raised her head and looked up at him with a heated gaze.
"Doctor¡" she said, pink hearts forming in her eyes. "I can''t take it anymore!"
Standing on the tops of her toes she ced her lips on his, the two of them vanishing the next instant.
Three and Five stood there dumbfounded, realizing that Nine had just teleported away with the Doctor before they could say anything.
Chapter 153 Upgrade.
Before he knew it, Sam found himself in Nine''s room lying down on the bed with her on top of him.
Seeing how she was panting with that ecstatic look on her face he realized that he might be in some serious danger.
"Doctor... I... I want you to-"
She was about to dive down on him going for another kiss, however before she could he blocked her with one hand.
"Nine, cut it out." He said, his expression deadpan. "That''s an order."
"But! Doctor!"
Just then Three and Five appeared in the room as well and seeing how theirrades was practically attaching the Doctor they quickly pulled her away.
"Nooo! Doctor! I want to do it with Doctor!"
As Five held her in ce, the blond Valkyrie kept reaching toward Sam with both hands. Thankfully things didn''t have to get violent and she calmed down soon enough.
"Just to be clear, Nine." Sam spoke, attempting to adjust his sses just to realize he wasn''t wearing any. "I''m the one who decides who and when I do it with. Never forget that."
"... yes..." she replied, her head cast down. "I wanted to be with Doctor, that''s all..."
"You have to be more disciplined and control your urges. Failing to so so means you aren''t worthy of being my personal Valkyrie."
"Eh!!? Doctor! I''m sorry! I didn''t mean to be disrespectful! I will be careful in the future so please don''t demote me!"
Sam had already known for some time now that Nine has a much stronger sex drive than the others. Going forward he nned on increasing the size of his harem as much as possible, that would inevitably lead to her time with him decreasing and the same goes for the others. He didn''t want her to end up in another man''s hands just because she''s unable to control her carnal desires.
He stared at her for a few seconds wondering what he should do then closed his eyes and exhaled.
"As a punishment." He said, taking off his drenched clothes piece by piece. "You will watch everything from the sides until I say it''s your turn."
"Eeeeh!! But-"
"No buts." Sam cut her before she couldin, walking over to Zero Three and cing his hands over her shoulders. "Besides, Three is the one who saved my life that day. If anyone deserves to go first then it''s her."
While the young Valkyrie was blushing to her ears, Nine waspletely silent at that statement, her body losing strength causing her to fall to her knees.
"I... I understand..." she said, her soaked hair and clothes making it look as if cold water was really poured on her.
"Five, lock the door." Sam said. He didn''t want the other Valkyries to have the chance to peek, though with how they''re able to teleport anywhere he didn''t know if doors meant anything anymore.
"Alright then..."
Moving away from the young Valkyrie, Sam looked down at his pants and took a deep breath. He nced at the three Valkyries one more time then proceeded to unbuckle his belt, and once he had everything removed be looked up again to see the shocked expressions on their faces.
"D-Doctor! What happened to your-"
"You already know that I''m no longer the same as before, right?" Sighing at Nine''s newfound excitement, Sam looked down at his erect meat pole. "Well, Elina thought it would be funny to mess around with some things and this is the result."
Sam was never bothered by the size of his dick, one could even say he was proud of it considering how many women he managed to satisfy. It wasn''t small by any means, howeverpared to how massive it has be his previous size pwasn''t much to speak of.
Just by looking he could tell it was over nine inches, and the thickness only made things worse.
Any man in his ce would''ve been happy to undergo such an upgrade, however to Sam it felt like a huge hit to his pride. Still, a part of him was looking forward to using it but when he turned to the young Valkyrie he saw that she had stepped away from him fidgeting nervously while trying to keep her eyes away from his tool.
"Three?"
"I-I-I think I''ll just watch for now!" She said, walking over to Nine and sitting down.
''Ah!''
It was only then that he realized his new weapon was almost as big as her forearm. For a girl with a body as petite as hers it made sense for her to be scared of something of that size going inside her. Nine on the other hand looked rather excited, but the smile she wore disappeared the next second as he turned to Five.
The ponytailed Valkyrie looked as nervous as the young one, however she didn''t allow it to hinder her and immediately began taking her clothes off.
Her eyes didn''t leave the meat pole as she stepped toward him. When she looked up he was surprised to see that that pink hearts had already formed in her eyes.
He pulled her toward him and stole her lips, going for a deep kiss right of the bat.
Five closed her eyes and intertwined her tongue with his, warmth blossoming in her chest like sparks igniting her passion for him.
Though he wanted to enjoy the kiss a little more his rod twitched demanding he shares the softness of the Valkyrie''s lips.
When he went and sat on the bedside Five knew what she had to do, walking over and taking her ce in front of his rod.
"Doctor''s... It''s so..."
She stared at it for a while, her eyes half open as if she was in a daze. She ran her fingers from the tip all the way to the base. Not knowing how she should go about holding it she tucked a stray strand behind her ear and leaned in with her tongue out. The warm breath should''ve been a clear enough warning, but when the slippery surface stroked the tip Sam''s whole body shivered, the sensation increasing a thousand folds when she took the thing into her mouth.
Sam had to actively stop himself from making any sound as he came to a realization. Suze wasn''t the only thing Elina had messed with. All it took was a few brushed of Five''s tongue and lips for him to realize that the female scientist had cranked up the sensitivity of his rod a few times.
Less than a minute in and he was already on the bring of ejaction. Though she tried Five soon learned that she couldn''t shove the entire rod inside her mouth, not without it going all the way down her throat. Knowing that''s her limit she began bobbing her head causing a more intense wave of pleasure to flood Sam''s nerves.
He reached out with his right hand about to tell her to slow down but when she looked up at him with those pink hearts in her eyes he chose to let her continue only patting her head instead.
Three and Nine sat on the floor watching from the other side of the room -which wasn''t that big-. It became clear that the scene was getting into them as they fidgeted in their ce with their hands between their legs as they rubbed against each other.
Three was confused at first, however from what little she knew about the deed she soon understood that there might be more than one way to pleasure a man''s rod and was reminded that the deed wasn''t just about that thing prating her body.
? Having made up her mind the young Valkyrie nodded to herself before standing up. She quickly removed her swimsuit and faced Sam with a serious expression then before the embarrassment got to her she made her way to his side. Sam weed her with a smile and without hesitation pressed his lips against hers. He felt her nervousness through the touch of her skin; the two of them barely had any intimate moments beside the time he made love to her for the first time so it only made sense for. That said, as their lips ovepped he could tell she was trying to convey her feelings to him and that helped him savor her cuteness even more.
"Ah~ D-Doctah~... mnn.. ha~hh~a??..."
Three made some really cute voices, her body shuddering each time he stroked her behind. His fingers eventually found their way to her secret flesh. Rubbing it caused her love juices to flow as her body froze, but Sam took that opening to invade her mouth coiling his tongue around hers and making contortive sweeps of her mouth''s vault.
Down below, Five didn''t seem to like the fact that his attention was taken away from her. With a slight frown she became more aggressive, running her tongue along the long shaft, sucking at the base while using her hand to stroke it up and down with such vigor it felt like she was about to rip it off. She was trying to make him cum faster but Sam did his best to hold it in. That didn''tst for long though and soon after she gobbled the rod once more he held her head down shooting his load deep into her throat.
Chapter 154 Different Flavor.
Five kept Sam''s convulsing spear in her mouth, gulping everyst drop of the man milk it shot.
Sam waspletely still for a few seconds before copsing on his back. His eyes were wide with shock and at some point he had forgotten to breath.
"D-Doctor!?"
Hearing Three''s surprised voice he sucked air in a gap and coughed a few times. He felt like his head was on fire, his whole body overtaken by a strange feeling he had never experienced before.
No, to say he had never experienced it would be an exaggeration. He knew what the feeling was, it''s just that it was so much stronger that all of his thoughts halted for a while, something he didnt expect to happen with his new brain.
Regaining some of hisposure he turned to the young Valkyrie. Seeing the concerned look she gave him he smiled and patted her on the head.
''I need to calm down...''
He took a deep breath and reorganized his thought, enjoying the strong sensation as it slowly faded before getting up.
Once again he was reminded that his new body isn''t the same as the one he had before. The sexual pleasure he felt and the intensity of his ejaction was nothing like the past. He could tell with utmost confidence that that was the best nut he had busted in his life so far.
Almost two entire minutes of mind numbing bliss, and all of that from a simple blow job. Male orgasms aren''t supposed tost that long which is why it took him a while to recover, but when Five''s lips and tongue slid on the shaft of his rod as she took out of her mouth his body twitched and he felt like he was on the verge of cumming once more.
''Shit! This is too much!!!''
He gritted his teeth and held it in, cursing Elina in his mind but thanking her at the same time.
If a Valkyrie''s mouth could make him feel that good then what would happen when they get to the real act?
Once his tool was free it didn''t take long for him to get his act together. He could''ve tuned it all out, however he didn''t have to think about it much to know there would be no fun in doing so.
"Hm?" When he lifted himself up the first thing he noticed was that Five was giving his rod an intense stare. "What''s wrong?"
"Um... well, it''s just..." pausing for a moment, she looked up at him sounding confused. "Your cum tastes a little... different..."
He certainly did not expect that. It was only then that he realized that he had overlooked something important; if the ASC has reced everyst cell in his body, what happened to his testicles and sperm?
That question freaked him out for a moment. Though the procedure might''ve made him immortal -as long as his head isn''t destroyed-, the idea that he might no longer be able to have children was simply terrifying.
''Now that I think about it...''
Suddenly he was reminded of the fact that Alice was a Valkyrie all along. Ever since the first time they slept together the two of them had been doing it with the goal of making a child. No matter how many times he creampied her nothing has ever happened which he thought wasn''t that strange since Alice was supposed to be in her thirties. Now he realizes it was never meant to be and that caused a sharp pain to hit his chest.
"Doctor?"
Five''s voice brought him back to reality and soon enough his worries vanished without a trace. It didn''t really matter if he can have kids or not; with all of his lovers being Valkyries the chances of him impregnating anyone dropped to zero even if he still had his old body.
He has yet to confirm if the part about them having artificial wombs being true or not, but since they can only carry the children of other women it would''ve been pointless to get them pregnant in the first ce.
"Ah, it must be another result of this new body." Sam said with a smile. "Would it be a problem?"
"N-no! Not at all!" Five answered in a fluster, her face flushing instantly.
"D-Doctor..."
Looking up Sam saw the blond Valkyrie standing beside him looking extremely sorrowful. She sped her hands in front of her rich bosom and leaned toward him. The moment he saw those puppy eyes he guessed what she was about to do.
"Doctor, I''ll be very careful from now on so please... please let me join you..."
Of course Sam had no intention of forgiving her just yet, but the pleading look she gave him in addition to her soaked appearance made him feel a little bad. With a resigned sigh he turned away and made his decision.
"Alright, take off your clothes."
Five''s expression instantly brightened and she quickly began removing her uniform.
Just then Sam noticed something and turned to look at the other two and the bed he was sitting on. No matter how he looked at it it was too small for the four of them so their only choice would be to use it one at a time.
''Or maybe...''
"Five, can you go bring the mattress from your room?" He asked. "You too, Three."
Both of them looked confused but went and did as he said anyways, vanishing for a few seconds.
"Doctor..."
Having taken her clothes off, Nine took a seat beside him and was giving him shy looks. Letting out another sigh he wrapped his right arm around her and pulled her toward him.
"I hope you''ve learned your lesson." He said as he caressed her arm.
"Yes." She answered with a bashful smile. "It''s just... I love Doctor so much I sometimes lose track of myself."
"Seriously, what am I going to do with you..."
He joined their lips having sensed her eagerness to do so.
"Mmhm... mm~a??... Doctah~a??... hah... I... mhmm... I missed Doctah so... mmuch..."
Nine parted her lips as if inviting his tongue inside and as he went in she pushed hers into his mouth, though she seemed a bit hesitant to do it.
"Ah~a??!"
She let out a delightful gasp and he coped her giant melons. As usual they were too big to be contained in his palms but he enjoyed their sticity nheless, letting his fingers dig into them as he savored the taste of her saliva.
Three and Five returned with the mattresses but chose to remain silent, watching the passionate kiss with growing jealousy. Nine opened her eyes to nce at them for a moment but then returned to enjoying being with the man she loves.
Continuing to fondle her chest with one hand, Sam began caressing her thick thighs with the other before inserting it between them. The second he touched her already soaked honey pot Nine''s whole body shuddered as the warm feeling in that area fought to get out.
"Ah! D-Doctah! I''m-!!!!"
Already knowing what''s about to happen he sealed her mouth and squeezed the breast he held, his fingers going into her hole as he massaged the entrance causing love juices to stream out.
"H~aah~... Doctah~a??"
Happiness spread through her as she looked up at him with barely open eyes, the pink hearts visible in her irises. She has longed for that sensation the entire time he was away, unable to replicate it no matter how many times she tried it by herself. Now that she was in his hands it became clear that nothing could ever satisfy her other than him and so she moved in for another kiss and Sam weed her this time though he kept it tame and didn''t go for the tongue.
"Um! We are back!"
Three interrupted them thinking they were about to start again. Her blond friend didn''t like that very much as she turned to her with a pout, but the young Valkyrie didnt care.
"Alright-" standing up Sam looked at the mattresses Three and Five held. "Those will do."
~a¡ª?~
"Ha~a??... how does it feel, Doctor~a???"
"Mhmm!"
"I see~a??... then~a??..."
In addition to Nine''s, Sam had the Valkyries ce the three mattresses on the floor side by side. He wished they had a bigger bed that could hold all of them but for now they would have to do with that.
He was ready to start making love to them but then he remembered the problem with his new tool. He wanted to get a better feel for it before he inserted it into the wonder holes of the Valkyries, so he had Nine and Five use their gigantic marshmallows to pleasure him as heid down on his back.
Previously whenever he had the blond Valkyrie give him a titty fuck his dick would always get buried between her massive boobs. Now however a big part of it was sticking out and she leaned toward it with her extended tongue beginning to lick it with a pleased smile. Seeing that Five stopped moving and mimicked her licking and sucking as well
"Ah!! Doc... ahh!! Could... could you... Hyahh!!"
Having his whole meat pole stimted with everything from tongues to lips and breasts caused Sam''s body to twitch every so often leading his hands to sp Three''s behind as she sat on his face as he licked her flower bud.
The young Valkyrie was too embarrassed, trying to keep her voice down even though she enjoyed the sensation. Each time she feels the rough texture of his tongue brush against that sensitive spot her body bes weaker and her breathing rougher.
She nced behind her to see how the Doctor was doing but in that moment her eyes shot wide as his teeth identally touched herbia.
"Ahhh!"
"Nine... you shouldn''t monopolize Doctor''s rod like that..." Five said, sounding rather upset.
Nine wasn''t satisfied with just licking so she opened her mouth and gobbled the part of the meat pole sticking out from the valley of their joined breasts. She bobbed her head a few times before slowly taking it out, however the smile she put on immediately after said she wasn''t particrly sorry about what she did.
"What are you saying, Five? You''ve already had the chance to taste Doctor''s white cream. I think it''s only fair that I get to go next."
"But..."
"... Alright. Fine..." Nine sighed, ncing in Sam''s direction for a moment. "Let''s make him cum together, okay?"
Putting on a serious expression, Five nodded and followed after the blond. The two began liking and kissing the head focusing their efforts on the ns causing the whole penis to pulsate.
"Hyaah!... ahhn... hahh... ahh... nha~h... ahh... aaaaaAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!"
Three''s back straightened, her head shooting up as she cried out while spraying Sam''s face with a clear liquid. Seeing her climax released his restraints causing the load he held in to erupt with such vigor that it almost reached the ceiling.
"Ah!"
Five gasped as the sticky liquid sttered over her face, but Nine had her mouth open and her tongue extended smiling as it showered her. In a few seconds the two of them were covered in sperm and while the ponytailed Valkyrie still looked surprised the blond one licked her lips and immediately began cleaning what''s left on the rod.
Three was panting, leaning forward and lifted herself up from Sam''s face. Just like before his orgasmsted much longer than expected, however now that he knows it''sing he found himself enjoying it all the more.
Chapter 155 For Doctors Sake.
"Hmm¡" Zero Three furrowed her brows, her eyes staring intently, her cheeks flushed.
"There is nothing to be afraid of, Three." Nine said with a smile.
"This is for Doctor''s sake." Five added with a serious expression. "As his personal Valkyrie, you must learn to do this if you want to serve him better."
Sam watched the exchange with a suppressed smile. In front of him was the young Valkyrie, her eyes on his erect penis which stood towering over her face. Five and Nine had took turns blowing him for the past couple rounds which made her feel a bit left out. That''s why she asked if she could give it a try as well, but when the meat pole was ced in front of her she froze.
"You don''t have to-"
"No!" She said interrupting him. "I¡ I will do it¡"
Recalling what she saw the other two do, she hesitantly leaned in and reached for the rod. She stroked it up and down with a shaky hand, her lips tightly pursed as she red at the tip, then with her eyes closed she took out her tongue and began licking.
"That''s it¡" Sam said, feeling a little more aroused than before. "Just take your time. No need to rush it."
Three''s movements were clumsy but cute. Watching her struggle to learn how to properly handle his thing added to the excitement he felt. At first she barely touched it with the tip of her tongue finding the slightly salty taste a bit weird, but each time she licked it she became morefortable she got.
Having covered it in her saliva, the young Valkyrie closed her eyes and inserted the tip into her mouth, sucking on it a little before pushing it further inside. As she moved her head back and forth, her eyes opened for a moment as she looked up at Sam, the pink hearts having formed in her irises. Just then the spead of her movement increased all of a sudden taking Sam by surprise.
The young Valkyrie was getting excited as well, and feeling the thing twitch in her mouth she realized the sticky white stuff was about to shoot inside her mouth.
She was ready to ept it, or so she thought, but then the penis went on a rampage filling her mouth in an instant causing her to recoil and let it escape her hold.
"Ah!"
Sam''s meat pole showered her in his man milk, covering her petite body from head to toe. The young Valkyrie was speechless, blinking repeatedly then looking down on herself, her expression darkening as she opened her mouth and allowed the cream to spill out into her hands.
"It tastes weird¡"
"Three, don''t be disrespectful!" Nine said. "That''s Doctor''s precious seed, you should try to drink as much as possible every time!"
"Eeeeeeh!?"
Sam raised an eyebrow at the blond Valkyrie.
"What are you talking about? I don''t remember there being such a rule."
"But¡"
"There is no need to force yourself to drink it. In the first ce it isn''t supposed to go into your mouth."
"I see¡"
Nine held her chin as she thought of something while Three wiped herself with a wet towel then used some mouth wash to get rid of the strange aftertaste.
Ever since the time they had sex there, the blond Valkyrie had brought a few things to her room in preparation for the Doctor''s next visit. Water bottles, tissue, towels. She even got lub and condoms. Sam couldn''t help but wonder where she learned about those.
"D~octor~?"
Turning around, Nine gazed at him seductively then leaned down and stuck her ass out in his direction.
"Your seed is supposed to go in here, right?"
At some points she had tied her hair over her head so it wouldn''t get in the way. That added to her charm and made her look sexier and more mature giving off a different vibe from the usual.
Sam''s spear hardened right away at the sight of the plump ass and even though he came not that long ago he was already rearing to go.
''I guess it''s time¡''
The five blow job he just had were enough for him to get a feel for his new tool, and with how great each one felt he was looking forward to the real act.
"Ah~?!"
He approached Nine from behind and grabbed one of her bottom cheeks, squeezing it as he ced his spear at the entrance. Three and Five watched from the sides with wide open eyes not wanting to miss the moment when the massive penis goes inside their friend.
"Nine, I''m going in, okay?"
"Yes~?." She replied with a ecstatic smile and hearts in her eyes. "I''m ready to recieve your affection, Doctor~?."
Nine looked over her shoulder as Sam prepared to prate her pussy from behind, her eyes filled with passion and longing as she was about to have sex with the man she loves for the first time in a long while. She had already experienced hisrge cock inside of her mouth but it wasn''t enough, not nearly enough for a woman who craved sex just like any other normal human being.
Thanks to Eir restoring her virginity she was about to experience her first time once again. When he thought about it, Sam realized that he might be a virgin as well. This would be his first time doing it since he obtained his new body and the massive cock that came with it. He knew that he could fuck Nine hard and without mercy, something that she very much wanted him to do at this point, however he understood that he has to hold back both for her sake and his.
Taking a deep breath he prepared himself and ced both hands on her hips then began to push himself into her, stretching her tight pussy wide open as he entered.
"Ah~?! Doctor¡ Doctor''s penis¡ ahhh~?"
Nine felt the long rod tear through her insides one inch at a time, but unlike her previous experiences it kept going deeper and deeper. By the time she felt his waist pressing against her she was already in a trance, her focus only on the massive cock that was inside her.
Sam didn''t understand what''s happening. He was sure he was able to reach her deepest part before the procedure which made him think he wouldn''t be able to push the entirety of his new tool inside her, however there were no obstacles in his way almost as if her love tunnel extended to make ce for his new size.
''This is¡ incredible¡''
He had yet to make any move yet he already felt amazing just from having his meat pole inside her. He was prepared for the sesation to be different from her mouth but he didn''t expect it to be so intense.
As the feeling began to subside he found himself wanting more so he slowly pulled back until only the tip was left inside. Knowing what''s about to happen Nine braced herself.
"Hyaaaahhh~?!!!"
The Valkyrie released a delighted scream as Sam mmed his rod all the way inside. The pleasure that single thrust sparked spread all over her body causing her eyes to roll back into her head as she felt his entire length fill up her pussy.
Sam pulled back slowly before thrusting again, then again, then again and in a few seconds the room was filled with fast pping sounds as flesh hit flesh at an incredible speed.
"Ahh~?! Yes!... ahh¡ hahh¡ Doctah~?¡ yes~?¡ yes~?¡ Doc¡ tahh~?¡. Ahhn¡ ahhn~?¡"
Sam continued thrusting with everything he got feeling Nine''s tunnel contract as she orgasmed again and again. However he didn''t stop, it felt too good for him to think about anything at all.
Nine''s arms could no longer support her, her whole body trembling with pleasure as she orgasmed repeatedly, each time more intense than thest.
She leaned her head against the mattress while Sam pounded her from behind mercilessly, panting with her tongue out as a silly grin took over her face.
"Doctah¡ penis¡ hahh~? so¡ hah¡ so good~?¡ hnahh~?¡. Ahh¡.ahhaaaaahhhhhh~???!!!"
Having reached his limit Sam thrust his hips with everything he got, his seed bursting out into Nine''s womb filling itpletely in a matter of seconds.
"Doctah¡ penis¡ amazing¡"
For a few seconds Sam continued holding the blond Valkyrie''s waist, her ass ttened against his body as he stood still doing nothing. Finally he let out the air he held in and slowly pulled out allowing his white cream to spill out.
"That was¡ incredible¡" he said, his wide eyes staring at Nine''s hole as it oozed with his cum.
Each time his spear slid out he felt an incredible need to thrust it in more forcefully and each time he did so the pleasure he felt increased, however when he finally climaxed his mind ascended to a higher ne halting any thoughts he might''ve had while his seed pumped into the Valkyrie.
''More¡''he thought, the euphoric feeling gradually fading. ''I need more!!!''
"Doctor?"
He was about to take the blond Valkyrie on a second round when he heard a voiceing from the side. Five was looking at him with concern, but that only made him change his target.
"Hyaahh! D-Doctor!!?"
Like a wild beast Sam pounced on the ponytailed Valkyrie and pushed her down. He spread her legs open and looked her in the eyes.
"I''m sorry, Five."
Saying those words, he pierced her womanly hole without hesitation making her whole body bend from the painful surprise.
"Doc¡ tah¡ wai¡ I¡. Ahh¡ I''m¡ ahh¡ I''m not¡ hyaahhh!!!"
Sam ignored her pleading words and began mming his cock deep into her as hard and as fast as he possible could. Five''s pained screams soon turned into ecstatic moans and she found herself enjoying the roughness and the sense of helplessness as the thick rod tore through her.
"Ahh~?! Doctah¡ am¡ amazing~?¡. Hahh¡ ahh¡ amazing¡ Doct~ahh~?¡ I love¡ Docta~hh~?¡ ahhn~?"
Her breasts swayed with each thrust, their movements hypnotic as the rest of her body writhed from the pleasure that flooded her mind. Seeing the intense gaze Sam looked at her with she suddenly felt indescribable shame forcing her to close her eyes and turn away for a moment, but as the warm feeling in her chest intensified she looked up at him once more, pink hearts in her irises, then held her hands toward his asking him to embrace her.
Happily obliging, Sam leaned down allowing her to wrap her arms around him. With their faces so close he moved in and took her lips speeding up his thrusts even further as he reached another climax.
"Ahh! Doc¡ ahh~?¡ I''m¡ cumming¡ I''m cumming¡ Doctah I''m¡ aaaaAAAAHHHHHHHHH~???!!!"
As they hugged each other tightly Five released a coquettish scream as Sam finished inside her, his cock pulsating as his hot semen filled her womb.
"Ahh~?¡ Doc¡tah~?¡"
Sam lost strength and allowed his body to lean against the Valkyrie''s as enjoying the intense orgasm. The sensation was something he never dreamed was possible even after getting blown so many times and feeling Five''s body as she embraced him made it all the more pleasant.
"Five¡"
Lifting himself up, Sam stared into her eyes, the heated look she gave him restoring his excitement, but thankfully his mind was much clearer and he was able to control himself, kissing her on the lips before taking his rod out.
That said, he was far from being done so he turned to thest one causing her to jolt up.
"It''s your turn, Three." He said as he got up and walked toward her.
"Eh!? Um¡ I¡"
Having witnessed the rough way he had fucked those two, the young Valkyrie was now even more scared of what he''s about to do to her. She unconsciously stepped back trying to put some distance between them, however the wall behind her said she had nowhere to run.
"Eeek!!!"
She let out an adorable cry when he mmed his hand on the wall, looking up to see his face leaning toward her. For some reason her flower bud began to feel awfully itchy and the warm feeling in her chest spread all over her body.
"Three¡" Sam spoke, lifting her head up by the chin. "Do you love me?"
She stared up at him with tearful eyes, but as seconds passed shyness overtook fear and she couldn''t help but look away.
"Well¡ obviously¡" she said in an adorably bashful tone.
"Then you have nothing to worry about."
Sam left her no time to think about his words, taking her lips trying to calm her down. He ced a hand under her left knee then did the same with the other one spreading her legs apart then lifted her up as she leaned against the wall.
"Wait!" cing her hands on his shoulders, Three looked down to see his spear standing at the ready in front of her entrance. "A-are you sure this is safe?"
"Of course." Sam replied without hesitation. "Well, if you were a human it might''ve been a problem, but you''re a Valkyrie. Surely you can handle this much."
Sam leaned in for another kiss, taking Three''s mind off his cock for a moment. As she felt the tip touch her flesh trench shevwrapped her arms around his neck and squeezed her eyes shut waiting for the pain toe.
"Ah!... hnngh¡ nguhh!... ahh¡ hahh¡ ahh¡"
Little by little Sam pushed his rod into her. She tried to keep her voice down, however pained groans leaked from her and soon enough she was moaning uncontrobly.
"Does it hurt, Three?" Sam asked.
"Um¡ just¡ just a little¡"
She didn''t want to admit the truth, feeling the stiffness slowly filling her insides and going up her stomach. She knew the pain would go away soon enough and that it would start feeling good, however with how big his cock was she was afraid it''ll be different this time.
"Three, are you okay?"
As she hugged him tightly, her body trembling slightly, the young Valkyrie didn''t notice that the rod had stopped advancing through her. Surprised she pulled herself away from him and looked down. The meat pole was gone, all of it having went inside her pussy. After all the worrying it made it all the way in and she barely noticed. The fear she felt vanished in an instant and she felt embarrassed for being scared in the first ce.
"Three?"
Her body twitched when he called her name. She felt her face heating up again and she was unable to look him in the eyes, but then she gathered her courage and turned toward him, her brows furrowed as she determined herself.
Saying nothing, she leaned toward him and pressed her lips against his. The kiss was a bit awkward but Sam made up for it enjoying her cuteness as he slowly slid his rod in and out.
"Mnnahh!!... ahh¡ mnmm¡ hahh¡ haah¡mm¡. Haahh¡."
He continued going at a slow pace until he felt her body rx, he then began elerating little by little pulling away from her to see what kind of face she was making.
"How do you feel, Three?"
"Ahh¡ hahh¡ ahn¡ hahh¡ ahh¡"
The young Valkyrie gasped and panted, her petite body bouncing with each of his Thrusts. He didn''t need to hear say it. Her flushed cheeks and the glowing pink hearts in her hazy eyes gave him the answer he needed so he pulled back all the way then thrust it in again.
"AHH!!!"
"You''re so cute, Three."
Sam mmed his hips against her adding more force to each thrust.
"Ahh! Docta¡ ahh~?¡ so¡ ahh¡ so big~?¡ ahhn~?¡ my¡ insides¡ ahh~?¡ hnahh¡ haahh¡ ahh~?¡"
Her pussy was warm and slippery however it was extremely tight, even more so than the other two''s causing him to feel a more intense pleasure each time he reached deep inside her. As he kept pounding her roughly Three hugged him once more feeling that she was about to reach her limit.
"Do¡ ahh¡ Doc¡ta¡ Docta¡ I''m¡ ahhn~?¡ I''m about to¡ hahh¡"
"Me too, Three¡" Sam said feeling his body demand the intoxicating feeling from before.
"Yes¡ ahh~?¡ your¡ your white stuff¡ hahh~?¡ I want your¡ cum¡ ahh¡ inside¡ do it¡ inside!!!"
Granting her wish, Sam thrust his hips one more time, his cock erupting as it pumped his load into her followed with the mind numbing bliss as they both orgasmed.
His body was stiff for a couple of minutes, his rock hard rod still inside the young Valkyrie as she panted in his arms. When he was finally able to think again he looked at the young Valkyrie for a moment, and as she stared back at him, he leaned in and took her lips starting the whole process from the beginning.
Chapter 156 Jealousy.
Sam opened his eyes and his mind awakened the next moment. It was his first time experiencing sleep after the procedure and he could tell it was different, mainly because he felt refreshed with no signs of exhaustion on his body.
That said, when he tried to move he found himself unable to. Moving his head left and right he soon understood why; his body was pinned down by three sleeping beauties. Nine was on the left using his arm as a pillow, Five was doing the same on the right and Three had her head on his chest and her arms wrapped around him.
Though he let out a sigh, a smile had crept on Sam''s face as he found the situation oddly satisfying despite the slight difort. He had spent the previous night making love to the three Valkyries experiencing pleasure beyond anything he had ever imagined. His new body allowed him to go on with no rest and the sensation was so addicting he kept seeking it like a crackhead looking for the next high.
The only reason he stopped was that the three Valkyries became unresponsive after a number of rounds. He realized that although their bodies were sturdy and could recover from any damage, their minds weren''t the same and after getting fucked roughly so many times it''s only natural that they would end up like that.
Thest thing he remembers was him lying down wanting to get some sleep despite not needing any. He has left the three sprawled around covered in his cum, but seeing that they had cleaned up before joining him told him that they were fine.
His mind yed some of the scenes from the previous night and his spear shot up the next second. Taking a deep breath he banished the thought then looked for a way to get up without waking the others.
''I need to hold back a little...''
He already knew that sex with the Valkyries was as good as it can get, but after what happened he understood that he might end up in a very bad ce if he didn''t restrain himself.
''Good thing I have more control over my thoughts now...''
Picking up his underwear he noticed that it was still damp from the time he fell in the pool, same with rest of his clothes. He wished he asked one of the girls to put them in the dryer, but sadly it was toote for that. Thankfully his phone wasn''t damaged. Checking the clock he learned that it was 06:45.
''Better go see Elina...''
Now that he met with the Valkyries and assured them that he was fine, especially Zero Three, he needed to go get a more detailed report on how things are at the moment. He also has to start ning how they would go about chasing Loki so there was quite a lot to do.
"AH!!! TOLD YOU!!!" Someone yelled the moment he opened the door.
Before he could see who it was a number of Valkyries appeared surrounding him. Among them were B3, Nino and of course Miku.
"W-What''s going on here?" Sam asked.
"Don''t try to y dumb, Doctor." B3 said with a teasing grin. "We know you''ve been doing naughty things with your personal Valkyries."
"When you didn''te back from the roof..." Nino followed, peeking through the gap to his left. "We suspected you were up to something. And then we couldn''t find those three..."
"Hey, you''re being rude." He replied before giving the Japanese doll a light smack on the head.
He stepped forward and allowed the door to close behind him, but then he noticed a certain someone giving him a cold stare.
"You said you were busy." Miku spoke, her voice emotionless same as the first time they met.
Sam remained speechless, looking into her eyes feeling like a man who was just caught cheating.
"W-well, those three are the closest to Doctor so..." feeling the tension, B3 jumped between the two trying to lighten the mood, however her interference seemed to have have the opposite effect.
"Guess I really am not that special, despite being your personal Valkyrie as well.
"Miku-"
Before he could say anything, the petite blond Valkyrie disappeared.
"A~ah, look at what you have done." Nino said, looking up at him with half closed eyes. "You broke her heart."
"He sure did." B3 added, smiling wryly.
Sam couldn''t help but sigh and scratch his head. Though he was incapable of having headaches he felt that his head was about to explode.
"And, what are you doing here?" he asked, giving the gathered Valkyries another look. He was d that he asked Five to lock the door yesterday.
"As I said-"
"I meant what made you think it''s fine for you to do any of this?"
When he turned to her with narrowed eyes, Nino swallowed her words and lowered her gaze. The others followed suit not wanting to meet his angry re.
"A-ah! That''s right!" pping her hands together, Nino turned to a certain pink haired Valkyrie. "Ichigo said she wants to be your personal Valkyrie!"
"Eh?"
Sam reflexively turned in her direction, her height making her easy to spot. Ichigo looked between him and Nino in a fluster, her face going red by the second.
"I''m sorry!" She said before disappearing as well.
''Cute...'' Sam thought before bringing his sight back to the others.
"Peeking on people isn''t appropriate, never do it again."
"Y-yes! We were just a bit curious." Nino said with a stiff smile.
"Nine already said something of that nature." B3.
"Nine?" Sam was about to walk away but came to a stop.
"Well, it was about a weak ago, I think. Nino found this movie..."
Sam didn''t need to hear anything else to understand. Seeing the embarrassed looks on the Valkyries he could already tell what kind of movie they found and gave the Japanese doll a disapproving look. From appearance alone he could''ve never guessed she would be the kind to watch something like that, then again he thought the same about Nine.
"I-it''s not my fault, alright?" Blushing to the ears Nino tried to defend herself. "How am I supposed to know we can''t watch those things? Besides, if that''s really the case then why did they record it in the first ce!!?"
"How many did you watch?" Sam asked.
"Eh!? Well..."
Seeing her embarrassment grow, Sam decided to drop the topic and began to walk away.
"Those things mess up your head so try to avoid them."
"Y-yes!" Nino replied, bowing deeply and apologizing. "I''m sorry! I''ll try my best to stay away from them!"
"B3, help me find Miku."
"I think I have an idea where she went." B3 followed after him, her crimson twin-tails swaying behind her.
~a¡ª?~
Just when he began to wonder where B3 was leading him, Sam noticed that they were taking the secret route Nine showed him a long time ago, which eventually led them to the library.
"It''s closed..." he said, remembering it was just a little past seven.
"I don''t think it''s been open in quite a while. Here." twin-tails held out her hand toward him, a blue halo forming over her head.
When Sam took it she grasped his tightly and the scene in front of them changed alerting them that they had teleported.
Just like when Nine did it they appeared a little above the floor which resulted in a sudden falling sensation, kinda like when you skip one of the steps on a staircase without noticing. He was really interested in how teleportation works, but for the time being he had many things to take care of so studying it will have to wait.
It has been quite a while since he had visited the library and to his disappointment it didn''t look like they were maintaining it that well.
''Well, we were at war after all.''
The soldiers had their hands full, and it''s not like the library had that many visitors.
"You can take it from here, right?" B3 said. "Just head for the light over there. That''s her usual hiding spot."
The ce was dark with only a weak lighting from one of the corners. When he made his way there Sam was surprised to see books staked around like walls with a desktopmp ced on one of them. Sitting amid the pile was Miku. She looked up from the book in her hands for just a moment then looked down again.
Saying nothing Sam walked over and sat beside her prompting her to move away. Letting out a sigh, he nced at her for a couple of seconds not knowing what to say.
"What''s wrong, Miku?" He went with the most generic question even though they both know the answer.
"Nothing." She replied.
"C''mon now. We can''t solve this if you don''t tell me."
"I said it''s nothing."
The light from themp flickered a few times as the silent returned. Sam realizes that he had made a mistake in handling the petite blond, but that''s just another part of having a harem. In a way he saw Nine, Five and Three as a set owing to the time when they were the only Valkyries in the base. Even if she''s one of his personal Valkyries he couldn''t really see Miku standing beside those three, that''s why he ended up leaving her out ofst night.
''Not that I could''ve called her over...''
The rest of the Valkyries were already making a fuss when he disappeared along with Three and the others. If he summoned Miku as well who knows what kind of mess that would''ve resulted in. That said, an excuse like that was something better kept to himself. He needed another way to win her over once again.
"How much do you know about what happened in thest battle?"
"... The female soldier that said she was your lover turned out to be an enemy." Miku spoke in a small voice. "She was after a young girl that resemblesmander Schneider."
"The little girl is the one the Nephilim were after all along. The whole reason behind the war." As he spoke, Sam remembered the sight of his childhood friend floating inside the ss container, a sharp pain assaulting his chest at the same time. "When I was injured I... I didn''t think I would make it... that''s why I ordered Three to take her and escape. As you already know she disobeyed my order and took me instead, but thanks to that my life was saved."
Miku understood what he was trying to say, this wasn''t the first time she thought about what happened in the obsidian castle and how things would''ve went if she had been there.
By the time she came out of Eir the battle had ended and Sam was in a critical condition. Seeing him on the verge of death messed with her emotions and she ended up having a fight with Three and the others, saying many hurtful things about how they failed to protect him even though they were his personal Valkyries.
The three let her yell at them without saying anything and seeing the looks on their faces caused her anger to fade. It was clear that they were impacted the most by what happened, the pain she felt being nothingpared to what they were going through. That''s when she asked herself; would things have been different if she were the one who went instead?
"Three made a very important decision back then, I had to tell her that she wasn''t wrong, and thank her for saving my life." Sam continued. "The rest was, well, it was unnned. We just ended up doing it without thinking."
"... I''m not angry." Miku spoke after a long silence, cing her book aside and hugging her knees. "It''s just... I understand why you''d prioritize them and... it''s really frustrating..."
The three from the forty sixth base knew him the longest, it''s only natural that the bond they share with him is much stronger. Miku realizes that she has a lot to work on, but that would have to wait until her jealousy eased up a bit.
"You shouldn''t think about it as you versus them." Sam lifted his hand and patted her head gently. "You are all my precious Valkyries. I love all of you equally, even if it might not look that way at first."
"Is that so..."
Miku didn''t seem too convinced, giving him a side look filled with suspicion. Sam found it difficult to believe what he said as well. He''s a human after all; it''s only natural that he would have preferences. Still, the number one spot in his heart belongs to Alice and that didn''t change for a long time. That''s why he could say with utmost confidence that he loves all of his personal Valkyries equally, though he would never say it out loud. He already has enough problems so he knew when to shut his mouth.
"Yes. That said, I still feel bad for leaving you out..." he said, feeling a little guilty. "I will try to make it up for you in some way."
He couldn''t think of anything at the moment, but he was convinced it has to be something that doesn''t involve anything sexual. He felt that it wouldn''t be right if he slept with her just because she is jealous of the others.
"Then..." turning toward him with flushed cheeks, Miku made her request. "I want a date..."
"A date?" Sam asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Yes, a date!" Energy returning to her eyes, Miku leaned in toward him and spoke with a smile. "It''s when a man and a woman who like each other go somewhere to have fun, right? I want to do something fun with Doctor!"
Sam was a bit dumbfounded, having expected her to ask for somethingpletely different. His lips curled up and he couldn''t resist patting her again.
"A date, huh..." he said. "Been a long time since I went out on one..."
The state of the world didn''t really allow for such luxuries, even so the survivors always found a way to make good memories with their loved ones. The closest thing to a date Sam had in recent times were his dinners with Shizuru, however those had be nothing but a source of pain after her betrayal.
"Then, as the man it''ll be my job to make ns." Banishing the images his mind conjured, Sam forced himself to focus on the present. "I''ll do my best toe up with something so look forward to it."
"Yes!"
Her mood improving quite a bit, Miku leaned against him with a big smile on her face. Her cuteness filled his chest with warmth and eased his troubled heart. The Valkyries might not be able to rece his white haired childhood friend, but without them by his side he would''ve been deep in despair right now.
Even if he only saw them as a way to satisfy his lust at first, Sam was now determined to properly love each and every one of them. Thankfully he now has all the time in the world to do so.
Chapter 157 Balls.
After his talk with Miku, Sam returned to his room in the male dorms to get a shower and a change of clothes. The soldiers he met on the way seemed baffled at his sight. At first he thought it was because he had two young Valkyries, B3 and Miku, following him around, however turns out his fame has spread far and wide after he went alone to face the enemy leader and came back alive.
From what he heard it seems the truth has yet to be revealed to the public so he wasn''t expecting that kind of reaction, but when you consider his deration that he could make something stronger than the Valkyries the rumors that they owe him their victory in thest battle became quite believable.
He was asked to confirm them many times, and though he was hesitant to say anything, Miku took it upon herself to brag about his achievements, her small chest puffed out with pride.
Not wanting to fuel the rumors anymore Sam made sure to ask the young Valkyries to teleport his around when he was done with his business, though he ended up spreading a different kind of rumor by taking two cute girls to his room and noting out for a long while.
"Look who''s finally decided to show up." Elina said the moment he entered theb.
It wasn''t the same one he''s used to but a new one built underground for the sole purpose of carrying project Asclepius. Two Valkyries had greeted him at the entrance. Apparently Wolf had asked them to guard theb just in case someone tries to steal their secrets.
The female scientist met him with a knowing grin. "So? How was your night?"
"Pretty good, actually." Sam replied. "I had the best sex in my life! And with three incredible beauties at that!"
"I... I see..." Blinking repeatedly, Elina seemed to be taken off guard by his reaction.
"I have one question though." Sam walked over and sat down on one of the chairs, picking up some of the papers lying on a nearby desk and giving them a nce. "I didn''t give it much thought before, but now that every sell in my body has been reced with an artificial one, what happened to my balls?"
"Your balls?"
"Yes. My balls."
Elina stared at him for a while,pletely dumbfounded.
"I''m being serious here." Sam said, but then he realized something. "You still don''t know the whole story of what happened?"
"No, I think I know what you''re getting at." As she spoke, Elina picked up a tablet and started tapping on it''s screen. "You''ll understand once you have a look at the blue prints for your new body, but if you want the short story, some of your organs are replicas that serve no real purpose."
"You mean..."
"You don''t need to breath but you have lungs. You don''t need blood but your heart is still pumping. You''ll still feel hunger even if you don''t need to eat. Your sexual urges as well; you have no genes to pass on but you still feel like having intercourse. Some things don''t just disappear once you be a... well..."
"I get it already, but that''s not what I''m asking."
Pausing for a few seconds, the female scientist walked over and handed him the tablet before going to the other side of the room, exining as she looked for something in cabin.
"Your new... family jewels are a replica as well. The semen they create is just a uselesspound that''s supposed to emte your bodily fluids. Kinda like the milk the Valkyries produce."
"I see..."
Sam looked through the files on the tablet and almost lost himself in his own thoughts. Looking up he went on to confirm the conclusion he came to the previous night.
"So I can no longer have kids?"
"Well, not exactly."
Elina came back holding a small metallic box in her hands, and one look told Sam it was heavier than it seems. cing it on the table she wiped the nonexistent sweat from her forehead then gave Sam a nervous stare.
"Don''t tell me..." He could already tell what she was about to do.
"It was the old man''s idea."
Entering abination on the numerical lock on top of the box she backed away and watched it open. Inside was a cylindrical container that looked like a miniature version of Eir''s pods,
inside which was a small lump of skin he recognized very well.
"This way they''ll always be safe no matter what happens and you can switch them in whenever you want." Elina said. "Though I doubt you''ll ever need them. I mean, you''re technically immortal."
"You know, Alice and I have been trying for a child before... what happened..." Sam said, staring at his pickles testicles, probably the only thing left of his old body.
"You sure have no luck, huh?" Elina sighed, a shadow looming over her eyes as she turned away. "Just when you got together with your beloved childhood friend turns out she isn''t even human. I can''t believe we actually fell for it. I mean, the white hair said it all."
"She is human." Sam said. "So are the Valkyries. And the Nephilim."
"You''ll have a very hard time convincing people of that."
The two red at each other then turned away. Sam understood what she was trying to say and he couldn''t confidently say she''s wrong. Even in his case, with every cell in his body having been reced by a nanomachine, he can''t exactly say that he''s a human anymore.
"Sorry, I didn''t mean it like that." Elina said after a brief silence, having read his thoughts.
"No, I understand."
Now that he was in this position the question of what makes a human human was no longer just a philosophical thought experiment. The human consciousness and self awareness are things that science still can''t exin, even so the distinction between a flesh and bone human and anything that isn''t born the same way will always ensure that each will always be considered a different being from the other.
Sam couldn''t me anyone for not epting him as a human, after all it wasn''t that long that he finally changed the way he looked at the Valkyries. Still he hoped the inevitable prejudice they''ll eventually face will be less sever than other types of discrimination, though it was clear that that''s just wishful thinking.
"Just to be sure, are you really going after her?"
"Yes." Sam answered without hesitation.
"I guess that was a stupid question."
Shrugging her shoulders, the female scientist took a deep breath, her mood changing the next instant.
"Anyways! Let''s put aside all the gloomy shit for now. It''s time for you to decide how you''ll reward me for saving your life!"
"..."
"What, did you think I won''t ask for anything? You should already understand how difficult it was to pull it off!"
"I thought you received help from the old man?"
"I was almost done by the time he came by. I did most of the work."
"Just kidding. No one knows your true capabilities better than me." Scratching the back of his head, Sam thought for a while the exhaled slowly. "You have one wish. I''ll grant you any one request so think about it carefully."
"Really?" Elina asked, a wide smile spreading over her face. "I can ask for anything, right? You won''t take it back, right?"
Sam felt a shiver run up his back and he started to think that he might''ve done something he would regret. Even so he didn''t back away.
"Hmm~ what should I ask for~?"
The female scientist began humming to herself while pacing around the room. As time passed Sam grew more nervous and when she seemed to have decided his back straightened readying him to hear her demand.
"Alright!" She said, turning around and stretching her arms toward him. "I want a hug!"
"... a hug?" Sam repeated.
"Yes. A hug!"
There was a moment of silence as Sam tried to see if she was joking or not, however it didn''t seem like that was the case.
"Are you sure about that?" He asked. "You can ask for something more... you know..."
"No. A hug will do."
With her answer remaining unchanged Sam lifted himself up from his seat and faced her. Before he could open his arms for her, the female scientist jumped into his embrace startling him quite a bit.
As she wrapped her arms around him, Sam was forced to recall the time they were together. Her stature was as small and frail as he remembered it, and the slight trembling he felt told him of the difficult emotions she was trying to suppress.
"Don''t you dare make me go through that again... never..."
Silently he wrapped his arms around her as well, a horrible feeling growing in his chest reminding him of the time they went their separate ways.
Sam understood that Elina has every right to hate him. Her feelings for him were genuine, even so he broke their rtionship to chase after a woman who never looked his way. He couldn''t bring himself to ask for forgiveness, after all he couldn''t say he regrets what he did. And now he had his life saved by her.
Though she pretended that everything between them had ended that day, it was clear that Elina still had feelings for him. She couldn''t bear seeing him die in front of her so she did everything in her power and more to save him, but in the end her efforts weren''t enough. That caused her to fall deeper into the pits of despair, leaving her with no other choice but to rely on the person who caused all of their suffering, cursing her inability to finish the job on her own.
As her tears began to fall, Sam allowed the horrible feeling to torture him, making sure he knows that he was far from deserving to have someone like her feel that way toward him.
Chapter 158 Prisoner.
"Well well well, look how the tables have turned."
As he spoke, a wide grin spread on Sam''s face. A wall of ss stood in front of him, one so sturdy it could withstand a few dozen grenades. Metal bars have grown out of fashion a long time ago so prison cells now had these types of separations.
Though it didn''t look like it, the inside of the cell was isted from the outside, meaning the prisoner had to hear what was said through a speaker and for some reason she didn''t seem to like that very much. Though that was thest of her worries.
"Tsk..."
ring in his direction, H could only click her tongue, her face twisted in irritation.
"Hey now, is that any way to react to the people who saved your life?"
"You should''ve let me die."
"Oh, so we agree on something?" Sam replied. "Sadly we can''t really do that. You''re an important political figure, even if you''re a selfish egotistical violent and childish little princess."
"Did youe here just to anger me?" She growled back.
"That''s part of it." Dragging the chair that was provided to him closer to the ss wall he sat down and rested his arms on its back. "To be honest, I don''t really know why I''m here. Guess I just want to have a heart to heart conversation, even if you don''t have yours."
On the other side of the wall was the Nephilin queen, her small figure strapped to an ufortable looking metallic chair. Some things were different about her; mainly her skin color which was no longer blue. That was enough to make her unrecognizable and Sam was a little surprised when he first saw her in the security footage Elina showed him.
"I still can''t believe we actually won against you." Hemented, his tone growing serious. "Sadly I can''t really say I''m satisfied."
"..."
"You''re a horrible leader, you realize that, right?"
"I don''t want to hear that from a human." The queen replied.
"Oh, I forgot to tell you but I''m no longer the same man. You could say I''m closer to your little sister and the old man."
A moment passed before she understood what he was getting at.
"You-"
"Yep. I''m now a full fledged Nephilim. Though that doesn''t matter since I consider you the same as humans."
"Hah! The change must''ve messed your brain." H scoffed. "Can you really say you''re a human now that you aren''t flesh and bone?"
"Spare me the philosophical questions, I got no time for that." He dismissed what she said with a wave of his hand. "Besides, I''ve already told you, right? You''re every bit as hateful and spiteful as a human. In fact you''re so human it''s difficult to believe you''re anything else."
"Get to the point already."
"C''mon now, we have all the time in the world."
As the young queen continued to re daggers at him, Sam met her gaze with a calm look. The reality is that he was tuning down his anger to a level that allowed him to think properly, though he was careful to not remove itpletely having learned that it would return soon after with the source being right in front of him.
"You probably don''t know this since you never expected to lose the war, but someone has to pay for everything you have done." Sighing, Sam let his head hang a little before going on. "Lucky for you, you killed most of our leaders when you attacked the Resistance headquarters the other day. And with the war put on hold humans are too busy fighting amongst themselves to pay any mind to you."
Two weeks ago thest Cmity was defeated. With the Ragnarok Heralds gone only the Nephilim were left to fight, however with their queen taken down it was only a matter of time before they were apprehended.
To Sam''s surprise it only took the fifteen Valkyries that relocated to the forty sixth base to round up the enemy forces. After having their hearts remodeled it was a rtively easy task for the war veterans so with Nana at their lead they managed to achieve a wless victory.
It felt a bit anticlimactic but he wasn''t about toin. A total of three hundred Nephilim came to this world along the queen, seventy of which were killed in thest battle. After disarming the survivors by removing their hearts they were all taken into the forty sixth base''s custody, and that''s when the problems started.
The news spread like wild fire and soon enough everyone knew of humanity''s victory. While he was fighting for his life, the world was having the biggest party of the century, but things calmed down after a while and people started asking questions.
The forty sixth base was at the center of all of this but with itsmander missing things got really messy. Strangely enough the one to step forward and organize things was Nana as well. Having spent a lot of time by Wolf''s side she had learned quite a bit of leadership skills. She had to rely on power to intimidate the soldiers into submition but when looking at how things turned out Sam had nothing toin about, or so he thought at first.
What the Valkyries did was get things under control as they waited for him to wake up. With four of them being his direct subordinates and the rest convinced that he''s the only one worthy of leading them they wanted to leave the big decisions until he has recovered.
That led to the base being locked and allmunications with the remnants of the Resistance cut. Only the bare minimum of information have been shared so the rest of the world was still in the dark about what happened.
Of course something like that wouldn''t be ignored for long so after the survivors formed their own factions they began demanding answers, even threatening to use violence iming that the forty sixth base was hiding crucial information.
They could do nothing with the most powerful Valkyries being loyal to Sam so in the end they had to wait for him before deciding on the next course of action.
"Why are you talking as if I should care?" H asked.
"Well, because we might have to execute you." Sam replied. "Sadly that would solve no problem. The people you massacred will never return and just killing you won''t be enough. We will need reparation for the war and a way to ensure that it''ll never happen again."
"I couldn''t care less. Alice isn''t here anymore, I have no interest in your world."
"I think you''re mistaken here." Sam said. "Your opinion doesn''t matter. All I''m doing is telling you what''s going to happen from now on, real negotiations will be handled by your other sister."
"What?" H was silent for a moment. "Thor is here?"
"Not yet." Sam replied. "Odin said you most likely left her in your own world to handle the Nephilim over there. We will send a message after we clear things over here."
The truth is, Sam is no political leader and he had no idea on how he should handle things. Nothing the Nephilim could offer will make the fact that they wiped out more than 80% of humanity disappear. A lot of people will want the war to continue until the other side ispletely eliminated and their hatred won''t be easy to stop.
There is also the problem with the ASC. Right now only a select few know about them, however it''s clear that more problems will arise if the news that they''ve discovered the secret to immortality goes out.
The best option would be to announce that the humans and Nephilim have reached an understanding and decided to sign a peace treaty with the invading side giving them some of the resources from their world to help rebuild the one they destroyed. Many will be unhappy about this however there is no solution that''ll satisfy everyone involved.
"What about Alice?" H asked after a long silence. "Don''t tell me you n on letting that traitor have her?"
Sam could only stare at the young queen in return. He understood that she only cared about her sister, but he couldn''t help feeling that she''s being unreasonable.
"Even if we want to, we can''t allow Loki to get away." Sam said with a sigh. "And I don''t think she''ll just leave us alone. As long as we exist, her n to start a new supreme race can never be achieved."
The danger Loki''s n poses aside, Sam wanted to go after Alice. His Alice. He still has conflicted feelings about the original one, however he knew what needs to be do and so he''ll do it.
"Let''s hope your sister is more reasonable than you." Sam said as he walked to the door. "If she''s as attached to you as you are to Alice then maybe your life will be worth something."
Just as he disappeared behind the metallic door, the young queen clicked her tongue. Frustration was clear in her expression, however there was nothing she could do at the moment.
Chapter 159 Meetings And Future Plans.
Having dealt with all his personal matters, Sam found himself unable to avoid addressing the main issues facing them going forward.
With Alice having promoted him shortly before her disappearance, in addition to the base''s Valkyries being loyal only to him, Sam has automatically be the highest authority of the forty sixth base.
When you consider the fact that the upper echelon of the Resistance has perished during H''s attack on the headquarters, it wouldn''t be an understatement to say he''s the highest authority in the world right now.
He wasn''t very happy about his new position though. It gave him what he needed for his future ns, yes, however being responsible for the remnants of humanity wasn''t something he was looking forward to.
First thing on the list wasing up with the story that will be revealed to the public. He sat down with Wolf and Elina to discuss this matter and after a while they decided to reveal only a part of the truth, keeping the more sensitive parts hidden.
A few daystermunications with the other Resistance bases were resumed and a meeting was held a whileter. With the importance ced on such a meeting most had chosen to send theirmanders to the meeting, however some showed their reluctance to trust the forty sixth and sent representatives in their stead.
Sam knew what kind of reaction he would be getting when entering the meeting room. Until recently he was just a scientist responsible for operating Eir and even with histest achievements none of themanders were nning on paying any mind to his opinions. They had a change of heart however when they saw Nine and Five walking into the meeting and standing behind him.
The gatheredmanders knew nothing about the strange glowing halos above the Valkyries'' heads, however they recognized the women who took care of Fenrir and Niddhog. Seeing how they were standing guard behind the man in ab coat told everyone to be very careful with each word thates out of their mouths.
The meeting started with eachmander reporting how things were going on their side and the state of the surviving settlements. The conversation then moved on to Sam''s unbelievablest minute victory against the Cmities and how he managed to defeat the Ragnarok Heralds and the Nephilim.
Seeing how they started sucking up to him all of a sudden Sam felt the need to tune down the annoyance he was feeling. Bringing Nine and Five with him was supposed to intimidate those gathered but he had failed to to ount for this happening. That said, he still made sure to keep a closer eye on those trying to be friendly with him, otherwise he wouldn''t be able to guess who''s hiding a knife behind their back.
The meeting took a more serious tone soon after with themanders probing about information the forty sixth base learned from their battle against the Nephilim. It was then that Sam began reciting the script he created with Wolf and Elina''s help.
The story that was told goes like this: after meeting with the Nephilim queen it was concluded that both sides were being manipted by Odin, a mad scientist whose obsession had led to the destruction of the Nephilim''s world. When it looked like he would get caught and punished for his crimes, the evil genius decided to flee to another dimension, but not before stealing something that has a great significance to those other worlders.
Aftering to the human world, Odin had used his genius to gather resources and quickly take over and control the powers leading humanity. When the Nephilim came after him he tricked humanity into bing his shield leading to the devastating war that went on for the past decade, pretending to be humanity''s savior by offering them a way to fight against the invasion.
It was difficult to believe that the Odin that had created the Valkyries and helped push back against the Cmities is the one behind the war to begin with. Then again no one knew much about the man so they all swallowed the story without showing much doubt. Hearing that he has already escaped to another world made them feel both relieved and upset, and their growing wariness against the Valkyries was something Sam was hoping for.
It was only natural that themanders would feel suspicious of what they believed are autonomous weapons created by the big bad guy. Sam nned to use that as an excuse to gather the remaining Valkyries and bring them under his wing. Loki will be creating an army of her own very soon and he needed every soldier he could get his hands on.
the most obvious question that followed his story was about the thing Odin stole from the Nephilim. Just like the ASC, it was clear that no one is allowed to know about Freyja under any conditions. That also included the origin of the Valkyries and their connection to the Nephilim.
That said, even if they don''t know, Sam was confident that humans will seek to recover what Odin stole. He could already imagine them arguing that, whatever it might be, they can''t allow the Nephilim to get it back, and that''s when he decided to announce his n to chase after the mad scientist.
Everyone were excited about the news, at least until he told them that he intends to negotiate with the Nephilim so they would work with them on this mission. He used their need for the interdimensional travel technology as an excuse and also reasoned that the negotiations would have better results if they had amon goal.
The gatheredmanders and representatives found it odd that he was so sure of things working in their favor but to their surprise it turned out that the forty sixth base had the Nephilim queen under their custody.
With her as a bargain chip their enemies would be more willing to hear them out.
The remaining humans will never be satisfied no matter how the negotiations will turn out. It''s looking to be a rather painful era going forward and Sam had no intention on spending any more mental power on finding a way to fix that part.
Of course, while some were seething with anger and hanging on to their hatred toward the other worlders, others were already making their ns to take advantage of the situation, another thing Sam was trying to take advantage of.
He suggested that the remaining bases take the lead in organizing the survivors and helping rebuild their world while the the forty sixth handles the Nephilim. In much simpler terms, he was telling themanders to busy themselves with dividing the now that the war is about to reach its conclusion.
With none of the old governments having survived and the leadership of the Resistance perishing not that long ago it was time to decide who would be taking the reigns from now on. Having someone else take care of their invaders will allow them to focus on reshaping the future of humanity.
Of course Sam wasn''t so naive as to believe that they would just leave everything to him. He was sure that, once they have established themselves, the new powers will try to get rid of him. By then he would already be hopping between worlds so he wasn''t really worried about what they''ll do.
After a couple of days spent discussing less important matters the visitors finally left. After taking the time to rx a little, Sam began working on the things they would need for their interdimensional journey, with Wolf and Elina there to offer him some help. A few dayster they had a portal connected to the Nephilim''s world at the ready.
The other side has yet to hear anything about what happened after their queen went to take part in the war. Mj??lnir was chosen as the messenger to deliver the news and inform Thor, the second Nephilim to be born from Freyja, about the human''s proposal for a peace treaty.
A few days went by as they waited for a reply. Once a week had passed, the portal opened once more and the silver haired Nephilim returned. The enemy had epted their proposal and will being to discuss further details in the near future.
Chapter 160 A Strange Illness.
"Are you done?"
"Yes. Everything has been double-checked."
"Good. You can go rest now."
Mimir is her name, a fourth-generation Nephilim and the personal consultant of the queen, or so she would like to think.
It wouldn''t be an understatement to say that she is the wisest Nephilim born so far, and most of her brethren are aware of that, however her opinion is rarely taken into ount which makes her question why she was asked to be a consultant in the first ce.
"It''s finally here¡" She couldn''t help the sigh that escaped her.
Looking at the small floating window in front of her, Mimir went around performing one more final check making sure everything was in order before their departure.
To rescue her sister, Freyja the first queen, Queen H had taken her forces and invaded the earth on another dimension. Despite having already dealt a devastating blow to the enemy forces even before that the war has somehow ended with their loss leaving them with no choice but to go along with the demands of the other side.
Queen H''s reckless actions resulted in another catastrophe putting the Nephilim in a very difficult position. Having experienced the first purge Mimir had advised her to not resort to violence without attempting negotiations first, however she refused to listen allowing herself to be manipted dragging the rest of her kind along.
The Nephilim all shared her hatred for humans, but not everyone was on board with massacring those from another dimension.
Thankfully the other side seems to be more thoughtful, choosing peaceful negotiations even when they have the means and motives to eradicate them. Still, Mimir was well aware that such things can''t possibly be solved so easily, which is why the past few days have been quite stressful for her.
With Queen H captureddy Thor had to take the throne. Though she is more reasonable than her sister, the new queen came with her own unique problems.
"And that concludes the report." She said.
"Hm? Yes, good work."
As the one responsible for overseeing the preparations for the uing conference, Mimir had the duty of reporting their progression as well, and each time she visits the throne room to do so she would notice that the scarlet haired queen looks gloomier than the previous one.
Having greater intellect than the other Nephilim and great observational abilities allowed Mimir to deduce the reason behind the queen''s depressed state, however that''s exactly what made keeping a straight face quite difficult. After doing some studies and research the queen''s closest advisor had arrived at one conclusion: the queen is suffering from a strange illness called love!
''She''s getting worse by the day¡'' Mimir thought, carefully observing the state of her liege.
Lady Thor, like most Nephilim, had taken the route of changing her appearance to that of an adult. Even by their standards, her beauty stood out with her long scarlet hair and sharp eyes of the same color. Anything she wears looks good on her but the military uniform she puts on every day gave her a distinct strongmanding air, even if it''s nothing more than a costume.
"Mimir, do you think I should''ve done more?"
The question came as no surprise to the consultant and the sigh that apanied it set the tone of the conversation. But even though she was facing her, the queen had her eyes on something else. A small rectangr window floated in front of her as she leaned on one of the thorne''s armrests with a hand on her left cheek, and Mimir somehow already knew what it disyed without having to see it for herself.
"I''m not sure I understand, your majesty."
"Unlike H I didn''t have such a close rtionship with Freyja," Thor said. "I mean, I do wish to bring her back, however I can''t help but wonder if we had to go to such lengths. Surely there was a better way¡"
''There she goes again¡''
Mimir had to be careful not to let her true emotions show, having already heard variations of this question ever since Mj?lnir returned with a report on the war.
Losing the war was quite a shock and the Nephilim had to work overtime to decide on their next move. Still, during all that chaos the energeticdy Thor was strangely silent most of the time and would space out quite frequently paying no mind to important discussions that took ce despite being the highest authority among them.
Since she is their leader everyone believed she was just concerned about her new responsibilities. Mimir was one of them as well, at least until she caught her rewatching the recordings ck Thorn left behind on multiple asions, just like what she''s doing right now.
Doctor Sam Sanderson is the name of the man leading the other side. At first, Mimir believed it was only natural for the queen to be interested in him considering their simr positions, however seeing her so focused on the instances he appears in the recording made it quite suspicious and after reading a few dozen romance novels she was finally sure of it.
Lady Thor was a maiden in love and she doesn''t even realize it. All Nephilim are born as females and having eradicated the humans of their world there were no males for them to interact with. Everything they know about themes from books and various other media and some Nephilim have shown interest in some celebrities and fictional characters, however the new queen is the first one to fall for a man who''s still alive.
"Your majesty, as I have stated before, there is no point inmenting the past. Our only choice is to take ountability for our actions and try to be better in the future."
"Even if you say that¡"
Contrary to her words and expression, Mimir knew for a fact that Thor couldn''t care less about the humans that were massacred nor did she care about her captured sister and the Nephilim that followed her to the other world. Her only concern is the bad position the war has left her in, putting her against the man that caught her fancy with little chance for their romance to grow. Even though she doesn''t understand her feelings the thought of being hated by him tormented her and the suffering only grew as the day of the conference approached.
At this rate there is a high likelihood of her messing up everything when she finally meets him. As her closest advisor and the one who would be standing by her side at the meeting, Mimir was looking forward to witnessing everything that will happen with my own eyes. She even considered pulling some strings to make things more interesting.
''This will be quite the entertaining experience...''
"I hope this alliance extends beyond the mission to retrieve Freyja," Thor said. "It would be pointless if we went back to being at each other''s throats the moment we achieve our goal."
In much simpler terms Thor wanted to continue getting along with the other world''s humans even after the first queen gets rescued. Mimir was struggling to keep herself from smiling. It couldn''t be any more obvious, especially with how the scarlet queen has stopped the video to stare at the man, his image reflected in her eyes.
''I can''t take it anymore¡''
At first, Mimir had decided on watching how things will y out without interfering, however she couldn''t help but feel like pulling some strings to make the situation more interesting. She understood that it would be for the best if Thor stayed oblivious to her feelings for the enemy leader, letting them develop slowly until she realizes what they are, but looking at her personality it''s unclear whether she would do anything once that happens or choose to bury them and remain silent. Mimir had no intention of allowing thetter to happen.
"Your majority, may I make a proposition?"
"Hm?"
Just as the scarlet queen raised her head to look at her subordinate, a loud rm resounded through the castle. Their eyes widened as they came to the same conclusion and the next moment they disappeared from the throne room.
It has been quite a while since thest time the rm was heard. It was supposed to signal the arrival of enemy forces during the war, and with the humans of their world already eradicated no one expected to hear it anymore.
Thor and Mimir teleported above one of the surveince towers near the outer wall. Nephilim were already gathering nearby and several drones were automatically deployed in anticipation of an attack. Everyone were on edge, however as they looked around the Dolby thing they saw was the barren wastnd filled with the remains of previous conflicts.
"Your majesty, down there¡"
Mimir pointed at a spot far in the distance that appeared strange at a first nce. The Nephilim queen immediately recognized the spatial distortion as the same one caused by interdimensional portals, and therge light pir that followed only confirmed her guess.
"EVERYONE! INTO COMBAT POSITIONS! NOW!!!"
No sooner had she shouted hermand than several gigantic crafts appeared from the light followed by a number of small objects orbiting them.
There was no time to carefully observe the situation. Their world was being invaded and one look was enough to tell peace is not an option.
As she watched the fleet of aircrafts gradually fill their skies Mimir came to another realization. They have been at war with another world for the past ten years, sending their forces over there and wreaking havoc on theirnd. If they''re able to do that, why did she never consider the likelihood of the same happening to them as well?
"Which one of you is the leader?"
The sudden appearance of therge ships had distracted the Nephilim from noticing that someone had teleported right above them. A small figure d in a tightly fit ck pilot suit. Mechanical parts floated around her slender limbs while incorporeal red wings cast their light on her back. Her onyx hair fluttered cluttered with the wind, but what drew the most attention was theplex intertwined shapes forming the glowing halo over her head.
"Is it you?"
Thor didn''t reply, silently forming her own halo as she looked the stranger in the eyes. Questions were quickly piling up, however there was no time to look for answers.
They''ve juste out of their second war but it seems a new one is upon them, and though they lost thest one the Nephilim had no intent on letting anyone elsee out on top this time.
Chapter 161 Asgard.
"Doctor!"
A cheerful voice called drawing Sam''s attention. Turning around he saw a young girl waving at him as she approached with a smile.
"Did I make you wait?"
"No, I just arrived myself."
As he answered her question he took his time observing her appearance. Her choice of clothes was very simple: a pure white summer dress and a pair of sandals in addition to a small bag hanging from her shoulder. Her long blond hair was tied into twin tails using bluece. Even so one can''t possibly the overwhelming cuteness she portrayed, though Sam felt a bit nervous at how she managed to look more youthful than usual. Who knew that wearing something other than a military uniform would make such a big difference.
"You look very cute today, Miku." He spoke with a smile, blocking the voice in his head telling him he was doing something illegal.
"Really?" The young Valkyrie beamed. She took a step back and spun around once as if to show herself. "I never wore anything like this before so I was worried. I''m d it''s to Doctor''s liking."
As a Valkyrie Miku was guaranteed to look in anything she wears, Sam was sure of that fact. He reached toward her with his hand and gently patted her head before turning around.
"Alright then. Let''s get going."
"Um!"
The excitement filled Miku jumped at him and wrapped her arms around his left. Sam was startled at first but seeing her smile he could only sigh and let her do as she pleases.
"Doctor looks somewhat different today too." She said.
"Well, I rarely wear casual clothes at the base."
"So I got to see a new side of Doctor before the others, huh?"
"I guess so..."
If he had to be honest Sam would say that not having hisb coat on felt quite ufortable, which he was afraid would ruin their ns for the day.
Today was the long-awaited date Miku had requested as herpensation for being neglected. From building an interdimensional portal to deciding on how to deal with the aftermath of the war, the preparations for the peace conference with the Nephilim had kept Sam busy for the past few weeks leaving him with no choice but to postpone the event until he had some free time.
Thankfully with everything done an entire day was left open in his schedule so he decided to take it as his chance to unwind. Still, what kind of date could they have with most of the world destroyed?
"This is amazing!" Miku eximed. "Is this what a city looked like before the war?"
Her eyes darted from one direction to the other taking in the sights around them. Sam was doing the same, although he did a better job at keeping his expression neutral.
"More or less."
Clean paved roads, intact buildings and open shops, billboards and giant screens, then there are the cars and other kinds of vehicles driving around. Nowadays only a few districts in the surviving human settlements have such sights, with only the wealthy and important individuals having ess to them. Of course with a Valkyrie as hispanion Sam couldn''t just waltz around a ce like that. The attention they would draw to themselves would make it impossible to enjoy themselves, not that there is much to do in human settlements anyway.
Their choices for a date were quite limited at one point, however thanks to Odin that problem was quickly solved.
Asgard is a city built inside a virtual world. It simtes everything from the world before Cmities minus the various types of pollution giving everything a more vibrant hue.
ording to the old man, it was the ce Valkyries spent most of their time in before receiving their physical bodies, though most of their memories of that time have been erased. The equipment used to enter this world is directly connected to their central processors, their brains in other words, and with all five senses urately simted the avatars they''re using felt no different from their real bodies.
As they arrived at the station and boarded one of the trains, Sam found himself looking around more and more. The virtual city is impressive enough, however what he found himself surprised by was the crowds surrounding them.
Virtual or not leaving such a big ce empty would turn it into something else, and since Valkyrie needed to learn Howe to function in human society as they grew up Odin decided to fill it with thousands of NPCs that could y the role of other citizens.
Unlike Valkyries, those NPCs are nothing butputer programs even if they have quite the advanced AI. Apparently they''re capable of holding a normal conversation and performing some tasks but their abilities are still limited so it is advised to not strain them too much.
"So this is a train..." Miku said. "I only read about it in books so this is my first time riding one."
Watching the young Valkyrie''s reactions warmed Sam''s heart. Still, if a normal city was enough to make her this excited he could only wonder how she would feel when they reach their destination.
The train ride didn''t take too long and after a five-minute walk they were standing at the entrance to the location of their date.
"Whoa!" Miku gasped, her eyes sparkling.
While Sam was pondering over where they should go for their date, a surprising suggestion came from Odin of all people. He was the one to rmend using the virtual world and this ce specifically.
Dream Land is a theme park built at the edge of Asgard. A ce of games and fun one is guaranteed to enjoy spending time in. At the entrance stood the park''s mascot, a round pink rabbit named Rolly, greeting people as they went in. Looking up Sam was able to see the twisting tracks of rollercoasters and other rides, and excited screams and cries could be heard in the distance.
"Doctor! Let''s go! Hurry!"
Mike''s excitement peaked as she started pulling Sam along. Seeing her liveliness which contrasted her usual calm and cold appearance filled his heart with warmth. He found himself thinking that such a young girl deserves to live a carefree life, ying around and having fun instead of fighting in a war. Sadly the fate of the Valkyries will always lead them back to the battlefield. Even now that the war has ended they have no choice but to move on to the next.
''Calm down'' Sam told himself, the guilt from beforeing back much stronger. ''The old man said they''re all over eighteen at this point...''
ording to Odin the time in Asgard is usually elerated to help the Valkyries mature in a small time span, allowing them to live many years in a really short time. Even the youngest looking among them has been seventeen by the time she left Asgard, and since it has been an entire year since thest generation arrived in the real world every Valkyrie should be legal by now.
Still, that didn''t stop Sam from feeling like a creep for what he ns on doing from now on. Not that it matters at this point since he has already crossed the line on many asions.
Having decided to focus on enjoying himself, Sam followed Miku into the theme park. Being surrounded by the joyful NPCs and colorful attractions neither of them expected anyone else to be there with them, nor did it ur to them that they were being followed.
"And there they go," B3 said, the smile she wore spoke of her excitement.
"That sure looks nice," Nino added looking a little deted. "I''m starting to feel a bit jealous."
"A date..." Ichigo was blushing intensely, her mind working all kinds of fantasies at the moment.
Having heard the news from Miku herself, the three of them decided to sneak in to see how things will go for themselves. They all had their reasons for doing so, but all three understood that it would be really bad if they got caught which is why they have been spying on those two from behind a tree nearby.
"Should we go in now?" B3 asked.
"We don''t want to lose track of them," Nino said, stepping out from their hiding spot.
"A date..." Ichigo did the same, her fists clenched as if she had just gained some resolve.
Though they came to that ce for one reason, those three would soon get distracted and end up spending most of their time having fun, only realizing what happened long after the fact.
Chapter 162 Dream Land.
"Doctor! Doctor! Let''s go into this one next!"
"Okay okay..."
Deciding what attraction to go to first had been a dilemma, but once they settled on one the rest were quickly picked and the date proceeded without interruptions.
From bumper cars to a carousel, a tilt-a-whirl then multiple roller coasters. Sam was amazed by how everything felt like the real thing, and every time the rides ascended to a high altitude he couldn''t help but think of how painful it would be if they fell to the ground. Nevertheless, he was having so much fun that his calm and collected mask fell at some point allowing him to smile andugh for the first time in a long while.
That said, whether it''s because of his age, personality, or the nature of his work, he still found it difficult to keep up with Miku''s hype and enthusiasm as she dragged him around the theme park.
''If I had a stomach I would probably be puking by now.'' He thought as they got off one of the more extreme roller coasters which they rode for the third time in a row.
"Hm... where should we go next?" Miku asked, looking from one direction to the other.
"How about..." Sam''s voice was cut by the continuous panting. "How about we take a break first."
"Alright! How about we try that then!?"
What she pointed at was a nearby ice cream stand. It was the change of pace Sam was looking for so he didn''t object and followed after the young Valkyrie as she went ahead.
One thing Sam noticed is that the crowds seemed to naturally disperse whenever they approached a certain location. With how many people are around he expected to spend some time waiting in the lines for popr rides, but that never happened. He guessed that, although NPCs were ced in the park intentionally to give it a lively atmosphere, they were all programmed to make way for the real visitors who couldn''t bother to wait for too long.
Miku ordered a cone of vani ice cream decorated with chocte chips while Sam chose chocte and coconut. The two of them sat at a nearby bench and started partaking in their treats.
"Doctor," holding her cone up, Miku smiled at him. "Say aah..."
Though he was a bit reluctant Sam took a taste. He then proceeded to offer some of his and the blond Valkyrie happily took a bite. The vors were so close to reality that it was impossible to tell the difference. If one didn''t know they were in a virtual world it wouldn''t be far-fetched to mistake it for the real one.
As they ate, Miku leaned against him and hummed a joyful melody. Peaceful moments like these were as enjoyable as the adrenaline-inducing rides. Being able to slow down and enjoy something sweet was the kind of break Sam needed before weing the Nephilim to the negotiation table.
"WHOAAHHAAAAA!!!"
Meanwhile, three other Valkyries were experiencing the excitement of Dream Land''s most extreme rollercoaster, though each of them had her own reaction. B3 was having the most fun with her arms raised highughing uncontrobly. Behind her was a calm and collected Nino not making any sound, however herck of expression had nothing to do with her tolerance to such rides and more with the giant soft cushions her head was buried in.
"KYAAAAAAAAAAA!!!"
Ichigo was the most terrified hugging the smaller Nino as she screamed at the top of her lungs. Due to her being a cleansing specialist she rarely had to fly around and maneuver in the air at such high speeds, adding to that having no control over how the train moves and what you get is one of the scariest experiences of her life.
"Hm?" Thinking he had heard a scream different from that of the NPCs Sam came to a stop to look in its direction, however Miku pulled his arm hurrying him along as they headed for the next thing.
"Doctor! Let''s go there next!"
"A hunted mansion, huh?"
Contrasting the vibrant colors of the entire park was a single building painted in dark colors. It appeared to be on the brink of copse surrounded by dead trees and tombstones of different shapes and sizes.
"They sure went hard on this one." Sammented.
They even went as far as making the atmosphere dark and gloomy despite it being a sunny day in the rest of Asgard. That section alone seemed to be cut from the rest as if it was in its own world.
"Doesn''t it make your heart race?" Miku said, looking like she is about to start hopping in her ce. "What are we waiting for? Let''s go inside!"
Miku was a Valkyrie who had experienced the cruel battles against the Cmities; Sam was sure nothing in that mansion would scare her. That said, he made a bit of a miscalction thinking the attraction is the same as those in the real world, and he failed to consider what effect it would have on him as well.
"KYAAAAA!!!"
Being in a virtual world removed the limitations theme park rides had in the real world. Walking inside felt like having a blind ythrough of some terrifying video game, only there is no screen and everything looks and feels real. It wouldn''t be an understatement to say the ghosts are real ghosts. They appear out of nowhere and disappear as fast. They''re incorporeal and can pass through anything, but their touch can be felt on the skin creating a truly ufortable situation.
At first Sam was enjoying Miku''s cuteness as she clung to him, screaming whenever they arrived at one of the jump-scares. He was actively suppressing the fear he felt trying to appear like a strong male figure that''s always calm in such situations, however when a skeletal hand popped out of the ground and grabbed his leg his heart sunk so fast he almost sullied himself. If he still had his human body he was confident his heart would''ve stopped long ago.
By the time they reached the exit Sam began to regret blindly following Miku around, but as if to give him another hit the young Valkyrie turned around with a smug smile.
"Should we go in one more time?"
Staring at her for a second, Sam let out an exhausted sigh then crossed his arms in an X shape.
"No."
"Wha-!? But it was so much fun!"
"We don''t have infinite time and there are still many attractions to visit."
As ashamed as he was of that excuse, it was true that they had a limited amount of time. Though the simtion can be elerated to allow them to stay there as much as they want Odin advised against it since it might affect their mentality toward the real world.
Miku seemed to take the bait deciding on the next ride almost instantly. They went to one that seemed to be based on a sci-fi movie where they had to shoot alien holograms using toy guns. The young Valkyrie took the chance to show Sam her shooting skills, but what she didn''t expect was for him to be as skilled and thepetition between them ignited.
In the end Sam somehow managed toe out as the winner. He thought she would be sulking after suffering a defeat, but to his surprise Miku was looking at him with newfound admiration having never expected such a side to him.
Having gathered the most points in the game Sam won the first prize: a Rolly plushy wearing the clothes of the main character from the movie the ride is based on. Without hesitation, Sam did the sensible thing and gifted it to his date which scored him a great number of points and he got to see Miku''s pleased smile as she hugged it close.
Stopping to get a proper meal, the two continued on with their date visiting whatever attraction caught their attention. Before they knew it the sky began turning dark which signaled the end of the day. All that was left is the fireworks show at the end, after that they would have to leave for the real world.
As they watched the colorful flowers bloom in the sky, Sam felt Miku clench the hand she held his with. Their day together was about to end and it seems she didn''t want that to happen.
"How was it, Miku?" Sam asked, clenching her hand as well. "Did you enjoy today?"
"Un... yes..."
He sensed a hint of sadness in her voice, but there is nothing to do about it.
"Let''se here again when we have the time." Wanting to reassure her a little he decided to make another promise. "Or we can go somewhere else if you want."
"No..." shaking her head once, Miku spoke in a satisfied voice. "There are many rides we didn''t try today. Let''s make sure to do it next time."
"Okay."
The fireworks lit the sky one more time after which it was announced that the park will be closing. The ride back was a silent one. Though they could return to the real world from anywhere in Asgard, the stuff they got outside would be lost if they did so they decided to return to their apartments in the virtual world before leaving.
"Then, see you in a minute." Sam said, having walked the Valkyrie to her ce first.
"Yes. Thank you for today, Doctor."
~a??~
When he opened his eyes, Sam saw a blinking sign saying "log offplete". He took the headset off then slowly crawled out of the capsule used to enter Asgard.
Waiting for him outside was Miku. Since the clothes she wore for their date only exist in the virtual world, she was currently in her pilot suit. Sam was wearing one as well, however unlike the leotard-like design that of the Valkyries has, his was more like a diving suit that covered most of his body.
"This thing sure is amazing, right?" Sammented, ncing at the capsule.
A device that allows one to fully emerge in a virtual world. Sadly it doesn''t seem to work for normal humans so the likelihood of it being used in gaming was quite low.
"Yes."
Turning in the Valkyrie''s direction he noticed that she was slightly blushing as she kept stealing nces at him. Sam allowed a small smile to form on his face before approaching her.
"Eh?"
Before she noticed, Miku found herself being held in a princess-style carry. Her face heated up even more seeing the way Sam was looking at her, and though she was nervous her lips curved upwards as a warm feeling spread through her chest.
The trip to the theme park might havee to an end, but their date has yet to conclude.
Chapter 163 Exaggerated Scenes.
"Haah... mnmm... Doc...tor... haahh... mnn..."
Despite the worries he had before, Sam had no trouble taking Miku to his room and throwing her on his bed. Seeing the young Valkyrieying down in front of him, with a flushed face that held both excitement and nervousness, made the fire inside him rage and he immediately jumped on top of her taking her lips before second thoughts could even form.
Though the two of them have kissed before it was Miku''s first time making out for such an extended time. She recognized what was happening as something simr came up in that one book, nevertheless, that didn''t stop her from being surprised when Sam pushed his tongue into her small mouth.
Just like Three, her small body seemed quite delicate and frail. It twisted and wriggled as she struggled against the pleasure but she didn''t seem to hate the sensation.
Sam gave her a moment to catch her breath, watching as she panted with unfocused eyes. Just when he began to wonder what he should do next the blond Valkyrie moved, pulling him down and switching their positions before straddling him.
"Doctor..." she said, pink hearts forming in her eyes. "I love you..."
Giving him no time to process what was happening Miku joined their mouths again. With how timid and nervous she was a moment ago he never expected her to be so aggressive. Her efforts were quite cute and Sam appreciated her enthusiasm, but his tool was getting restless and he wanted to do more than just kiss.
He started by grabbing her behind, which felt much bigger and softer in his palms, something he didn''t expect from someone of Miku''s stature. He massaged the two buns carefully enjoying the sensation causing Miku to twitch a little. Their lips didn''t separate though so he went on to rub the bulge that had formed on his crotch against her sealed entrance.
A momentter the petite Valkyrie backed away, looking behind her to see the source of the strange sensation. Realizing what was happening she turned to Sam meeting his eyes as her breath slowly settled. She then leaned in and kissed him once more as if to say she still wasn''t satisfied.
"Ha~h... Doctor''s thing has be too hard..." she said, slowly moving her hips over his bulge. "Does this mean Doctor wants to do it now?"
Sam remained silent. Miku''s honey pot was already soaked so there was no problem with getting to the act now, however he wanted to see more of her cuteness and so he decided to wait a little more.
"How about we try something from the book?" He asked.
Miku tilted her head looking a bit confused. She didn''t understand what part he was referring to, but once he told her to turn around the scene immediately came to her mind.
Sam had taken his pilot suit off leaving only his underwear on, but that was soon removed as well leaving himpletely naked. Seeing his erect meat pole caused Miku to freeze. She stared at it for a while, her eyes wide in surprise. Only when Sam called her name did she move again, shifting her pilot suit a little to the side then slowly going down on the thick rod.
"Ah~a??"
Miku began sliding her flesh trench along Sam''s shaft. Her body shuddered as her love juices flowed gradually covering the entire penis. It felt quite weird, being stimted in such a ce. Something was slowly building up beneath her belly and the Valkyrie seemed to get even more excited with each stroke.
"Haa~a??... Doc...tor... ahn~a??"
Seeing the heated looks she gave him from over her shoulders fuelled Sam with desire and his rod twitched in response.
"Ahh~... Doctor... Hahh... Doctor''s penis... ha~h... Doctor''s rock-hard penis is touching my... ahn~a??"
Though he said they should replicate what happened in the book, Sam didn''t expect the young Valkyrie to start reciting the lines said by the heroine as she performed the actions. It soon proved too difficult as the blond one struggled to gather her thoughts, the sensation from each stroke rendering her mind incapable of forming coherent words.
It was only natural that an inexperienced girl like Miku would find it difficult to speak while being stimted in that spot. In the first ce, the sex scenes in those novels are always exaggerated. Normally people don''t speak that much while doing it, at the very least they don''t recite poems describing what they''re doing and how it''s making them feel.
"D-Doctah~a??... it feels... wierd... ahh... I''m... I''m about to..."
Miku was at her limit as well. Her breath got rougher and her mind was in a haze. Her movements sped up instinctively as she sensed something was about toe out, and then, before she could say anything, her back arched as a strong wave of pleasure spread across her body, the heat overflowing from her secret spot.
"AAAAAHHHH~a??"
Miku''s clear love juice flooded out as she climaxed for the first time.
After a few seconds she copsed forward using her hands as supposed while gasping for air. Once her breathing settled, she nced at Sam from over her shoulder. Her eyes then went down and a confused look took over her face as she straightened her back to get a better look.
"What''s wrong?" Sam asked.
"Well..." she hesitated for a moment before voicing her question. "The book said white liquid shoulde out but..."
It never urred to Sam that what bothered her was him not ejacting. It''s true that he was holding it in the entire time, but that''s only because it would''ve been truly pathetic to cum from only that much.
"Don''t worry about it." He said. "It''s something that''s different from man to man."
Staring at him for a few seconds, Miku turned around and hung her head.
"Guess I couldn''t make Doctor feel good..."
"Eh? No! Miku! It did feel good." Sam said in a panic.
"Then why didn''t it make you cum?"
"Well..." Sam searched his mind for an answer and thankfully it didn''t take him long to find one. "That''s right! The protagonist of that book... what was his name again? Well, he was clearly different from me. I mean, it did say that he rarely gets to have sex, right? I on the other hand have more experience, that''s why it takes a bit more for me to finish. It''s a matter of stamina and practice!"
"Hmm..." Miku looked at him with suspicion even though he was telling the truth. "I guess you have a point..."
Sam sighed in relief having averted a disaster. He only rxed for a moment though as he felt the weight on his waist move and a hand grasp his still erect rod.
Opening his eyes, Sam saw Miku crouched while holding his tool at her entrance. He got a very bad premonition but was toote in taking action.
"I''ll definitely make Doctor cum!"
With that deration, Miku rxed her legs and allowed her weight to fall, realizing the mistake she made a little toote.
Chapter 164 Slow And Steady.
Miku''s eyes shot open, the sudden sharp pain forcing her to realize she had made a really big mistake.
In less than a second Sam''s spear tore through her insides reaching all the way up in one single motion. Her whole body went rigid from the shock, her mind halting as it struggled toprehend what going on. She already knew Sam''s penis was massive, however only now that it was inside her did she understand what it means to have sex with him.
Sam wasn''t having any better time. Miku''s virgin pussy was so tight it felt like the pressure was about to crush him.
Gasping as if she had just remembered to breathe, Miku copsed forward panting while her whole body trembled from the pain.
"M-Miku... are you... are you alright?" Sam said, slowly lifting himself using his elbows as supposed.
The first thing he saw was the Valkyrie''s behind, her soaked vagina spread to its utmost as it swallowed his thick rod whole. Having already done it with Nine and the others Sam knew that the Valkyrie''s sexual organs adjusted to match his new tool, however this was Miku''s first time so he wasn''tpletely confident that she is unharmed.
"Miku?"
Receiving no response only made him panic even more. He pushed himself into a sitting position, careful to move his lower half as little as possible, but that caused the blond one to groan telling him she felt it.
"Miku, are you hurt?"
His question was met with silence again. This time however the Valkyrie began to move, gradually lifting herself up with shakey arms before turning around to look at him.
"I''m... haahh... I''m fine..."
The tears that had gathered in the corners of her eyes were evidence of the pain she was going through, but her flushed face and the heart shapes in her eyes told a different story. Somehow the expression she made came off as extremely erotic and in just a few seconds the fear Sam felt was transformed into arousal.
"You should''ve been more careful." He said. "That''s not something you do on your first time."
Another negative effect porn had on the Valkyries. He made a mental note to personally teach safe sex to each and every one of them then brought his attention back to the one in front of him.
"But..." pausing for a moment she followed in a small voice "I want to... I want to make Doctor feel good..."
Miku has always been a little aggressivepared to other Valkyries, with Nine as the exception. She took every chance she could get to show her feelings toward him and that extended to wanting to please him with her body.
That said, sexual pleasure goes both ways and Sam wanted her to focus on enjoying her first time instead of worrying about him.
"Miku, can you move?"
The Valkyrie remained silent for a couple of seconds before looking back at him.
"My legs..."
Having guessed as much, Sam grabbed Miku''s arms and carefullyid her on her right side. He considered taking his meat pole out but decided it would be pointless since he would be going in again soon after.
Lying down behind her he brought his face close to hers and took her lips. He savored the kiss for some time before looking into her eyes.
"Miku, you don''t have to worry about me." He said, gently wiping the tears from her eyes. "This is our first time together so it''s important that you enjoy it as well."
"But..."
"It''s okay. Let me handle everything from here. I''ll make sure you''ll have the best time of your life."
Sam joined their lips again then reached down with his left hand, grabbing Miku''s leg from behind the knee and slowly pulling it up.
"Ah!!"
"It''s okay. We will do it slow and steady."
Having her legs spread apart allowed the young Valkyrie to see where their private parts connected. For some reason that filled her with unimaginable shame, which only grew stronger when she nced up at the Doctor.
"How do you feel, Miku?" Sam asked. "Is the pain gone now?"
When their eyes met she quickly averted hers, feeling even more ashamed. She wanted to act strong and do her duty as his personal Valkyrie, however she ended up embarrassing herself and having him take care of things for her.
"It''s... it''s gone... almost..."
"I see..." having noticed how she was being shy, Sam smiled to himself. "Well then, I will start moving slowly. Tell me if the pain bes stronger, okay?"
"Um... okay..."
The truth is that Sam was nearing his limits as well. He wanted to get to the act as soon as possible but held back for the blond one''s sake, afraid to hurt her again.
"Unhh... ahh...
He slowly pulled back watching Miku''s reaction all the while. He noticed her body stiffening. She was clearly having a difficult time, but with nointsing from her he continued at the same pace.
"Miku, you need to rx." He said. "We''re already past the difficult part. There is nothing to be afraid of."
Having something so massive invade her insides made for a terrifying experience, even if the Valkyrie didn''t want to admit it herself. Sam was careful when pushing in as well. Once he reached all the way in he would stop for a few seconds then start pulling back again.
"Haah... ahh... ah... ahh... ahh..."
It was a slow process but thankfully Miku seemed to be getting better so Sam sped up. He used his free hand to massage her small breasts, then when he caught her ncing his way he leaned in for a kiss.
"Doctor... ah... hahh... Doc...tahh~a??! Mnahh... ahh... mnmm~a??!"
After a while Sam no longer had to pause between each motion. His thrusts became more aggressive and Miku''s moans grew louder and louder. The massive rod that caused her so much pain was now a source of pleasure. She was having sex with the Doctor. She has finally achieved her wish of doing the deed with him and that caused her chest to overflow with happiness.
"D-doc...tah~a?? I''m... ahh~a??! I''m doing it... hah... I''m having sex with Doctor~a??! Hah... ah... hahh... ahh... this is... sex.... This is... ah... this is sex with... Doctor~a??! Hah... so good~a??... sex with Doctor... so good~a??!!!"
Thinking it was time to end it, Sam sped up once more. Miku gasped as her nerves were flooded with the stimtion from her hole, and before she know it she was on the verge of cumming once more.
"Doctor~a??! I''m... ah~a??!... I''m cumming~a??! I''m cumming... Doct... aaaAAAAAAAAAHHHHH~a??a??a??!!!"
Sam let go of his restraints and the two of them climaxed at the exact same time. His cock, which has been pushed to her deepest part, began pumping loads and loads of his fresh artificial cum. Before long Miku''s womb was filled to the brim. The young Valkyrie had noticed the warm liquid as it gradually filled her, and having read something simr in that book she immediately that the Doctor came inside her.
"Hahh~a??... Doc... tor~a??..."
Seeing the satisfied smile on her face informed Sam of the way she felt. Smiling back at her he went down for another kiss. Now that they had their first time together Miku was finally on the same level as the others. She could finally proudly dere that she is his personal Valkyrie, but that was a matter for another time.
Right now, all that''s on her mind was doing it all over again, and knowing that he can take on multiple Valkyries at the same time, Miku was sure she was in for a long night.
Chapter 165 Final Checks.
?
"Oh! You''re finally back!" Elina eximed the moment Sam entered theb. "How was your date?"
"Great, actually." Sam replied with a rare smile.
He took the cup passed to him by the female scientist and as he was about to take a sip he noticed the smug grin she had on.
"Guess sleeping with underage girls is something else, huh?"
"We have been through this already." Sam grimaced and nced in Wolf''s direction. "They are far from being underage."
"Not that it would''ve stopped you if they were." Elina shrugged.
He wanted to deny it, however it sounded pointless to do so. Nothing he says will help his case. In fact, the more he tries to deny it the more of a predator he would appear to be.
"Now that I think about it, I''ve always wondered why the Valkyries looked the way they do. I mean, them being females is understandable, but why exaggerate their appearance to such extent?"
Silence filled theb for a brief time. When he took his eyes off the screen in front of him, Wolf realized that the other two were staring at him awaiting his answer.
He was the one who created the Valkyries so if anyone knew the answer then it would be him. Wolf remained silent for a while hoping they would move on to another topic, however he soon gave up and decided to give them what they want.
"Excluding their hearts and brains, everything else about their bodies was designed long before Alice was born. Before I met my wife."
"Uh-oh¡"
"That doesn''t answer our question." Sam added.
"Well, you could say I was getting a bit desperate back in the day and went a bit too far." Turning back to the screen the old man went on. "I tossed all of it aside when I met Rena, but when the Nephilim started appearing I found myself needing something to put them in so I made use of it."
Sam understood that by Rena he was referring to Alice''s mother. It was his first time hearing her name since neither Wolf nor Alice mentioned it before.
"Ah¡" as he was trying to imagine how she used to look like, Sam came to a sudden realization. "So it was true!"
Wolf raised an eyebrow and Elena tilted her head a little, both of them looking confused.
"You designed both the Nephilim and the Valkyries, right? One look and it''s easy to tell where you got the inspiration."
Wolf remained silent, his expression unchanging. Elena on the other hand took a moment to think about it and her eyes gradually widened as she understood what Sam was trying to say.
"You were a weeb!!!" She said with a pointed finger as if she had just exposed the old man''s dark secret. "It all makes sense now! You were trying to make your own female robot harem!"
"Well, we all had a feeling¡" Sammented.
Pretty much everyone had guessed the real reason behind the Valkyries'' appearance, the only difference is that they now know they weren''t originally intended to be weapons.
"It''s all in the past, I have nothing to be ashamed of." Wolfmented. "Besides, I''m not the one who has been going around sleeping with them."
"Well, you shouldn''t have made them so good if you didn''t want anyone doing it."
Sam shrugged and went back to his coffee, his mind returning to something that happened a while ago.
Wolf had no idea that Sam was having intimate rtionships with the Valkyries until long after the war ended. Apparently the reason he prohibited anyone from getting romantically involved with them is that it would''ve broken the mental barriers they had which allowed them to be so proficient in battle.
Love is a strong emotion. For soldiers who are forced into battles they might not return from, it would be much better if they never experience it in the first ce.
The problem could''ve been solved by giving the Valkyries a different form, but Wolf wanted to give them the chance to live a normal life once the war ends. It was the least he could do after sacrificing them even when he knew their true nature.
"So, old man." Putting on her smug grin once more, Elina tried spilling some oil in the hope of it catching on fire. "You made the Valkyries for yourself to enjoy, right? How does it feel knowing another man is doing it instead?"
The old man stared at her for a few seconds then nced in Sam''s direction. His expression didn''t change much, but there was a slight shift in the room''s atmosphere which informed them that he was quite upset.
"I already said I have no desire for them." He said. "That said, it angers me that the man my daughter chose to be with is going around sleeping with other woman instead of trying to get her back."
"Well, sorry for having a strong sex drive."
The truth is that Sam had to hold back for some time now as they got ready for the peace conference and the interdimensional campaign that would follow. The date with Miku was his first chance to relieve some stress, but it was easy to see it as him cking off instead focusing on his main objective.
Elena thought Wolf would be angry about the fact that Sam was cucking him, but when she gave it some more thought she realized that both the Nephilim and the Valkyries are technically his children, even if he didn''t want to admit it to himself. Standing by and watching as a single man takes your daughters one after the other must be quite the frustrating experience. It was a more serious reason for him to be angry about and one that''s not so easy to make joke of, unlike the first one.
"Enough chit chat. Let''s get to work."
Sam took his seat and ced his cup down. He booted up his terminal and started typing on the keyboard.
There wasn''t much work to do that morning, only some final checks before the Nephilim arrive.
He would be representing them in the negotiations as the one leading the Valkyries. Having such a big responsibility ced on his shoulders strained his nerves, but even when he has the ability to suppress it he chose to allow the stress to remain.
Chapter 166 Greetings.
?
After the battle with H and her army the forty sixth base had undergone a lot of modifications. In a short period of time it no longer had any trace of the old base, with a gigantic fortress taking its ce.
The defences were cranked up to the max and surveince towers were ced every few miles to detect anything trying toe close.
The human to Valkyrie ratio was flipped as well. Though nothing was said about the Nephilim, many were quick to draw a connection between them and the Valkyries, and once it was known that Odin was a fugitive from the other world conspiracy theories that were so close to the truth started to spread.
Many already saw the Valkyries as a danger, owing to the fact that they''re autonomous weapons as far as the public was concerned. Knowing that their creator is an enemy only served to justify people''s concerns over them, and after a while every surviving Valkyrie was sent to the forty sixth base while the human soldiers left.
Putting aside the problems that will inevitably arise from having all of them gathered in one ce, Sam had sessfully achieved his goal of gathering an army to help him in the battle against Loki. If he manages to convince the Nephilim tond him a hand then he would be finally ready to go after her.
Peace and reparations weren''t the only things that would be discussed during today''s conference. Both sides had toe to an agreement on how they would approach Loki''s case,and if things don''t go well they might end up fighting another war.
Only a few minutes left before the Nephilim queen arrives. The Valkyries selected to greet her were already gathered at the Bifrost, the interdimensional gate that links the two worlds.
At the front were Sam and Elina, with Five, Nana and CS as their guards. Normally he would''ve selected his personal Valkyries to stand by his side, however when considering the importance of the event he decided to take their abilities into ount.
Nana was the oldest among the Valkyries and had the most experience. She has been managing the forty sixth base since thest battle and thus proved to be a valuable assistant. Five and CS on the other hand were chosen for theirbat abilities and reaction time. If anything unexpected were to happen it would be up to those two to make the first move to protect their leaders.
"Sorry I''mte!" Miku said as she took her ce at the front beside Nine and the others.
"Barely safe, huh?" B3 said with a grin. "Did you oversleep, perhaps?"
Hearing thatment, all eyes turned to the petite blond Valkyrie causing her cheeks to flush.
"Actually, I woke up at the same time as Doctor, but..." She held her cheeks in both hands, smiling bashfully as she exined herself. "He told me to rest some more, since we were up the entire night."
She didn''t need to say more for the others to understand what she meant. Her date with the doctor was a hot topic among the Valkyries and they were eagerly waiting for the chance to ask her what happened. Just by looking at her expression they could tell she had a great time, and though they were happy for her many felt jealousy of her progress.
"Congrattions, Miku. You finally got to experience the joy of serving Doctor." Nine spoke with a smile. "However, as his personal Valkyrie, you need to set an example for the others to follow. Be sure to arrive on time from now on."
"Understood." Miku replied, standing straight and saluting.
"Everyone, I''m sure you''re dying to know the details, but now is not the time. We have a task to perform so please remain focused!"
"Yes!" The other Valkyries answered in unison and saluted as well.
Having heard the entire conversation, Sam exhaled as a hint of annoyance faded from his mind. Elina was barely holding in herughter as she stood beside him. She wanted to tease him a little but decided to save it for another time.
When the clock hit 11:55, Sam stepped forward toward the Bifrost.
"I''ll now activate the gate." He said, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. No matter how many times he practiced he still found the process somewhat difficult.
Unlike the gates the Nephilim used during their invasion, which allows one side to enter the other from any location of their choosing, the Bifrost connects two gates with set coordination. To travel between the worlds one needs to activate the gates on both sides.
Limiting the travel destinations was one of the conditions necessary for peace. It was the first step toward building a rtionship of trust, something they would need to prevent any conflicts in the future. That said, the gates on either side could still be used to travel to any location in other dimensions so a lock is still needed.
Stepping forward, Sam held his right hand up and focused his mind. Blue particles began to flicker around him creating a series of symbols that joined together to form a halo over his head. Others gathered into multiple rings around his extended arm.
Creating, maintaining and moving the symbols was a feat that required tremendous concentration and mental power. While he could''ve created something to carry the burden for him, Sam ultimately chose not to do it.
The rings around his arm are the key to activating the gate. By limiting the number of those who know how to create them he made sure that no one could ess it without permission.
''Hm?''
As soon as the tform began to glow, Sam noticed that something was off about the symbols engraved on it.
He carefully stepped back as the pir of light appeared, and once he was back beside his guards he raised a hand signaling for the Valkyries to take battle positions.
"Wha- what''s happenin!?" Elina asked as she stepped behind him.
"The gate on the other side is already open." Sam answered while checking his wrist watch.
He was hoping that it was just a mistake, that he took a bit too long when opening the gate. However he was exactly on time.
As the guests, the Nephilim were supposed to wait for the gate on the other side to open before activating their own. It might be nothing more than a simple mistake, however Sam had a very bad feeling about it.
''Maybe I shouldn''t have opened it¡''
Just as that thought crossed his mind Five swung her de at lightning speed hitting something that was heading straight for Sam''s head.
All eyes turned in the direction the projectile came from, but by doing so they almost missed the figure that emerged from the pir of light.
"Three!!!"
A triangr shaped barrier spawned at Sam call blocking the intruder whounched forward thrusting argence toward him. Sam only got to see her for a moment before she teleported away avoiding CS'' ws. The face was unfamiliar, butthe halo over her head informed them that she is a Nephilim.
"Dr. Brians, pleasee with me." Nana said as she grabbed Elina in her arms, teleporting away the next moment.
Three quickly jumped in and took her ce while Nine and Miku aimed their guns at the sniper who fired the first shot.
"Oh-ooooh! Take a look at this!" A voice came from beyond the light. "If I knew a wee party was prepared I would''ve dressed up for the asion!"
Stepping out of the interdimensional portal was youthful man of medium height. Despite his words, the clothes he wore seemed tailor made for special asions, and with his wheat blond hair slicked back it seemed like he made a stop at the hair salon beforeing. In his hand he held a stave of a strange design adorned with arge crystal on top.
"Greetings, lower realm residents." The youth said, bowing dramatically as his eyes fell on Sam. "My name is Perseus. I''vee today to ept your surrender."
Chapter 167 Intruders.
?
"My name is Perseus. I''vee today to ept your surrender."
Sam''s first reaction was ''''Are we doing Greek mythology now?'' But he quickly regained his focus seeing that more intruders were stepping out of the portal.
"Hey bossman, don''t you think this is a bit, um¡ bad?" One of them said. Everyone was so used to women with perfect faces and bodies that they refused to believe she wasn''t a giant gori. A giant gori with an eyepatch.
"What''re you talking about, cyclops? Is there anything more exciting than invading an enemy base?" Followed a tiny man sitting on her shoulder, his appearance reminiscent of a certain Gollum.
"They''re the same as the others. No humans in sight." Thest one was a tall man covered in a ck cloak. If not for his extremely hunched back he would''ve been more than two meters tall.
"I see, I see. Maybe we''re much closer than we thought." The man named Perseus said, his eyes surveilling the surroundings before returning to Sam. "Something tells me you are the leader. Do you mind telling your subordinates toy down their weapons? I already said that I ept your surrender."
Something about the way he spoke ticked Sam off. Raising his right hand, he caused the rings around his arms to appear again. Spinning them a few times he then closed his fist allowing them to slowly fade away. A momentter the light pir disappeared showing that the Bufrost has been closed.
"Um, bossman¡" the gori- woman named Cyclops nced behind her sounding a bit shaken. "The gate¡ it closed¡"
"I don''t know how things are usually done on your side, however over here we don''t really surrender without a fight," Sam spoke, trying his best to keep his voice neutral. "But, well, maybe I should extend the courtesy to you. You''lly down your arms and answer all of our questions. Do that and I''ll make sure to negotiate your safety with whoever sent you here."
"I''m thankful for the offer, but as you might''ve guessed we can''t really afford to surrender here. Our goals are beyond your understanding, you see."
No sooner had the words left his mouth than a violent impact resounded right above his head. Without a care he turned to look at its source, and though he seemed extremely calm his eyes sharpened the next moment.
"You are¡"
Nino who had rushed to attack had her spear blocked by a transparent dome-shaped barrier, presumably generated by the tiny man as he held a glowing orb in his hand.
"What in the¡" he said, his eyes wide like saucers.
"Bossman! What''s going on here!" Therge woman spoke sounding more rmed than before.
"Cyclops!" The first intruder called as she tossed hernce toward the other three, jumping backward as she dodged CS''s ws.
Therge woman acted despite her confusion, reaching into her backpack taking out a long spear that couldn''t possibly fit inside andunching it toward the short-haired Valkyrie before catching thence.
Like a noble cat CS dodged the spear, sliding away with her ws carving lines into the floor while her opponent picked the new weapon.
"Be careful, Antia!" Cyclops warned. "Those don''t seem as weak as the others."
"I have eyes as well." Said the woman named Antia as she picked up the spear, spinning it around and causing its tip to glow. At the same time, golden lines began to appear on her almond-colored skin drawing beautiful curves along her arms, legs and face. As she gradually entered a state of focus, her dark purple hair began to flow upwards, a strange aura enveloping her and a crescent-shaped halo appearing over her head.
"Five! I''ll take care of this one." Said CS, a wild grin taking over her face. "You focus on the Doctor."
As if toplement her de-like ws, light covered her body morphing into a white suit of armor adorned with feline ears and a thick tail. Her Ruby eyes reflected her spear-wielding enemy, and without making a sound they both disappeared at a speed that bordered on teleportation.
The sh sent a shockwave through the portal room announcing the start of the battle.
With her attack blocked Nino teleported away. The remaining Valkyries put their hands out and summoned Baldr''s light, each one shooting a thin light beam at the three behind the barrier.
A small explosion shook the ground but when the smoke subsided the barrier was still standing.
"Whoa¡ this doesn''t look good." Jumping from one building to the other, the fifth intruder watched as more and more Valkyries joined the battle. "These are nothing like the previous ones."
Just as his foot touched the ground he rolled over avoiding a beam then jumped again with a red arrow knocked on his longbow. His aim was the petite blond girl who had a small ster pointed at him, but before he couldunch the arrow he saw two giant mechanical armsing down on him.
"Well, shit¡"
He let the arrow loose and curled up guarding himself with both arms and legs. Nine''s giant blue arms hit him like a wrecking ball smashing him into the ground creating a huge crater.
"That wasn''t so bad¡" he said only to notice the rain of energy bullets heading his way. "You gotta be kidding me.."
Seeing that her spear couldn''t prate the barrier protecting the intruders'' leader Nino joined CS in attacking Antia. The two moved in sync with other Valkyries slowly pushing the dark-skinned woman into a corner, however the longer that went on the more uneasy Sam be.
"They have yet tond a hit¡" he said with a click of his tongue.
Despite the overwhelming number of attacks Antia sessfully evaded, dodged and parried everything thrown at her. Her expression didn''t change as well as if all those movements weren''t enough to make her break a sweat.
CS was gradually growing frustrated from having her ws miss every time leading to her movements bing sloppy as she tried to catch up and surpass her opponent. The dark-skinned woman on the other hand seemed to be more confident with her moves as if her golden eyes were capable of seeing in the future.
"This isn''t good¡"
They were up against five intruders at the very least, three of which remained static and another leaving to shoot projectiles from a distance. They were at the center of the base surrounded by Valkyries from every direction, however they were still holding their ground with their leader remaining calm as if everything was under their control.
"Three, put them in a box." Sam gave the order and the young Valkyrie followed.
Zero Three ced her hands together, green symbols forming rings around her body.
''Hm?'' Just then Sam noticed something strange. ''Wasn''t there someone else¡''
His eyes widened realizing the cloaked hunchback was gone, but before he could say anything he heard the sound of something crashing behind him. Turning around he saw arge metallic cylinder nted into the floor blocking a long curved de as it headed in his direction. The one swinging it was the cloaked hunchback who looked like the grim reaper with the creepy white mask under his hood and therge scythe held by his bone-thin arms.
"Don''t worry, I got him!" B3 said as she jumped in to cover for Sam.
With the scythe bouncing off the red cylinder the hunchback jumped away with his form fading into the background. Just as he was about to bepletely invisible two other red cylinders fell from above forming a triangle around him.
"Oh no you won''t!" B3 eximed and with a snap of her fingers the three cylinders opened up sending tendrils of lightning thattched on to the grim reaper and electrocuting midair.
Seeing that the enemy was taken care of Zero Three shifted her focus back to the other enemies.
The box she created was invisible until it shrunk to the size of the dome-shaped barrier covering them. Sparks filled the interior as the two barriers collided. Therge woman seemed to get even more restless, but the goblin on her shoulder and the man named Perseus were calm as if nothing had changed.
"Trying to crush and grind us huh?" The goblin said. "That''s one cruel way to use arts."
"You done yet?" Asked Perseus.
"One moment¡ alright!" Hilding the orb in his hands up the goblin-looking man shouted. "Antia! You''re good to go!"
A wave of aura exploded from the orb washing over everything in less than a second. It didn''t seem like it had any effect on the Valkyries, but Sam knew something had changed at that moment.
BANG!
A loud impact drew his attention to CS. The dark-skinned woman managed tond a hit, and though it was reflected by CS''s armor the fact that she was going on the offense confirmed his prediction.
The attack created an opening Nino immediately targeted. Her spear wasing down on the enemy, coated in her force field for maximum damage. It looked like she was going tond a hit, the woman named Antia had no time to dodge. And so she didn''t.
Nino''s spear cut right through the intruder. It went down from her left shoulder straight to her right nk, however something wasn''t right. There was no wound, not even a scratch. The de went in and came out facing no resistance at all as if it had cut through nothing but air.
"NINO!"
Her inability to understand what happened caused Nino to freeze midair. Antia casually turned around paying no mind to the energy bullets passing through her body. She gazed at the Valkyrie with the distinct Asian features, time slowing to a crawl, then with a single swing she cut a gash through her chest.
"You aren''t her after all."
Chapter 168 Screwed Up.
?
Nino teleported a moment toote and thus took a hit across the chest.
Holding a hand to her wound, she tried to understand what happened before snapping back to reality.
"SHE CAN BYPASS THE FORCE FIELD!!!"
CS ducked attempting to dodge the spear thrust at her, and though it grazed her left shoulder the spear bounced off leaving only a scratch behind. Not minding it the gray-haired Valkyrie swung her ws with mad ferocity, but her opponent didn''t budge letting them pass right through her leaving not even a scratch behind.
''What in the¡''
The bad feeling Sam had intensified. That woman was already a force to be reckoned with and now not only do weapons have no effect on her, but her attacks also bypass the supposedly impregnable force field of the Valkyries. How are they supposed to face her now?
"Doctor, you need to get out of here." Five said.
It was the most logical choice. He knew he should trust his Valkyries to handle the fighting, same as they always did, but Sam was reluctant to go. He didn''t want to leave for safety while the girls fought to protect him.
"Doctor?" Five called once more.
"No," Sam replied. "
Having nobat abilities, Sam was nothing but a burden. That''s why he needed to find another way to contribute to the battle. He needed to find a gap in the enemies'' defenses, a way to surpass them and attain victory.
''There must be some exnation for this¡''
As he thought that to himself, he tapped his sses causing half-transparent windows to appear in front of him.
He had already dispatched a few hundred drones around the battlefield, all equipped with cameras and sensors that have been collecting data from the ongoing battle.
Analyzing said data, he tried to learn how the enemy''s powers work. It wasn''t too long before he had an understanding of what was happening in front of him.
"And that''s one down." Nine said as her giant cannon slowly disintegrated.
Being able to create weapons out of another dimension''s materials was rather convenient. She could summon one whenever she needed it and once she was done with it she could just go and it disappears.
Her onlyint was the few seconds it took for the weapon to form and the concentration required to keep it. Apparently all Valkyries have been trained on the way to use runes long before they arrived in the real world, but even though it should be second nature to them because of that, some still struggled with forming things that are tooplicated.
"Wow, you really didn''t hold back there huh?"
Hearing the voice caused Nine to flinch leaving her open for an attack, however what she felt next shocked her even more.
"Hey, I''ve been wondering for a while now," The archer said. "How do you even move around with these?"
Not only did he survive all of her attacks, he somehow managed to sneak up on her from behind. And as if that wasn''t bad enough, instead of attacking her he was groping her giant breasts, squeezing them repeatedly without a care in the world.
"There were quite a few in the previous world as well. What''s wrong with these over-exaggerated desi-"
Thest word got stuck in his throat as the air around them went ice cold all of a sudden. Even Miku who was rushing over stopped in her tracks going pale as she got a really bad feeling.
Nine''s head slowly turned, her usually blue irises gonepletely ck.
"Eh?" Feeling the danger in her gaze the man quickly teleported away, but when he looked down at his body he realized his arms were gone.
"How dare you." Came Nine''s voice, quiet yet sharp like a cold de. "Only Doctor is allowed to¡ how dare you¡"
"Um¡ Perseus¡ I think I might''ve screwed up¡"
Seeing that he had no way of fighting back the man began to retreat, but then a sudden pain hit him from behind taking his mind off the wounds on his arms. His nervousness turned into fear as it became clear that he got distracted, forgetting that he was fighting two opponents. Just as he began to regret messing around too much, a wild scream reached his ears informing him that his fate was sealed.
"HOW DARE YOU!!!"
As her voice resounded through the sky, Nine''s body glowed brilliantly with the halo over her head expanding a few times.
"Three, set a box around us." He said.
Seeing that there is no hope of breaking the enemy''s harrier, Sam ordered the young Valkyrie to shift her attention back to protecting them.
Analyzing the data provided by the drones gave quite shocking results, and it all has to do with the aura that washed over them a couple of minutes ago.
It was impossible to notice the effects right away because it worked on the molecr level. The dark-skinned woman was covered in ayer of aura that was causing her to vibrate at an incredible speed which
allowed to phase through anything that tries toe into contact with her.
Then there is the glowing de of her spear which was vibrating at a different frequency allowing it to bypass the force field and damage the Valkyries.
The theory behind it was simple even if it was just theoretical. However it seems their enemies found some way to make use of it and apparently it has something to do with the aura that washed over them a couple of minutes ago.
''That said, how are we supposed to stop this?''
Sam suspected that the strange particles were something collected from a different dimension, one simr to where they get the energy for Baldr''s Light. He wondered if simple radiation cleansing will eliminate the effects, but getting the equipment for it can''t be done in such a hectic battle.
Having realized that her armor is capable of stopping the spear stood her ground deflecting Antia''s attacks keeping her away from the Doctor. With no way to counter the fight was at a standstill, however with only one side receiving damage it was only a matter of time.
"Maybe if we cut her fast enough¡" Zero Five could only grit her teeth knowing she wouldn''t be able to do anything even if she left her post.
Sam was still looking for a solution, having already sent an emergency request for the cleansing equipment. It was then that he spotted a distinct pink hair among the Valkyries, his eyes widening at the realization.
[ICHIGO!]
Hearing her name shouted directly into her ear startled the already tense Valkyrie causing her halo and the thin Baldr''s Light she was shooting to disappear. She turned to look at Sam, shaking and on the verge of tears, not understanding why she was being singled out.
[Cleanse the entire area!] Sammanded, but the tall Valkyrie only looked more confused. [Now!]
Ichigo looked around frantically as her nervousness skyrocketed, but then she forced it all aside in order to obey themand and summoned her halo once more, this time adding a number of symbols to it changing its shape a little.
"H-here I go!"
Ichigo''s cleansing works by expanding her force field, which had more unique properties, to a really wide range. Normally she would require specific equipment made using multiple hearts in order to amplify this ability, however after she had her heart modified she learned how to achieve the same effect on her own.
"What are they up to¡" Perseus was the first to notice the pink lighting from the sides. "Cyclops, shoot the tall one over there."
Without saying a word the gori-like woman reached into her bag and took out arge cannon, aiming it at Ichigo with her finger on the trigger.
Of course she couldn''t shoot without opening the barrier protecting her and the two others, but that was the mistake she made, thinking nobody will notice a hole in an invisible barrier.
"Wha-"
Light shed in the distance and the next second her only eye blew up along with the left side of her head. As her body fell like the huge boulder it is the tiny man jumped from her shoulder to Perseus going snow white in an instant.
"Cyclos!!?" He cried before turning in the direction the bullet came from.
"You had a sniper of your own, right?" Nana said, lying down on the rooftop of a building half a mile away. "What made you think we don''t have the same?"
With Perseus'' head at the center of her scope she fired another bullet. Sadly the hole closed before it reached the target.
Though his friend was just murdered in front of him, the man named Perseus seemed oddly calm. His eyes moved from Nans''s direction to Ichigo''s and a sigh escaped him.
"Maybe it''s time to retreat," Hr said.
The moment those words left his mouth a pink wave of light exploded washing over everything in the area
"Huh?" Antia noticed the change immediately, jumping back and putting some distance between her and CS.
"So it worked."
Hearing the voice her neck made a snapping sound as she looked behind her. Five was there preparing to swing her de, leaving Antia no time to get her feet on the ground.
Though she tried twisting her body in the hope of evading the sh, Five''s red katana shed right through the dark-skinned woman''s arm drawing a crimson arc in the air.
Sam was almost relieved that the n worked until he noticed something. At first, he thought the crimson arc was just an after-effect from Five''s katana moving too fast, however a closer look revealed that t was a red liquid sshing from the clean-cut on Antia''s severed arm.
"Hold on¡"
BOOM!
Another explosion drew Sam''s attention away. Something had smashed into the ground a small distance from the portal.
"Um¡ boss¡" A middle-aged man crawled out of a crater looking in a really bad condition, a hole in his chest spilled the same Crimson liquid as the dark-skinned woman. "I think we should-"
The words were caught in his throat as a shadow loomed over them, and in the next moment, the whole base shook violently as something gigantic fell from the sky.
As if the horror of a violent earthquake wasn''t enough, when the tremor subsided everyone looked up to find an absurdlyrge face looking down at them.
"What in the-"
With the rigid shapes and mechanical parts one could easily tell that thing was a giant robot of some kind. Just as Sam began to wonder where the blue Eva came from, the giant robot opened its jaw bringing out a cannon the size of a five-storey building, an ominous white light glowing at its center.
[EVERYONE GET OUT OF HERE!!!!]
Three wrapped her arms around Sam teleporting him away right after themand left his mouth. The Valkyries did the same as the light grew brighter and brighter.
"Boss!" The man staggered as he ran toward hispanions.
Antia was frozen in ce holding her severed arm, sweat beading her forehead as she considered where to flee.
The calm Perseus was in shock as well. Several green rings had formed around his right arm as he grasped his stave, the crystal decorating it lighting up. Two of hispanions were injured, one restrained and another dead. He knew he had to make a quick decision, and so he did.
Light sprung out of the tform swallowing him and the tiny man and the next moment it was gone leaving no one behind.
"Hey¡" the middle-aged man said hoarsely. "You gotta be kidding me, right?"
Realizing they were abandoned he turned to his otherpanion, but there was nothing in the spot hest spotted her in.
"Hey¡ I can''t teleport¡" he said, his surroundings gradually turning white. "They got my¡ I can''t¡"
The world shed once, followed by a giant explosion erased that transformed into a beam of light erasing everything for hundreds of miles.
As a second sun slowly rose from the south, the few remaining humans got the message that the war has yet to end.
Chapter 169 Reward.
?
"Wow! That was exciting!"
"Get off me already."
"Eeh!? You know I don''t like it down there!"
"Not my problem."
As the light faded, Perseus descended from the portal tform. Contrasting the excitement of the tiny man on his shoulder, he looked deted andcking energy.
"Wee back, lord Perseus, Lord Daedalus."
Greeting them was arge man covered in muscles. The resemnce he had with therge woman didn''t end in the eyepatch he wore; they practically looked the same if not for his thick and bushy beard.
"Just in time!" The tiny man said before leaping onto therge man''s shoulder.
"Um¡ lord Daedalus¡ my sister¡"
"Ah! The enemy got her. Sorry for your loss."
Therge man looked shocked for a moment but then hung his head saying nothing.
"I don''t see Antia either." Came a voice from afar. "Aeneas and Minos aren''t here as well."
"Lady Atropos!"
The three men went down to their knees, even Daedalus who was adamant on not touching the floor.
Walking toward them was a young woman of medium height, with long flowing onyx hair and dark red eyes. Perseus noticed that she wasn''t wearing her usual battle attire and instead had her kimono on. Seeing the traditional garment informed him that she wasn''t there to be their backup.
"Perseus." The moment she spoke, a strange pressure came down on the three. "Exin yourself."
"Lady Atropos. The gate on the other side opened so I decided the most logical choice would be to go and investigate."
"Didn''t I tell you to inform me when it opens?"
"Indeed, mdy. However there was no need to bother you with something so trivial. Scouting missions should be left to us, your lowly servants."
"Trivial, you say." Her eyes lowered into a sharp re. "You lost three of your best soldiers, and a Cyclops as well. How can you say it''s trivial?"
"My apologies. We were ambushed by an army waiting on the other side." Perseus said, keeping his head down. "We underestimated theirbat abilities which resulted in our loss."
Silence filled the portal hall as Atropos continued to re at the kneeling men. The pressure from her gaze vanished after a while as a tired sigh escaped her. A punishment will still await themter, however for the time being she decided to not let it bother her.
"Tell me, what did you see on the other side?"
Seeing that she started walking away, Perseus got up and followed after her listing the things he noticed about the other world.
"They''re the same non-biological life form as the one we found here, though we still don''t know which world they originated from. Their leader appears to be a male, something that''s been missing from here."
"And?"
"I would say they''re more capable fighters, though only a select few seem to have specialized halos. They mainly use the 23rd and 45th dimensions. A wise choice, I would say."
"They aren''t trying to draw attention to themselves, huh?"
"Apparently." Pausing for a moment, Perseus decided to bring up something that has been bothering him ever since he stepped into the other world. "Mdy, please know that I''m not 100% sure of this, but it wouldn''t be right to not report it."
"Speak." Atropos ordered, ncing behind her with curious eyes.
"Other than their leader, no one stood out among the female soldier. Well, only one that is." Perseus said. "The appearance and voice match, but she didn''t recognize Antia or me. It might just be a coincidence but¡ the spear she created and the way she wields it, it''s an exact match."
"... Don''t tell me¡"
"I don''t want to get your hopes up, mdy, but it might be worthwhile checking for yourself."
Coming to a stop, Atropos covered her mouth with the hem of her garment as she went into deep thought. A couple of minutester she seemed to reach a conclusion, turning to her subordinate with new orders.
"We have already searched this ce, there is nothing left for us to do here."
"I see. Should we prepare the troops?"
"Yes. But we won''t go to them this time. They were clearly waiting for someone from this side." Her lips curved into a small smile. "Something tells me they''lle over by themselves."
~¡ó~
Nino stepped out of Eir''s ss container, the wound she sustained in the previous battlepletely healed. Letting out a sigh she walked over to the shower room nearby to clean herself.
Everyone expected the conference day to be exhausting, but not to this extent.
First are the unknown individuals who invaded from the gate, then there is Nine who lost herself in anger and ended up blowing half of the base. Thankfully there were no casualties on their side, however if humans were still around most of them would''ve fallen victim to the radiation disaster.
The Doctor was furious by the end of it all. Most of the damage they sustained was caused by one of their own, and with the enemy invading from the Bifrost they had to assume the Nephilim were in trouble as well. Sadly it''ll be a while before they can investigate. Building a new portal will take a few days, in the meantime they need to be on high alert in case of another invasion.
"How are you feeling?" Sam asked.
"Would it bother you to check before asking?" Nino replied.
She was justing out of the shower and had nothing but a towel wrapped around her. Just in case she had checked there was no one beside him in theb and decided to fool around a little before going back and getting some rest.
"Sit." Still not looking, Sam tapped the desk with the pen he held before pointing at a nearby chair.
Angered by hisplete disinterest, Nino thought of another way to catch his attention. She decided that if he doesn''t want to turn in her direction then she should get in his line of sight.
Walking over with hushed steps, she climbed onto the desk and sat at the exact spot he tapped. She was expecting some kind of reaction as she crossed her legs, however when Sam finally took his eyes off the screen and looked at her his expression didn''t change at all.
"There is a chair." He said.
"Is that all you have to say?" She asked. "Don''t you feel anything seeing me like this?"
Unlike Nine and the others Nino didn''t have any special feelings for the Doctor. That said, the thought of him fawning over her filled her chest with excitement.
Her mistake was not making sure to hide the smugness in her smile. Seeing it Sam was able to read her true intentions and so he decided to counterattack, getting up from his seat and taking hisb coat off.
"Eh?"
Seeing him unbutton his shirt confused her even further, and when he removed his sses as he slowly came closer a weird sense of difort took over her.
"W-w-wait!" Closing her eyes to avoid his, the Japanese doll pushed him away with both hands. "W-what are you doing!!?"
"That''s¡ my question¡" Sam said.
He was on the other side of the room for some reason, sprawled on a broken desk and smashed equipment. The
young Valkyrie didn''t hold back at all when pushing him. One look at her flushed face told him everything about how she felt.
"I-I thought you only do those things to your personal Valkyries!" Nino said, her embarrassment clear in her voice.
"Indeed." Standing up, Sam fixed his clothes before walking back to his seat. "I can make you one as well. Open positions are always avable."
"I¡ I can''t believe you!" She yelled, holding the bath towel closely as she backed away from him. "You already have four! You have four Valkyries to yourself and you want more!?"
"Is there a problem with that?"
"Yes there is!" She pointed an usatory finger at him and spoke with a re. "I know that humans are supposed to have only one partner! The books said being with multiple women at the same time is unfaithful!"
"Hmmm¡" Sam stared at her for a while causing Nino to take an unconscious step backwards. He slowly approached her once more, this time careful not to get blown away. "You say all of that, but weren''t you trying to seduce me just now?"
"... What?"
"You should be careful about what signs you give a man. Well, not that it matters. You''re a Valkyrie after all."
Thanks to their absurd strength Sam didn''t have to worry about the Valkyries getting assaulted. Still, he didn''t want them going around flirting with random men without even knowing they were doing it.
"Hah! That just shows how weak you are, Doctor." Nino shrugged, not wanting to give up. Her back was against the wall and her escape route was cut as Sam pinned her with his arm. "Y-you let your lowly desires control your actions. That''s not something a real man should allow to happen!"
Nino only had a vague understanding of sex and rtionships. She has yet to experience any of those desires herself so she was just repeating what she read in a book. That said, being pinned against the wall like that filled her chest with a mix of different feelings. She was afraid for some reason, but at the same time she was excited to be in that position.
"Well, it''s very difficult to control myself when presented with a cute girl like you." Sam replied with a smile.
"C-cute!!?"
"Yes. Beautiful, I would say." Seeing how flustered she was getting, Sam decided to deal the final blow. "You did very well in thest battle. I think you deserve a reward. " He leaned in to whisper in her eat. "How about we go to my room? I can teach you a few things¡"
He was expecting to get blown away once more, however Nino''s shaking hands didn''t have much strength as she pushed him away. She waspletely red, so much that steam wasing out of her ears. She was getting moist down there as well, but in the end fear won over all the other emotions and she decided to admit her defeat.
"I¡ I think it''s a bit early for me¡" she said, her voice quivering.
"I see¡" Heaving another sigh, Sam backed away and patted her on the head. "Put on some clothes. We still have a few things to discuss."
With her shoulders hanging, Nino walked back to the shower room. She felt ashamed of herself, only now realizing how embarrassing her actions were. The Doctor was a man who could have women all over him whenever he wants. A young-looking Valkyrie like her had no chance of taming him with her body and looks.
Another defeated sigh escaped her as she reached for the door. Just then she seemed to realize something and turned to face the Doctor once more.
"A reward?" She asked.
Sam was confused for a second before catching on to what she meant.
"Yes. I decided to give out rewards based on your performance yesterday."
The MVP was Nana, of course. Not only did she evacuate Elina right away, she also took down one of the enemies on her own. Three, B3 and Five did a great job defending him. CS and Nino kept the dark-skinned woman busy until he found a way to beat her, then there is Ichigo whose ability led to their Victory. All of them were getting rewards for their contributions.
On the other hand, Nine would be punished for her reckless actions, and though she technically participated in the battle, Miku would receive the same punishment for failing to inform them of Nine''s rampage right away despite being the closest to her position.
"Can I decide what it is?" Nino asked.
"As long as it''s within my ability." As he said those words, Sam felt a bit of nervousness leaving the decision to her.
He was sure she wouldn''t ask for anything absurd, seeing how embarrassed she was a moment ago, however there was no way to tell what she might have in mind.
"Then I will save it for another time." She said, looking down at her toes. "That''s okay, right?"
"Sure."
Sam felt a bit relieved, even though he knew the trouble was only pushed onto the future. Still, he wasn''t surprised by her decision. The other Valkyries asked for some time to think as well. Having trouble deciding was natural considering they had no free will until recently. This would be a good way for them to learn about the world and their ce in it, something that''s necessary for when the war eventually ends.
Chapter 170 Not Human.
?
Once she put on her uniform, Nino returned to theb and took the seat Sam offered her before.
She seemed way more nervous than before and more conscious of every move the Doctor made. Being pinned against the wall made her feel quite awkward and she felt her face heating up whenever she remembered the way he whispered in her ear.
"Did you notice anything strange about the intruders?"
Sam on the other hand waspletely calm. It was somewhat irritating how normal he was acting as if none of what he did mattered, but thanks to his attitude Nino managed to ovee her embarrassment soon enough.
"Are you asking if I noticed that they recognized me?" She replied to his question with another one, confident that was the part he wanted to know.
"Their leader, Perseus, seemed quite shocked when you first attacked." Tapping on the keyboard beside him, Sam summoned a couple of floating windows showing the encounter. "The others too. Their confusion at your sudden appearance didn''t end there. They kept following you with their eyes as if studying every move you made, and by the end of it they didn''t show any sign of whatever they had in mind being wrong."
"That dark-skinned woman¡ Antia was her name, right?"
Sam nodded urging her to continue.
"She said I wasn''t her after all. Maybe they mistook me for someone they knew¡"
"Someone who''s been missing... or dead¡"
Silence filled theb and went on for a while. When he brought up the topic Nino first thought was that he had suspicions about her, however if he thought she was working for the enemies wouldn''t he have had his guards around?
"It might just be a coincidence, but from my experience, I very much doubt it is."
"You think?"
"Yes."
At this point Sam no longer believed in anything being a coincidence. That said, if he wants to discover the truth his only choice would be to engage with the invaders once more.
"Those people¡ they aren''t like us, are they?" Nino asked, attempting to keep the conversation going.
"They''re biological creatures, at the very least."
Seeing the blood stter after Five cut that woman''s arm shocked Sam. Before that he was a 100% sure they were the same synthetic beings as him and the Valkyries, but turns out they were biological beings, though not human.
The dark-skinned woman, named Antia, passed out from blood loss soon after Nije''s rampage which made capturing her an easy task. Wolf and Elina ran a few tests on her and the grim reaper looking man and learned a few things about their kind.
They''re made of flesh and bone, but their gic makeup is different from that of humans, which should''ve been obvious just by looking at their internal organs.
The fact that they''re from another dimension doesn''t y any part in it ording to Wolf. The humans of his world and Sam''s were identical which allowed his medical expertise to transfer between worlds without a problem.
The same can''t be said about the invaders. It''ll take some time to study them, and more than one autopsy will be needed. That said, one thing that still boggles Sam is their ability to create and manipte runes.
''Now that I think about it, I never asked the old man about them¡''
The thought urred to him before but he somehow keeps forgetting about it. The runes are symbols that, if arranged in a specific order and conditions, would create phenomena from teleportation to drawing energy and materials from other dimensions. The problem is where do they originate from?
''Greetings, lower realm residents.''
The words the youth said upon his arrival bothered Sam quite a bit as well. Was he trying to mock them or did his words have more meaning behind them? If by realm he means dimension, does that mean there is some kind of hierarchy, with humans being among the lower life forms?
"Um¡ your phone. It''s ringing¡"
Sam was so deep in thought that Nino had to inform him of the call. Seeing Elina''s naked on the screen he instantly guessed what she had to say and quickly picked up.
"Is she awake?"
[Yes. She seems calm right now, suspiciously so.] Elina replied.
"Alright. I''ll be there in a minute."
The moment Sam got up Nino did the same. He looked her way wondering whether he should dismiss her or not, taking only a few seconds to make his decision.
"You''ll be on guard duty starting today." He said, taking his phone and making another call. "Ichigo,e to theb."
Nino didn''t understand what he meant by guard duty right away, and when she did her cheeks began to redden again.
"D-did you need me for something, Doctor?" Ichigo arrived after a few seconds, but instead ofing in she remained at the entrance. The barrier around theb isted it from the outside world to prevent direct teleportation into its interior. It is for that reason he''s able to stay there without having anyone to guard him in the meantime.
Ichigo looked quite nervous as she stole nces at Sam, her cheeks flushed. He already knew how she felt toward him and looked forward to tasting her, however her excessive shyness bothered him a little so he decided to keep her close so she would get over it.
"You''ll take over for Nine until her punishment is over." Sam said.
"Y-yes! I''ll do my best!" The pink-haired Valkyrie replied, her expression brightening quite a bit.
Nino was sure of it now. Guard duty was reserved for the Doctor''s personal Valkyries. Ichigo already said that she wants to be one, and now he was making her do guard duty. That meant the two of them were already on the road to bing his personal Valkyries.
Being the Doctor''s personal Valkyries meant one thing: sex. They''ll spend the entire day with him and once the night arrives they''ll go to his room and do all those things until their shift ends the next day.
''Isn''t¡ isn''t this a bit too early!!?'' Nino thought to herself. ''We still barely know each other!''
Of course everything was just a misunderstanding on Nino''s part. While he did n on sleeping with all of the Valkyries at some point, Sam was in no rush at the moment. His reason for bringing her along was obvious so he felt no need to mention it, but the young Valkyrie whose head was filled with all sorts of fantasies was quick to jump to conclusions.
"Alright then," Sam said as he walked out of theb. "Let''s go."
"Yes!"
Replying in unison, the two Valkyries quickly took their ce and followed behind the man, each struggling with her expectations for what might happenter that day.
Chapter 171 Who Are You?
?
"Well then. Let''s hear it." Sam said as he sat down.
In front of him was a clear ss wall and on the other side was the prisoner they came to visit; the dark-skinned woman named Antia. Much like what they did with Wolf a while ago, the woman had every part of her tied to arge chair leaving no room for movement.
"Hey now, I know we are enemies, but isn''t it basic manners to show gratitude to those who save your life?"
The dark-skinned woman stared at him for a while but said nothing.
Considering that she''s capable of teleportation the restraints might be meaningless. The cell she''s in has been isted from the outside, but just in case she tries anything the mines in the restraints and those nted into her skin would instantly trigger blowing her to bits before she could put on a barrier.
"Ah! Please pardon my rudeness. To think I would forget to introduce myself. My name is Sam Sanderson. You could say I''m the one in charge."
That was as much as he could reveal this early in the conversation.
"Not very talkative, I see." Sam shook his head. "Maybe we should try with your friend. Though he looks more of the silent type than you are."
"You are making a mistake."
Sam didn''t know whether she reacted to herrade being brought up or was just annoyed by the way he spoke. Either way, he managed to make her talk and that''s what''s important.
"A mistake, huh. From my perspective you seem to be the one who''s in the wrong here."
"..."
"Invading our home and attacking us out of nowhere. It seems you had no intention of talking things out." Sam adjusted his sses before looking at the woman again.
"Taking out the enemy leader right away is the most optimal tactic."
"Well, a few words might''ve changed the situation. Is there a need for us to be enemies?"
Of course, Sam understood that there is no chance of their first encounter being any different from what happened. Those people invaded using the gate connected to the Nephilim world, and obviously they didn''t juste across it by chance.
Sam had a rough idea of how things looked on the other side thanks to the conversations he had with Wolf. The Bifrost should be located somewhere in the castle he built to serve as his stronghold in the war against the humans of his world. The only way those strangers could get to it is by taking over the entire thing, and they couldn''t possibly do that without defeating the Nephilim first.
Incidentally he made sure both the interior and exterior looked like something out of a fantasy book, with many puzzles to solve and secrets to discover, all so Alice would have something to do even if she was on her own. There is nothing that could be considered dangerous, at least on the inside, however for someone who doesn''t know about the interior navigating their way around would''ve been quite challenging.
"We did offer you a chance to surrender."
The reply only made Sam hang his head. Her being so calm was within his expectations, still, it was somewhat irritating. As he went around the question he had in his mind, the dark-skinned woman spoke again, showing more willingness to engage in the conversation.
"You have quite the impressive technology despite being a lower realm. It''s somewhat difficult to believe you only achieved interdimensional travel recently."
If not for his newfound ability to control his emotions Sam was sure his face would''ve twitched, if he didn''t smile that is.
"It''s such an honor to have our efforts recognized." He said, stering a fake smile on his face to hide the excitement he felt. "We might have only two worlds under our control so far so there is still a long way to go, but I''m sure we won''t be a lower realm for long."
"Only one. You should''ve guessed that much by now."
"Yes. Though going by yesterday''s battle I''m sure we won''t have much trouble reiming it."
Silence returned once more as the staring contest continued. The prisoner sighed after a while and muttered something to herself, but since the entire cell was monitored her words reached Sam''s ears nheless.
"Just a lower realm dweller. What a waste of time."
Ignoring her clearly condement Sam tried to prob more to see if he could learn anything without directly asking.
"It seems you''re confident we have no chance against your people."
"Obviously. Just to be clear, using me as a hostage won''t earn you anything. My life holds no value on its own."
"Is that so? I thought higher realm dwellers had a higher moral system as well. To think you would abandon one of your own just because they were captured by the enemy."
"A meager but necessary sacrifice. I''m happy to due for my lord."
''Aaand she slipped'' Sam thought.
"What a cruel lord yours is. Well, I should''ve expected as much from someone who goes by Zeus."
As if he had struck a sensitive cord, Antia''s expression stiffened. Once again Sam found himself forced to kill his emotions to keep his expression from changing.
"Say, does his hate for humans still burns strong?" Sam said. "Is that why you''re so¡ different?
"You¡ who are you?" Antia asked, now looking even more distressed.
"Just a nobody,pared to that lord of yours." Shrugging once he went on. "But to think he would still be using flesh and bone to make his soldiers. Are you sure yours is the higher realm? Don''t you think all the blood is unnecessary?"
"Watch your mouth, human. There is a limit to how much insolence I''m willing to tolerate."
"Not that you have other options. You said it yourself, right? Your life holds no value so we can''t use you as a hostage. My friend is looking forward to dissecting you so you''ll probably be dead by the time your friendse back for a rematch."
"..."
Anger slowly took over the woman''s face. In front of Sam a small window appeared warning him of the change in her status. The sensors picked signs of her muscles contracting but from the looks of it she doesn''t seem to be able to generate enough strength to break them like this.
She probably would be able to if she used her halo. The fact that she didn''t try to summon it meant that she knew her head will explode the moment she does.
"For someone who''s willing to die for her lord you sure are clinging on to dear life. How about we make a deal? All you have to do is answer my question and if we reach an understanding with your allies you might get to leave this ce in one piece."
Sam really did not want her to blow up so he hoped she would ept his deal. The dark-skinned woman continued to re at him, without a doubt thinking about how to kill him should she get her hands on him. Minutes pass without any response from her, but just when he was about to poke her once more she regained her calm all of a sudden as if something had just urred to her.
"It''s truly unfortunate that I won''t be able to witness your demise." She said with a confident smile.
From that point onward, no matter how much he tried Sam was unable to make her talk. After two hours of failed attempts he decided to call it quits and went on to visit his favorite prisoner, intending to ask her more about the reality-bending runes.
Chapter 172 More Questions.
?
"In the end we didn''t learn why they reacted to you the way they did."
With Antia refusing to answer their questions Sam had no choice but to put it off for another time. As he walked down the prison hallways he spoke to the Valkyries following behind him.
"Maybe we should''ve done more to make her speak," Nino said. "A bit of torture might''ve helped."
"Where do you even get those ideas?" Sam said, smiling warily.
"B-but Doctor was amazing back there!" Said Ichigo with a bright smile. "Even the enemy was surprised you knew so much about them!"
"Well, I would say her reactions thought us everything."
The man leading the intruders having the name Perseus gave Sam the hunt that they might be basing their organization on Greek mythology. He guessed that Antia was an abbreviation of Antianeira, a queen of the Amazonian warriors, and Cyclops were the one-eyed giants who made the lightning bolts Zeus used.
Still, it was impossible to tell for sure whether they''re just using the names like what happened with the Nephilim or if they have a real connection to the mythology. Sam tried to find out by mentioning Zeus''s hatred for humanity, and from Antia''s reaction it seems he did something to the humans of his world, either wiping them out or creating a new, more powerful race to rece them.
"The Greek gods are quite annoying," Sam said. "Especially Zeus. There is no end to the horrible things he did."
Zeus was also known for his uncontroble lust. Being the leader of an army made up of gorgeous women, Sam felt that he had a very tough battle ahead of him.
"Maybe I should read more about this," Nino said. "Do you have any rmendations?"
"I would rmend watching a documentary or the like. It''s much more efficient."
Sadly there is no YouTube in this post-apocalyptic world, but there is a chance some educational videos have been saved in the Resistance''s archives.
Just as Sam was wondering whether he should check them out to refresh his memory, the three arrived at the lowest cell in the prison quarters.
"Guh¡ not you again¡"
H''s expression twisted in disgust the moment Sam came in. She made it clear multiple times that she couldn''t stand seeing his face, but what choice did she have, being a prisoner with no hope of escape?
"Hey now, aren''t happy to see me?" Sam replied.
By now he didn''t care much about the girl. Even though she still has the super strength of a Nephilim, without a heart she couldn''t teleport or use any of her powers so keeping her tied up was meaningless. The treatment she receives has improved as well; she got a nice bed, good food,fortable clothes, plus a TV and some video games for entertainment. Apparently she was a really big fan of Wii sports before massacring the humans of her world.
"If I have to spend eternity without ever seeing your face then I would be thrilled." Putting down the Wiimote she walked over to the ss wall and sat down on the chair in front of it. "So? I take it that you have an update for me. Did you make contact with the others?"
Though it might''ve been unnecessary, Sam made sure to inform H of the attack and the likelihood that her world has been attacked. She knew something was up when the ground started shaking from Nine''s rampage, but to her surprise it wasn''t because the peace conference took a bad turn.
"Sadly we are still making the new portal. I came to ask you about something else."
"I see. So not only did you waste time instead of going after that traitor Loki right away, you''re wasting even more now just because some idiots picked a fight with you."
"I thought you were worried about your people?"
"Why would I? Thor can take care of everything on her own. If she needed help she would''ve sent for it long ago."
The young queen seemed to greatly trust her sister''s abilities, even with everything they knew pointing to how much trouble the Nephilim were in on the other world.
"... today I came to ask you about something that''s been bothering me for a while now." Letting out a sigh, Sam took a seat as well. "You''re the first Nephilim, and ording to the old man you''re also the first to use the runes. What I want to know is, how did youe up with them?"
"... Is that it?" H said. "Why didn''t you just ask one of your Valkyries? They can use Arts now, right?"
"Well¡"
Telling her about how most had their memories wiped out before receiving their bodies sounded like a pain so he decided to not do it. Thankfully she didn''t pray any further and just told him what he wanted to know.
"The short answer is I don''t know. You don''t really think of why your fingers move the way they do or how you can see or hear things, right? It''s just another one of our basic functions, that''s all."
"So you just epted the fact that you''re able to manipte reality?"
"It sounds strange to you, but we have been able to do it from the start. Well, I would be lying if I said we never wondered about the meaning of what you call runes, but we didn''t obsess over them."
H''s answers only served to confuse Sam even more, even though he already knew most of what she told him.
One look is enough to tell that the runes are a part of somenguage. Just like the Nephilim, every Valkyrie is capable of creating certain sequences that result in specific phenomena. Some of the sequences manifest in different ways depending on the Valkyrie. For example, Nino and Five use the same sequence when making their weapons, however the former creates a spear while thetter creates a katana.
It made sense to refer to them as Arts, since the manifested phenomenon could be considered an expression of the Valkyries'' imagination.
The Valkyries are able to use the Arts instinctively from the moment of their birth. Having their memories erased didn''t affect that ability, which meant it was engraved into their very being. That exins Sam''s struggles to master any of the sequences they know of. Wolf was the same at first, and ording to him it takes years to be as proficient as the average Valkyrie.
''Damn it¡''
It took time and effort to stop thinking of the girls as nothing but lifeless machines. To Sam who started seeing them as humans, anything that challenged this belief was quite painful.
Sadly he couldn''t just ignore the questions that have been on his mind ever since he heard the truth from Loki.
The Nephilim, and the Valkyries. What are they? Where did theye from? And what is Freyja''s, the original Alice''s connection to all of it?
The appearance of the new invaders was another reminder of how little they know about what''s really going on. In terms of knowledge, there isn''t a more appropriate way to describe their status than ''lower realm residents''.
Chapter 173 Greek Mythology.
?
"O~h! You''re already ba¡ what''s wrong?"
B3 paused her game and got up from the coach, her mood switching upon seeing how down her friends were.
Ichigo had a dark cloud over her head and life seemed to have left her eyes. Nino on the other hand wasn''t as gloomy, but she still looked down with disappointment clear on her face.
"Let me guess¡" the redhead spoke with a wry smile. "He sent you away without doing anything?"
"That''s¡ basically it¡" Nino heaved a sigh, walking to the coach and letting her body sink into it.
"W-well, Doctor must be quite busy." Ichigo added in a quiet voice. "There are new enemies to worry about, and he is our leader¡"
"I understand why she would be like this but¡ what about you?" Asked B3, her eyes on Nino.
"Well, he did ask me to guard him as well." The Japanese doll said. She remembered how she tried to entice him just to get the tables turned on her, and her face flushed from the embarrassment.
"Eh? You too?"
The redhead recoiled seeing her friend blush. Nino was among the Valkyries who showed interest in serving the Doctor directly, but up until now it only appeared as nothing but curiosity. Seeing her act the same way Miku and the others act when talking about him told B3 that the Doctor has put the raven-haired Valkyrie under his spell as well.
"Maybe it''s my fault for expecting something¡" said Ichigo, heaving another sigh.
"D-don''t worry! I''m sure you''ll get your chance¡ eventually¡" B3 found herself in a really tough spot trying to cheer Ichigo up. She looked around her then quickly snatched one of the controllers handing it over to the pink-haired Valkyrie. "How about we y some Back Alley Fighter? I''ve been practicing a lot, this time I''ll defeat you for sure!"
"Uh¡ I''m not really in the mood¡"
"C''mon! There is no point in thinking about it now! Let''s just have some fun!"
"I guess you have a point¡"
Ichigo took the controller and sat down. As the two started their game, Nino watched for a couple of minutes before picking a tablet from the nearby coffee table. Searching through the archives she managed to find a documentary about Greek mythology so she put it on and started watching.
From the very beginning things seemed quite disturbing with cruel fathers killed by their sons. As Valkyries Nino and the others knew very little about the rtionships between humans. They understood the general structure of families; that of a man and a woman joining to have offspring, making the father, mother and their children.
In the books she read it''s said that the father''s job is to protect and provide for his children, raising them properly so they be responsible adults in the future. This preheld belief made the fact that Cronus had eaten all of his children except for Zeus sound like the work of some horrific monster. The Titan was afraid that one of them would eventually take him down just like what he did with his father Uranus.
As she continued to watch, the name Zeus came up. The Doctor made him out to be some cruel, despicable being, however hearing that he saved his brothers and sisters from their father''s stomach then waged a war against the Titans made him appear like the hero of an epic story. Sadly that perception was shattered and soon enough she learned the reason behind his bad reputation.
First of all, he took fire away from humans just because the offerings he chose himself weren''t to his liking. He then chained Prometheus, the Titan who created humans, to a mountain and sent an eagle to feast on his liver.
He also sent Pandora, the first woman, to live among the humans with her famous box which contained all the evils Prometheus had kept from humans, knowing that she would eventually open it and release all of them on the humans.
As if that wasn''t enough, heter asked his brother Poseidon to flood the world killing most humans. Hating them for the wars they waged against each other was kinda hypocritical considering how he became the ruler of the gods in the first ce.
When it was his turn to cower in fear of his prophesied son killing him he decided to eat his pregnant wife instead of waiting for the child to be born. Too bad for him the child came out anyway splitting his head in the process. That''s how Artemis, the goddess of war, was born.
"This man really didn''t learn his lesson¡" Ninomented.
She couldn''t help but think of him as just another stupid human despite him being revered as the ruler of gods. He went on to marry another woman, this time his own aunt Themis, with who he had three daughters known as the goddesses of destiny, and their names were Clotho, Lachesis and
"Atropos¡"
The narrator went on to describe the role each goddess yed. Clotho weaved the threads of human life, Lachesis decided the length of each one and Atropos would cut them at the end bringing death with her shears.
Thest sister, the Unturning, was the most feared. Though it was her first time hearing the name, Nino felt a strange sense of dread. She found herself holding a hand to her neck robbing an old wound only to realize there is no scar there and that she doesn''t remember ever receiving such an injury.
"Nino?"
B3''s voice came shaking her out of her daze.
"Hm? Is something wrong?" The Japanese doll asked noticing that everyone was giving her concerned looks.
"Well¡ your halo¡"
Without even realizing it she had formed her halo and was in the process of creating a number of spears. It was apletely unconscious move and if it weren''t for the others informing her who knows what she might''ve done.
"Maybe¡ maybe you''re still stressed from yesterday''s battle." The red-haired Valkyrie said. "How about you take some rest?"
"I¡ yeah, you''re right¡"
Since she spent the previous night in Eir getting her wound treated there should''ve been no need for her to rest. That said, Nino felt that a quick nap would serve her best at the moment, helping take her mind off the weird happenings that keep running into her.
Chapter 174 I Volunteer!
?
A week passed without a problem. There was no interdimensional invasion contrary to everyone''s expectations, but that didn''t mean they had the leeway to rx.
Once the new portal was done Sam gathered the Valkyries to announce his ns. A small team would be going to the Nephilim''s world to investigate what happened there. The objective is to learn as much as possible about the new enemy and prepare for future encounters with them.
"Eh!?" Zero Three eximed. "You''re going as well!?"
"Of course I am," Sam replied. "This isn''t just another one of your patrols. And we still haven''t figured out interdimensionalmunication."
The Bifrost works by punching a hole through the dimensional borders between worlds. Said border repairs itself almost immediately which means keeping the portal open requires a tremendous amount of energy, not to mention the possible effects of messing with the naturalws of the multiverse.
The only way tomunicate between worlds is to send messengers when the portals are open. That means Sam couldn''t justmand his troops safely from a different world. He has to be there with them to make sure he''s aware of everything so he can make the best decisions.
"Now, I''ll be choosing those who will take part in this mi-."
"Here! I volunteer!" The first to raise her hand was Nine.
"M-Me too!" The second one was Miku. "As Doctor''s personal Valkyrie, I have to be there to ensure your safety!"
Sam nced their way and the next second his face twisted in a grimace.
"No."
That single syble poured a bucket of cold water on both Valkyries. Blond hair wasn''t the only thing Nine and Miku had inmon; their feelings and dedication to the Doctor bordered on obsession and because of that his being mad at them was quite a painful experience.
"But¡ Doctor!" Miku tried to argue, tears in her eyes. "I know I made a mistake, but¡ I can''t make up for it if you don''t give me the chance!"
"I said no. You''re sitting this one out."
"Doctor¡" Nine was looking at him with puppy eyes. "You can''t do this to me, Doctor. You know I can''t stand being away from you."
She was forbidden from leaving her room ever since she destroyed half of the base in her rampage, with someone else taking over her guard duty. That meant she had gone several days without getting as much as a kiss from her beloved doctor, and seeing that he was still mad at her her chest was filled with nothing but pain.
"Exactly," Sam said as he turned away. "It won''t be much of a punishment if you don''t hate it. Make sure to reflect on your actions while we''re gone."
"... understood¡"
As Nine hung her head in defeat, same as Miku, Sam turned to his other personal Valkyries.
"Three, Five, you two wille with me."
"Understood!" The two said in unison as they saluted.
Nodding once, Sam turned to the next candidate prompting her to step forward.
"CS. You''ll be our vanguard."
"Roger!" The gray-haired Valkyrie saluted with a grin on her face.
"Let''s see¡" As he looked around, Sam''s eyes met Ichigo''s. "Your ability proved to be crucial in thest battle. Ichigo, you''ll being with us."
"Y-yes!"
The pink-haired Valkyrie beamed the moment she was chosen. Seeing that put a smile on B3''s face.
"Good for you, Ichigo." She said. "You''ll get to spend more time with Doctor."
"B3!" Ichigo''s face flushed at herment. "That wasn''t my intention!"
"Yes yes, you just want to be of help to him, right?"
As she continued teasing her fellow Valkyrie, the redhead was taken off guard when her name was called next.
"B3. You as well." Sam said.
"Eh? Me!?"
"What are you so surprised about? You''ll be leading your own team while we''re there."
"Eeeeh!?"
"Show some discipline."
"... Understood¡"
Though she appears as nothing more than an energetic little brat, Sam knew very well that B3 was a naturally gifted leader. On top of being able to take care of those around her, she was good at observing her surroundings and capable of making split-second reactions. He was hoping he could rely on her output if things got too hectic.
"Let''s see¡ who else¡"
"Excuse me, Doctor! I would like to participate as well."
The one to step forward with a raised hand was none other than Nino. Her expression was unusually serious and she seemed determined on joining no matter what.
"Hmm¡ I don''t know about that¡"
Sam was informed that the Japanese doll has been acting strangely as ofte. It started with her using her powers unconsciously, but unlike that one time with Zero Three she had been fully awake when it happened.
It doesn''t take a genius to know that the intruders from the other day had something to do with it, but when he asked her about it she denied that it was the root cause, though she admitted that it has been on her mind.
Seeing how unstable she is Sam felt that it would be a bad idea to bring her along, however at the same time he couldn''t help wanting to find out what might happen if she''s with them.
"... Alright. But on one condition." He said, scratching the back of his head. "You''ll remain by my side the entire time."
"Eh? Um¡ understood!"
"As for the rest¡"
Sam wanted to keep their numbers under twelve, but now that he was picking them he realized he wasn''t that familiar with the other Valkyries. As he went through the profiles on his tablet he began to hear some whispers and muffled voices.
When he looked up he found most of the Valkyries around Nino talking among themselves with excited looks. The Japanese doll was silent with a red color on her cheeks, but when she noticed that he was looking at her her blushing intensified and the excited whispers became louder.
''Hm? Did they perhaps misunderstand?''
Sam instantly realized that his words could be taken in a different way which exined their reaction, but what surprised him the most was that they''re able to read into things now after beingpletely oblivious to romance and man-to-woman rtionships just a few months ago.
''I guess they''re changing as well¡''
Chapter 175 Survivors.
?
For the sake of their mission, some alterations were made to the Bifrost. They needed one that can be opened from both sides, unless they wanted to risk getting stuck of course. The new portal was one equipped into arge space ship like aircraft that doubled as an operation base as well. It carried all the equipment the Valkyries needed and it has great stealth capabilities so there was little risk of the enemy finding it, unless they have more advanced tech, of course.
Once they arrived on the other side Sam found the most optimal ce tond and had the Valkyries prepare to start the investigation. First of all he sent out a swarm of drones to scan the surrounding area and a small satellite to get a wider range. Once he was sure there is no danger in their immediate vicinity he went out to take a look for himself.
"That''s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind."
Sam found it ridiculous that his first line upon setting foot in the Nephilim''s world was that. Never in his life did he think he would be dimension-hopping before going to space, then again nothing was as expected for the past decade.
It has been around twenty years since the extermination of humans in this world. Twenty whole years. No cars, no nes, no boats, no factories. No carbon emissions, no pollution. Sam had expected a nuclear wastnd upon his arrival, but what he found was a greenndscape spreading for miles on end.
Data arrived from the drones he sent out after a while. Apparently the nt life mutated thanks to the nuclear disaster and has been spreading uncontrobly for the past two decades. Now most of thend is covered in green and animal life has been thriving without humans there to ruin everything.
"Maybe humans really shouldn''t exist," Sam said as he observed the surrounding forest.
"Hmm¡ I don''t really like this ce¡" Zero Three said.
"Yeah¡ it somehow¡ feels wrong¡" added B3.
The two of them had disgusted looks on their faces for some reason. Before Sam could ask Nino stepped in to offer her input on the matter, running a hand through her silky raven hair as she spoke.
"Most forests are supposed to be green, you know. Our world was just painted red by the Nephilim''s drones."
"Even if you say that¡"
When he thought about it, Sam realized that the Valkyries only knew of the red-covered ruins left behind by the Cmities. They never got to see the ins, forests, mountains, and cities as they were before the war, and while Asgard offered a glimpse at what once was, this was their first experience seeing nature in it¡ well, natural way.
"This is too much green though," Sam said with a chuckle.
PING!
Just then a notification came informing him that the satellite has taken its ce in orbit and was in the process of scanning the ne. He had it positioned halfway between them and Odin''s castle, which was somewhere in North America, just in case the enemy detected their presence.
"Strange¡" he murmured while looking at the scan data. "There are no other active satellites¡"
With no one to maintain them the satellites in the sky have long since fallen, well, the ones that weren''t shot down during the war at least. Sam had expected the enemy, dubbed the Olympians, to have installed their own formunication and surveince purposes but apparently, they didn''t bother to.
"Isn''t it because the is mostly empty?" Nino asked.
"I doubt that would be their reason," Sam replied. "Even if they knew the humans on this world are gone, they would still need something to detect interdimensional portals¡"
The only exnation he could think of is that the Olympians had some other, more efficient way to monitor the whole. It wouldn''t make sense for them to be so careless unless they were sure of their fighting power and decided to leave themselves open on purpose.
"Hm?"
The footage captured by the satellite soon came in and Sam could only raise an eyebrow when he went through them. He gazed at the west again seeing the faint red taint in the sky, he then looked at the digital clock on his tablet which told him it was 13:45 and realized it was way too soon for the sun to be setting down.
"What the hell¡?"
The coordinates pointed at the exact location where Odin''s castle is supposed to be. From that exact spot crimson beam shot up piercing the sky and cutting through an immeasurable distance through space.
Sam was baffled by how he failed to notice it until now. His first guess was that the bright sky made it difficult to see, but that didn''t make sense considering his enhanced sight and all the drones he sent out.
"Hey, aren''t those lines a bit strange?" Said Nino as she peeked at the tablet from his side.
"Hm? What do you mean?" Zero Three did the same. The way she clung to his arm told Sam that the young Valkyrie wasn''t too happy about the Japanese doll sticking close to him this entire time.
"Your job is to keep guard, you know?" Heaving a sigh he zoomed in on the tower-like beam of light. The lines Nino spoke of turned out to be strings of runes formingplex shapes as they encircled the giant crimson beam.
"This¡ doesn''t look good¡" Sam had no idea what they did, but no matter how he looked at it something of that magnitude couldn''t possibly be a good thing.
PING!
Another notification came in, this time from one of the drones surveilling the area. The moment he saw it Sam turned to his Valkyrie.
"Five, three and a half miles to the east."
"Understood!"
Without asking questions Five teleported along with two other Valkyries heading to the location he pointed out. The notification he received indicated that the drone was destroyed, but the data captured by its sensors didn''t pick up anything.
Knowing they couldn''t afford to y around anymore the Valkyries prepared for a potential fight. Zero Three let go of the Doctor''s arm and summoned her halo, same as the others.
Something glinted in the corner of her eye and she instantly put a triangr shield in its direction. A momentter something collided with the shield and from the trajectory it was easy to tell who they were targeting.
"They''re after Doctor!" Zero Three shouted.
"Leave it to me!" Nino said before disappearing.
There were no follow-ups so Sam suspected that there is only one sniper. He wasn''t surprised about him being the first to be targeted anymore, after all he stood out like a sore thumb among the gorgeous Valkyries.
"Doctor¡ check this out¡"
Zero Three was pointing at the ground. Squinting his eyes immediately picked up what it was and he raised an eyebrow when recognizing what it was.
"A bullet head?"
More specifically, a 7.62¡Á54mmR. But the size or type didn''t matter. What mattered is the fact that it was a physical bullet, not energy or sma. It was a primitive type of ammunition that was barely used nowadays mainly because it had no effect on Cmities.
[Doctor¡ I think you need to see this¡]
When Five''s voice came in, tinged with confusion and bewilderment, Sam got a feeling that his suspicions might not be so off after all.
"Three of you will being with me. The rest will form a barrier around the ship and remain inside until we return."
Taking Three''s hand the two teleported twice before arriving above Five''s location. By the time theynded Sam already had a read on the situation and couldn''t help but grimace at the sight.
Sitting on the ground were two men in dirty ragged clothes wrapped with leaves and veins. Each was in pain, their arms broken from being restrained by the Valkyries. The girls seemed flustered as their strength had unintentionally caused them harm, but seeing the knives on the ground beside them told a short story of what happened before Sam got there.
All that aside, the most surprising part is that those two were men. Dark-skinned, flesh-and-blood men. Sam didn''t even need to do any scans; the terror on their faces as the two Valkyries kept them still confirmed the fact that they were both humans.
Up to this point, the fact that the Nephilim eradicated the humans in their world was never questioned. Looking at the results of the war that went on for thest decade, Sam had no trouble believing in the Nephilim''s ability tomit such atrocities. But was there ever a confirmation? Did the Nephilim search everyst corner of the and make sure no humans were left behind?
The answer was there, right in front of him. There are still some survivors, and from the looks of it, they still had some fight in them, at least until the angels came went down from the sky.
Chapter 176 Aliens.
?
"Well, all I can say is I''m d nobody got hurt."
Wearing a brilliant smile, although a fake one, Sam spoke to the two soldiers in front of him. Another five were found lurking nearby. Thankfully the Valkyries were quick to notice something was off and chose to restrain them instead of attacking, and after dragging them back to the ship Sam chose the two that seemed to what he was saying and took them inside to talk.
The soldiers were understandably frightened. Their eyes moved around frantically and neither of them touched the tea that was served. Things won''t go anywhere unless he got them to rx, but that was easier said than done.
"Before anything else, I want you to know that your safety is guaranteed. Since there were no casualties we are willing to overlook your aggression and promise to not harm you as long as you cooperate."
"R-really?" One of them asked, surprise clear in his eyes.
"Of course. I believe that, once we''re done talking, you''ll understand that we aren''t your enemy."
Humans had no hope of hurting Valkyries let alone killing them. Normal ammunition can''t prate the force field the Valkyries use, and though he''s still incapable of creating it, Sam''s new body is sturdy enough that no bullet could hope to harm him. Getting angry at those men for attacking them would be like a grown man being pissed about a child kicking his leg.
"Alright then, how about we start with introductions? My name is Sam Sanderson. I''m technically the general in charge of the forty-sixth Resistance base, but that''s irrelevant. Let''s just say I''m the one in charge of those girls."
What he said clearly took the two men by surprise as their eyes shot open, their nervousness skyrocketing. Sam didn''t understand why they reacted that way, after all everything he said was clear to anyone looking. He got his answer soon enough.
"Y-you!... You''re O-O-Odin!!?" Said the one on the left, vibrating in his chair like he had to take an emergency trip to the bathroom.
Of course Sam was baffled by what he heard, so much that he was speechless for a few seconds. Why would they think he was the old man? The two of them look nothing alike, not to mention that Wolf was an old man even twenty years ago.
''Now, how should I go about this?''
The two think he''s Odin because the Valkyries are under his leadership. One would expect people to know what the viin who almost destroyed humanity looks like so it was a mystery how they made such a mistake.
That aside, Sam was now having trouble deciding what his answer should be. If he denies that he''s the old man it would reveal the fact that he knows about him. But he didn''t know if feigning ignorance would help. This conversation would impact the way he would interact with the surviving humans so he has to be careful of what he says.
"Odin¡ do you mean the all father from Norse mythology?"
After a couple of seconds he decided it would be for the best to hide the truth.
The two men stared at him for a while, their eyes shifting in each other''s direction, their suspicion couldn''t be any more obvious.
"May I hear your name?" Sam asked in an attempt to move the conversation. The other two were still not talking however so he picked up his cup and took a sip.
"David." One of them said a whileter. "My name is David."
Hisrade turned to re at him, silently yelling at him to keep his mouth shut. The man named David returned a determined look before shifting his sight back to Sam.
"General Sanderson, right?" He said. "Would it be fine for me to ask a question?"
"Yes. Go ahead."
Lowering his gaze as his whole body tensed up, David then took a deep breath and spoke again.
"Those¡ females¡" he said, his eyes wandering to Five and CS who stood guard in the corner. "They''re angels, aren''t they?"
"Indeed." The corners of Sam''s mouth curled up as he replied. "But sadly they all belong to me so make sure you don''t fall for them."
His attempt at humor wasn''t well received. He understood that the "angels" the man was referring to are the Nephilim which meant affirming his suspicion would only serve to terrify him even more. There aren''t that many distinctions between Valkyries and Nephilim so it was only natural to assume they''re the same.
"Mr. David." Sam spoke. "May I ask what your rank is?"
"It''s sergeant¡"
"Sergeant David, then." Pausing for a moment, Sam took another sip of his tea before continuing. "Am I right to assume you and yourrades are humans?"
"... Yes."
"The information we have on your world tells us that humans were wiped out twenty years ago. That seems incorrect."
The evidence stood right in front of him, however it was still difficult to believe the humans of this world actually managed to survive when they didn''t have the Valkyries helping them. The world was already at war against Wolf trying to steal the secret to immortality from him, but even if they were on guard, H''s crusade didn''t leave them any time to react.
"We¡ don''t know¡" David replied, his head handing. "It was only recently that we started going out. We still don''t know if there are any others besides us."
"David!" The second man shouted at him, his re getting sharper.
"Forget it, Jacob. If they want us dead there is nothing we can do about it."
Letting out a sigh, David seemed to ept his fate and picked up the cup in front of him, staring at it before taking a sip.
"So you have been hiding for the past twenty years?" Sam asked.
"I was only nine when the war started. We were¡ lucky, I guess."
There was a moment of silence as each waited for the other to speak. The second man, Jacob, continued to re at hispanion as if warning him not to say anything. Sam could tell they were trying to hide something from him. He was sure it had to do with other survivors.
David seemed to calm down a little but his eyes kept drifting in the Valkyries'' direction. After a while he looked at Sam again, apparently having deduced something from their conversation so far.
"General, you said you know about what happened to humanity, right?"
"... Yes." Sam replied.
"Forgive me if I''m wrong, but doesn''t that mean you''re also aware of who caused it all?" His eyes carefully studied Sam''s expression. "You do know about the angels. Am I correct?"
Sam kept the fake smile stered on his face and calmly answered.
"Do you mean the Nephilim?"
Though she introduced her kind as that when attacking his world, Sam doubted H did the same back in the day. They knew about Odin, but it was doubtful that the people of this world knew who the Nephilim were. It was easy to imagine the conspiracies and myths that would be born from beautiful womening down from the sky to put an end to humanity. It didn''t help that the wings and halos they use enhance the angel aesthetic so it wouldn''t be a surprise if some people thought the massacres were just a work of god.
"Is that¡ is that what they''re called?" Asked David.
"The ones on your world, at least. Those two, and the ones outside, are all Valkyries. You could say they''re rtives, but they weren''t involved in what happened to your people."
"... Does it matter?" It was Jacob who spoke next, his voice shaking with suppressed rage. "They''re all monsters. Whether they were involved or not, it doesn''t change that fact."
In the corner of his eye Sam noticed CS''s brows twitch as a smile formed on her lips. She was clearly pissed, and the same goes for Zero Five whose ice cold eyes were locked on the two men.
"Your name is Jacob, right?" Sam said. "I understand how you feel, but I would appreciate it if you don''t refer to them as that."
"Or what? You''ll kill us? You think we''re afraid to die?"
His trembling voice betrayed him and the terror he felt was clear to everyone around. He didn''t look much older than hispanion so Sam assumed they were both around their thirties. That meant they witnessed the war when they were kids and the trauma that left in them is a good reason for their hostility toward anyone rted to the Nephilim. Still, in order for the talk to move along he needed them to believe that he isn''t their enemy, that''s why Sam decided that he needed to exin to the two men that the Valkyries were different.
"Until just a couple of months ago, we were still at war with the Nephilim. The two over there fought on the Frontline against the same enemy that massacred the humans of your world, are you still going to hate them even while knowing that?"
Jacob was speechless once more, his mouth hanging open. He didn''t know what to say, and who could me him? David spoke next looking as confused as his friend.
"Wait, I still don''t get it." He said, holding up a hand and rubbing the bridge of his nose. "You have been saying ''your world'' for a while now, are you¡ are you trying to say you are an alien or something?"
"Well, something like that." Bringing his cup up Sam took another sip. "Wee from another dimension that closely resembles yours. The Nephilim of your world invaded ours and we have been at war with them for a while now. We were supposed to sign a peace treaty recently but they didn''t show up. That''s why we came here to investigate."
The quick summary earned Sam more confused looks. The staring went on and on until Jacob seemed to finally get it at which point his eyes turned round.
"Another dimension? You mean¡ like another universe?" He asked.
"Wait, the multiverse is real!?" David added, looking as shocked.
Sam could only smile at their reaction. It was understandable, he felt the same when he learned the truth as well.
"Yes and yes." He replied.
"Hold on¡ wha-... How?"
"General, are you by chance messing with us?" David asked.
"It''s the truth." Sam said.
"Wait, you said you came here to sign a peace treaty? With the angels?" Jacob followed.
"Yes."
"Does that mean¡ does that mean you won the war? The war is over?"
"Yes." Sam paused, thinking about something for a moment. "Well, as I said before we were told the humans of this world were wiped out. But, since there are more survivors, I will make sure to negotiate your safety with the-"
Just then Sam came to a realization. He remembered the reason they traveled to this other world in the first ce, and when he did, his mood soured immediately. The humans of this world had something other than the Nephilim to worry about. It was doubtful that the Olympians would be willing to just leave them alone, and though he wasn''t obligated to help them, Sam felt that he couldn''t just outright ignore them.
[Doctor.]
As he pondered over what he should do about the situation, B3''s voice came in.
"Yes?" Sam said, cing a hand on his right ear.
[Someone is here. He says he has a message for you.]
Chapter 177 Not Human.
?
When B3 notified him of the visitor Sam was expecting another soldier, but to his surprise the one waiting outside turned out to be a kid. Sure he was wearing camouge, but his height and youthful face told that he was still in his early teens.
"Are you the ''Doctor''?" The boy asked.
Sam looked down at himself. He wasn''t wearing hisb coat this time around so there was no hint pointing to his nickname. He guessed that the boy heard it from one of the girls, but if he came here to see their leader it didn''t make sense to address him that way.
"Indeed." Sam said, stepping down out of the shit. "Are you one of them, perhaps?"
The boy nced in the five soldiers'' direction. All of them had their arms and legs restrained so they wouldn''t hurt themselves in a pointless attempt at escape. His eyes returned to Sam next, and without answering the question he went on to say
"The elder wants to meet you."
The silence that followed was understandable. The boy was calm, and though he was surrounded by what the others believed are the enemies of his people he didn''t seem all that scared. But the most confusing part is that he spoke as if they''re supposed to know this elder he''s referring to.
In any case, it appears that the leader of those survivors has already made the decision to engage with their group. Sam knew there was more to it, but because of that he was reluctant to make a decision.
"Sergeant David!" He called. A couple of secondster the man came arrived in quick steps. When he saw the boy standing a few meters away his eyes widened.
"Karim!? What are you doing here!!?"
He was about to approach him but stopped in his tracks, turning to Sam as if asking for his permission. Sam nodded once seeing no problem in letting him go.
"Hey! Why are you outside!? You are old enough to understand how dangerous the forest is!"
"The elder sent me." The boy, named Karim, responded.
"The elder!?"
"Yes. She said wants to meet the Doctor."
Sam''s suspicion wasn''t misced, but that only served to confuse him more. This elder they''re talking about told them she wants to meet him, the Doctor. That means she knew about him even though they have yet to meet, something that should be impossible.
''What am I thinking?''
At the moment he was on a different earth in a different dimension. For the past ten years they were at war with reason-defying monstrosities and his body was no longer flesh and bone. It wouldn''t be strange for someone to have some power that allows them to know things they shouldn''t know.
"Kid, did youe here knowing there are angels around?"
"Yeah." The boy replied. "The elder said everything would be fine."
"Karim! How can you be so reckless!!?" David grabbed the boy by the shoulder, shaking him lightly as he shouted in his face. "Even if the elder told you to, why would you-"
"What are you saying, father?" The boy tilted his head, his eyes slowly widening. "Has the elder ever been wrong?"
"But-"
"Didn''t you go out today just because she told you it would be safe?"
"But¡"
The fact that the two were father and son was overshadowed by how strange the boy was behaving. Sam''s theory seemed to be close to the truth. This elder they mentioned does know things others are unaware of. It might be that she can see the future, but apparently her divinations aren''t detailed which makes others reluctant to trust thempletely.
''Ah, I guess they would have doubts after meeting us when they thought everything would be safe¡''
For some reason whenever there is someone with divination powers they always tend to give vague predictions that people don''t understand until it''s toote. Sam always thought such a trope was ridiculous, but now that he was having to deal with one his worries only increased.
"He''s your kid?" Sam asked. "has he always been like this?"
David directed a confused look at Sam before looking at the boy again.
"I meant if he''s acting strangely."
If the adults had to be armed to the teeth just to go outside then the forest must be quite dangerous. For a kid to wander through it then walk into what could be an enemy camp and not even flinch when talking to their leader he must be quite messed up in the head.
"Ah! Sorry about that. He has always been like this. Even I don''t understand what''s going through his head.
Sam looked the boy in the eyes and the boy did the same. The two stared at each other for a while and neither looked away.
"Hey¡" the boy suddenly spoke, "you aren''t human, huh?"
"Wha-" David was speechless, his head almost snapping as he turned to Sam.
"What are you so surprised about? Didn''t I just tell you I came from a different dimension?"
"Huh? But¡"
"Calm down. I''m just kidding."
The truth is that he didn''t know how to answer the question himself. Now that he used the ASC tech to rece every cell in his body it wouldn''t be wrong to say he isn''t human. No matter how much he thought about it it would be impossible to find a satisfying answer.
"Boy, nothing goodes from segregating people. Worst if you deny their humanity." Looking at the Valkyries standing guard nearby, the question of whether they''re human or not resurfaced in his mind. His struggle toe up with an answer was quite the annoyance and because of that he preferred not to think about it at all. "Just because someone is human doesn''t mean they''re good. Monsters exist in all shapes and sizes. Even humans are capable of bing one."
The boy looked down at his feet, remaining silent for a while. David didn''t seem to calm down at all, sweating even more than when they first caught him and his friends.
"You''ll have a difficult time convincing the others." The boy said a few secondster.
Realizing he had just given his words some thought and arrived at a simr conclusion to his, all in the span of a few seconds, Sam couldn''t help but smile at the young boy.
"You have a smart kid, Sergeant David." He said. "Alright then. Since this elder of yours went to the trouble of inviting us, how about we head there right away? We don''t want to keep her waiting."
Beside the boy named Karim the other soldiers didn''t seem too enthusiastic about the invitation. Sam decided to take a small team with him; his two personal Valkyries in addition to CS and Nino. The others are to stay behind in case the Olympians noticed their arrival. That way they would act as a diversion so the humans'' hideout wouldn''t get exposed.
Chapter 178 The Future.
?
"This forest is¡ quite wierd¡"
His first impression was confirmed as they followed the soldiers to their hideout. At one point the trees created a ceiling over their head blocking sunlight and causing the temperature to drop. Their growth was abnormal, and so far none of the species he saw were normal.
The cause was most likely the weapons the Nephilim used in their crusade.
Recently he had a lot of things to deal with so he never had the time to study their effects. Otherworldly energy must have some very unique effects that couldn''t simply be limited to nuclear contamination.
"So, Sergeant David." Sam began. "You said you only recently started going out."
"Yes. We¡ stayed hidden for a long time." The soldiers replied.
"So you don''t know how the forest became like this?"
"Well, one thing for sure is that there was no forest around here back in the day. We were surprised as well when we first saw it."
"So a lot of things changed around here, huh?" Sam said. "You had no contact with the outside world in thest twenty years?"
"As far as we know. The elder stated that we were barely avoiding the angels'' radar, that''s why it was thew that no one should attempt going outside."
"Sounds like this elder knows a lot of stuff. Is she some kind of fortune teller?"
At this point Sam was convinced that the woman they were talking about this entire time has the power to see the future. He doubted it was perfect when she led the soldiers to believe things were safe when his group and the Olympians were around, but after some thought he began to wonder if she intended for that encounter to happen.
''If she knew we weren''t an enemy, why didn''t she send an invitation from the beginning?''
"Um¡ was it something I said?" David asked with an awkward smile.
"You basically told them earlier." Karim said, keeping his eyes on the road ahead.
David wasn''t really paying attention to what he said despite being surrounded by strangers who he considered their enemies a couple of hours ago.
"Th elder invited them." Jacob joined the conversation. The way he looked at Sam and the others told him he was still far from trusting them. "She wouldn''t have done so if she wanted to keep things a secret."
Though he said that no one was willing to tell them the details of the elder''s power. Or to be more urate none of them knew how they worked exactly. ording to David the elder predicted the disaster a good decade before it happened so they had time to prepare themselves. It was only natural to wonder why they didn''t warn the rest of the world about it, instead choosing to save only themselves. The soldiers seemed to have had the same question before but none of them received an answer.
"Say, aren''t you afraid?"
Nino asked in a low voice.
Karim, who was walking beside her, nced in her direction for a moment before returning his sight to the road ahead.
"Of what?"
"Of us." The Japanese doll adds. "Aren''t we the same as the angels that destroyed your world?"
"Well¡" the boy went silent for a few seconds. "I wasn''t born yet when the war started. Never got to see them or what they did so it''s all ghost stories as far as I''m concerned."
"So¡ you aren''t afraid?"
"Not really. I mean, you say you are an angel but¡ you look like a normal girl to me."
Going silent for a moment, the boy turned to look at the Valkyrie beside him.
"W-what?" Nino asked, feeling weirded out by his empty eyes.
"Well, it''s just that we don''t have many pale people here." Karim replied. "I saw girls like you in movies and stuff, but this is the first time I''m meeting one in person. It''s somewhat weird."
"I think it''s weirder that you''re so calm when walking beside a Valkyrie."
"Is that so?"
Having noticed their conversation Sam continued to listen making sure they didn''t notice. He found it quite impressive that the boy was talking normally to not only a stranger he just met but also one of the entities who threatened the lives of his people for decades. It was also impressive that Nino was having a normal conversation with a human despite barely having any interaction with them. He expected her to be a bit awkward but she was handling the situation pretty well.
After about an hour the group reached what Sam assumed was the entrance to the sanctuary. Arge metal hatch hid an opening in the ground that led into arge tunnel. Thankfully they didn''t have to walk after that point as two trucks were waiting for them there, but it took another fifteen minutes before they reached the destination which showed how far it was from where they met the soldiers.
As expected a wee party was awaiting their arrival. Among them Sam spotted a frail old woman in a wheelchair. She appeared to be barely holding on to life, her skin clinging to her bones with more wrinkles than one cares to count. For a moment her mood seemed to lighten up when she saw him climb out of the truck, but the next moment her eyes went wide with shock.
She''s supposed to be able to see the future so he could only wonder why the Valkyries being there was such a surprise for her.
"Greetings, travelers from another world." The old woman said. "Wee to our humble sanctuary."
"It is quite a pleasant surprise to meet the people who managed to cheat death." Stepping forward, Sam introduced himself once more. "I''m Sam Sanderson,mander of the forty sixth Resistance base."
"So you are the Doctor." The old woman said. "I see you decided to wear yourb coat."
"I realized it''s a part of me at this point," Sam replied jokingly. "Same as with these sses. It just doesn''t feel right if I don''t wear them."
"Pfft."
Zero Three let out a giggle and CS did the same. Thetter was reminded of the time she failed to recognize him without the sses so his statement made much more sense.
"Indeed. This way it feels more natural to refer to you by that title." The old woman said. "My name is Ra Zadzisai. I am the one they refer to as elder, the supposed leader of thismunity. There is much that we need to discuss so if you would please follow me."
Without saying a word the group surrounding her dispersed leaving only one woman who began pushing her wheelchair.
"We''ll be taking our leave, then." David said as he retreated with the rest of his men.
"They sure trust your judgment." Sam said as he walked beside the elder. The four Valkyries had taken ce a small distance behind him, having judged that the situation was safe to do so.
"Of course they do." The elder said with a weakugh. "We wouldn''t have made it so far otherwise."
"I expected a bit of¡ resistance to us being here. Even if they trust you it still is a bit strange that no one said anything."
Most of the people they met so far were adults. Sam saw suspicion and wariness in their eyes, some fear as well, however none of them had hostility. Well, at least not the kind born from hatred.
"Doctor Sanderson." The elder began. "Am I right to assume that you know some of the details of what happened on this side."
"Yes."
"Then you should know that the war waged by the angels'' started and ended in a single day. The truth is one can hardly call it a war, it was more like an extermination." As she spoke, there was no hint of anger or sadness in the old woman''s voice. "There was no time for grudges to build; those who saw the angels didn''t live to tell the tale. As for my people, we were already in hiding when the name Odin appeared in the news."
"So what you mean to say is¡"
"Yes. Most of us here didn''t suffer from the war, nor do we know much about the angels." ncing his way, she let a small smile form. "You have already guessed my power by now, correct? Thanks to my warning we were able to prepare for the inevitable way beforehand. The rest is easy to guess."
By the time H led the Nephilim on their rampage the people in the sanctuary were already living there for quite some time. Because of that most of them didn''t know how to feel when seeing the Valkyries for the first time.
It''s like how Karim had described it; since they didn''t experience the war for themselves, the Nephilim were more like ghost stories to the survivors.
''Guess it was only me jumping to conclusions¡''
it never crossed his mind that those people might not want revenge for what the Nephilim did. They managed to avoid total annihtion and as long as they didn''t have a connection with the outside world they had no reason to risk their lives for it.
"I did try to warn the rest of the world, just so you know." The elder said. "No one believed me, and immortality was too tempting for those who did."
"Human greed knows no end." Sam said with a sigh.
"Indeed."
After arriving at a well furnished room, some tea was served for Sam and the others. Three and Nino took the seats on Sam''s side while Five and CS stood near the wall. Once the elder was in her ce, the woman who pulled her wheelchair left without saying a word. Once again Sam felt it was quite strange for them to be so careless, but then again there was nothing they could do to stop a Valkyrie if she decides to do something.
The old woman, Ra Zadzisai, blew on her cup before taking a sip. Savoring the taste for a moment she ced it down and returned her sight to Sam, the rxed expression she had before having disappeared.
"Now then, I would say it''s about time we discuss why I invited you here."
Sam braced himself for what she was about to say. As a fortune teller, Ra knew of the future and if it was a good one she wouldn''t have gone through the trouble of contacting him. Whatever she had to say, it probably wasn''t anything good.
"Even among my people, only a few know about this." The old woman began, closing her eyes as she recounted what happened so far. "Odin waged his one man war against the world, but it was far away and we didn''t have to fear it. Then came the angels and wiped the world clean, we barely managed to survive their wrath."
Even without her saying it, Sam could already see where this was going.
"We survived both of those events." The old woman opened her eyes. "However I''m afraid we won''t have much luck with the next one."
Nino twitched in her ce. For some reason the elder was looking at her and she seemed quite ufortable because of that. She reached for Sam''s arm and held on t his coat. Her delicate fingers were trembling and for a moment she only looked like a scared weak little girl.
"Madam Ra. You knew of us not being from this world." As he spoke, Sam took Nino''s hand into his. That seemed to surprise the young Valkyrie, but a momentter she seemed to rx a bit. "Am I right to assume you''re aware that we aren''t the only invaders?"
"Indeed." The old woman nodded, pausing for a couple of seconds. "If I had to be more precise, my powers don''t actually allow me to see the future." She exined. "I can observe a multitude of potential oues to my actions. That''s why I was able to choose which path I had to take in order to survive."
"Hmm¡"
Though he didn''t let it show on his face, Sam was quite impressed. The elder''s powers were way more convenient than he thought. if she''s able to see the potential futures of her actions, it would be way easier for her to survive than if she simply saw one future and tried to change it.
"Sadly, as you can see, I''m no longer able to take any actions myself. I can only rely on the reports brought in by those who follow my orders, but if there is no one left then¡"
"... I see¡"
There was no path ahead. It was the end of the road for her and her people as well.
"Um¡ doctor¡" As the silence went on, it was Zero Three who spoke next. "I don''t fully understand but¡ wouldn''t it be for the best if we went back to our world?"
She was grabbing onto his coat as well, a terrified look on her face. Having listened to the conversation she must''ve understood that the people of the sanctuary aren''t the only ones whose future the elder saw. Sam and the others were there, she could use her powers to see a future where they follow her orders. If the path is still blocked even with them taking the lead the danger ahead is simply too much for them.
"You are right, young girl." The elder said, her eyes on Zero Three. "If we remain here the only conclusion that awaits us is death. That''s why I have a favor to ask of your Doctor."
Turning her eyes to Sam, the elder bowed her head slightly and made her request.
"I want you to open the gate for my people and send them back to your world. It''s the only path that doesn''t end with their demise, however¡"
Sam waited for her to follow, but a momentter he understood what she wanted to say.
"You can''t see the oue." He said, his face twisting in a grimace.
"That''s right." Ra said, a small smile forming showing her resignation. "Five days from now my life will reach its natural end. Anything that happens beyond that day is a mystery to me."
Her powers allow her to see the potential oues of her actions, including the reports others make after following her instructions. It was a convenient power, but it had its limitation. She couldn''t see anything that had no direct connection to her, and that included the future where she was no longer with them.
"The farthest I can see is when we are about to enter the light pir." The old woman continued. "The path ends there. It''s far from the best conclusion, however we will still survive and that''s all that matters."
Sam crossed his arms and went into deep thought. He came to this world to investigate what happened to Nephilim, knowing full well that he might have to confront the Olympians at some point. Other than her own death, the elder foresaw a number of futures where her people would be massacred. If the only way out is for them to travel to another dimension then whatever was about to happen is too big for them to avoid.
"Madam Ra¡" Looking up at the elder, Sam asked the obvious question. "What did you see?"
The old womanclosed her eyes. Her skeletal hands grasped the armrest of her wheelchair and her whole body began to tremble. Even when she said nothing, Sam could still see the pain she was going through.
After a few silent moments, the elder exhaled and forced herself to calm down.
"Madness."
When the words left her lips, a chill ran down Sam''s spine. He didn''t think he would ever experience such a feeling, not after gaining his new body. He didn''t understand the reason, but that single word was enough to fill his chest with terror.
"All I saw was madness."
Chapter 179 There Is Hope.
?
"Hm? What''s wrong with her?"
After a long day of work, Nana returned to the Valkyrie residence to take a short break before returning to her post. She removed the hairpin she usually wore letting her silver hair cascade down to her shoulders and as she was about to take off her sses she noticed a rather odd sight in the living area.
"Oh, she''s been like that for a while now." A passing Valkyrie answered, looking at a blond young Valkyrie sitting lifelessly on one of the couches. "I have to say she''s doing much better than the other one."
Nana followed the Valkyrie''s line of sight to one of the corners where a ball of blond hair rested.
"This¡ doesn''t look good at all¡" Nana said with a sigh, shaking her head in disapproval.
As she mindlessly stared at empty space Miku noticed the silver-haired woman approaching her. She immediately sensed the lectureing her way, but even though she wanted to teleport away her depressed mind prevented her from taking any action.
"What do you think you''re doing?" Nana asked, crossing her arms and staring down at the young Valkyrie.
"Feeling miserable, I guess," Miku answered with a sigh.
"And since when did you have the time for that?"
"Ever since¡ ever since¡" Miku tried to but the words refused toe out, not until the tears began flowing first. "Ever since Doctor abandoned me!!!"
Not a couple of seconds in and Nana was already sure that the waterfalls wouldn''t stop. Unable to bear watching her little friend bowling her eyes she reluctantly sat down and pulled the crying Miku into her arms burying her head into her ample chest.
"Now now, I''m sure there is nothing to worry about." Nana spoke in a warm and caring voice, her hand gently caressing the golden hair.
"But¡ but¡ he left me behind! Even though I''m his personal Valkyrie!"
"And?" Nana asked.
"I''m supposed to be by his side!" Miku shot back, looking up with red eyes. "He went on a mission to another world! Do you know how significant this event might turn out to be!!? The ones that went with him will definitely have the chance to leave a big impression! By the time they return they''ll be far ahead of the rest of us!"
"I''m¡ not sure I''m following here¡"
"Seriously?"
The confusion Miku felt at that moment caused the tears to dry out. When she gave it some thought she realized that the concept might be foreign to her friend so she decided to exin it to her.
"Do you know what a harem is?" The young Valkyrie asked as she grabbed a tablet from the nearby coffee table.
"Enlighten me." Nana said with a sigh, relieved that the crying had stopped.
"Well, it''s when a number of females have a rtionship with the same male."
"O~h¡"
"Doctor is the only male on this base so technically we are all part of his harem."
"Did you forget about General Schneider?" Nana asked, recalling that their old boss was in fact a prisoner.
"The old man isn''t interested in any of us so he doesn''t count." Miku answered. "Anyways, what I''m trying to say is that we are all Doctor''s potential love interests, and since there are so many of us it''s inevitable that some will get preferential treatment over the others."
"O-okay¡"
"Let me put it like this. There are many females, us Valkyries, and only one male, which is Doctor." Miku exined and Nana nodded along. "Since there is only one Doctor, the amount of time he can allocate to each of us decreases with each Valkyrie that gets close to him."
"Makes sense¡"
"Of course, since Doctor is the one who decides how to distribute his time, It''s only inevitable that some Valkyries will get more than the others."
"I see¡"
"In order to increase the time Doctor gives us, we have no choice but to try and leave an impression on him to draw his attention."
"Hmm¡ is that why you wanted to go with him?"
As Nana understood it, what Miku and some of the other Valkyries were doing was trying to stand out so they would get to spend more time with Dr. Sanderson. Being favored by their leader meant that they would have a higher status than other Valkyries. Though ranks weren''t important before -since none of them had any authority before- a lot has changed and the Valkyries were responsible for managing themselves now. As the leader of their organization the Doctor will be the one to decide which roles they''re going to y so the better his impression of a certain Valkyrie is the higher the likelihood of her getting an important rank.
Nana was satisfied by the conclusion she reached and for a moment she thought she understood what her friend was getting at, but apparently there was more to the exnation.
"Now imagine we are characters in a book." Miku said while pointing at the tablet in her hands. It showed an illustration with strange deformed characters which had colorful hair andrge vibrant eyes. At first it looked like a normal drawing but when she gazed at it for a few seconds Nana realized that all of the characters were female besides the one in the center. "In a romance story where there are multiple love interests, or heroines as they''re called, is determined by how big a role she ys in a story."
"I¡ see¡?"
"If one of the heroines doesn''t y an important role, she would slowly fade into the background and eventually get forgotten, like these two over here." She pointed at two characters near the frame of the picture. At that moment Nana understood what the picture represented; the male character was at the center and the importance of a female character was represented by how close to him she is ced.
"The story usually revolves around the protagonist, who is Doctor in our case." Miku went on. "That means those who went with him to the other world are heroines who have important roles to y while those of us who stayed behind are just background characters who won''t get the chance to shine! Doctor will pay more attention to them and by the time hees back he would no longer care about any of us!"
Even after all of that, for some reason Nana''s understanding of the situation didn''t get any better than before. She held a hand to her cheek as she contemted the situation some more. With how busy she was ever since she moved to the forty sixth base the silver haired Valkyrie was among those who have yet to learn about romance and rtionships. She had no idea what the terms Miku used meant so it was difficult to understand the second part of her exnation. That said, Nana wasn''t about to give up on trying to cheer her friend up so she quickly came up with something using her limited understanding and hoped that it would be enough to ease the young one''s worries.
"Miku, I think you''re forgetting an important part." Nana said. "We aren''t characters in a book. You can''t apply the logic of a fictional story to our lives."
"Well, I know that, but¡"
"Just think about it. Despite barely spending any time with him, the Doctor made you one of his personal Valkyries. By your logic that shouldn''t have happened unless you went on some grand adventure with him."
Miku remembered reaching out to Sam because she wanted to try having sex. She fell for him on the spot and despite ying less of a prominent rolepared to the three from the forty sixth base in the end she became his personal Valkyrie and achieved her goal of being with him. Still, a part of her was afraid of being neglected once again. She understood that the Doctor had no choice as he couldn''t be everywhere at the same time, but that''s precisely why she wanted to go with him to the other world in hopes of making him recognize her value so she could stay by his side more often.
Turning the tablet toward herself, Miku stared at the picture on its screen for a few seconds.
"I just¡ I just wanted to be the main heroine this time¡" she said, tears welling up in her eyes.
Nana remained silent, not sure how what to say at that point. Thankfully the young Valkyrie seemed to bounce back right away, jumping to her feet and wiping her tears away.
"You know what? You''re right, Nana." She said, eyes full of determination. "We aren''t just some characters in a poorly written book! We control our own destiny! And we decide what role we y in life!"
"Yes, yes, that is correct!" Nana said, encouraging her with a smile.
"Also, even if I didn''t get to assist Doctor this time, I will surely get my chance in the future! I''m his personal Valkyrie after all!"
"That''s right!"
Nana and Miku were too focused on their conversation so it startled them quite a bit when Nine suddenly appeared beside them.
"Since when-"
"Doctor chose us to be his personal Valkyries!" Nine said, interrupting the surprised Nana. "We have been by his side from the very beginning! There is no way we can just be reced!"
"No, I think he really is done with you." Miku said, waving her hand dismissively. "He was really angry at you after you destroyed half of the base."
"But-"
"And you got me dragged into it as well. Seriously why do I have to be punished for a mistake you made?"
With those harsh words directed at her, Ninepletely lost the spirit she had just regained and went back to sitting in the corner.
"Did you have to bring her down like that?" Nana asked, displeased by her friend''s behavior.
"Serves her right." Miku replied, not feeling sorry for her fellow Valkyrie at all.
Despite what the young one said, Nana was sure everything would be back to normal once their punishment ends. She didn''t know the Doctor very well but from the impression she got of him Nana found it hard to believe that he would simply discard someone close to him just because they made a mistake, no matter how big that mistake might be.
"The Doctor, huh¡" Nana said, her mind wondering about the recent events. "Now that I think about it, it''s very strange that he decided to leave you two here when he''s going on such an important mission."
"I know, right!?" Miku eximed. "I mean, he took multiple Valkyries that are much less capable inbat. And only Three and Five have experience guarding him!"
Most Valkyries were vanguard fighters who know more about destroying enemies than protecting allies. Among them Miku should''ve been an obvious choice to take along since she served as General Schneider''s bodyguard for quite a while. The Doctor''s personal Valkyries should''ve been his most trusted subordinates. Their punishment being a reason to leave them behind seemed reasonable, but the more she thought about it the more Nana was unable to shake the feeling that something was off.
Chapter 180 Of Course.
?
"Thank you for your patience. Your rooms are now ready." The elder''s assistant said. "Please feel free to use them however you like."
The meeting with the elder went on for quite a while during which Sam tried to learn as much as he could from the old fortune teller. Sadly old age was taking its toll on her body and she was forced to retire early that night.
With how much they learned and how much they still needed to learn it was decided that Sam and hispany should spend the night in the sanctuary.
Two rooms were prepared with four beds each. Hearing that the Valkyries nced at each other with the same thought crossing their minds, except for CS who just yawned and said she wanted to take a nap.
"I will take the night shift and look after Doctor!" Zero Three''s hand shot up as she announced.
"What are you saying, Three?" Five said with a sigh. "ording to the calendar, today should be Nine''s turn, not yours."
"Nine isn''t here though."
"Correct. That means, as the one who''s next in line, it is my turn to guard Doctor during the night."
"There is no rule like that!" Three said. "Besides, we aren''t in the base anymore! And this is a different world!"
"So?"
Sparks started flying as the two red at each other. Sam watched the interaction with a bemused smile. Though they didn''t mind having threesomes from time to time, the Valkyries still had some desire to monopolize him from time to time. Without his knowing they came up with a rotation where each one gets a night with him, but it appears Zero Three was trying to get ahead of the others.
''Well, not like we''re going to do it in this situation¡''
They were in a different world, surrounded by strangers without a clue when the enemy will attack. It would be disastrous if the Olympians barged in and found him balls-deep into one of his girls.
As he watched the two argue, Sam caught a glimpse of Nino in the corner of his eye. She looked a bit down, and with no sarcasticmentsing from her Sam understood she was still worried about what the elder said.
Seeing her like that made him feel a little bad, that''s when a wild idea appeared in his head.
"Alright you two, cut it out." Saying those words, Sam ced his hand on Nino''s shoulder and without a warning pulled her petite body toward him. "I''ve already decided that Nino will apany me for the night."
"Eh?"
"Eh?"
"Eh?"
The three looked at him in confusion and then eximed at the same time.
"EEEEEEEEEHH!!!?"
"What''s wrong with you all¡" CS was the only one who seemed indifferent to the situation, yawning as if to show her boredom. "There are four beds in each room, right? I don''t mind sleeping on my own so¡"
"D-D-Doctor! Are you nning on making Nino your personal Valkyrie as well!?" Zero Three asked in a fluster.
"Of course." Sam replied without hesitation.
To be more urate, he nned on making all of them his personal Valkyries. It was just a matter of when and where.
"Um¡ Doctor?"
Hearing a timid voice Sam looked down to see Nino who was a blushing mess gazing at him with pleading eyes.
"What is it?"
"Um¡ well¡" unable to keep eye contact she lowered her head before going on. "I''m¡ I''m okay, really¡ I can wait so¡ you should choose someone else this time¡"
Normally she''s always blunt and confrontational so seeing her acting all shy tickled Sam a little.
"No, I want you to be the one tonight." Sam said as he pulled her even closer. "I''ve been waiting for this for a long time, you know?"
The Japanese doll heated up gradually with each word that came out of his mouth. Three and Five went silent, watching with eyes filled with envy. CS who couldn''t care less had made her way to one of the rooms and was already snoring on one of the beds.
After a couple of seconds, Zero Three''s eyes shot open as a brilliant idea crossed her mind.
"Doctor! Wouldn''t it be better if someone was there to teach her what to do?" The young Valkyrie said. "This is her first time after all. I''m sure she would be morefortable if an experienced Valkyrie was there to guide her!"
"W-what are you saying!?" Nino retorted. "How can I befortable if someone else is watching!!?"
"Don''t worry. It''s only embarrassing at first, but you''ll get used to it real quick!"
"Alright, Zero Three will be joining us then." Sam announced.
"Yes!" Three raised her arms in celebration.
"D-Doctor¡" Five timidly raised her hand, her cheeks a little flushed. "would it be okay if I¡"
"Hm? Well, we do have enough beds." Having had his fun, Sam decided to put an end to his little prank. "That said, I would feel bad if only CS is left out so you should stay with her."
"But¡"
"Now now, there is no need to worry. Those two are more than enough. Not to mention the rooms are right beside each other, if something were to happen you can just teleport there, right?"
Three''s excitement died down as the three Valkyries began to realize that they might''ve misunderstood the situation. As if to confirm their suspicion, Sam looked down at the Japanese doll and said with a smile.
"You don''t need two more just to help you guard me, right?"
Staring at him for a while, Nino''s face flushed once more as she finally understood he was messing with her the entire time.
~[]~
Since his body wasn''t that of a human anymore Sam had no need for sleep. Still taking a nap from time to time was a good way for him to calm his mind and organize his thoughts.
A couple of hours afterying down Sam opened his eyes, having had enough rest already. There was still some time before the incident the elder warned them about so he decided to spend it giving their situation more thought.
"Hm?"
Just as he was about to get up he noticed something strange under his nket. It was quite easy to guess what it was so he wasn''t surprised at all when he saw Zero Three clinging to him as she wandered the dream world.
"I warned her, you know." A voice drew his attention, its owner being Nino who was sitting on the opposite bed. "She ignored me and sneaked in anyways."
"You couldn''t sleep?" He asked.
"It would''ve been weird if I could." She replied.
The smallmp cast a dim light across the room. Nino was hugging her knees, a worried expression on her face. It''s been clear that something was bothering her since the attack on the base, however after their meeting with the elder she seemed a lot more restless.
Sam released himself from Three''s hold and walked over to the other side of the room. He expected the Japanese doll to flinch or show some kind of reaction when he sat beside her, however she remained still for a while, and just as he was about to tell her some reassuring words he felt her lean against him. It was quite the surprise, but Sam didn''t let it phase him, pulling her toward him and slowly rubbing her arm.
"Is what the elder said still bothering you?" He asked.
"... Yeah¡" Nino responded, her voice a bit lowered. "That and¡ something else¡"
"Can you tell me about it?"
Remaining silent for some time, Nino recalled the events that transpired in the past few days. She wasn''t sure if talking about it was the right thing to do, but at the same time she was afraid of the problems that mighte from her not doing so.
"A few days ago I¡ I watched a video about Greek mythology like you suggested." Having decided toe out with it, Nino gathered her thoughts and spoke slowly. "The stories themselves were weird but¡ something seemed strange." Pausing for a moment, she hugged her knees even closer before continuing. "I don''t know why but¡ the names¡ it was supposed to be the first time I heard them but¡ they all sounded familiar¡"
"Really?"
"I don''t know." She said with a shake of her head. "If I try to think about them nothing seems out of the ordinary, but when I''m not putting in the effort¡ I get this feeling at the back of my mind¡"
"I see¡"
For a moment he was about to ask her why she kept it a secret, but on a second thought he decided not to. He already knows that she didn''t have any malicious intentions so there is no point in troubling her even more.
That said, he struggled to hide his surprise by this revtion to the point that he had to actively suppress his emotions. First the intruders from the other day seemed to recognize her and now she was telling him that she found their names familiar. It wasn''t clear before but now he knew for sure that she has some connection with the Olympians.
"There are many ways to exin why you feel that way but..." Sam spoke after a short silence, though he feared that attempting to ease her worried was meaningless. "I''m sure it''s nothing major. If it was then I''m sure we would learn why you felt that way at some point."
"... I¡ thought the same but¡ I''m still worried¡ there is also what the elder said? Don''t you think it''s suspicious?" She gazed at the bed on the opposite side of the room, watching Zero Three as her small chest moved with each breath. "The others were surprised when you chose me to be your guard for the night. I don''t think they fully trust me."
"I¡ don''t think that''s the case." Sam said with a stifledugh. "They just wanted your spot for themselves."
"... Really?"
"I mean, they were arguing about it even before I made my decision, right? Besides, nothing the elder said could be a reason to lose trust in you. She said herself that some things just get scrambled up with how old she is."
"I¡ guess you''re right¡"
Ever since Shizuru''s betrayal Sam had been trying to make sure nothing fell off his radar, so much so that he was starting to have trust issues. Literally anything could be a sign of something and if he were to dwell on it he was sure he would lose his mind at some point.
Trying to find hints about the future in the present was a pointless endeavor so even if he found one he tried to not jump to conclusions, keeping it at the back of his mind instead of trying to use it to alter the inevitable future.
Nino definitely has some connection to the Olympians. Whatever that connection might be, and whether it''ll y a part in the uing conflict, that was something for the future Sam to deal with once he has seen the full picture.
"... Thanks, Doctor¡" As he continued to gently caress her arm, the young Valkyrie snuggled close to him, her lips curving up in a calm smile. "I might''ve been worrying too much¡"
"Always feel free to talk to me if something happens." Sam said. "I''ll always be there for you."
"That''s good to hear. I think I understand why they cherish you so much."
When she thought about it, Nino felt a bit guilty for allowing herself to beforted like that when Zero Three was right in front of them. She seemed quite eager to be with the man she loves so having him snatched by someone else, someone who isn''t even his personal Valkyrie, would surely break her heart.
That said, though she might be feeling guilty about it, Nino couldn''t help but enjoy the sensation. She had read many novels already so she knew the nature of the warmth slowly filling her chest.
Aware of her own feeling, the young Valkyrie felt some happiness as she decided to embrace them right away. Having seen how Three and the others fought for his attention, Nino realized that she would need to be more assertive if she wants to have more moments like this, even if it was somewhat embarrassing to do so.
"Um¡ Doctor?"
Nino moved away from Sam as she steeled her resolve. She turned to face him but in the end looking him in the eyes proved to be too much for her right now.
"Yes?" Sam, having noticed where this was going, answered her with a rxed tone.
"Um¡ I¡ I was wondering if you were serious, you know¡ about making me your personal Valkyrie¡"
That was it. Sam recognized the sign and immediately made his move, not hesitating for a moment. Nino silently waited for his answer, but by the time she noticed him moving it was already toote.
Leaning toward her in a single swift move, Sam ced his lips on hers stealing her first kiss.
The Japanese doll remained frozen for a few seconds. Once she realized that just happened steam exploded from her head as she went red to the tips of her ears.
"W-w-w-wha-!!!!"
Sam watched with a smile as she stuttered repeatedly. It was quite cute, reminding him of the time he flipped the tables on her after she tried to seduce him.
"You''re so cute, Nino." He said, reaching out to pat her head.
"Y-y-you should''ve warned me first!" She said in protest, looking away with puffed cheeks.
"What? You didn''t like it?"
"Well¡"
It happened far too quickly for her mind to even register so she had yet to grasp how she felt about that kiss. Sam didn''t n on giving her the time to do it though. Now that he took the first step, he wanted to leave his mark on her so that any doubts she might''ve had about being with him would get erased.
He ran his fingers along her silky raven hair and caressed her cheek. He gently touched her rosy lips with his thumb then grabbed her chin, lifting her head up. Nino''s eyes met his, a mix of fear and excitement filling them. She began to recall a scene from a novel she read a while ago, one that resembled what was happening to her right now, so she closed her eyes and waited.
Once again Sam leaned in and took her lips. The second kisssted much longer than the first one, and the warmth in Nino''s chest got stronger and stronger. With a hand on her back he pulled her her delicate body toward him, and as she sat down on hisp the two continued to make out for a while. It was a strange moment that seemed tost much longer, and as more time passed the young Valkyrie began to wish that it would nevere to an end.
"Hmm¡ I see how it is¡"
Unfortunately good things must alwayse to an end. As she was enjoying herself a little too much, Nino forgot entirely about the other Valkyrie in the room.
With their lips finally separated, Sam and Nino turned around to see Zero Three staring at them with half closed eyes and crossed arms. She didn''t seem angry or agitated, only a bit disappointed that she wasn''t invited to the party.
"I thought we weren''t going to do anything, with us staying in someone else''s home and all."
Nino went pale, turning to Sam with wide eyes that seemed to ask what they should do.
Though it looked as if he was just caught cheating, Sam kept his calm and let out a sigh before extending his hand toward Zero Three.
"Are you going to join us or what?"
The young Valkyrie continued to stare at the, the tension in the room rising with each second. Sam wasn''t about to give her the apology she was probably waiting for so he just lowered his arm and returned his attention to the Japanese doll.
"Well, suit yourself."
"Wait!"
As he moved in for another kiss Three instantly dropped the act, running over and jumping into his arms. She still gave him a pouty re showing her anger at being forced to admit defeat. That look didn''tst though as Sam took her lips and made her forget why she was angry in less than ten seconds.
Chapter 181 That Should Be Okay, Right?
?
Nino watched with wide-eyed disbelief as Sam and Three began using their tongues from the start.
Though she was blushing intensely, the tanned girl had long since ovee her embarrassment. Nowadays she didn''t hesitate when making out with the Doctor and even looked forward to any opportunity to join their lips.
"Ha~... Ah!" she let out a sensual sigh, separating for a moment to catch her breath. A gasp escaped her as Sam grabbed her ass, squeezing it a few times before inserting his middle and ring fingers into her crack. Hearing her moans Sam knew she was already in the mood so he turned his attention to the other Valkyrie.
Nino was a bit tense, her body had gone stiff after seeing what he had done with her fellow Valkyrie. Witnessing it in person and reading it in a book couldn''t be any different and for some reason fear began taking over her as she realized that why they were doing was the real deal.
That said, she wasn''t about to escape after only this much.
"Nino¡" Sam said as he leaned toward her. "Keep your mouth open."
She found it difficult toply with his request, but soon after their lips met he forced his way in anyways and a couple of secondster their tongues were already entangled. The warmth, the texture, it all felt quite weird. She tried not to swallow but in the end she couldn''t help gulping their mixed saliva.
At first she didn''t seem to like it at all, but as seconds turned into minutes she found herself enjoying
The deep kiss, her body filled with excitement as she quickly got moist between her legs.
Three wasn''t taking being ignored well but she know better than to interrupt that passionate kiss. Instead of trying to steal his attention for herself she decided to focus on his body instead. She unbuttoned his shirt exposing his chest and abdomen, and as she rubbed her body against his she began running her tongue along his neck and corbone, licking and kissing until he turned her way once more.
"Ah~!"
Nino wasn''t nearly as bold. Due to herck of experience she could only watch in a daze as those two make out. Sam didn''t forget about her though so he sneaked his arm behind her and began massaging the small bump on her chest.
Sam kept going between the two Valkyries savoring the softness of their lips. Nino was still a bit clumsypared to Three, however she was gradually getting the hang of it, bing more proactive over time, but she still fell behind Three who kept taking Sam by surprise with her actions.
As he was switching from Three to Nino, the former began rubbing the bulge in his pants. He forgot to tell her that they wouldn''t be doing anything beyond kissing that night, but with his lips sealed by the Japanese doll he was unable to do so before he opened the gate and released the beast into the world.
"Three, you¡" words betrayed him and he could only sigh.
For a moment Nino didn''t understand what happened, disappointed that their kiss was abruptly cut short, but when her eyes went down she almost jumped away startled by the erect penis.
"Just to be clear." Sam said, looking at Three with half closed eyes. "We won''t be having sex tonight."
"I know¡ but¡" the young Valkyrie replied, slowly running her finger along the shaft. "We still have some time, right? Just once¡"
"No." Sam replied instantly. "You know we won''t be able to stop after only one round."
Whenever they got to it, whether it''s only one Valkyrie or multiple, Sam always finds himself going for an entire night before he''s fully satisfied. He could force himself to stop if he wanted, but that would just leave him in a bad mood afterward.
Theck of time wasn''t the only reason Sam wanted to put off the sex this time. Having decided to make her his next personal Valkyrie, Sam didn''t want Nino to share her first time with anyone else.
"But¡"
Before she couldin or argue, Sam quickly sealed Three''s mouth. At the same time the young Valkyrie began stroking his meat pole, her hand moving up and down at a slow pace that gradually increased.
Nino was frozen, her eyes locked on the motion of Three''s hand. She didn''t know why but watching the thick rod being massaged made herher rage with her legs unconsciously rubbing together as if trying to stop something from flowing out.
''So that''s¡ Doctor''s penis¡''
She couldn''t help but swallow, overwhelmed by the sheer presence of a fully erect pir. Having stumbled upon a porn collection in her quest to better understand romance novels, Nino had learned quite a few things about sex. That said, seeing a penis on screen waspletely different from having one right in front of her, and it didn''t help that Sam''s upgraded tool was massivepared to even thergest one in those videos.
''That thing is supposed to go inside of us?'' the Japanese doll thought. ''No way!''
She looked at Three with wide eyed disbelief. Including her, three other Valkyries have already had sex with the Doctor many times. All of them described their experience as the best thing they ever felt with the onlyint being how infrequent they get to do it. Both Miku and Zero Three have the same body type as her so there shouldn''t be a problem for her when the timees, however that didn''t stop her from panicking about the thought of that thing tearing through her insides.
Three increased the speed of her strokes, having noticed the meat pir twitching in her hand. She separated her lips from Sam''s to watch the moment his sticky fluid bursts out, smirking at the stunned Nino when their eyes met.
"Guh!"
Sam unintentionally thrust his hips up and the next moment white bullets began shooting from the tip of his rod drawing lines in the air before sshing on the floor.
Three held the rampaging penis firmly in her hand making sure none of them were sullied by Sam''s cum. Once the shooting stopped she made sure to stroke it a few more times to ensure that the entire load was released then turned to Sam who had just released a pleased sigh and was giving her aplicated look.
"How was it?" She asked, a smug smile on her face.
Sam remained silent for a while before letting out another sigh.
"Good." He answered. "It felt good."
"I''m d."
The two exchanged a kiss before taking a break. Looking at the mess on the floor made now seem like a good ce to stop, however Zero Three didn''t get the memo and began stroking his rod again.
"Uh¡ Three¡"
"Doctor''s penis is still hard." The young Valkyrie said. "That means you aren''t yet satisfied, right?"
As much as he would''ve liked to disagree, Three had a point. Thest time he had done the deed was after his date with Miku. His lust has been building up ever since but he didn''t get the chance to satisfy it until now.
"I know we can''t do it, but¡ how about using my mouth? That should be okay, right?"
Chapter 182 Team effort.
Chapter 182 Team effort.
Sometimes, when he''s too busy to have sex, Sam asks one of his personal Valkyries to perform sexual acts on him, ones that didn''t involve their addictive vaginas. While Nine and Five could give him boob jobs as well, Three was only able to perform fetio. She had hated it at first but after doing it many times she learned to enjoy it and became really good at the act.
"We can use this chance to teach her as well." She said, giving her fellow Valkyrie a smug grin.
After thinking about it for some time Sam gave his approval. Three got off the bed and went down to her knees. Having understood what they were about to do Nino got on her knees as well, but when she looked up and saw the meat pir in front of her she couldn''t help but recoil.
"Doctor''s penis is amazing, right?" Three said with a giggle. "It was big as well before, but ever since Elena modified his body it has be much bigger."
Three was one of the few Valkyries who had the chance to sleep with Sam when he was still fully human. Everyone else will only get to experience his new tool, but no one wouldin that they got the bigger one.
"You want to be Doctor''s personal Valkyrie, right?"
"... Y-yes¡" Nino answered with a nod.
"Good. As his personal Valkyrie, besides guarding him, of course, sometimes you''ll be required to service him using your body."
Extending her tongue out, Three leaned in and began licking the thick rod. She went over it from the tip to the base covering the whole thing in her saliva. After sucking on the head a few times she backed away and returned her attention to Nino, continuing her exnation of what their duties were.
"Since it feels extremely good we usually consider it a reward. However you have to understand that it is the other way around. We are the ones who''re supposed to make Doctor feel good. It''s fine if you enjoy it as well but keep in mind that Doctores first."
Nino wasn''t the only one carefully listening to the tanned one''s exnation. Sam was surprised by what he heard. Normally only Nine would say such things, but apparently Three was so turned on right now that she easily ovee the shame she would''ve felt any other time.
"Now, use your tongue and lick Doctor''s penis." She said, moving aside to make way for Nino. "It''ll take some time to get used to it so the sooner you start the better."
Nino''s gaze shifted from Three to Sam then to his rod. As nervous as she was, the Japanese doll knew there was no going back for her. She approached the erect tool with shaking hands, her nose picking up the strange odoring from it. The luster created from the saliva covering it made her all the more hesitant but after a couple of seconds she forced her eyes shut and extended her tongue.
"Good." Zero Three said. "It''s always better to start from the head."
There was no rule that stated they have to, however she knew that the tip was the most sensitive part of the Doctor''s penis.
Nino''s nervousness gradually faded and soon enough she was in the mood. She repeated what her friend did, licking the shaft all the way down and stopping to suck on it every now and then. When she felt like she was ready, she finally inserted the thing into her mouth but was surprised by how little she could fit in.
The penis suddenly felt a lot bigger, however she did her best to not let it affect her and began bobbing her head back and forth.
''Ah¡ this is¡ this is Doctor''s¡''
As she focused on her movement she felt something on her head. Looking up she saw Sam patting her. His expression was a bit difficult to read, however something told her that he was enjoying the service, and she was right. Not long after that, the rod began to twitch in her mouth. She took that as her cue to speed up.
She kept pushing the rod deeper and deeper into her throat, holding her breath so she wouldn''t gag. The heat beneath her abdomen was raging as it tried to find an exit, which was revealed when something suddenly pressed on her secret trench.
Knowing what Nino going through during the act, Three decided to help her feel even better. She only stroked her friend''s private parts once, but the timing only resulted in the floodgates being opened as the Japanese doll climaxed on the spot.
As her eyes went wide from the sensation, Sam held Nino''s head in ce as he came as well. His load burst right into her throat forcing her to gulp it down nonstop.
"Ha~?"
"Whoa¡ she didn''t even cough¡"
Three waspletely stunned. Though it was her first time giving oral sex, Nino had no trouble swallowing every drop of Sam''s load. Once she noticed that the stream had stopped she slowly moved back, her lips still tightly wrapped around the meat squeezing anything that might''ve been stuck. Once it was out, she swallowed her saliva and let out a sensual sigh. She remained silent for a moment but then turned to the other Valkyrie with a re in her eyes, her cheeks flushed.
"You shouldn''t touch it without a warning¡" she said.
"But it felt good, right?" Three said with a smile.
Though she tried toin, Nino couldn''t disagree about how good it felt. The only problem is that her juices had begun to leak. Her suit was soiled and she didn''t bring with her a change of clothes.
She realized that they need to clean up soon as the event the elder warned them about was fast approaching, however the tanned Valkyrie had yet to have her fun so she turned to face the shrinking penis.
"Wait, Three-"
Ignoring his words she inserted his member into her mouth and began sucking. In a couple of seconds it regained its hardness and once again was ready to go.
"It''s not¡ fair¡ if only Nino¡ gets to taste¡ your cum¡ tonight."
Three began licking and sucking aggressively, her free hand rubbing her secret spot down below.
Though it wasn''t that long Sam found himself on the verge of ejacting soon enough. He didn''t hold back this time around, wanting to end it as quickly as possible. Once again he held Three''s hand in ce and allowed himself to climax, releasing another load in the Valkyrie''s throat as her own bodily fluids sprayed forming a small puddle beneath her.
"Ha~?"
Having had her turn, Three looked quite satisfied. Nino was looking at her with eyes full of admiration, surprised by howfortable she was while performing the act.
As he took the time to catch his breath, Sam wondered whether he should kill his emotions to stop the lust from controlling him. When he looked down at the two Valkyries, still sitting on the floor, his rod refused to go back to normal as if he hadn''t just released his second load.
"Three¡" he said, ashamed of what he was about to ask. "One more time¡"
"Really!?" The young Valkyrie asked with a beaming smile.
"Wait!" Nino looked up with a start. "Shouldn''t I go next?"
They were already running out of time so Sam wasn''t even sure he had the leeway to enjoy another ride. Still, he decided to risk it anyway.
"Alright, let''s do it at the same time." Having understood the situation, Three put her own desires aside and offered to make it a team effort.
"Um¡ okay¡"
Though she was a bit hesitant, Nino followed after Three''s lead and began licking the erect meat pir. With how massive it was, the two had no problem splitting it among themselves with one handling the lower half while the other took the upper one. They kept switching from time to time, each one getting the chance to suck the head. Sam found himself enjoying it a bit too much so in the end he decided to put on the restraints not allowing himself to cum for a long while.
Chapter 183 Details.
Chapter 183 Details.
"This is troubling¡" Ra said in a low voice then followed with a sigh.
"Is it that bad, madam?" The assistant asked as she pushed the wheelchair.
"To be honest, I don''t know. This is the first time there is such a big difference in the details."
Ra was quite confused and a little more than shocked. So far the main events she foresaw were the same, however one of the details was unlike anything that happened in her visions and that caused her to doubt that they were on the intended tracks.
"But madam, didn''t you say that it''s okay if some of the details came out different?"
"Not in this case." Ra said. "This is the first time the individuals present in my visions changed. It could be that we are living in a futurepletely different from the one I saw before."
"I see¡"
Ra''s powers were indeed too convenient to say the least. With the margin of error being so small one could say the future she sees is guaranteed to happen, but this time things were a bit different.
"That girl, the one with the Asian features." Ra spoke. "This was the first time I''m seeing her. She never appeared in any of my visions."
Usually The difference between the future she sees and the one they live would be as small as the clothes people wear or the words they say. This time however there was an entire person who wasn''t there in her visions and that was a big cause for concern.
Herst vision showed the results of tasking Karim with bringing the other worlders to the sanctuary. In it the Doctor always brings with him the same four Angels; One with short gray hair, a tall one with a long ponytail, a tanned one with brown hair and a blond one with twin-tails.
When she saw that one of the angels was reced by the Japanese doll she feared that the path ahead of them didn''t lead to the future where they cross the gate to the other world.
"I hoped that I wouldn''t need to take another look but¡"
"Madam, are you sure about¡"
"Kam, sacrifices are always necessary. Never make the mistake of believing there is no price to pay."
The power to see the future is too convenient to not have any drawbacks. Despite looking like she''s already past eighty, the truth is that Ra was only thirty five. Her body experiences elerated growth each time she attempts to look into the future.
At first it was quite helpful as she reached maturity while still around the age of ten, but sadly the aging process takes a downturn at a certain point, gradually taking away the strength brought by youth.
Her body can no longer handle long visions. She had to ce rules and limits on the use of her power to make sure she could still use them if the need arises. That meant she couldn''t get detailed visions anymore, and even with that she still risks dying each time she attempts to use her power.
"If I don''t wake up after this one tell the Doctor to do as he sees fit. And Kam" Once she was on her bed, Ra gave onest instruction to her assistant. "Please be safe."
"You don''t have to worry about me, Ra." The assistant replied, the smile she forced speaking of how much pain she was in.
Knowing it might be thest time they speak with each other, Kam decided to forgo the formality and address her friend by name. That small gesture was enough to put Ra''s heart at ease. Though she knew she might not wake up after this, Ra joined her fingers over her chest and took a deep breath, closed her eyes and without hesitation activated her power.
In her previous visions she saw the future where her people cooperated with Sam to secure their survival. Still, with said future being loosely rted to her she couldn''t get that many details. In order to have a better picture of what they were doing, Ra gave Sam a set of instructions and asked that he follow them and report to her. With that condition met she should be able to have a clearer vision, one that hopefully isn''t so different from the one where her people survive.
~[]~
"Guess nothing is going to happen after all¡"
The night ended without a problem, contrary to what the elder had warned them about. Sam had to cut his fun time with Three and Nino in anticipation of an attack on the Sanctuary but in the end nothing happened.
Ra Zadzisai warned of an impending onught of peculiar beings set to assault their Sanctuary. In her vision of the future, these creatures emerged under the cover of darkness, unleashing chaos and iming numerous lives. While the soldiers always manage to repel the threat, it is only through the assistance of Sam and his Valkyries that the sanctuary came out unscathed, ensuring the preservation of every life within its confines.
Sam took it as her asking for his help in protecting the lives of her people and decided to stay. That said, no matter how much they waited there was no sign of an attack.
Sam had his drones monitor the area under which the Sanctuary was located. At the very least no monsters were appearing on the surface so unless they are going to spawn underground there should be no attacks that night.
"Guess the old woman isn''t always right¡"
Nino''sment dragged Sam out of his thoughts. So far they were told multiple times that the elder''s visions are never wrong. There is always a first for everything, but when it came to a fortune teller whose predictions are relied upon for survival being wrong just once can be catastrophic.
"She did say that the date isn''t set in stone." Sam said. "This just means we will have to stay for another night."
Sam had already expected that things would turn out differently from what he was told after hearing that Nino wasn''t supposed to be there. The elder informed him that Miku was supposed to be with him instead of the Japanese doll, which was enough proof that the future they were experiencing is different from the ones she foresaw.
"Don''t let your guard down though." Sam warned. "There is no guarantee that the attack won''t happen during the day."
"Yes!"
Three and Nino replied in unison then followed after him. They met with CS and Five outside and saw that the elder''s assistant was there to summon them saying Ra had asked for another meeting.
Chapter 184 Camping.
?
"Ha~~"
Fire ate through the dry wood making crackling sounds that echoed through the quiet forest. As she stared into its depths, Ichigo let out a long sigh then ced arge piece of meat into her mouth.
"Ichigo, try holding back a bit, okay?" Triska said, giving the pink haired Valkyrie a side look as she waited for the skewer in her hand to cool down a bit.
"... Sorry¡" Ichigo sighed once more, her gaze returning to the fire a momentter.
"Just leave her be." B3 said with a wry smile. "She''s just worried about Doctor."
"More like she''s sad that he didn''t take her with him." Venti said before biting into her skewer. "Ah! Hot hot hot!!!"
"... I thought I would get the chance to help¡" Ichigo said.
"And you will. We just got here, after all." B3 said.
With the sun gone the first day of the expedition into the Nephilim world came to an end. A couple of hours before the Doctor sent word that he and the four that went with him would be spending the night with the human survivors, which meant those waiting at the ship didn''t have to wait for him to return.
Some of the girls had the brilliant idea of camping outside so they got to it right away, but after a while they realized they went a bit overboard.
Some cut down trees to build a simple shelter but ended up with quite the borate wooden cabin,plete with multiple bedrooms, a kitchen and a dining room. Others went out to look for food and came back with a few rabbits and a deer. The animals were two times their normal size but the Valkyries failed to notice that.
Once the sky began to darken they sat around a bonfire and began grilling the meat. It was an entirely different experience from what they were used to, but then again everything was new now that the war against the Cmities has ended.
"But seriously, where did you learn how to prepare wild meat, Juni?" Venti asked.
"Ah! Well¡" scratching her cheeks awkwardly, the Valkyrie in question hesitated to give an answer. "I¡ used to watch the soldiers do it¡ in secret¡"
"Whoa¡ seriously?"
"There wasn''t much to do back in the base, okay? If I didn''t sneak out every now and then I would''ve died from boredom!"
Just by looking one could tell that Juni wasn''t the kind who would sit around patiently waiting for orders. She had quite the tomboyish appearance with an athletic slender body and short ck hair. Her skin was quite tanned as well showing how much she liked to spend time outside.
"You actually left the base without anyone noticing?" Venti asked. "That''s crazy¡"
Contrasting her somewhat sharp tongue, Venti had quite the reserved appearance. Her shoulder length green hair was tied into one big braid and the round sses she wore hid her dark purple eyes when the light reflected on them at the right angle. She also wore a uniform with long sleeves and skirt, but that did little to hide her massive chest.
"Well, as they say, everything is good as long as you don''t get caught." Juni let out a nervousugh then looked at her fellow Valkyries and ced a finger on her lips. "Make sure to keep it a secret, okay?"
"Forget it, they probably knew all along."
The five turned toward the voice and saw Sitta walking in their direction. Taking a seat on the log beside Triska, she crossed her legs and rested her chin on her palm.
"W-what do you mean, Sitta?" Juni asked, her nervousness peaking at that moment.
"We all lived in military bases, did you really think you cane and go without anyone noticing?" Sitta sighed. "It goes without a question that they monitored every action we made to make sure we stay in line."
"Seriously!!?"
"Ah, that makes sense, I guess." B3 said. "Themander back at my old base was quite soft as well. She let us do what we want as long as we didn''t mess with the humans."
Memories of the time she spent in the forty fifth base resurfaced in her mind. Though most of them were happy memories, there was no avoiding the pain she felt in her chest, caused by the loss of therades she led to battle herself.
Back then they were all called Anti-Cmity weapons. Their emotions were suppressed to make sure they wouldn''t hinder them inbat so they never gave much thought to the loss of their friends. Now they were free to think and feel however they want, but sometimes B3 found herself wondering whether it was for the best.
"Whoa¡ this is actually good¡" Sitta was quite surprised by how the barbeque turned out.
"I know, right?" Juni said, happy to hear her cooking being praised. "The others don''t know what they''re missing!"
"You could''ve earned yourself some points if Doctor was around." Triskamented with a smirk.I think you should take a look at
"Really!?" Juni''s eyes sparkled.
"Of course. Humans really love good food."
"Who doesn''t?" Venti said before biting into another skewer.
"Well, I guess I will save some for him then. Maybe that way I will get closer to joining his personal Valkyries!"
Ichigo twitched at the mention of the word.
"You too, Juni?" Venti asked, her eyes slightly lowered. "What''s up with everyone wanting to be close to him all of a sudden?"
"You know what it''s about." Sitta said. "They want to try doing ''that''"
"Oh, ''that'', huh?" Venti sighed.
Every Valkyrie knew what ''that'' referred to. Shortly after the war, Nino gathered them saying she had something incredible for them to see. None of them understood what they watched, but what they knew was that it made them feel a bit weird. It was only after Elina gave them a proper sex ed ss did they learn what was happening in those videos.
"I asked Zero Three the other day. She said it feels incredibly good!" Juni said, voice full of excitement.
"Really? The females always sounded like they were in pain." Triska followed.
"Well, those were humans. Our bodies are built different." Sitta added. "Four of us have already tried and they all seemed to like it."
"Is that why Ichigo wants to be Doctor''s personal Valkyrie as well?" Triska turned to the pink haired Valkyrie as she asked that question.
Ichigo looked up with a start, her face tomato red.
"N-no! It''s not like that!" Her flustered response made her look even more guilty.
"What''s so embarrassing about that? You should be more honest about your desires." Sitta said, smiling. "Even I want to try it sometime."
"I said it''s not like that!"
[Everyone.]
The atmosphere took a drastic change all of a sudden as everyone''s expression became serious.
"Something wrong, Trenta?" B3 asked, one hand on her ear.
[Something is flying in our direction.] Trenta said. [And it''s not small.]
"Couldn''t they wait till morning? I hate fighting in the night." Juni puffed her cheeks.
"Alright everyone, the party is over!" B3 said as she stood up. "Ichigo, contact the Doctor and tell him we have got visitors. The rest of you, prepare for battle. Sitta and Triska, you two manage the ship''s barrier. Juni, strike down whatever it is that''s heading our way."
"Are you sure?" The tomboy asked, her weapon already forming in her hand. "We don''t know if it''s the enemy."
The first time they were attacked in this world turned out to be because of human survivors. That made some feel a bit hesitant about taking action without having enough proof.
Just then a light shed in the distance. Sitta calmly held her right hand up, the red halo over her head glowing as it rotated. The next moment something exploded against the invisible barrier she created around their camp.
"Does that answer your question?" B3 said.
"Y-yes!"
Juni nted her feet on the ground and prepared for a counterattack. The others were on the move as well, except for Ichigo who was tapping the screen of the tablet in her hand repeatedly.
"Um¡ B3¡" she said, her face a bit pale. "I can''t¡ I can''t reach the Doctor¡"
Chapter 185 Whats the rush?
Chapter 185 What''s the rush?
"What¡?" B3 was motionless for a moment.
Juni who was focused on her own task pointed the bat she created in the direction the attack came then took a striking pose. A bluish white ball began to form in front of her, and once it stabilized the short haired Valkyrie twisted her body and swung the glowing neon blue bat with every ounce of power she had.
"WATCH. IT. FLY!!!"
Light shed through the forest followed by a deafening roar that shook the ground. The ball of light Juni had struck turned into a brilliant beam drawing a line as it made its way to the target, and less than a secondter another explosion resounded as it collided with an invisible barrier.
"Whoa! They actually caught my homerun!" Juni eximed, her expression showing more excitement than surprise.
"Ichigo! Keep trying!" B3 instructed. "Look for a way to ovee the jamming if it doesn''t work!"
"H-how do I do it!!?" Ichigo yelled back. "I''m not amunication engineer!!!"
"Ask the AI or send a drone or something! Just hurry!"
As Valkyries each of the girls had a limited amount of skills. Telmunications are usually handled by human soldiers, and since cleansing is her only specialty Ichigo found herself in quite a predicament.
"Brace yourselves." Sitta said, sounding awfully calm about their situation. "Another one ising."
Just then anotherser beam collided with her barrier. The barrier might be almost imprable, but the energy from the impact had to go somewhere so the result was a violent earthquake that shook the forest for miles.
Birds took off to the sky and animals went into a frenzy trying to escape the looming danger. The scattered beam ignited several patches of the woods and the fire began spreading in no time. A few more attacks like that and the whole area would be an inferno.
"Hope they realize their beams can''t do anything." Sitta said with a sigh.
"And go back the way they came, right?" Venti said. "Cause if they don''t, this will turn into a close quarters fight, and I really don''t want that!"
"Seriously, what kind of Valkyrie doesn''t want to fight?" Triskamented.
"Not me." Sitta sighed. "I would rather things end without me doing anything."
"What are you saying!?" Juni joined in, her voice full of excitement. "We can finally use our real powers! This is the best thing ever!!!"
Once the Valkyries had undergone the procedure to modify their hearts they gained ess to a new set of abilities. One of them came in the form of the first halo which allowed each one to create weapons from materials drawn from other dimensions.
Though it was the first time they were using it, all of them reported that it felt more natural than using their standard equipment. Each one was able to create a weapon unique to herself and they all knew how to use them from the get go. At first it was believed that the training they had in Asgard yed a role in that, but after Sam had that one conversation with H they learned that there might be more to it than what they know.
Juni was a special one even among her peers. While most manifested normal weapons like swords and spears, although with a lot more destructive power, her weapon came out as a normal baseball bat, but that was only the surface appearance. While it''s in her hand, Juni''s whole body is enhanced giving her hundreds of times her normal strength, which already far surpasses that of a human thanks to her synthetic body.
The fist sized balls she has been shooting at the enemy were made out of Balder''s light. There was no need for her to bother creating them however she enjoyed swinging her new weapons too much to the point that she took it as a new fighting style.
"Sitta! Are you ready!" The tomboy prepared for another strike.
"Yeah yeah, you don''t need to remind me."
Sitta brushed her orange hair back, still in her seat despite the current situation. She was alwaysid back to the point ofziness, but that only got worse when she gained the ability to create barriers out of her force field. Now all she does is sit around and guard the others, barely moving as she turns her barriers on and off depending on the situation.
Juni took a wide stance and twisted her body swinging her neon blue bat with everything she got. The moment it struck the glowing ball of yellow light the barrier surrounding the camp opened up and a beam shot out toward the approaching target.
Everyone expected it to collide with a force field and shatter just like the previous ones, however this time it it bounced back, taking a different trajectory as it returned to the Valkyries.
"Is this a challenge!?" Juni''s excitement only grew when she saw the ball flying back toward her and she prepared to strike it once more. "You asked for it!!!"
Sadly Sitta had another idea and put closed her barrier causing the ball to explode the moment it collided with the invisible wall.
"Sitta!!"
"It would''ve shattered the moment you tried to strike it." Letting out another sigh, Sitta ignored the protesting Juni and turned her gaze to B3. "So, what''s the n, leader? Force fields won''t stop them if they used the same trick as before. Shouldn''t we go to them instead of waiting?"
"Sitta is suggesting that we take action? Now that''s new." B3 replied, her smile showing a hint of nervousness.
The attack on the forty sixth base showed them that the Olympians have ways to ovee the Valkyries'' iconic ability, the force field, without needing to use excessive measures. That meant the longer they wait the more likely the enemy wille to fight them in person, but taking the initiative didn''t there would be any less danger.
"Well, let''s wait and see." As she spoke, red runes began to form over B3''s head. "The war is just getting started, there is no need for us to go all out right from the beginning."
Chapter 186 Blast.
Chapter 186 st.
The hostile ship was gradually approaching the camp. Though it was pointless, Juni kept swinging her bat andunching projectiles only for them to collide with its barrier.
"Alright!" Ichigo said before turning to the red twin-tails. "I''ve sent a number of drones to the coordinates of Doctor''sst location. I made sure to have each one take a different route just in case."
"Good." B3 said then turned to Sitta. "Tell Trenta and JX9 toe back for now."
"Alright¡"
Sitta sighed and did as instructed. A few secondster two Valkyries teleported into the camp.
"Hey, don''t you think it''s a bad idea for all of us to gather in one ce?" JX9 asked.
"You got something in your hair." Trenta said.
Since she was hiding in the trees, JX9 had a few leaves in her aquamarine hair. That much didn''t bother her, but when she noticed a spider crawling on one of her pigtails she went into panic mode.
"Kyaaaaa!!!! Get it off me!!!"
"Why don''t you try singing for it? Maybe it would leave you alone?" Sitta said, the smirk on her face telling how much she enjoyed the situation.
JX9 cranked her force field up to the maximum causing everything stuck to her to disintegrate. She then turned to her fellow Valkyries who were holding back theirughter and puffed her cheeks.
"What? If you hate bugs so
much then you should''ve been more careful where you hid yourself." Sitta said.
"And where was I supposed to hide? We are in a jungle goddamn it!"
"Alright you two, it''s time to focus." B3manded.
[B3, something is happening.]
Just when Trista''s warning came in, lights began to flicker around the enemy ship. Several shutters opened and some rather peculiar objects began falling out.
"Are those¡" Trenta squinted, her eyes zooming in on the scene.
"Cmities!!?"
The moment JX9 said the words the others formed their weapons and the atmosphere took a drastic change. Eight containers ejected from the their own ship, each containing the second battle armor for each of the Valkyries. As if sensing their presence, the armor sprang to life, its segmented pieces moving with a graceful fluidity. Seamlessly, the armor''s silver ting shifted and rearranged, aligning itself perfectly with their limbs. It enveloped them, molding to their bodies like a second skin, each piece locking into ce with a satisfying click. The sensation was both empowering and strangelyforting.
The halos over their heads morphed, each taking a different shape. Technically none of the Valkyries needed their second armors at this point, however when donning them their mentality changespletely, showing that they were taking the battle seriously.
[Go.]
On B3''s signal, Juni, JX9, Venti and Trenta took off to the sky. Small rectangr shapes began to flicker around each of them and joined to form the proton cannon, the default weapon each of them was used to. The difference is that now they were able to create it using their halos and supply it with inter-dimensional energy so there was no need to carry around several tons of equipment.
[Fire.]
Pressing the trigger, each cannon released a brilliant beam of golden light toward the enemy. The invisible barrier surrounding the enemy ship blocked everyst one of them, but the strange objects it ejected exploded into millions of pieces, melting into the air as if they never existed.
A few miraculously survived the onught. Upon reaching a certain altitude lines ran across their outer surface, dividing them into parts that snapped out hovering around the main core.
[Did they steal those from the Nephilim?] Sitta asked.
[Probably.]
B3 wasn''t too sure, however it seemed to be the most likely conclusion. She couldn''t see the Nephilim attacking them now that they were heading for a peace treaty, and the likelihood of all of this being a mistake was very small.
[Those worthless scum...] JX9 cursed, her anger spiking as she prepared tounch another beam. [I''M GONNA PULVERIZE YOU!!!]
Her cannon unfolded and expanded growing to three times its normal size. Runes spawned around her forming several rings that began rotating until it was no longer possible to discern one from the others.
The Cmities seemed to notice the tremendous amount of energy building up around JX9 and set their sights on her. There were almost fifteen left and eachunched one of their detached parts like a massive saw that cut through the air with a hum as they headed for the Valkyrie.
[I got this!]
Juni teleported in front of the projectiles. In her hand she held her bat, but its shape was morphing until it became arge broad sword with a jagged edge. Juni swung the sword and its de split into many parts connected to each other by a thin glowing thread. She dived down and iled her arm causing the weapon to twist like a whip, slicing through the projectiles with the ease of a hot knife cutting through butter.
[DIE!!!!]
JX9 roared with a voice full of hatred. The night sky shed white from the stunched by her cannon. The recoil pushed her back a few meters, and the forest beneath her trembled under the pressure.
The resulting beam was the size of the first Balder''s Light Sam identally used for the first time. Something like that had the ability to burn half of the continent, but thankfully it was pointed toward the night sky.
The other Valkyries teleported in time leaving the remaining Cmities to burn by the radiating heat alone. The enemy ship must''ve realized that, even if their barrier manages to block the beam, the st would end upunching them to outer space. That''s why they tried to alter their flight route, even though it was a bitte at this point.
The beam collided with the barrier on the ship''s left nk. For a moment it appeared as if the entire craft was swallowed by the light, however a secondter it emerged, falling toward the ground like a ball that bounced off a wall. The barrier might''ve protected it from being incinerated but the impact was strong enough to knock it off course leaving it incapable of adjusting in time.
Even if it appears like the barrier is imprable, in the end there is a limit to how much force it can negate. The inside was scrambled from the impact, and if that didn''t do the trick then the way it crushed into the forest like a meteor did.
Chapter 187 Looking for someone.
Chapter 187 Looking for someone.
[JX9, you overdid it a bit.]
Once the tremors ended B3 addressed her fellow Valkyrie''s excessive use of force. She was pointing her cannon toward the sky, sure, but if it wasn''t for Sitta''s barrier the damage she could''ve caused to the area would''ve been much more severe.
[... Sorry¡]
[It''s okay. Just be careful not to fire directly at the ground. Remember that there are humans still living in the region.]
[Roger¡]
The forest was already on fire and it wasn''t looking good. Even if they wanted to put it out, with the battle still ongoing the Valkyries had no choice but to leave it be for the time being.
Even though they caused the enemy ship to crash none of them believed that their opponent was done for, not even for a second. They all retreated behind Sitta''s barrier and waited. Thankfully no more Cmities showed up, but that only meant that whoever shows up next would be on a much higher level, and they would definitely bring with them a lot more trouble.
[Something just emerged from the wreckage.] Trenta reported.
[Everyone, be on guard.]
The outer shell of the enemy ship cracked open and several figures jumped out. Theynded at the outer edge of the crater created by the crash, forming a circle around what might be their leader, each one holding a weapon in hand.
[Hold on¡] Trenta said, her eyes focusing on the group. [Isn''t tha-]
She was interrupted before she could finish, a bullet hitting her right in the head. Her force field blocked the attack but the force caused her whole body to flip. Looking down the others saw that one of the enemies had a rifle with a very long barrel pointed at her.
Halos shed into existence and the next moment the enemies disappeared. Their movements were quite fast, bordering on teleportation, however it didn''t seem that they were warping.
Juni iled her arm and her sword reconnected just in time to block another sword swinging down at her. It was arge broad sword much like hers, and its owner was a tall woman with dark skin and long ck hair, wearing the absolute bare minimum to cover herself. Her body was enveloped in a light blue aura and over her head was a halo much like the one used by the Olympian named Antia.
Venti discarded her Proton Cannon causing it to disintegrate, the materials making it returning to their original dimension. At the same time she formed some new equipment; a short spear in her right hand and a round shield in the left, using thetter to parry a de before stabbing at its owner.
"The name is Protesus." The old man said after blocking Venti''s attack. "Why don''t you take that helmet off, sweetheart? Let me see that lovely face of yours."
[Why?] Venti asked. [You''re already dead, you know?]
Her words sounded like nothing more than overconfident yammering, but when she teleported without a warning, the force she applied against him disappearing and causing him to lose bnce, the old man sensed something strange and his eyes widened as he came to the realization.
Without turning around he could see one of the Valkyries slowly sliding her katana back into its sheath. Following the clicking sound it made, white lines began to form randomly all over Protesus'' body. A secondter he turned into an unrecognizable mash of flesh and blood, his halo flickering out of existence as he began to fall along with his shattered weapon.
[Uwah¡ that was a bit brutal, Trenta.] Ventimented, reappearing beside herrade.
[You think?] Trenta replied.
A gust of wind swept over the two drawing their attention to something that dived right beside them. Seeing that it was JX9, and that she had arge rifle pointed in their direction, they instantly realized they needed to get out of the way.
The moment they teleported a shower of bullets rained on the spot they were floating in heading straight for JX9. Pulling the trigger she fired a stream of her own blocking most of her opponent''s projectiles. Noticing a sheen on her right side she twisted her body just in time to evade a long sword shing at her. It was the same enemy she was firing at, having teleported while using the shing bullets as a cover.
[So you can teleport¡] she said.
"Of course we can." The enemy, a young man with slick back blond hair and white marble skin, replied. "It''s not as useful as you think though."
[They can predict where we teleport!]
The Valkyries came to a sudden pause when Venti shouted through themunication channel. Both she and Trenta managed to avoid being shot, but each time they teleported they found themselves in the trajectory of some bullets.
"Our friend is very good at sensing space distortions." The caucasian man told JX9 before pushing her away. "We always assume our enemies can do the same, but¡"
He prepared to swing again and teleported behind her, but to his surprise she managed to block his attack.
[There is no need to sense anything.] She said, pointing her rifle at his face. [It''s not like your actions are difficult to predict.]
"Interesting¡"
[Now this is a bit freaky¡]
While the fourbatants were engaging the enemy up in the air, B3, along with Sitta and Ichigo, stood face to face with the person they all assumed was the leader.
As her second armor opened up to allow her to see things with her own eyes, B3''s expression hardened despite the smile she kept on her face. She continued to stare, unable to believe what she was seeing, however there was no doubt that what was in front of her was reality, after all Valkyries couldn''t possibly be tricked by illusions.
"I heard your leader is a male but¡ I don''t see anyone who fits the description."
"If it''s the Doctor you''re looking for, he isn''t here." B3 said. "Though something is telling me he isn''t the one you''re looking for."
"Hm? Ah, I guess it''s only natural that you would think that."
She ran her delicate fingers through the long onyx hair cascading over her shoulders, brushing it backward. Her eyes wererge yet sharp, their blood red color matching theplex halo spinning over her head. A sadistic smile slowly formed on her face as she saw the tension on the Valkyrie with the red twin-tails. She seemed to enjoy the moment a little too much, and make sure itsted she decided to pour more fuel into the fire.
"Indeed, I came here looking for a certain someone." Stepping in front of her subordinates, she ced a hand on her cheek and asked. "We have the exact same face, as you might''ve already noticed. There is a possibility that it''s all nothing but a coincidence, but I''m hoping from the bottom of my heart that it doesn''t turn out to be the case."
B3 didn''t respond, her silence giving way to more stress and nervousness. When Sam left her in charge she did expect an enemy attack to ur and prepared to handle it ordingly, however never did she think that the one leading the charge would share an uncanny resemnce to someone she had gotten to know well in the past few months.
"A coincidence, huh?" B3 whispered to herself, staring intently at the enemy who shared the appearance of her friend. "I sure hope it''s just that, Nino¡"
Sadly with everything that has happened so far she had no choice but to give up that hope. The signs were already present even before they arrived in this world. That said, no one could''ve predicted that this would be what awaited them. The mysteries surrounding Valkyries never seemed to end.
Chapter 188 The Fate.
"She''s here in this world, isn''t she?"
B3 kept her silence, her body tensing up with each passing second. A storm of emotions raged in her chest as the uncanny sight in front of her threatened to copse her thoughts.
The girl facing her had the exact same appearance as her friend Nino, so much so that the only difference is the outfits they were wearing. Something like this shouldn''t be possible. As far as B3 was aware, each Valkyrie had a unique appearance and one rarely saw two who shared the same features. But then again the person standing in front of her wasn''t a Valkyrie. She was an enemy from another dimension, and no matter how she looked the Valkyries had no choice but to treat her that way.
As she got her thoughts in order, B3 finally noticed the others standing behind Nino''s look alike. The tiny one sitting on the giant''s shoulders couldn''t possibly be mistaken, same for the one holding the stave with the blue crystal.
"We meet again." Perseus said while bowing his head slightly.
"I see." B3 closed her eyes and sighed. "Now I understand why you reacted that way back then."
"Indeed. You can''t begin to imagine my surprise when I saw someone with-"
"Perseus." Nino''s clone interrupted.
"My apologies." The man bowed his head again and stepped forward. He cleared his throat and motioned toward the young girl beside him before speaking out. "Right now you are in the presence of Lady Atropos, The Fate. This world has been brought under her rule and you have no right to set foot on its soil. As you have done so without permission, we will exercise our authority and exterminate you and your allies."
"Huh?" Ichigo blinked twice and tilted her head a little. "Atropos? Where did I¡"
"One of the Three Fates, the goddesses that control the fates of mortals." B3 said. "Though from the looks of it, her sisters no longer exist."
"Interesting." Atropos said, her lips curving up a little."I''ve heard our stories have turned into myths in some worlds but this is the first time I meet someone who''s familiar with them."
"Sadly there aren''t many stories that involve you. Those that aren''t very pleasant."
"I was responsible for bringing death, after all. It''s only natural that I wouldn''t be remembered fondly. Not that I care."
"You said you took over this world, right? What happened to the ones who uses to rule over it?"
B3''s attempt to extract information about the Nephilim was met with a mute smile. In a way that gave an answer of its own. Someone who goes around conquering worlds would definitely take every chance to brag about the ones they defeat. The Olympians'' silence could be taken as a sign that the Nephilim have yet to be taken down.
"I came here today to deliver your sentence." Atropos said. "Instead of submitting to your fate you decided to fight back, even going as far as destroying one of our ships."I think you should take a look at
She held a hand out as she spoke and the giant behind her took something out of the bag he carried on his back. A quick eye measurement made it clear that something of that size couldn''t possibly fit inside, however the Valkyries were too focused on the item to pay mind to fact. It was clearly a long sword, all of it carved from the same deep red material. The de was curved and it had only a single edge, and the hilt had a circr knuckle guard.
At first B3 was unable to understand why its shape looked so familiar, but the moment Nino''s clone took it in her hand she realized that it was a single half of a giant scissor.
"I no longer have it in me to show you any sympathy." Once the weapon was in her hand, her three subordinates retreated. "Your death won''t be a painless one."
B3''s helmet unfolded and covered her head once more. Her halo expanded as her entire body tensed up, and the cylindrical shaped drones she used as her main weapon fell out of nowhere forming a triangle around the four enemies.
[Everyone, don''t let that de touch you.]
It went without saying but the twin-tailed Valkyrie felt the need to stress it out. Something about that crimson sword made her uneasy, more so than anything she had faced in the short years she lived as a Valkyrie.
Atropos moved her foot, about to take a step forward. the tops of B3''s drones opened up at that moment and tendrils of lightning shot out of them forming a triangr shaped cage beforeshing toward the four Olympians. The small man lifted his right hand. In it he held a fist sized glowing orb from which a barrier spawned covering his allies and blocking the lightning heading toward them.
[Sitta.]
[Got it.]
On B3''smand the orange haired Valkyrie created a second barrier around the dome protecting the Olympians. It wasn''t just any barrier though. The blue blow it emitted showed that it had the same properties as the Valkyries'' force field when cranked up to the max, meaning it could disintegrate anything thates into contact with it. Not only that but it also had anti-teleportation effects weaved into it. Something of thisplexity could only be achieved by Sitta, which was quite impressive considering that it was born from herziness.
Sitta''s barrier began shrinking and it soon came into contact with the one the small man created, sparks flying from the friction the two barriers created. The three subordinates seemed to tense up a little as the future where they would getpletely crashed was nearing fast, but their leader didn''t seem bothered in the least.
Without a care she took a step forward, then another. Out of nowhere, two white discs appeared behind her. Each one split into four pieces of equal size with a blue thread of light connecting them forming tworge rectangles.
The two devices floated forward. One of themtched on the inner side of the first barrier and the small space between the four pieces turned blue. It was easy to see where this was going, but when the second device passed through the blue spot without facing any resistance everyone knew what was going on.
The two devices created a door into the barriers. The second one seemed to start disintegrating as soon as it took its ce, however it bought enough time for Atropos to pass through at her own pace. Once she was outside the barrier she looked up at B3 and her smile widened a little.
Without as much as a twitch her body suddenly blurred and before knew it B3 was looking at the crimson de heading straight for her face.
Chapter 189 Cant Escape.
The crimson de headed for B3''s head but was met with an invisible barrier, bouncing off of it with enough force to send Atropos'' whole body flying a few meters back.
The dark haired Olympian flipped midair andnded gracefully on her feet. She shed a smile at the three Valkyries before her figure became a blur, but despite her speed they were able to follow her movements with ease.
Sitta followed the enemy leader with her eyes preparing to create a barrier at any moment. The obvious option should''ve been to keep one constantly activated around her and her allies, however it was a difficult task even for the barrier specialist Sitta since she had to keep the other Olympians in mind as well.
Atropos didn''t bother helping her allies escape the blue box that was trying to crush them, but the Valkyrie doubted that she would allow them to die just like that.
B3 deactivated the lightning effect and retracted her drones, noticing how Atropos elerated even further, teleporting every now and then to throw the Valkyries off her tracks.
Still it was easy to guess who she was targeting next, that''s why when she teleported behind Sitta one of the cylindrical drones fell from the sky almost crashing her.
The pace of the battle shifted from there on. Each time Atropos tried to take a step, one of the drones woulde down crashing into the spot she was standing on forcing her to teleport and reducing her momentum.
Even though things were shifting in their favor, B3 began to feel that something was off. Not long after she realized that the craters left by her cylindrical drones were getting farther and farther away giving her a hint on what her opponent was nning.
''So that''s how it is¡''
B3 smiled under her helmet and yed along with the Olympian''s n. As far as she knew, Valkyries never had a fight among each other. Even if they bickered from time to time they''re usually on good terms. Nino was known for having a bit of a sharp tongue. Sometimes she would say offensive things intentionally provoking the others, but most became used to it after a while so it never caused that big of a problem.
Now that she was facing someone with her exact face B3 couldn''t help but wonder what would happen if one of the arguments she had with the Japanese doll escted. One thing she knew for sure was that she would''ve never held back against Nino, that''s why she decided to go all out for this fight as well.
~[]~
"So, what''s your name?" The caucasian man asked in a friendly tone. "They call me Hs, by the way."
The young man smiled, making his already handsome face more appealing. Sadly his looks wouldn''t be of much use against the Valkyries, especially JX9 who was still seething with anger aftering face to face with the Cmities.
[Say, where did you get those things?] She asked, restraining the anger burning inside her.
"Answering a question with another question?" Hs said, pushing his long sword against the Valkyrie''s rifle. "That''s not very appro-"I think you should take a look at
Air was knocked out of his lungs having received a devastating blow to his stomach. JX9 didn''t hold back in that kick sending the young man flying like a ser ball.
Somehow managing to kill the momentum of his fall, Hs flipped his body and regained his bnce. His body was wrapped in a thin force field however it wasn''t enough topletely negate a blow from such a short range.
"You sure have no mercy¡" he said, holding a hand to his stomach as blood began dripping from his smiling mouth.
[I asked you a question.]
JX9 tossed her rifle aside. As the weapon turned into particles of light and disappeared, small purple squares began flickering into existence around her arms creating what looked likerge mechanical gloves.
[Where did you get the drones?]
Even though he sensed the anger in her voice, Hs did his best to remain calm. His body soon healed itself and he grasped his weapon in both hands preparing for the long battle.
"Ah, those things?" He said, carefully watching his opponent''s reaction. "Daedalus found a couple in the castle and decided to mass-produce them. We thought we could make use of them but¡"
[I see¡] mming her fists together, JX9 prepared to resume the fight. [That''s all I need to hear.]
The purple armor disappeared from his sight prompting Hs to raise his sword to block. Just as he did it appeared again right in front of him with a giant fist raised in preparation to strike. There was no faint, no deception. The punch was simple and straightforward, however the power it carried rattled the bones inside his body causing his vision to blur for a moment.
Joining her hands JX9 brought them down on the caucasian man. He tried to block the attack with his sword once more but was sent hurling down to the burning forest. The Valkyrie was about to follow after him only to notice that he had disappeared. Spining around she dodged a downward swing from his de and punched at his face but struck empty air.
Looking ahead she saw the man a distance away. His smile didn''t seem to falter, but his pale visage and the sweat beading his forehead told JX9 that he was having a lot more trouble than her. Noticing a spark somewhere in the forest she raised her arm. A bullet bounced off her gauntlet the next moment, and when she looked back at the caucasian man she realized that he had disappeared.
[Your tricks are getting old.] She said before teleporting herself.
Hs'' sword cut through the spot she was in and before he could register what was happening his head was grabbed by the giant metallic hand.
[Now you can''t escape.] She said, the mechanical glove making creaking sounds as she clenched her fist preparing to strike.
Chapter 190 Clashing Swords.
[Nice dress you got there.] Juni said, casually parrying her opponent''s attack. [Though it looks a bit impractical.]
"What about you? Is there really a point to wearing such armor?" The dark haired woman asked as she swung her broad sword with ease. "With your force field you don''t need that kind of protection, right?"
[Yeah, but it helps us get in the right mood. We used to only wear it when the fight is serious.]
Amidst the shroud of darkness, the two engaged in an electrifying aerial duel. The night sky crackled with the brilliance of their shing broadswords, casting wild sparks that painted a mesmerizing tapestry of light against the ck canvas above. The Olympian danced with breathtaking grace and power while Juni''s movements were much more direct and crude, aiming to do as much damage as she could.
With every swing and parry, the force behind their strikes echoed across the night, mingling with the distant roars of the zing inferno below. The once wild forest nowy engulfed in a sea of mes, the scarlet tendrils reaching hungrily toward the heavens. Yet, thebatants seemed oblivious to the inferno that raged beneath their feet, nor the rest of the battle that was happening around them.
The Olympian was named Penthesilea. Her dark, smooth skin exuded an alluring warmth, enhanced by the ethereal glow of the raging mes below. Her long, lustrous ck hair swayed with each graceful movement she made, adding an air of mystique to her presence. Adorned in a revealing dancer''s outfit, the intricate patterns on her attire seemed toe alive as she glided across the sky, leaving a trail of elegance in her wake. Her poise and confidence drew the eye, and with the intricate halo floating over her head, she became an enchanting embodiment of grace and allure.
In the midst of their sh, Juni and Penthesilea showcased a violent dance of skill and power. Each strike was matched with swift parries and counterattacks, their swords moving with such speed and fluidity that it was almost as if they were an extension of their bodies.
The intensity of their battle reached its pinnacle, and for a moment, the two found themselves locked in a stalemate, their des locked against each other with unyielding strength.
However, the equilibrium was short-lived. In an unexpected twist, Juni unleashed a forceful kick, propelling Penthesilea backward. Swift as the wind, she responded with a teleportation maneuver, vanishing from her original spot and reappearing several yards away.
[You know, using those Cmities was just bad taste.] Juni seamlessly transformed her trusty sword into its whip form. The weapon crackled with intense power as she swung it with masterful skill, releasing scintiting arcs of crimson energy with every fluid motion.
"Bad taste? What are you talking about, little girl?" The Olympian woman jumped around as if her feet were on solid ground. She evaded the arcs of energy with such grace making each of her movements seem like a well practiced dance. "This is war. Don''t tell me you expected manners from us?"
[Well, I guess you wouldn''t know.] Using thest arc as a diversion, Juni teleported. She made her way behind the female Olympian, her broad sword connected and ready to sh. Her smile was gone as well, reced by a subtle fury behind a calm expression.
As the radiant de of Juni''s whip sliced through the air, the Olympian''s keen eyes caught the gleaming spectacle and swiftly reacted, positioning herself to intercept the oing attack. Yet, the instant their weapons shed, a torrent of overwhelming force surged forth, catching the Olympian off guard. Despite her best efforts, she struggled to withstand the sheer power behind Juni''s strike, feeling her grip faltering on her own weapon.
Sensing the impending danger, Penthesilea made a split-second decision. Realizing that resisting the immense force would be futile, she relinquished her grip on the invisible tform beneath her feet, allowing her body to be carried away by the unstoppable momentum. In a daring move, she chose to embrace the energy of the sh rather than resist it, using the force of the impact to propel herself away from the Valkyrie. Her body soared gracefully through the air, carried by the kic energy, as she skillfully maneuvered herself to a safer distance. Juni continued the pursuit, not giving her a chance to recover.
[You see, I don''t hold a grudge against the Nephilim.] She said as she swung her de. [But many of us lostrades fighting Cmities. We really didn''t want to see those things anymore.]
"I see¡"I think you should take a look at
[Most of us can handle them with ease now, but the scars of old battles won''t just go away.]
The air crackled and hummed, her blue armor propelling forward at the speed of sound. The Olympian held her de to block and sparks exploded with each sh. Juni kept elerating and her attacks grew heavier with each strike, however her opponent retained her smile. No matter how far she was pushed backward, the dark skinned Olympian never lost her calm, and that only helped to infuriate the tomboyish Valkyrie all the more.
~[]~
Venti and Trenta watched the light show from a distance, listening to the deafening ngs filling the sky.
[Something is of¡] Venti spoke from behind her light green armor.
[You think so too¡?] Trenta added. The visor of her redish orange armor shifted, turning in the direction B3 and the others were in.
Their red hairedpanion was handling the enemy leader while Sitta restrained her threeckeys. Up above them Juni engaged another Olympian, and the same went for JX9. There is the sniper in the forest as well, and when counting the one Trenta annihted, the total number of enemies reached eight, same as the Valkyries who didn''t go with the doctor.
After seeing the gigantic ship approaching their camp the girls expected an army toe out to face them. In the end they didn''t even get to have one on one matches, with each side having at least three of their members contributing very little to the fight.
[They¡ aren''t that powerful, are they?] Venti said. [I guess it kinda makes sense¡ they aren''t that different from humans after all¡]
[Don''t make that mistake. They might be flesh and bone, but they definitely aren''t humans.]
An autopsy was already performed on one of the captives who attempted to invade the forty sixth base a while ago. Their general constitution looked simr to that of humans at first, but that didn''t exin their ability to wield runes and halos.
[B3 seems to be doing fine so¡ let''s go support the two above] As she spoke, Trenta was already floating upward. She stopped when her friend raised her hand, her silence indicating that something has caught her attention.
[No, Juni can take care of herself, and I doubt JX9 will just lose it.] Pausing for a moment, Venti turned to the east where their ship was docked. [Triska is on her own. If the enemy is able to bypass the barrier she wouldn''t be able to guard the whole ship on her own.]
[You have a point¡]
Coming to a mutual conclusion, the two Valkyries were about to teleport. Just then a brilliant light shed from the direction where B3 was. There was no sound of explosion, and when they turned to check what happened, all they saw was a towering castle slowly building itself from the ground up.
Chapter 191 Trapped.
Atropos feigned retreat, drawing the attention of therge cylindrical drones that hovered menacingly, their metallic forms poised to crush her effortlessly. B3, keenly aware of the trap her opponent was trying to lure her into, continued to direct her drones'' pursuit. Her arms crossed, she watched intently as the Olympian girl, whose face eerily mirrored that of her dear friend, darted away.
With a swiftmand, B3 sent one of her crimson drones hurtling down from above prompting Atropos to leap back to avoid its strike. But the moment she evaded the first drone, two more appeared from the left and right closing in on her with such precision it looked as if their master had predicted the exact spot she would be in at that moment.
Caught between the drones in a pincer attack, Atropos''s eyes widened briefly only only for her lips to curl up ever so slightly. In a blink, she vanished from sight causing the two drones to collide violently, their collision creating a shower of sparks that danced in the air.
Before the fading sparks could settle, Atropos reappeared right in front of the Valkyrie adorned in red armor. Her crimson sword, resembling the sharp des of a pair of scissors, was already a blur heading for B3''s neck.
CLANG!
The crimson de bounced back with a deafening sound. There were no barriers and B3 didn''t move an inch, but despite that the attack was blocked causing Atropos to freeze.
Behind the Valkyrie in red armor was another one of the cylindrical drones. It was much smaller than the rest, but what made it truly different from the rest was its uniform color which made it seem as if it was carved out of the same material.
"..."
Atropos'' eyes narrowed, a sharp glint in her crimson irises. Seeing that her opponent had only used three drones so far she let her guard down, however her surprise only started.
A strange mechanical object jutted out of the ground, its appearance indicating that it was created from the same process as the fourth drone.
In an instant, its top snapped open and a thick cord shot out wrapping itself around Atropos'' foot. By the time she noticed several more sprang out from underneath the soil and after one long second the Olympian had all of her limbs bound. The cords morphed forming bulky cuffs for each limb
"Oh my¡"
[I¡ can''t believe you actually allowed yourself to be caught¡] B3 said, sounding a bit confused.
"You say that, but¡" Atropos spoke, a thin smile returning to her lips. "Were you not the one who led me into this trap?"
[Still¡] Something felt very off. B3 understood that the Olympian was confident in her ability to easily break free from her restraints, however she didn''t get why she allowed herself to get caught in the first ce. [I was hoping to keep you around until Doctores back, but¡] two more drones flickered into existence, their tops hatching open to reveal the glowing light ofsers ready to fire. I think you should take a look at
"Your use of the 23rd dimension sure is creative." Atropos said. "Very few can make something soplex, even if they manage to obtain the halo." She nced up at the intricate design above B3 head and her smile seemed to fade a little. "That said, isn''t it a waste of mental power to keep it up?"
[Whatever¡]
Thesers hummed, drawing red lines on their way to the Olympian''s body. It should''ve been expected, but it was still a surprise when they failed to prate her skin, which was suddenly enveloped in the light blue glow of the force field.
"You aren''t the only ones with tricks up your sleeves." Atropos said with a smirk.
The Olympian had a halo above her head, although one that was lessplex than what B3 had. Halos are created by manipting the force field into a series of runes; being able to create one meant having ess to the absolute protection provided by the force field.
Of course, everything has its limits. While imprable, keeping the force field active to its maximum output required way too much energy so it would eventually give in. If a Valkyrie''s heart is incapable of generating enough energy to support it she would lose the ability leaving her defenseless.
And that''s where the problem with Olympians starts. They were biological life forms. Although different from humans, they still didn''t have anything that would substitute the hearts Valkyries use to generate force fields, which means they shouldn''t be able to use halos as well.
Sam and Elena made every scan they could of Antia -the Olympian they captured- but were unable to learn how she could create her halo. Maybe dissecting her would''ve helped, but after learning nothing from the other captive they decided to leave her whole for now.
[Well, it doesn''t matter.] Light particles flickered and more drones formed around B3, creating one new drone after the other. A few secondster she had a whole arsenal floating behind her ready to fire at a single point. Force fields are imprable, but everything has a limit. All she had to d was exhaust whatever the Olympian used to fuel her powers and eventually she would be able to break through her defenses.
Atropos'' crimson eyes moved from one ster to the other as if counting the number ofsers that would soon reach her body. After a moment of silence she let out a sigh, her brows slightly furrowed.
"Sorry but I don''t think I can take that much."
Two white discs appeared from behind her. B3 recognized them instantly and fired thesers only for them to be blocked by the Olympian''s force field. New ster drones were forming at the same time but the discs were faster, each one splitting into four parts, blue threads linking them as they surrounded Atropos.
Suddenly, the space between the threads filled up forming six translucent panels. In an instant the cords restraining the Olympian snapped apart, cut by the neon blue panels as if they were nothing but wool threads.
Chapter 192 Limited Rift.
As Atropos floated inside the blue box, the glowing red cuffs around her arms and legs shattering into thousands of tiny light particles, B3''s eyes narrowed as she finally understood the reason her opponent was so rxed despite getting caught.
She always had a way out of her predicament, more than one from the looks of it. It should''ve been obvious that capturing her wouldn''t be so easy.
Thesers fired from the drones hovering behind the Valkyrie in red armor were easily deted. Atropos remained static for a fraction of a second before the panel behind her disappeared creating an opening for her to retreat. The original drones arrived almost immediately firing tendrils of lightning only to miss the Olympian who teleported away.
"That was close." Atropos said with a voice full of mockery.
The white discs formed again before taking their ce around her shoulders. One of them opened up and formed another panel right in time to block a number ofsers targeting her face.
[Those things¡ they aren''t simple barriers, are they?] B3 asked.
[It should be impossible to create a barrier in a ce upied by something of a certain density.] Sitta said. [If it was a normal barrier, it would''ve formed around the cords instead of cutting through it.]
The white discs creating the translucent blue panels were what aided the Olympian in escaping Sitta''s anti-teleportation barrier, however at the time they left the inner side of the rectangr shape they created empty. After a moment of deliberation B3''s eyes widened as she finally understood how they function.
[The blue lines¡] She said, her eyes on the Olympian. [They separate everything on one side from the other¡]
Hearing the Valkyrie''s spection, Atropos seemed surprised for a moment before a chuckle escaped her.
"To think you would figure it out after seeing it only twice." She said. "You have quite the keen eyes."
Once again the Valkyries had a really bad feeling. Of the eight enemies that emerged from the crashed ship, one was already dead while two were being suppressed by JX9 and Juni, and three are caged inside Sitta''s barrier. The situation clearly was under their control, however despite that the dark haired one, the Olympian who''s an identical copy of their friend Nino, was so rxed as if she didn''t have any sense of fear or urgency.
Her calm demeanor painted her as a confident leader unperturbed By what''s happening around her. She seemed so sure of her victory, as if everything was already set in stone from the way she saw it.
"You''re correct, this isn''t a simple barrier." As she spoke, one of the disks split once more, blue lines connecting the four parts. "Limited Rift, is what I call it. Everything inside the lines ispletely separated from what''s outside. Anything in-between is cleanly cut with no exception."
[Is that so¡]
That short exnation alone was enough for B3 to understand how troublesome the Olympian''s ability could get. As demonstrated by how she easily freed herself just now, Atropos is capable of cutting through anything the Valkyries'' are capable of creating. Not only that but as long as she has those disks it''s practically impossible for any attacks to reach her.
''No, everything has its ws, even this¡''
If the force field has ways to work around it. B3 was sure that she could see through this Limited Rift if she was given enough time, but of course her opponent doesn''t n on standing around and letting it happen. I think you should take a look at
"So? I did you the courtesy of revealing one of my abilities." Atropos said, her smile an unsettling version of that of their friend. "Won''t you return the favor by revealing yours? Please don''t say you''re only capable of using the 23rd dimension¡"
[... Why would I reveal anything to you? Won''t that lower my chances of winning?]
"Don''t say that. It''s not like you had any chances of winning to begin with."
[We will see about that.]
As B3 steeled herself, Atropos fastened the grip on her crimson sword and leaned forward,unching herself toward the three Valkyries. Sitta prepared to provide cover and Ichigo did the same. Although she didn''t have a lot in terms ofbat skills, she still could help with barriers here and there.
The cylindrical drones chased after the Olympian shaking the ground in their attempt to crush their target. She kept on dodging them, elerating with each step she took as she approached her opponents. Just when it looked like she was about to make it, new drones spawned from the ground flocking her path from every direction.
Atropos was left with no choice but to teleport, but the moment she reappeared she saw a few dozensers about to hit her like heavy rain. Thankfully her choice of putting some distance between her and the Valkyries bought her a precious fraction of a second that allowed her to teleport once more, but the moment she did moresers were shot at her with frightening precision, the time gap making her question what method the Valkyrie in red armor was using to detect the ce she would appear in.
''Is she using the same concept as Actaeon?'' the Olympian wondered, narrowly avoiding the barrage of light raining on her. ''No¡ this one is different¡''
There was no need for her to keep dodging everything; her force field was more than capable of withstanding all attacks including the three original drones if she wanted to she could just force her way through and deal a finishing blow to all three at the same time, but there was no fun in that.
Besides, killing the enemies in front of her wasn''t her true objective.
''Well, it won''t hurt to show off a little¡''
Teleporting once more, Atropos appeared beside one of the cylindrical drones, her scissors like sword prepared for a downward swing. Made from the carcass of an A ss Cmity, B3''s drones were sturdy enough that they could withstand the Valkyries'' force field at its maximum output without disintegrating. Anything that could damage them wouldn''t be a normal weapon, that''s why, even though she could''ve guided it away from the Olympian, B3 chose to sacrifice one of her main weapons to learn what the crimson de is capable of.
Atropos moved her arms, gracefully bringing down the de toward the drone, but something was off. There was no power behind that swing, nor was there speed. The sh missed the target by more than a few inches, the only thing cut being empty air.
B3 couldn''t believe that her opponent would miss such an easy hit, but a momentter her eyes shot open as she sensed something.
The cylindrical drone continues its charge, flying away like aunched missile. B3''s mentalmand didn''t reach it at all, the line connecting them no longer present.
"I guess it''s about time I get serious."
Saying those words in a rxed tone, Atropos dove down toward B3 and the others. Seeing the Olympian heading their way struck fear inside the Valkyries and for the first time since the start of this battle they all recognized the danger they were in.
Chapter 193 Nameless Element.
?
In a fraction of a second, B3 understood what Atropos did and heightened her guard. The Olympian somehow cut the connection she had to the drone leaving her incapable of controlling its movements. It wasn''t the same as the signal being jammed; B3''s drones were guided through a mental connection, one that should be impossible to intercept or block.
She withdrew the two remaining original drones, opting to use the ones she created through her halo.
The Olympian was closing in on them with terrifying speed. Her movements were hard to keep up with even for the Valkyries, however the red drones found no trouble firing at their target, all thanks to B3''s unique ability.
Still, nothing seemed to slow Atropos. She increased the output of her force field and took thesers head on, deflecting them with minimum effort. She swung her sword at seemingly empty air only for B3 to lose control of the red drones she conjured, which led to them disintegrating into particles of light momentster.
Sitta put up a barrier in anticipation of the Atropos'' attack, but when her focus shifted her hold on the barrier trapping the other three Olympians faltered. Perseus raised his staff, the crystal decorating it glowing with blue light as runes formed around it.
"Daedalus." He said.
"Alright!"
The short man raised his orb and deactivate the barrier protecting him and his allies. Almost immediately Sitta''s barrier shrunk down threatening to crush them in a matter of seconds, that''s when the runes around Perseus'' staff began spinning and a wave of light exploded from it, a single pulse shattering the barrier like ayer of thin ice.
[Wha-]
The Valkyrie didn''t have the chance to be surprised as Atroposunched one of her white disks forward, splitting it into the four parts that form the panel she used to pass through barriers the first time. Limited Rift separates what''s inside the blue lines from what''s inside, and with the barrier covering the outside part the inside bes hollow creating an opening for Atropos to pass through. The second desk shot forward passing through the opening and past B3 before it opened up and created another rectangle. Blue lines spread out connecting the eight parts and just when Atropos passed through the first opening the translucent blue panels formed creating a long tunnel isting the Olympian and the Valkyrie in red armor.
[B3!]
[Calm down.] B3 said. [focus on the other three.]
It was unlike Sitta to shout so it startled her quite a bit. B3 didn''t seem to lose her calm despite being isted from her allies with the strange crimson de heading her way. The drones hovering behind her copsed into small particles, however they didn''t disappear, instead gathering before the Valkyrie to form a new weapon.
[You sure it was a good idea?] She said, holding her arm out into the cloud of particles. [You got nowhere to run now.]
The 23rd dimension, as the Olympians call it, is one of the most versatile dimensions that exist out there. It''s filled with only one element many call the Nameless Element. It''s a particle of unstable, ever-changing nature that takes on the properties of different elements, changing from one to the other over time for no apparent reason.I think you should take a look at
Using their halos, the Valkyries are able to draw a certain amount of the Nameless Element from the 23rd dimension, changing and stabilizing them into the desired elements then using them to create anything they desire.
With the inside of the tunnel isted front he outside B3 couldn''t obtain enough Nmeless Element to construct new weapons, that''s why she copsed the drones she created beforehand -a process that normally should''ve sent them back to their original dimension- and manipted them to form something new.
The red mist concentrated and hardened, materializing into a colossal cannonrger than the young Valkyrie''s petite body. Time seemed to stop as Atropos saw the crimson armor disappearing behind a glowing barrel, deadly sparks shining in the depths of its bore. Her eyes widened as she realized her Limited Rift had left her with nowhere to run to, but by the time she began to consider whether to deactivate the ability or not the whole tunnel was flooded with destructive light which forced her hand.
"You almost got me." Atropos said, appearing right beside B3 and preparing her sword for an upward swing from a low angle.
The st from the cannon had yet to end which left the young Valkyrie in red stunned, incapable of teleporting to a safe distance. Sitta and Ichigo moved to create barriers, however a pulse washed over them causing the invisible walls to shatter.
"It was fun while itsted."
[You still don''t get it, do you?]t
The ground split up and red bars jutted out blocking the crimson de. The smile disappeared from Atropos'' face and her eyes became serious. The original drones came down on her a momentter and she was once again forced to retreat to a safe distance.
As the light from its st vanished, B3 tossed the colossal cannon aside and stared at her opponent. Atropos wasn''t the only one though. Perseus was still ready to use his ability to break Sitta''s barriers, and the small man sitting on the giant''s shoulders seemed to be nning something as well.
[I have been going easy on you, you know.]
Small squares and rectangles flickered into existence, surrounding the Valkyrie in red armor and the two standing behind her. The ground began shaking, splitting up as more mechanical constructs gradually rose from under the dirt. Walls made from the glowing red material appeared one after the other, filling the gaps between giant pirs that reached high into the sky. The burning forest was filled with the mechanical sounds of a giant factory operating hundreds of machines at the same time.
In less than a minute, a giant armored fortress appeared around the three Valkyries, its walls towering over the Olympians menacingly as if to show how insignificant they were. Heavy artillery filled peered down from above, with cannons of every type, both physical and energy-based, all pointed in a single direction. Hundreds of shutters hatched open revealing many more, with drones and missiles ready to beunched at any moment.
As the Olympians stood frozen, overwhelmed by the magnitude of the small Valkyrie''s creation, a loud sound announced the start of the bombardment.
[Time to get serious.]
Chapter 194 Leader.
?
"Good work, everyone! Another day without as much as a scratch! You''re all getting better at this!"
In thending zone of the forty fifth base, five Valkyries were in the process of putting aside their equipment after a long day of work. While on their patrol they ran into a number of Cmities and engaged them in battle. Though it was more hecticpared to the usually calm days of their region, the five managed to deal with the enemy easily without any of them sustaining any injuries.
"Well, they were just a bunch of C ss Cmities this time." R2 said, her shoulders slumping over the moment her propellers were taken off.
"There were more than twenty!" D2 yelled in protest. "ss C or not, we weren''t prepared to take on that many!"
"Well, does it matter? We have already dealt with them." C1 said before yawning. The drone beside her looked like it would make for a good pillow.
"Well, it''s true that normally we would''ve been wiped out." K9 said, smiling as she turned to thest Valkyrie in their group. "But there was nothing to worry about. After all, we have Leader with us!"
"I told you not to call me that." B3 said with a tired smile.
"Why not? You''re our leader, aren''t you, Leader?"
With her being the shortest among them it looked like they were just teasing her. However despite the smiles and giggles none of them looked down on the young Valkyrie. She was the reason their team was so well coordinated. Her situational awareness made it possible for her to perceive all threats in her surrounding, in addition to the movements of her allies. That allowed her to direct them in the best way possible, allowing them to focus on the task in front of them knowing she has their backs. Her Crimson Drones were quite useful as well, serving as the shields that saved them a lot of time as well as the chains that restrained the enemies that proved too much to handle normally.
"Yeah yeah, whatever¡"
Her lukewarm response didn''t go over their heads as the four looked at each other. After exchanging looks, it was decided that K9 would handle the situation, being the closest to the red haired Valkyrie.
"Alright, B3, out with it already." K9 asked once the others left for their examination. "And don''t try to hide anything. I can see that you aren''t happy about something."
"... It''s nothing¡" B3 said after a while.
"Nope! We aren''t going to do this!"
Without a warning, K9 grabbed B3''s sides and began tickling her. The young Valkyrie went stiff for a moment before busting intoughter, struggling to free herself from her friend''s grasp.
"Okay okay! I get it already!"
"Really?"
"Yeah!"
K9 knew how sensitive her friend''s sides were so she always used it to get an advantage on her. Having calmed down, B3 wiped the tears that had begun to form from the unrestrainedughing and let out a long sigh.
"I''ve been thinking about changing my weapon." She said.I think you should take a look at
"Now that''s new." K9 raised an eyebrow, seemingly surprised by the deration. "This is the first time I hear about someone wanting a weapon swap."
"Don''t get me wrong, I really like my drones. It''s just¡" pausing for a couple of seconds, B3 looked down at her hands and said "I want to be more active in battle. Staying at the back and offering support, I feel¡ I feel like I could do more¡"
Valkyries were usually given the weapons and equipment they were the mostfortable with. Most of it is made from the remains of defeated Cmities so it''s rare to find two sets that resemble each other, but B3''s Crimson Drones were especially unique, being one of the few purely support type weapons.
"I thought you preferred this battle style?"
"Well, yeah." B3 replied. "I specifically asked for something I could use this way, but¡"
The Crimson Drones, as sturdy as they were, couldn''t deal a lot of damage. They could effectively block attacks and paralyze enemies but they couldn''t cause much harm, especially to any Cmity that''s C ss or higher.
"You aren''t just offering support, you know." K9 said, cing her hand on the young one''s head. "Without your directions we wouldn''t be able to fight as efficiently as we do. I actually think we would suffer a lot if you were to start focusing on destroying those scraps of metal instead of leading us."
"I could do more than one thing, you know." B3 pouted. "Maybe they could upgrade my drones so they wouldn''t be just a bunch of giant sludge hammers."
"That would be difficult to do." K9 smiled wryly. "You can''t really spread the force field to something you aren''t touching."
"Why about cannons?"
"Cannons are technically support weapons too, you know? Unless you''re good enough to hit the core¡"
The only ranged weapons that could deal serious damage to high ss Cmities consume a ridiculous amount of energy, so much that the Resistance holds off on using them unless the situation is hopeless.
"Ugh¡" B3 slumped her shoulders, a defeated sigh escaping her. "I''m not really good with melee weapons¡"
"You know, B3, there really is no need for you to be on the frontline." K9 said. "I won''t ask you to stay the same, but I''m sure everyone would appreciate it if you focused on leading us. We will handle the Cmities, you make sure we don''t miss anything."
"... Alright, sure¡"
Though she didn''t seem convinced, B3 decided to keep doing things the way she did for a while. Soon after she learned that a simple weapon change won''t do. Against overwhelming power, nothing she could do would protect her and her friends. She needed more. A lot more. Simple weapons wouldn''t do.
Once she got her heart upgraded and was able to ess her halos, B3 felt like she could finally create something that satisfied her yearning for power. It came to her readily, so naturally that it felt like she always meant to have it from the moment she was born.
With the war against the Nephilim ending she never had the chance to try it out, and though she hoped she would never have to, B3 was happy to have something that would help her stand at the frontline, protecting herrades instead of leaving the dangerous part to them.
As her Scarlet Citadel came to life, her eyes locked on the target standing a long distance away. Though she felt hesitant seeing her friend''s face worn by the enemy, her hand squeezed the trigger in her hand signaling the start of a devastating bombardment.
Chapter 195 Scarlet Citadel.
?
A harrowing symphony of destruction and chaos followed theunch of hundreds of missiles, their ignition reverberating through the atmosphere shaking the ground beneath as they propelled themselves toward a single target.
The deafening noise echoed across thendscape, sending shivers down the spines of every Olympian and Valkyrie warning them of the impending doom.
The fighting stopped and all eyes turned to the scarlet castle that appeared out of nowhere. The Valkyries immediately realized what was happening. B3 was their leader; she was always calm and calcting despite what her appearance portrayed. If she chose to go all out and use her Scarlet Citadel, it means that the situation was a lot more dire than what they thought.
Atropos was motionless for one very long moment. Seeing the barrage of missiles raining down on her wiped the smile off her face and she clutched her sword preparing to move. Just then she felt something crawl around her leg. ncing down for a moment she saw a glowing red cuff wrapped around her right ankle, the cord extending from it connected to a device sticking out of the ground.
"..."
The first missilended and a chain of explosions followed silencing the fire spreading across the burning forest. The night sky lit up with the blinding light of constant detonations blending into each other followed by violent shockwaves that washed over thendscape tearing everything off the ground and sending it flying.
Five hundred rounds were fired in less than thirty seconds. The inferno they caused erased all life in the vicinity, and though the Nameless Element would soon return to its original dimension, the effect it already caused was more than devastating.
As new missiles formed in ce of those that have beenunched, B3''s eyes studied the brightly lit battlefield, a sense of tension gradually building up in her mind. The first wave would''ve been more than enough to level an entire city, but a Valkyrie would be able to withstand it with her force field cranked up to its maximum output. The Olympians are supposedly made of flesh and blood, but most of them showed that they''re capable of using abilities simr to the Valkyries and Nephilim. B3 was confident that their leader, Atropos, wouldn''t be fazed by only this much. Her Limited Rift would surely protect her better than any kind of barrier, but it would definitely reach its limit sooner orter.
Noticing movements inside the inferno, a few dozen drones took off to the sky above the Scarlet Citadel. Different from the type their master conjured before, the new ones were loaded with the same ster she used to corner the Olympian in her own trap a couple of minutes ago. Moving in unison, all of them pointed at a single point. Their barrels adjusted narrowing their openings then without pause all of them fired drawing a number of crisscrossing thin lines toward the still burningndscaping, which caused another series of detonations a secondter.
As the shing lights subdued something emerged from the sea of mes drawing the attention of all the drones. It was Atropos, her body enveloped in ayer of light blue as she propelled herself at a much higher spread than before thanks to the incorporeal red wings attached to her back.
She grimaced seeing what appeared like sparkling stars in the distance, knowing that another barrage ofser beams was about to rain down on her. Teleporting away did little to help. More drones were on standby ready to snipe her the moment she reappears, buying the few seconds the rest of the artillery needed to adjust their aim.
Weaving around the yellow beams, the Olympian looked for her allies, a part of her doubting that they survived the initial bombardment. To her surprise Perseus and the others werepletely fine. Daedalus'' barrier still held strong, but that might be because none of the missiles orsers had targetted them directly up to this point. I think you should take a look at
Atropos was the most dangerous among them for sure, but it would''ve made much more sense to target the others since they didn''t have the capabilities to withstand a bombardment of that level. Of course she would''ve jumped in to help them if that were to happen, but her opponent was too focused on her, which was both good and bad at the same time.
''Now, how am I going to do this?...''
Just as she began to consider how she would fight an entire fortress loaded with enough weapons to sink her entire fleet, the second wave of bombardment began following the sounds of ignition made by hundreds of newly created missiles. With the drones ceasing their attacks she was finally granted a moment of rest only to spend it watching the explosive spears heading directly at her. It was then that she noticed a slight difference in the velocity of each missile, as if everything was calcted to ensure they wouldn''t collide with each other before reaching their target.
Normally weapons of this magnitude are used on a arge area, not a single point, but from the looks of it everything was concentrated on Atropos herself withplete disregard to how impractical it might be.
Obviously missiles were much slower thanser beams so the Olympian had all the time she needed to get out of the way. Unfortunately the moment she took off the missiles adjusted their trajectory and followed after her indicating that they were all equipped with homing guidance systems.
''Did she seriously create all of this using only the 23rd dimension?''
Knowing she had nowhere to escape, Atropos came to a stop and isted herself inside a box created by Limited Rift. She closed her eyes to shield them from the light the explosions created and waited. Her abilities allowed her to separate the inside of the box from the outside, however some things could still get in, like visible light and some sound frequencies.
The explosions began the moment the first missile hit the outer side of the blue box, deadly flowers blooming in the sky like fireworks. As she watched the disy from the safety of her fortress, B3 couldn''t help but scowl seeing that everything so far has yet to put a single scratch on the enemy leader.
An ominous feeling sent a chill down her spine just as thest of the missiles detonated, then suddenly, the fire burning in the sky was suddenly put out as if snuffed like the light of a weak candle.
Small triangr shaped devices slowly gathered, joining together to form a number of white disks hovering around a single figure d in glistering ck armor, an ominous red light shimmering in the visor of its helmet as it stared through the walls of the Scarlet Citadel and directly at the red haired Valkyrie.
Chapter 196 Single Target.
?
The ck armor felt different. For one, it looked rather ancient,cking the polished form of anything created using modern technology. Its bulky appearance seemed to be carved out of stone, its edges sharp and uneven, spikes jutting out of the shoulder guards and gauntlets.
A single horn decorated the helmet, polished like the de of an obsidian knife stabbing the night sky, its surface reflecting the light from the forest below.
A long gash made up the single opening of the helmet''s visor. Deep inside, two mes burned with an oppressive red color, ring down at the world that dared to defy their owner.
B3 felt the ice cold re even from the depths of her fortress. She moved to reload her arsenal preparing for a third bombardment, however it didn''t seem like Atropos, d in her obsidian armor, had any intention of allowing the same thing to happen once more. She slowly raised her arm, her palm facing the Scarlet Citadel. The white disks moved along the motion, splitting into numerous parts that spread to surround the fortress.
The drones hovering above switched targets, firing theirsers at the small parts, however their size and fast movements made it exceptionally difficult to hit. With each passing second the danger grew more and more, then came the blue lines, crisscrossing around the fortress and forming aplex web, their appearance announcing that the Valkyrie had run out of time.
"World Cleaver."
An instantter thin walls of blue light shimmered into existence. They followed no pattern, each of them positioned at a different angle resulting in a chaotic mess as they all crossed one another around one point.
The Scarlet Citadel, being at the center of it all, was divided into hundreds of pieces. It held in its ce for a few moments before it slowly began to disintegrate into small particles, flowing along the wind before vanishing from this world.
"I''m rather impressed." Came a voice from the obsidian armor. "At first I thought your only talent is your exceptional creativity with the 23rd dimension. I''ve been to many worlds and this is the first time I met someone who''s able to create suchplex constructs."
Down on the ground, B3 was panicking. Everything she created using her halo, she couldn''t feel any of it. She could do nothing to stop the fortress walls from disintegrating, and no matter how much she tried, her halo refused to draw more of the Nameless Element to repair the damage that has been done.
"I never noticed when you did it." As she spoke, The obsidian armor began to fade away revealing Atropos'' figure, d in a tight ck suit, her hair tied into a single long braid. "Was it when you caught me the first time? You think you would literally put a target on my back to make sure your aim would never miss."
The Olympian was referring to B3''s unique ability Single Target. Just as the name suggests, the Valkyrie is able to ce a mark on someone or something allowing her to track its location and movements. This way, no matter how fast her opponent moved or if they were to teleport, her artillery would always be able to track them down increasing her chances of a sure hit.
"It is quite curious. The reports I received mentioned your side having specialized halos, but I never expected you to reach the Gamma Rank in your control over the 23rd dimension alone. If yourrades are on the same level then I might need to adjust my approach to-"
Atropos halted and two of the white disks moved to create a box around her. A momentter a violent tremor spread across the surroundings as something crashed into the blue wallsI think you should take a look at
"... You¡" Atropos'' eyes narrowed as she red at her attacker. "You''re the one Hs was handling¡"
JX9''s armored fist ground against the isting barrier, the six propellers attached to the back of her purple armor exploding with raging mes turning her into an unstoppable force pushing against an unmovable object.
The anger and hatred she felt toward the Olympians for using the Cmities at the start of the battle was now gone. Her focus had shiftedpletely when she saw the danger herrades were in so she rushed to provide them with her support. Sadly, with B3''s Scarlet Citadel failing to inflict any damage on the Olympian leader, nothing the Valkyries could do had any chance of defeating her.
Atropos'' cold re seemed to pierce through JX9, reminding her of the fear she felt seeing the Nephilim queen for the first time. However the Valkyrie weed the feeling with open arms. It took her mind off the fact that the girl standing in front of her was almost an exact copy of one of herrades, allowing her to see nothing but an enemy that she needed to fight.
"Lady Atropos!" The caucasian man soon appeared. His right arm was crushed into a bloody mess and his body was bruised all over. His regeneration ability was struggling to catch up but despite that he still held on to his sword, his face twisted into a pained grimace as he rushed to aid his leader.
"Stand down, Hs." Atropos said, ncing at the man briefly before returning her gaze to JX9. "I will handle everything from here."
Heading hermand Hs came to an abrupt stop, staring at Olympian girl in disbelief before lowering his gaze and gritting his teeth from the frustration he felt.
Another white disk descended from above, splitting into four parts that surrounded JX9. Sensing the danger she quickly moved away avoiding being split in half. She wasn''t about to give up however. The blue box might be imprable, however it appears that it can''t be moved once activated, and it doesn''t seem like teleporting out of it is possible. As long as she kept attacking, the Olympian would have no choice but to remain in the same spot. That would buy enough time for the others to regroup and hopefully for Five and CS to return.
Having decided on her next course of action, JX9 clutched her gauntlet d fists until they made creaking and cracking sounds. She took a deep breath and ignited her wing like propellers, vanishing for a moment before causing a sonic boom as she broke the sound barrier.
The blue box was fast approaching. She increased the output of her force field and braced herself for the impact, but the moment her fists touched its surface, the imprable barrier suddenly vanished.
"Too reckless¡"
As she spoke those two words, Atropos elegantly sidestepped the charging Valkyrie. Time seemed to slow down and JX9''s eyes gradually widened. Before any thought could cross her mind, the crimson de moved up in a diagonal sh, cutting right through the purple armor, the force field offering no resistance at all.
Chapter 197 Last Act.
?
The crimson de moved in a diagonal sh. It bypassed the ultimate protection of the force field like it wasn''t even there. The swiftness of the motion made it seem as if it was cutting through empty air, the purple armor offering no resistance to speak of.
JX9''s thoughts halted, the light slowly fading from her eyes. As the crimson de came out of her back, time seemed to return to its normal flow. The fire from six propellers still burned, not slowing as the Valkyrie''s motionless body crashed into the ground, bouncing a few times before the momentum died and itnded somewhere in the burning forest.
The world was silent for a very long moment. The Valkyries couldn''t believe what they saw, overtaken by a horror they only recently managed to ovee. Memories shed in B3''s mind, those of herrades being ughtered by the Nephilim with dark purple hair. The powerlessness she felt returned and she lost control over her halo, causing what was left of her Scarlet Citadel to disappear.
"My apologies." Atropos turned her gaze back to the young Valkyrie. Seeing that the fortress had disappeared, she retracted the rest of the white discs. "This is starting to take a bit too long so I''ll be ending things here."
The Olympian vanished, announcing that the battle has resumed. Sitta moved to ce a barrier, but Perseus tapped the ground with his staff, sending another pulse that caused it to shatter. Daedalus seemed about to do something as well, holding his orb high over his head.
[B3!]
Ichigo''s distressed voice brought the young Valkyrie back to reality. She saw Atropos approaching, her eyes cold with murderous intent, and began forming her halo once more, her dronesing forward to intercept the uing attack. However the attack never came. It was then that she realized she wasn''t the Olympians'' target.
So far the Valkyries never stopped to consider the objective behind the Olympians'' attack. B3 had concluded that it had something to do with Nino, whose connection to Atropos was impossible to deny with the two of them looking like identical copies of each other. However there is someone else whose presence created a considerable danger to the Olympians, someone whose innate ability could be used to counter some of their powers.
Realizing who was the crimson de''s next target, B3 teleported without dy, her Single Target ability revealing the location of the enemy. Ichigo noticed the shadow that fell over her from behind, and when she turned to look at its source, her eyes shot open, forcing her to watch as the scissors like sword dug into the small frame d in red armor.
Before she could get her voice out one of the drones ran into her, pushing her out of the de''s range. That was B3''sst act before the crimson de cut through her.
The world seemed to stop for a second time. Atropos clicked her tongue. She was sure that her n was wless so it was quite frustrating to know that someone had managed to read into it. Without waiting for hertest victim to fall to the ground she instantly turned to pursue her original target, but before she could something long wrapped itself around her body and the next moment she found herself yanked into the air.
Juni had used her sword in its whip form to pull Atropos away from Sitta and Ichigo. However, unlike Hs, Penthesilea was rtively unharmed and she wasn''t about to give her any more openings preventing her from rushing to support her friends.I think you should take a look at
The caucasian man didn''t seem like he would be out of the fight for long as well. His body was enveloped in a soft white glow that elerated his healing tens of folds, its source being the orb Daedalus held as he stood on the shoulder of therge one eyed man.
Knowing she couldn''t afford to remain on the sidelines anymore, Sitta began creating a weapon for herself. With the enemy having multiple ways to ovee them barriers were pretty much useless.
Ichigo did the same as she struggled to get up to her feet. She still doesn''t know she''s the Olympians'' target, but even if she did there was nothing she could do.
As if the situation wasn''t bad enough, a devastating explosion shook the burning forest. Hopelessness stole Sitta''s breath as she realized it came from the direction of their ship. Triska was there as well as Trenta and Venti. It was hard to believe that the three of them failed to protect it, but after everything she witnessed so far only the worst came to her mind.
"I see Actaeon has finished his part¡" Atropos said while watching the torrent of smoke rising into the sky. She then turned her gaze back to Ichigo and let out a sigh. "I wanted to meet Lachesis but¡ oh, well..." She took a step toward the Valkyries and brandished her sword. "There will always be another chance."
With Penthesilea holding her back Juni couldn''t do anything. Sitta clutched the rapier she created and prepared to engage the enemy leader. She saw no way in which they could win this battle, and for a moment their loss seemed inevitable. But just when giving up seemed the only option, something twinkled the distance and Atropos came to a half.
She stepped aside avoiding something that passed right through where she stood a moment ago, and whatever it was it caused another explosion a small distance away. When the dust settled a crater came into sight and at its center was a red arrow slowly disintegrating into small particles.
A momentter another arrow whistled as it flew right past her, then another, then another. Tired of constantly dodging Atropos willed one of the white disks hovering behind her to create a shield, but just as the panel began to form something drew her attention to the sky above. When she saw what it was, her eyes went wide and her lips spread into a chillingly sinister smile. Retracting the white disks, she grasped her crimson sword in both hands and leaped into the sky shattering the ground she stood on a second ago. A violent shockwave washed over the surroundings as her de met the spear held by the girl who had just flew into the battlefield, the sparks caused by their sh casting light on her face revealing an expression of pure rage.
"YOU¡!!!" Nino gritted her teeth, ring down at the Olympian whose pace perfectly mirrored hers.
"It''s been a while, sister~" Atropos spoke with a smile, her voice carrying a hint of excitement. "I will make sure to kill you properly this time."
Chapter 198 Reunion.
?
When she woke from her sleep, Ra hurriedly called for Sam and his guards to warn them about what she saw in her vision. The future had indeed changed from what she saw the previous time she used her powers. The monsters that were supposed to attack the Sanctuary that night didn''t attach until a couple more days. Not only that but the soldiers keeping watch outside reported a strange aircraft appearing, followed by fire and explosionsing from the direction where he left his ship and the rest of the Valkyries.
After hearing her story Sam tried to contact B3 and the others but to no avail. He realized that the signal was jammed and quickly left to check on the rest of his team. He thought he still had time, but when he found ran into one of the drones carrying Ichigo''s message it was already toote.
The underground tunnels leading t the Sanctuary trembled warning of the bombardment happening outside. Once they reached the surface, Sam immediately gave the order for Zero Five, CS and Nino to go ahead first while Zero Three remained behind to guard him.
After teleporting a couple of times the camp came into view. Despite how confusing things looked at first, Zero Five was quick to summon her bow and fire arrows at the enemy targeting Ichigo. CS rushed ahead eager to join the battle, donning her white armor as she wed her way through the forest, gaining more momentum by the second.
The only one who remained unmoving was Nino. When she came close enough to clearly see the mayhem the first thing she noticed was B3''s motionless body and the figure standing beside it. When her eyes met what she presumed is the enemy, something inside her snapped and the world went silent for a moment. Her spear flickered into existence six diamond shaped wings appeared on her back. With anger boiling up in her chest, she took off causing several sonic booms as she elerated further.
Seeing her approaching, the girl with onyx hair went wide eyed before her lips spread into a terrifying smile.
"YOU¡!!!"
The two shed in the air. The confusion she should''ve felt when confronting someone with her exact face didn''te. The only thing Nino felt was hatred. Hatred and unstoppable anger.
"It has been a while, sister~ I will make sure to kill you properly this time."
The words themselves meant nothing to the Japanese doll, however hearing the voice only served to anger her further, her emotions manifesting in the erratic movements of her halo.
Their sh went on for a few seconds before the force caused them to separate. Four new spears formed around Nino as she prepared to charge her doppelganger. Atropos prepared to do the same. The two red at each other for a moment before disappearing, the speed of their movements surpassing what the naked eye could see. They swung their weapons striking at each other with everything they got, fully intending on taking each other''s life, but before they could make contact an invisible wall manifested between them deflecting both of their attacks.
The force of the impact sent both of them flying. Once they regained their bnce, only Nino attempted another attack.
Atropos looked away, her eyes turning to her subordinates on the ground. The one casting the barrier was Daedalus, however she knew he wouldn''t do something like that without someone telling him.
"Lady Atropos¡." Perseus stepped forward as if to admit that he was the one who gave the order. "I believe it is time to retreat."
He bowed his head to avoid her re, but after a couple of seconds she lets a long sigh and began floating down.
"HEY!" Nino shouted, striking the barrier again and again. "WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU''RE GOING!!!?"I think you should take a look at
Atropos came to a stop and looked back at her. They locked eyes for a moment, but when the Olympian smiled Nino lost herself in anger once more.
"It''s a shame, dear sister." Atropos said. "But¡ I''m sure we will meet again. Don''t die before that happens, okay?"
"STOP!!! I SAID¡ STOP!!!"
Ignoring the angry shouts, Atropos made her way down. Beside her, three more Olympians joined Perseus and the others. Only one was unharmed, while the other two seemed to have sustained some heavy injuries.
"We¡ lost Protesus¡" Perseus said, his head still lowered.
Daedalus fiddled with the orb in in his hands for a moment and a number of runes shimmered into existence around it.
"A cheap price." Atropos said, turning to look at the Valkyries still striking at the invisible wall. "We achieved our objective, and I got to meet my sister. Let''s not worry about trivial matters for now."
Despite losing one of theirrades, their leader seemed to be in an especially good mood. No one dared toment on it though. They knew better than to do so.
A circle of light appeared around the Olympians and their bodies were enveloped in a faint glow. One moment they were standing there, but in the next they were gone, leaving not as much as a spec of dust behind.
The invisible wall disappeared and Nino rushed down. She didn''t know what she would''ve achieved by doing so, but once she got there her anger only grew causing her to fling her weapon at the forest destroying some the the burning trees.
CS arrived a momentter holding a bloodied arm in her hand. She had ripped it off the dark skinned woman Juni was fighting. The tomboynded soon after, but when she saw the enraged look on the Japanese doll she walked away without saying anything.
"Hey, I thought I saw someone that looked exactly like you back there." CS spoke, tossing the severed arm aside. "What the hell is going on?"
Nino offered no response. She continued to stare at the ground, her mind bing more of a mess with each passing second.
Realizing she wouldn''t be getting any answers, CS scratched the back of her head as she turned away.
"This is getting out of hand¡"
Chapter 199 Right On The Mark.
?
Sam felt his chest tighten with each passing second as he waited for the others to make sure everything was safe. Once he teleported there with There''s help, the sight caused him to lose bnce and fall to his knees.
Everything that happened after was a blur. He shut down all of his enotions just so he wouldn''t lose his mind as he dealt with the aftermath of the disaster.
He made sure to check on the Valkyries first. Truska, Trenta and Venti were all heavily injured. ording to them, one of the enemies managed to sneak behind the ship''s barrier. He nned on nting bombs to blow it up, and though they caught him before he could do it, the man still managed do inflict some heavy damage to the craft.
The Bifrost was gone. Looking at what''s left of the ship, it was clear that the Olympians were targeting the portal gate itself. There was no need to wonder why they did it. The moment he lerned of what happened Sam understood that the enemy was trying to keep them from leaving this world.
Putting that aside, Triska''s quick reaction helped save a vitalponent of the ship which he was very grateful for. A second before everything blew up she created a barrier to cover the side of the ship where Eir was located. Without it healing the injured Valkyries would''ve been a great ordeal. Sadly it couldn''t solve all of theur problems.
One dayter, Sam sat in the infirmary, or what was left of it at least. In front of him was a projection ying recordings from thest battle. His mind worked at full capacity trying toprehend what happened, but despite rewatching them multiple times he has yet to discover anything of note.
Beside him, B3''s unconscious body was lying on one of the beds and JX9 was on the other. The two remained motionless, neither of them breathing or showing any sign of waking up.
While tending to their injuries Sam found out that their vitals were normal, but despite that the two of them showed no sign of waking up. They weren''t dead, but at the same time they weren''t alive as well.
The strange sword the enemy leader used was clearly the reason behind their current state. It left no trace behind, not even a scratch, as if it never touched either of them.
During the fight B3 seemed to lose controle over one of her drones. When he noticed that the Olympian had used her sword to cut empty air around the drone just before it happened, Sam concluded that the crimson de is capable of severing the connection between the drones and the device B3 uses to control it, which wasn''t a satisfying answer since he still didn''t understand how it''s possible for that to happen, or how the de is capable of passing through solid matter without leaving any
In conclusion, that sword was special. The "can''t let anyone else have it" kind of special. It might be that the Olympian herself is the one with the power, but that didn''t matter. Sam nned on getting his hands on both of them. Once he has the time to do his job he was sure he would understand everything.
As he was in deep thought, the door slid open and Someone came in. It was Nino. She looked on edge, the stress she felt visible in her expression. Sam spared her a nce then returned to what he was doing.
The Japanese doll stood beside B3''s bed, looking somberly at the unconscious Valkyrie.
This was the third time she came over since the battle ended. Sam wanted to believe she was just there to see her friend, but he knew a big part of it was because she wanted to get away from the others.
"Aren''t you going to say anything?"
After a couple of minutes her voice finally broke the silence. Sam looked away from the projection and saw that she was watching the recording as well.
"What do you want me to say?"
There was another moment of silence, and then something seemed to smap.I think you should take a look at
"Someone with my exact face attacked us! She did this to B3, JX9 and almost had Ichigo and Sitta as well! But no one is saying anything! No one is bringing it up!"
Sam kept his mouth shut.
"Why¡" Nino said, slightly trembling. "Why is no one saying anything? Why are they pretending they didn''t see it? Why¡" as the tears began flowing, the young Valkyrie let out what has been eating her from the inside. "Why is no one ming me?"
Sam knew Nino would be at the center of the events ever since the intruders recognized her back in the forty sixth base, he even entertained the idea that they might know someone who resembled her. Still, it was a bit baffling to see her exact twin on the enemy side.
"Odin designed your current body." Sam said, trying to diverge from the topic. "It''s just a coincidence that you happened to look the same."
"No¡" Nino shook his head. "She called me her sister and I...I know who she was¡"
"Really?" Sam raised an eyebrow. Of course, he was already aware of those details.
"Atropos¡" Nino said in a trembling voice. "That''s her name¡"
"Yeah. Sitta already yold me." Ssm replied.
"No. I mean¡ I knew even before that. Remember when I said I recognized some of the names in that video?"
"The one about Greek mythology?"
"Yes. I¡ it was back then that I heard it first¡" seeming to calm down, Nino began wiping her tears with the sleeves of her uniform. "When she called me her sister I¡ I wasn''t surprised at all¡ I wasn''t even surprised that she looked just like me¡"
"I see¡"
The only things Nino felt at the time were rage and hatred. Sam was slowly piecing the story together in his head, which gave him a hint about B3 and JX9''s condition.
Atropos is one of the Three Fates from Greek myth. She''s the goddess responsible for cutting the thread that represents a person''s life, allowing her to decide when they die. Sitta''s report said that the Olympian said something about wanting to meet Lachesis, who he assumes is Nino.
From how Perseus introduced her and the short exchange she had with Nino when the two of them shed, Sam concluded that Atropos had killed her two younger sisters, iming her position as the only fate. Of course it was a bit of a stretch since he was basing his knowledge on the mythology, but he had a feeling that he was right on the mark.
Chapter 200 Reincarnation.
?
"Say¡" Nino spoke, asking a question that has been on Sam''s mind. "If she really is my sister, what does that make me?"
"Does the name Lachesis ring any bells?" Sam asked.
"Hm? A little bit¡ I think? I remember hearing it in¡" Nino''s eyes became saucers as she suddenly came to the realization. "Atropos had two sisters! Lachesis is the middle one!"
"Apparently that''s what she called you back then." Sam said.
With everything he had heard so far, Sam hypothesized that, after she was killed by Atropos, Lachesis somehow reincarnated as a Valkyrie and became Nino. Her memories of her previous life seem to be gone, but notpletely.
"Lachesis¡" Nino murmured to herself. She then looked at Sam with a difficult expression. "I''ve been wondering for some time now but¡ does this mean I have already died once?"
"Pretty much." Sam replied.
"Then how am I here? Isn''t death supposed to be the end?"
"Apparently not¡"
The mystery surrounding the Valkyries kept getting more and moreplicated. Yesterday''s battle alone has added anotheryer to it, one that Sam has never even considered before.
If Nino truly is the reincarnation of Atropos'' sister then that brings the question of whether the other Valkyries are in a simr position. The fact that they still didn''t know what kind of beings the Olympians are onlyplicated things.
So far only Nino showed a strong reaction to them. Maybe her grudge against her sister was carried with her to the next life, reigniting the hatred she felt when they met again. Then there is the problem with her appearance which helped the Olympians recognize her. He didn''t know how reincarnation works, however he was sure that the probability of her ending up in a body that''s an exact replica of her old one was extremely low, especially since all of the Valkyries were created using designs Wolf came up with on his own.
A moment of thought was enough for him to realize that Shizuru, that Loki had something to do with it. It was the only exnation. Sam didn''t find it difficult to believe that she knew more about the Valkyries than any of them. It scared him, but there was nothing he could do about it right now.
None of the other Valkyries had any simr reactions to Nino''s, and the Olympians didn''t seem to recognize anyone beside her. It might be that they have yet to run into the right trigger so there is no telling if they will end up in the same situation.
Sam felt a bit relieved when he arrived at that conclusion. Nino reincarnated in his world despite being in another in her previous life. With the multiverse being theoretically infinite, the likelihood of running into something that would awaken their memories from their previous lives was almost zero. Even more so when considering time as well.
''... Who am I kidding¡''
He let out a sigh, the relief he felt a moment ago vanishing. He had no evidence to support it, however he was sure that Nino was just the start. Something told him that when they begin their search for Alice, every world that they travel to will coincidentally turn out to be the original world of one of the Valkyries. He was also ready to bet that each of them was somehow involved in major events or connected to influential figures which eventually led to their deaths.
''I never expected it to be easy, but still¡''
"So, I died, then I was born again¡" Nino said, crossing her arms in thought. "Is that what happens to everyone who dies?"I think you should take a look at
"That¡ I don''t know¡"
The concept of reincarnation has been around for a very long time, however there was no way to confirm if it''s really what happens after death. The special circumstances surrounding the Valkyries meant that they couldn''t take Nino''s case as proof, and with memories being wiped out before rebirth it would be very difficult to try and research This topic.
''Maybe I can find a way to ess those memories¡''
He quickly shook the idea out of his head. Things were alreadyplicated enough as is. His curiosity was not a good reason for him to add more factors into the equation. He reminded him that he needed to focus on his goal and thus tossed the idea to some dark corner of his mind.
"Nino¡" looking up at the young Valkyrie, Sam spoke in a serious voice. "Whether you were that Olympian''s sister or not, none of that matters. You are Nino, a Valkyrie. Whoever you were in your past life is a different person."
"... But¡"
"And you don''t have to worry about the others. They''re probably just confused. I don''t think they meant to make you feel bad about what happened."
Pausing for a second, Sam nced at the two unconscious Valkyries. So far he had no clue how he would go about saving them, but he had no intention of giving up.
"We will find a way to help them, and we will go home victorious, all of us."
Nino stared at him for a while, she then lowered her gaze, unable to say anything. A part of her wondered if things would''ve been different if she stayed back at the forty sixth base. Because she volunteered to go on this mission, two of her friends were now unconscious, trapped between life and death.
She knew what the Doctor said is true. The others were just trying to be considerate of her situation, and she didn''t fault them for being alert around her. A lot has happened in their first day in the Nephilim world so it''s only natural for everyone to be on edge.
"Ah, just to be clear." Sam was about to go take a break when something suddenly urred to him. "Don''t even think about sneaking out and going to fight those bastards on your own."
Nino could only blink at him, not understanding where he got the idea.
"Why would I do something like that?" She asked.
"Huh? Why¡" her confused response seemed genuine enough so he doubted that she was lying to his face. "Well, just make sure you don''t do it. We are already short on hands. If you disappeared I won''t be able to move a single step."
This was supposed to be a reconnaissance mission so he limited himself to only twelve Valkyries. Two of them are now incapacitated and unable to participate, and though the others should be capable of covering up for them, what they had to do from now on was simply too much.
With the Bifrost gone asking for backup was out of the question. As things are going right now, their only chance at contacting home would be the gate in Odin''s old castle. Reaching it definitely won''t be an easy task, the Olympians won''t just stand there and let them use it. Then there is the matter of the human survivors and Ra''s warning about the uing monster attack.
Sam felt that he was back to the desperate time when H attacked the Resistance headquarters, when everyone lost hope of winning the war, and just likest time he was prepared to fight until the bitter end.
Chapter 201 A Role To Play.
?
Knowing he wouldn''t be making any progress anytime soon Sam decided to take a break. Most of the food they brought with them was destroyed so there was no dinner, but that didn''t matter since he no longer needed to eat to survive.
Thankfully a few coffee containers survived the fire. They were a bit burned, but being able to brew a cup or two gave him the much needed relief he needed.
Holding the wooden cup Trenta made -to his surprise it was quite well made- Sam walked around the camp checking on the Valkyries one by one. Seeing the usually energetic Juni sitting still and silent served to show him how bad their morals were. Three and Venti were trying to cheer her up but it didn''t seem to be working.
Zero Five and CS were up in the air keeping an eye on anything that might be heading their way. Triska and Trenta went to check the wreckage of the Olympians'' ship to see if they could find anything that could be used to repair theirs. Sam doubted that he could make use of the technology of a race from another dimension, but just in case he wanted to see if they could scavenge some materials they could recycle.
Sitta was sitting alone, away from the others. She had her halo out and was doing something Sam couldn''t understand, all while keeping arge barrier around the camp. Being a barrier specialist, she was ashamed that her creations were easily broken during thest battle, and was ming herself for being incapable of protecting her friends.
The pulse attack Perseus used was as much of a mystery as Atropos'' crimson sword, and quite dangerous as well. The fact that the Olympians are able to ovee their defenses in more than one way made them a much more dangerous foe than anything they have faced so far. If they were going to win their war against them, Sam needed to find a way to ovee anything thrown their way.
After saying a few words to Sitta, to which she gave a dry response, she pointed him in Ichigo''s direction. The pink haired Valkyrie was sitting alone on a bench at the edge of the camp, looking much more depressed than the others. He expected her to see her going around caring for the others and trying to cheer them up, but even though she came out of the battle practically unharmed, she seemed to be the most bothered by how everything went down.
"Mind if I sit here?"
Ichigo looked up with a start, her eyes widening when she saw Sam.
"D-D-Doctor! W-w-wha-"
He ignored her stammering and took his ce beside her, watching from the corner of his eye as she nervously adjusted herself, her face growing red by the second.
Sam took a sip from his cup then ced it on the log beside him. He remained silent for a few seconds, staring up at the night sky above them, and waited for the Valkyrie to calm down. After a while he spoke again, his eyes still looking up.
"The stars are different, huh¡" he said. "Well, we''re in another world after all."
"... Y-you''re right¡" Ichigo said, raising her head to take a look as well. After a short pause she added in a quiet voice. "I always thought that this world was identical to ours."
"If I remember right Wolf said they are." Sam Said. "Maybe he was referring to Earth alone, not the entire universe."
"I see¡"
The silence returned, however itcked the awkwardness or oppressive air One would expect from such a situation. Sam picked up his cup and took a sip. Looking at the bitter dark liquid, an idea came into his mind and he turned to the Valkyrie beside him.
"Would you like some?" He asked.
"Ah¡ um¡"
Before she could reply he pushed the wooden cup into her hands. Ichigo''s gaze kept alternating between it and him, and when she saw that he went back to staring at the stars, she hesitated for a couple of seconds before forcing herself to taste the drink.
"... Bitter¡" she said, her expression twisting into a grimace.
"Is that so?"
He took another sip after she returned the cup to him. It was indeed bitter, and had a slightly burnt taste to it, however it was still better than the coffee substitute served at the base''s cafeteria.
"So you enjoy sweet stuff more, huh?"
"Well¡ I can''t really deny that¡" she said with a smile only for a hint of sadness to make its way into it. "B3¡ she was the only one who could handle ck coffee. She drank it quite often¡"
"Really?"
"Yeah. Even Nana would add milk and sugar to her cup. B3 alone seemed to enjoy the bitter taste. Somehow that made her seem a lot more mature despite how she looks."I think you should take a look at
"Hmm¡ then, maybe I should start inviting her to drink with me. I wonder if we have more things inmon."
The silence resumed, but this time the atmosphere grew heavier, the smile having left Ichigo''s face as she looked down at her hands, her fingers intertwined.
"B3 made the right decision." Sam said after a while. "The enemy must''ve understood how much of a danger your cleansing ability posed to them and decided to eliminate you first. By making sure you survived she helped us secure better odds in the next battle."
"But¡"
Ichigo was ashamed of how useless she was in thest battle. Despite helping with the barriers many times, she still felt like she stood there and did nothing while her friends were fighting.
Herck ofbat abilities was never a problem before when all she did was cleanse the areas ravaged by the Cmities, however now that she experienced the battlefield for herself she couldn''t help feeling weakpared to the other Valkyries.
"B3 wouldn''t have had to cover for me if I was better."
"That we can agree on." Sam replied instantly, not holding back his punch. Hisment hit Ichigo like a sludge hammer, but before the tears could start forming in her eyes he continued. "Both of us are useless in a fight so if we don''t find other ways to contribute then we would be nothing but dead weights."
Looking at him with surprise in her eyes, the Valkyrie once again struggled to form words as she tried to speak.
"D-D-Doctor isn''t u-useless! Y-you help us with a lot of things!"
"But I still can''t fight." Sam replied. "I can''t even make a barrier to protect myself, and I always need someone around to protect me. If I was able to do more I wouldn''t have been such a burden."
The only reason he was forced to go on this mission is that they have yet to figure out inter-dimensionalmunication. If he had the choice he would''ve remained in hisb andmanded them from there, that way the Valkyries wouldn''t have to worry about keeping him safe. Sadly, with how theirmunications were jammed on thest battle which resulted in him arriving at the sce, Sam was now left with no choice but to stay close so he wouldn''t miss anything.
"Ichigo, each of us has a role to y." Sam said. "Fighting power isn''t everything in a war. Without the support we offer, the others would find it very difficult to win."
"..."
Seeing that she still wasn''t feeling any better, Sam decided to push things a little bit. Ichigo was silent. She knew the Doctor was being kind and that his words were supposed to encourage her, however the pain in her chest persisted, growing stronger the more she tried to fight it.
Then suddenly, it was all gone, washed away by a warm feeling that flooded her bosom. Without a warning, Sam had ced a hand on hers. Valkyries didn''t have hearts in the same sense as humans, but in that moment she could swear that she felt it skip a beat when she saw it. As her cheeks began taking on a red color, she slowly turned to find his eyes gazing at her with such intensity that it almost caused her to faint.
"You might not be able to fight on the same level as the others." He said, grasping her hand into his. "However your ability might turn out to be what changes the tides in our favor. Don''t ever think that your presence is unnecessary. Everyone here has something to contribute, and that goes twice for you."
Ichigo was unable to respond. She couldn''t think of anything. All of her thoughts halted and the only thing she could see was the Doctor. As the feeling in her chest grew stronger and stronger, her eyes noticed something behind the man causing her emotions to vanish as if a bucket of cold water was spilled on her head.
Noticing the change in her expression, Sam turned around only to find Nino standing behind him, her gaze so cold it sent a chill down his spine.
"What a nice spot you have here." She said. "Do you mind if I join you?"
Before he could provide her with an answer, the Japanese doll picked up the cup that was beside him and sat down, moving closer until their legs and shoulders touched.
As the awkward silence went on she lifted up the cup and was about to sip from it. Sam tried to warn her, but it was already toote.
"BLUGH!... W-what is this!?" Sheined. "It''s way too bitter!"
"Well, you shouldn''t have drank it without permission." Sam replied with a chuckle.
Seeing Ichigo goggling as well, Nino began pouting then turned away. The three of them continued talking for some time but then Sam decided to put an end to his break. He wasn''t in a rush to get back to work, however as he was enjoying thepany of those two he felt several jealous res being directed his way. He had achieved his purpose of helping Ichigo cheer up, and Nino seemed to be doing fine as well. Now all that he has left to do was work up a n to defeat the Olympians. That was the biggest challenge he would have to face from now on.
Chapter 202 Its A Choice.
?
"I refuse."
When she opened her eyes, Nino found herself in an unfamiliar ce. She tried to look around but failed. She couldn''t move any part of her body, not even her eyes. It was as if she waspletely restrained, forced to watch what was happening in front of her without the ability to do anything.
"Clotho¡"
Another voice spoke and the scene moved to show its owner. For a moment Nino thought she was looking at her reflection in some mirror, but then she understood that the one standing there was Atropos, the Olympian who called her sister.
"There is no need to be so stubborn." Atropos said, her expression twisted with anger. "Let''s just do as we are told."
"Since when did we start doing that?"
A new voice joined the conversation. This one was familiar as well, but a bit weird. It took Nino a while before she realized that it was her own voice, though it still didn''t feel like she was the one talking.
"Zeus has made his decision." Said Atropos. "Do you intend on defying him?"
"Again, since when did we start doing that?" Nino, or Lachesis to be more precise, spoke again. Her older sister was ring at her, and it seems she was doing the same. "Since when do we answer to Zeus? I don''t remember swearing our allegiance to him."
"You think that means anything?" Atropos shot back. "He has already gotten his hands on the first key. That alone should tell you how doomed we are, whether we assist him or not."
"We should''ve interfered when we had the chance."
The scene changed again. This time it showed another version of the Asian doll, however she looked quite youngpared to the other two. Nino realized in an instant that she was looking at Clotho, the youngest of the Three Fates.
"It wouldn''t have done anything." Atropos shook her head. "Thantanos was on his side from the start."
"Well just turn him into a vegetable, then." Lachesis said.
"You''re the one who sees the threads, right? Why don''t you tell us where his ends?"
There was no response. Nino felt a sense of defeat, or maybe it was Lachesis? The Valkyrie understood that she was seeing a dream, one created from a memory of her past life.Sadly she didn''t seem to remember why the three of them are arguing, but it clearly had a great significance since it involved this entity called Zeus.
''Doctor mentioned him before¡'' she thought. ''The king of good. Right¡''
Her impression of the thunder god was that he was an evil man who does whatever he wants. Lachesis'' feelings seemed to seep into her as the dream went on and from the looks of it she never liked him. Not now and not in her previous life.
"It''s already toote for this world." Clotho said with a grim expression. "If we want to stop him, our only choice is to stop the same from happening somewhere else."
"And how do you suggest we do that, my sweet and naive little sister?" Atropos replied in a mocking tone.
"We might not be able to defy Zeus on our own but we might be able to influence the fate of someone else to do it."
The older sisters narrowed their eyes as they processed the suggestion. The youngest met their gaze with unchanging resolve, having no intention of backing down.
"You want to go create heroes in other worlds?" Lachesis said.
"Zeus will eventually cross to other dimensions in his search for the other keys." Said Clotho. "If we arrive there first, we might be able to lead someone to a path where he could stop that lunatic."
There was a moment of silence, then a loudughter broke out. Atropos seemed to have lost it. She wasughing uncontrobly, unbothered by the stern looks of her younger sisters.
"A hero!" She said, covering her eyes and holding her stomach. "You want to create a hero!"
The other two waited for her to stop, but after a while Clotho grew tired of the mockery.
"If you have a better solution then I''m all ears."
"Of course I have one." Atropos wiped the tears from her eyes and said nonchntly. "Give up and work for Zeus."
"That''s not a solution."
"Yes. It''s a choice." Lowering her eyes into a sharp gaze, the oldest of the sisters spoke calmly. "The only one you have."
"You¡" Lachesis was silent for a moment, but then her voice returned carrying both fear and anger. "You are already working for him, aren''t you?"
Hearing that, Clotho''s eyes widened with realization. She felt that it was strange for her to be the only one who was unwilling to go against the tyrant, however it all made sense now.
"Atropos¡" the youngest tried to speak, her thin lips quivering with each attempt. "How could you¡"
"I guess you have exposed me." Atropos shrugged, her smile disappearing the next second. "I have decided to support Zeus, out of my free will, of course." She turned her gaze to Lachesis then continued in the same tone. "I was tasked with convincing you to do the same. Unfortunately I now see that you don''t n."
As she watched, a storm of emotions raged inside Nino. Anger, hate, betrayal. Those were the things Lachesis felt as she processed the words her sister spoke.
"I¡ I can''t believe it¡" she said, the anger she felt boiling the blood in her veins. "How could you-"
"Stop acting as if there is anything wrong with it." Atropos interrupted her saying. "We are free to choose whatever we want to do, and this is my choice."
"Atropos¡" Clotho was still in denial, unable to believe what her sister just said. "You know what he did. How can you say you still follow him after everything¡"
"They were just humans. Why do you care so much?"
The response the eldest gave wasn''t what her shocked little sisters had expected. They were speechless, staring at her and waiting, a part of them hoped that she would say it was nothing more than a meaningless joke.
However the silence persisted, confirming that their eldest had indeed betrayed them and joined the mad tyrant.
Just as she began to wonder what would happen next, Nino realized that she was looking at the blue sky. The dream has ended and her eyes were now open. She pushed herself up and looked around her. She then tried to remember the content of her dream then sighed in relief.
Having read that humans usually forget everything they dreamed about once they''re awake, she was afraid the same would happen. That dream contained important details about her past life and what happened between her and Atropos. She was happy to finally understand why she felt the way she felt when she saw her the other day, but at the same time she wished she had seen more, though she had a hunch that she already knows how things went from there.
"I need to tell Doctor¡"
Chapter 203 Ritual.
?
A loud p resounded through the spacious empty hall. Perseus'' head was turned away, his left cheek a shade of red, a drop of blood trickling from his mouth. He closed his eyes and lowered his head to the one who had just pped him. There was no need to punish him in any way, however Atropos still felt like pping him the moment they returned.
"Perseus¡" she spoke, her voice tinged with anger. "You of all people should know better than to interrupt me in that situation."
"My apologies,dy Atropos." He said, lowering his head even further. "I only did it out of concern for your well being, as well as the sess of our mission."
"I already know that. I simply am angry at you foring between me and my sister."
Turning around, the young woman walked away in slow steps. She tried to not allow it to show on her, however everyone present was able to tell how exhausted she was.
The battle against the aliens had taken a great toll on them. They had to abandon one of their ships and they lost one of their warriors. Their leader had to overuse her ability as well, going so far as to bring out her obsidian armor. That went to show how their new opponents are not to be taken lightly.
Despite being from a lower realm, one of them has already reached Gamma Rank in her control of the 23rd halo. If not for Atropos'' ability the battle would''ve had apletely different oue.
Perseus remembered the rampaging giant they saw when they infiltrated the other world. Something told him that things could''ve been much worse.
"Mdy¡" he spoke with a bit of hesitation. "Should we request backup?"
"No." Atropos replied, having expected such a question from him. "I don''t want anyone else interfering."
"... Understood."
At the far end of the vast hall was a throne behind which a door was hidden. That door seemed to lead to the quarters of the person who used to rule over this castle. Atropos had taken residence there, iming it for herself as the new master of the pce.
"Fate had always been a mystery, even to us." She said. "Lachesis being here means the artifact isn''t that far away. Once she reveals its location or goes to reim it, I will be the one to take care of her."
"Mdy." Perseus called before she opened the door.
"What?"
"We have already confirmed that Lady Lachesis is in this world." He said. "We also managed to destroy the portal they used to arrive here. Should we prepare to resume the ritual?"
"Right¡" pausing for a moment, Atropos stared at the floor before adding. "You can go ahead and do it. We wasted enough time as is, I don''t want the crazy old man to send anyone to check on our progress."
Once the long raven hair disappeared behind the metallic door, Perseus finally allowed himself to rx. He held a hand to his aching cheek then wiped the blood leaking from his mouth. He then turned to face the other Olympians who have been watching in silence the whole time.
"What are you waiting for?" He said, his lips curving up a little. "You already heard her. Let the Summoning begin."
A few hourster, the crimson pir built above the Nephilim castle began radiating an ominous glow. The runes surrounding it started moving, and new ones came into existence one after the other. Soon after, the entire globe was enveloped in a translucent crimson sphere.
The entire was painted in a faint red hue, and anyone whoid their eyes on it woulde to the conclusion that the end is near.
As he gazed at the sky with a somber expression, Sam could only wonder what the Olympians were nning with such arge scale operation. He knew one thing for sure and that''s that they have to put an end to it before it''s toote. Unfortunately they didn''t have the leeway to make any mistakes and thus he was forced to tread carefully from now on.
He had moved back to the Sanctuary with all of his Valkyries to prepare for the monster attack Ra had foreseen in her visions. It was clear that the red sky was the signal they have been waiting for, and as if to confirm their predictions, the shadows all over the world began to flicker, rising and taking a tangible form defying all science and logic.
~[]~
"So¡ it''s finally starting¡" Ra said withbored breaths.
"Yeah¡"
Sam couldn''t help but grimace as he looked at her. Somehow she seemed much older than thest time he saw her. Life seemed to be seeping away from her body and she could no longer open her eyes.
Sam guessed that it was the effect of using her power. Each time she peeked into the future her time would elerate taking away a few precious days from her.
She had told him that only five days remained from her life span. That was a day ago, and she had used her powers since making him doubt that she had more than a few hours left to live.
"Sorry for disappointing you¡" Sam said, eying the old woman. "I should''ve known that the enemy would try to trap us here¡"
The only reason she persisted so far was so she could ensure that her people survived. The n was for Sam to take them to his world before this one came to an end, but with the Bifrost destroyed they were all trapped with nowhere to go.
"No no, it isn''t your fault." Ra replied with a wry smile. "I should be the one apologizing. Had I realized that the timeline has changed, maybe then I would''ve been able to warn you sooner."
"... Let''s not think of what''s already in the past." Sam said. "We still have a chance. If we do this properly, I''m sure everything will turn out just fine."
Though those words came out of his own mouth, Sam struggled to believe them. He was referring to the portal gate in the Nephilim pce. It was the only way out from this forsakennd, but getting there would be nothing short of impossible, especially with a few hundred thousand mundane humans tagging along.
Of course, if they manage to put a stop to the Olympians everything would be much easier. But all of it didn''t matter for now. They first need to survive the iing onught and the first wave was already upon them.
"By the way, what''s this thing you have been working on?" Ra asked. "I remember seeing it in the vision but¡ I never got to see what it does."
"Ah, this?" Sam said, lifting a small fist sized orb off the table. "It''s just something I''ve been meaning to try. Hopefully it would help us in the uing battles."
Chapter 204 Tell Me About It.
?
About two hundred thousand survivors lived in the Sanctuary. Between them only seven thousand were trained soldiers, and about another twelve thousand were men of military age and fit enough to join armedbat.
Ra had done everything she could to secure weapons and equipment before the Nephilim went on their rampage. None of it would''ve been of any use against them, however it was better to have something than to be unarmed.
Sam was doubtful that the small army would be able to do anything against the madness the old fortune teller had foreseen.
When the sky above lost its azure color as a veil of red covered the world, he knew they were in for a horror unlike anything they''d seen before.
"Doctor Sanderson."
Turning around, Sam saw a man dressed in fullbat attire walking over to him. Despite the mask covering his face, it was easy to recognize who he was since not many among the human soldiers dared to speak to him.
"Sergeant David." Sam acknowledged him with a nod. "Are you done with your preparations?"
"Yes. We have positioned ourselves as you''ve suggested."
As if it wasn''t obvious, the surviving humans were reluctant to follow the orders of some outsider, let alone an alien who was in control of a dozen Angels, the same creatures that destroyed their world. There was no time for him to earn their trust so he replied on Ra to help him get his orders through to her people, hiding it under the guise of a n devised using her future sight.
The sanctuary had four entrances connected to long tunnels stretching for miles on end. ording to the old woman, the monsters first start to appear through those tunnels. To prevent them from reaching the underground shelters they needed to ensure nothing gets past the outer gates, which made things a little easier to n.
The mundane soldiers were divided equally through all four gates. A few tanks were positioned around each one as well. Some of them were equipped with actual rail guns. The long tubes connected to them were in fact power lines. Seeing such heavy equipment made Sam reevaluate his opinion of the old fortune teller. He was starting to get a better idea of how much she had prepared for this day.
"Somehow, I still have a bad feeling about this." David said as he stared up at the red sky. Sam could sense the tension he was feeling right now. The other soldiers were on edge as well. This might be their first real battle, but it might as well be thest.
"Tell me about it."
With the threat of the Olympians still present Sam was reluctant to send his Valkyries intobat, but without the girls he doubted that the human soldiers would be able to defend their home for long.
The truth is he saw no need for the human soldiers to be involved. Just like the war against Cmities, human soldiers couldn''t hope to make much of an impact. It was better to leave everything to those capable of fending against. Humans being on the frontline only served to increase the number of casualties.
''There I go again¡'' Sam thought, ncing at the two standing on his sides. ''I guess a part of me still sees them as nothing more than humanoid weapons¡''
He had sent two Valkyries to each of the gates; Zero Five and CS to the east, Trenta and Triska to the north, Juni and Venti to the west while the south was left to Sitta and Zero Three.
Nino and Ichigo remained by his side. His personal Valkyries protested that they should be the ones guarding him, however he argued that he needed theirbat abilities somewhere else, since he would be retreating to the Sanctuary as soon as the battle starts.
Currently, they were the western gate. Even from this far Sam was still able to spot the crimson tower prating the sky. He knew for sure that it has something to do with what was about to happen, and as if to confirm his suspicion, he saw a flock of birds take off to the sky as the forest began trembling. The mountains in the distance seemed blurry for a moment as if enveloped in a weak haze. Something like that shouldn''t have been possible, after all his eyes didn''t have the same weaknesses as those of normal humans allowing him to see clearly all the time.
Before he could begin to wonder why, a strange wave washed over everything around him, leaving a tingling sensation all over his skin.
"Wha¡" it seems he wasn''t the only one who felt it as David turned to him with wide eyes. "What was that?"
Without giving an answer, Sam took out his phone and checked the readings from his drones. What he saw only served to confuse him even further.
The sensors did indeed pick something up, however none of them were able to discern what it was. The reports were chaotic, nothing made any sense at all. Thankfully it didn''t seem like anything has changed so far, at least nothing they could see with their eyes, and he hoped that it was not something his tech couldn''t perceive.
He would need to do more tests to be sure, however now wasn''t really the time for that.
"Um¡ Doctor¡" Ichigo spoke as she pulled on the sleeve of hisb coat. "I think it''s better if we retreat now."
She seemed a bit spooked, looking at their surroundings as she slowly inched closer to him. Nino on the other hand seemed rather calm. She was staring right at the crimson tower in the distance, but after a while she turned around and took his hand.
"Let''s go." She said. "It has already started."
As if to confirm her deration, a rustling sound came from the forest followed by a few loud snaps. Therge trees were toppling over as if they were nothing but twigs, and as the sounds drew closer, the green leaves began losing their color then slowly fell as if life was being sicked out of the nts in an instant.
"What in the world¡"
Whatever caused that sudden change, none of the soldiers wished to face it. Thankfully they all knew more than well that they had nowhere to run. Their only choice was to stand their ground and fight no matter how desperate they were.
"Juni." Sam spoke the Valkyrie''s name into hismunicator.
[Understood.]
Hovering high above the human soldiers, Juni summoned her bat and prepared a ball of light. She looked down at the forest and saw the hectic movements of whatever it was that was rushing toward everyone below. Taking her position, she aimed for its path then swung her bat.
The ball of light was sted like aser, disappearing into the forest before blooming into arge dome of destructive heat and force.
The explosions blinded everyone who was toote to cover their eyes. The light seen faded and everyone turned to look at the aftermath. A small section of the forest seemed to be gone and fire and the trees around seemed to start catching on fire, but no one cared about any of that. Their sights were on the cloud of smoke and dust where the center of the explosion was supposed to be.
The world seemed to grow silent for one very long second, but then something moved sending everyone into high alert. A sound like the rhythmic strikes of hundreds of pickaxes against hard stone reached their ears. It grew closer and closer sending shivers through everyone standing there.
A momentter something emerged from beyond the smoke and dust. Seeing it, every man out there thought the same thing.
"What the fu-"
Chapter 205 This Wont Work.
?
Ra had seen the monsters herself but the horror they embodied was impossible to describe with words.
ording to her, the things that would attack the base had the appearance of ants, except for the fact that each of them was almost two meters tall. Their bodies were covered in a jet-ck carapace that seemed to absorb the light around them, creating the illusion of a thin veil of ck smoke surrounding them. Their six limbs were like long sharp spikes stabbing into the ground with such ferocity that they left holes behind as they advanced, but nothing was more frightening than the mandibles attached to their heads, with a length of more than a meter and jagged ends that threatened to rip apart anything that came close.
The antennas over their heads moved frantically as if searching for something. Many would point in the humans'' direction only for the monster to let out a pain inducing screech and elerate its advance.
Seeing the monstrosities was like seeing death itself. What''s worse was that there were hundreds of them. Maybe even thousands. The swarm seemed like it could trample the human survivors with ease and that crushed all the resolve the bravest of them might have had.
"Venti," Sam spoke into hismunicator. "Put up a barrier around those things."
[Understood.]
Four invisible walls shimmered into existence encasing the swarm of giant insects. Sam patiently waited for the moment they crush into them, curious about what kind of reaction they will have, however the first in line began to slow down, and so did the ones behind them. After a few seconds, the entire swarm halted their advance. Sam realized that they sensed the barrier in that instant, however nothing could''ve prepared him for what would happen next.
The monsters screeched once more sending chills down everyone''s spines. Once the horrible sound faded, orange sparks of light began to ignite over the creatures'' heads. The sparks soon took shape, turning into small squares before morphing into strange symbols only a few in the crowd ever saw.
"It can''t be¡" Ichigo murmured in a low voice.
"Ra said nothing about this¡"
Runes appeared above the monsters forming one halo after the others. They were all identical, each one having six to seven symbols. Sam realized that he hadn''t seen any of those formations before, and just when he began to wonder what effect they might have the giant ants began moving again.
The orange runes began spinning and at the same time a white glow covered the monsters'' front legs and mandibles. The first line soon reached the invisible wall of Venti''s barrier and when they did they all mmed into it, standing up on their hind legs and violently striking with the white covered mandibles and legs.
For a moment nothing seemed to happen, but Sam didn''t allow himself to rx. Soon enough his fears came to life as strange cracks began to appear through the air as if a clear ss wall was slowly crumbling with each strike from the swarm.
As if to confirm his suspicion, the wall suddenly shattered and the pieces began falling to the ground. The barrier, made from a Valkyrie''s force field, was shattered into hundreds of pieces as if it was nothing but a thinyer of ss.
"Venti, put another one." He gave another order. "Juni, prepare your Proton Cannon."
[[Understood]] the two Valkyries replied in unison.
Sam was about to turn to David with a request. He wanted him to inform the leaders of the human forces to retreat, something he should''ve done much sooner. Not only is the enemy capable of using runes, but they''re also able to break through barriers as if they were nothing. That fact alone made them a danger to Valkyries. Humans couldn''t hope to survive an encounter with those monsters.
"No¡" Nino said, gazing at the army of giant ants. "This won''t work¡"
By the time Sam noticed it, the Japanese doll was already on the move. Her halo came into existence and a red spear formed in her hand. She teleported across to the battlefield, reaching the monsters before Venti created the second barrier.
"Nino! What are you doing!!?" Sam shouted.
[I don''t know why, but¡ I don''t think energy sts will work on those things¡] She replied in a calm voice.
"What do you mean they won-"
Nino went on the move before he could finish his question. She spun her spear around then held it firmly in her hands. Her body began to glow with the light blue color of the force field at its maximum output, but then the faint aura began to spread to her weapon as well.
One of the monsters was already upon her, raising its glowing sharp arms intending on skewering her alive. Nino was unbothered by its horrifying appearance as the bloodlust that seemed to be flooding from it and the rest of its kind. With a graceful motion, her spear danced around her small frame, its de severing the ant''s arms before slicing its head off and bisecting the rest of its body.
Cut into half a dozen pieces, the giant ant disappeared in a puff of smoke. Before anyone could understand what was happening the young Valkyrie went on to kill another ant, then another, then another. She was moving through the swarm with such ease, her spear causing clouds of ck smoke to appear with each ark it drew.
It took Sam a moment to understand what was going on, but when he did he quickly gave themand to the rest of the Valkyries guarding all of the four gates.
"Everyone listen very well! Energy sts are ineffective against the ck monsters!" He spoke into hismunicator. "You have to use melee weapons along with a fully charged force field! That''s the only way to deal with giant ants!"
Sam wasn''t sure why he decided that there was no other solution to their ant problem, however something told him that he should just trust the judgment of the girl who didn''t hesitate to jump into the fray.
Chapter 206 Against The Giant Ants. Part 01.
?
Juni transformed her bat into a broad sword and dived down while Venti took off her round sses then summoned a pair of spears, one in each hand.
The two of them dived toward the swarm of giant ants without hesitation.
Doing the same as Nino, they cranked their force field up to its maximum output then spread it to their weapons.
Juninded on one of the ants crushing it on the spot. It exploded into a cloud of smoke and the sound it made alerted the others around it to what happened. Grasping her weapon in both hands, the tomboy took a step forward. She raised the broad sword over her shoulder then brought it down, splitting the unlucky ant that was in front in half and crushing the ground beneath it.
Ventinded with a bit more grace. She held the iing swarm with her eyes, keeping track of each of the monsters. She then took a step forward and twisted the spear in her right hand drawing a wide vertical arc through one of the giant insects. The next second its body was severed in two. Taking another step Venti drew another arc and at the same time another ant fell into a puff of ck smoke. One of the monsters tried attacking her from the side, its white mandibles spread wide as it let out an annoying screech, bet it didn''t get anywhere near the Valkyrie as it was bisected before long.
[The white ws can prate the barriers.] Sam''s voice came in through themunicators. [It''s highly likely that your force field won''t be able to stop their attacks. Avoid getting hit as much as possible.]
[[Roger!]]
[And Nino, we will talk about you abandoning your postter.]
[Ugh¡]
[WHAT!!?] Came Zero Three''s voice. [How dare you leave Doctor''s side! You were supposed to stay there and guard him!]
[Uneptable.] Zero Five said only one word, however everyone could sense her disapproval from it alone.
"Okay, okay! I get it already!" Nino said as she blocked one of the ants thrusting at her with its glowing arm. "I will go back right away, just wait a few seconds!"
When she first saw the monsters she had a feeling that physical attacks were the only things that could affect them. She didn''t know where she got it, and she didn''t have the time to tell the others. With the swarm approaching there was no time to exin and because of that she decided to join the battle despite being allocated to guarding the Doctor.
As she slew one beast after the other, looking for an opening to retreat, she spotted something at the back of the swarm and she immediately understood.
"Sorry, Doctor, you will have to wait a little more." She said, a smile forming on her face. "I think I have found their queen."
~[]~
Trenta allowed gravity to pull her down. Once her feet touched the ground, her posture lowered gradually as she prepared to draw her sword. She inhaled a deep breath and gathered her focus, then, with the world slowing to a crawl, her body became a blur as she shot forward like aunched arrow.
She crossed the battlefield and appeared on the other side slowly sliding the katana back into its sheath. White lines began to appear on the giant ants'' carapace, and a momentter, thirty of them copsed into pieces before disappearing into a line of smoke leading to the Valkyries.
"Showoff." Triska said as she brought down arge battle ace on one of the ants.
"Is it my fault that I have such a cool skill?" Trenta replied with a faint smile.
She was one of the few who had discovered their innate ability soon after her heart was modified. ''I Am The Storm'' is what she named it. An ability that relied mostly on speed to deliver hundreds of shes at the same time. It also required the Valkyrie to allocate most of her force field to the de of her sword so she was the most suited for the battle against the giant ants.
"Don''t get cocky now." Triska warned as she swung at another ant. "You don''t want to end up making mistakes, do you?"
"Of course."
A shadow fell on the two putting an end to their conversation. Looking up they saw another ck ant, this one several timesrger and much more menacing. Their image was reflected in its circr ss like eyes, but what drew their attention was the crown like halo over its head, which was different from what the rest of the swarm had.
[I think I have found the queen.]
When they heard Nino''s announcement through themunicators, Trenta and Triska smiled at each other.
"We have found one as well."
~[]~
[How long are you going to stay up there?]
Zero Five''s voice had an unusual hint of annoyance in it causing CS to shrink a little. She was looking down on the battlefield with a difficult expression, her brows furrowed and her lips pursed.
"I¡ can''t touch those things." She said. "I hate insects."
[... What?]
"Just look at them! They''re so disgusting! I can''t believe you actually went so close to those things!"
There weren''t a lot of things that CS feared, however insects were a special case. Whether it was flies, roaches, bees or mosquitos, she couldn''t stand the sight of them, and ants weren''t an exception.
It didn''t matter that they wererger than the average Valkyrie, CS simply couldn''t bring herself to get close to those ck monstrosities.
[CS, if any of the soldiers behind me get killed¡] Five said, her voice chillingly cold. [I won''t let you hear the end of it.]
Five was moving through the swarm cutting one ant after the other with her katana. Sadly no matter how fast she was the number of monsters was too much for her alone. Unlike her partner she feared the disappointment her beloved Doctor might show if he hears that any of the soldiers stationed at her gate had lost their lives. She was adamant about not letting any of them receive as much as a scratch and so she wore her oni mask and began shaving at the swarm rushing forward.
"Ugh¡ I get it, okay?"
Giving up, CS looked down at the squirming ck carpet and gulped audibly. She then took a deep breath and forced herself to ovee the disgust she felt, creating runes over her head until a new halo formed.
As she cut down another ant Five was about to berate CS one more, but then something fell from the sky crushing into the center of the swarm and causing the ground to quake.
"CS?"
The cloud of dust soon settled revealing the form of a giant cat. It looked unlike any feline known to humans, with rough golden fur that seemed to be carved out of stone and fangsrge enough to crush anything instead of tearing it apart.
The giant beast opened its maws and a voice came out.
"This way I won''t have to touch any of them, right?"
Five was speechless, but after a moment of thought she realized she had nothing toin about.
"Just¡ don''t push yourself too much." She said with a sigh. "Your heart might copse if you keep this up for too long."
"Got it!"
Saying nothing else, the giant beast began rampaging through the ant swarm. Five stood there watching everything unfold with a tired expression, but then she spotted something far ahead and prepared to rejoin the fight.
"So that''s the one¡"
Chapter 207 Against The Giant Ants. Part 02.
?
"Damn. That. Nino!" Zero Three yelled amidst the ck ants. "How dare she leave Doctor''s side! If I knew she couldn''t properly guard him I would''ve stayed behind instead!"
She was holding one of her triangr shields in one hand swinging it at the giant ants. Its edges were a bit blunt so instead of cutting it crushed the monster''s carapace before tearing through the insides. Apparently the damage was just too much so each attack always ended with the monster turning into a cloud of smoke.
Three was quite furious. After hearing that Nino had left her post by the Doctor''s side, which left him alone with Ichigo, who didn''t have much in terms ofbat abilities, the young Valkyrie started hacking at the ck monstrosities hoping to finish her side of the job fast enough to go back.
Nino was supposed to be joining her and the others as Sam''s personal Valkyrie, but from the looks of it she still didn''t understand the most important aspect of the position which was protecting the Doctor before anything else. The fact that she abandoned her post at such a sensitive time meant that she wasn''t ready to be his personal Valkyrie.
"Where does she get all of that energy from." Sittamented, letting out a long sigh.
A screech brought her attention to one of the ants as it prepared to jump at her. The orange haired Valkyrie raised her rapier to shoulder level and nonchntly stabbed the giant insects. The moment the tip of the thin sword touched its jet-ck carapace a hole exploded through its body sending it tumbling a few meters away.
It didn''t take long for another ant to take thest one''s ce. Sitta looked down at her weapon, feeling dissatisfied with its destructive power. After a second of thought an idea appeared in her mind and she threw the weapon aside.
The ants didn''t give her any time so she had to move around to dodge their glowing arms and mandibles. The blue halo glowing over her head halted and a number of the runes making it vanished with new ones recing them. The change was happening on its own without the Valkyrie noticing it. After a while the halo began spinning again painting a different pattern from what it was before.
"Alright then¡"
Sitta summoned another rapier. This was unlike the one she was using before. Its de was so thin it seemed impossible to see from some angles. It was like a single strand of hair extending from the hilt of a normal sword giving it a surreal shape that defied the normal notions of what a weapon should look like.
When she extended her force field into it, the sharp thorn revealed itself glowing with an ominous blue light. Deciding on the monster she would try her new weapon on, Sitta dashed forward before jumping into the air.
Noticing her approaching, the ant raised its head and snapped its mandibles. Sitta used a small barrier as footing tounch herself at the monster. Her figure turned to a blur and she appeared behind it as if she had teleported. The giant was motionless for a second as if wondering where its prey went. It then sensed its presence behind it and attempted to turn around only for its body to fall apart.
Standing up, Sitta looked at the cloud of ck smoke behind her. A wry smile yed on her lips as she let out another sigh.
"I hope Trenta doesn''t use me of copying her skill.
~[]~
Despite being told that punishment awaited her for leaving her post Nino didn''t hesitate to head for the giant ant at the back
Its size and unique appearance told the young Valkyrie that this one was different from the rest, and as if that wasn''t enough, the crown like halo over its head signified its status as a higher ss over the rest of the swarm.
Nino didn''t hesitate to destroy any of the monsters that got in her way. As she got closer and closer to it, the Ant Queen turned its head in her direction, the antennas decorating moving frantically, and stared at her for a couple of seconds.
"Don''t you dare run now."
Jumping high in the air, Nino spun her spear over her head and prepared to strike. The Ant Queen did nothing, its head moving as it followed the Valkyrie''s movements. Theck of reaction gave the feeling that something was wrong and soon enough she understood where it came from.
When Nino thrusted her spear intending to stab the gigantic ant, an invisible dome formed around it causing her entire body to bounce back with incredible force.
"Ohe on!"
Landing with a flip, Nino red at therge monstrosity. Of all things it had to be a barrier. Not only that but one capable of withstanding an attack from a weapon enhanced through a fully charged force field.
"Argh¡"
Dealing with the Queen should''ve been a sure way to end the battle. At the very least it would''ve affected the movement of the entire swarm, or so she wished. Now she had no choice but to keep fighting the Soldier Ants until thest one was gone.
The queen can''t move without pulling down the barrier first. Once everyst monster is destroyed, it would have no choice but to continue its advance alone, and when that happens the Valkyries would be there to kill it as well.
Of course Nino considered the chances of it joining the battle before the very end. It wasn''t easy to imagine the leader of such an army watching as its entire swarm is wiped out.
It wasn''t long before the Ant Queen decided to confirm that suspicion as it raised its head to the sky and released a deafening cry unlike anything that came from the monsters before.
"What in the-"
Everyone was forced to cover their ears as the terrible sound turned to cause their eardrums to explode. The screeching disappeared soon enough leaving an eerie silence behind. A secondter they noticed that all of the ants had halted their advance.
"I have a bad feeling about this¡"
The entire swarm turned around and faced a single target. With everyst monster in the swarm staring at her with murderous intent, the Japanese doll cowered for a moment. A momentter the entire battlefield was engulfed in the painful screeching of hundreds of giant ants.
Chapter 208 Against The Giant Ants. Part 03.
?
With their queen attacked the army of giant ck ants switched their objective from devouring the human prey in front of them to eliminating the threat.
Nino found herself at the center of a sea of murderous intent, her ears about to explode from the maddening screeching of the giant insects. Fighting the urge to cover her then, she gripped her spear and prepared for the onught. Not a secondter one of the antsunched itself at her and she severed it in half with a single swing, causing it to be torn into a cloud of smoke the next moment.
Another ant came at her from the right and another from the front. It was doubtful whether they were capable of harming a Valkyrie, however their white ws and mandibles were able to break through Venti''s barrier. Because of that the girls had to fight while evading the monster''s attacks, a task that became much more difficult when every ant in the swarm was desperately trying tond a bit on the Japanese doll.
After a while Nino began to feel overwhelmed. She swung her spear in a wide arc, creating a bit of space around her before teleporting up into the sky. She took a moment to breathe then looked down at the battlefield, her morals taking a dip right then and there.
Ten minutes had already passed since the start of the battle but it didn''t seem like the number of monsters had decreased at all. Seeing the ease with which she had killed them, Nino expected the others to have cleared off half the army at the very least, however the number of ants didn''t seem to decrease. The only good thing that happened so far seems to be that she managed to draw the swarm''s attention to her. Even though she had teleported away, the giant insects didn''t go back to marching toward the humans, instead directed their sights to her location above them and continued screeching.
Juni was going on a wild rampage, her broad sword cutting and crushing anything thates in her way. Her usual cheerful and energetic aura was nowhere to be seen.
It seemed like she had yet to recover from thest battle and was taking her anger out on the monsters. She said she was fine whenever she was asked how she was doing, but it seems the psychological damage she took was more severe than expected.
Venti seemed to be doing much better. She was careful and focused, taking out the ants before they could notice her presence.
If they were to overlook the ant''s ability to break barriers, one could argue that they were the weakest enemy the Valkyries have faced so far. The problem was their numbers that seems to refuse to go down. It was as if, whenever they kill an ant, another one spawns in its ce.
''Hold on¡'' As she continued to absorb the swarm, Nino noticed something strange happening at the very back. ''You gotta be kidding me¡''
"Um¡ Doctor¡" she said, hesitant to be the harbinger of bad news. "I don''t think those things will run out any time soon¡"
As she had feared, new ants were spawning at the back of the swarm each time those at the front were destroyed. They start small then double in size with each passing second, and with the army closely packed together it was difficult to notice when they joined the rest.
[This doesn''t sound good¡] Sam said, sounding a bit troubled. [I guess we have no choice but the take down the queen first¡]
There was no evidence that the queen was responsible for the ants respawning, but everyone knew that getting rid of it would deal a great blow to the swarm even before that.
Sam nced at Ichigo for a moment then returned his gaze to the ck swarm a distance away. He then raised hismunicator and addressed the Valkyries.
[Nino,] Sam''s voice came in as she was observing the ants. [I want you to draw the swarm away from us.]
"Somehow, I knew you would ask me to do that." She sighed with a smile.
It was the obvious move, after all the objective of this mission was to protect the humans and make sure none of the monsters reach the Sanctuary.
"How''re we going to deal with the queen?" She asked. "I can probably break its barrier if I have the time but¡"
[Don''t worry about it, we will take care of the big one ourselves.]
He sounded awfully confident so she wanted to ask what he had in mind, but after a second of thought, Nino decided to just do as she was told.
[Venti, go back and prepare to create another barrier.] Came one more instruction, and another one followed right after. [Juni, control yourself. I need you to take out the Ant Queen while Nino distracts the swarm.]
[... Got it¡]
Juni''s reply sounded a bit unenthusiastic, but since the Doctor didn''tment on it there was no need to bring it up.
"I will be going, then."
[Be careful.]
Rather than pulling them along as she hovered in the safety of the sky, Nino was about to make her way to the back of the swarm, intending tond and draw their attention from there. However an idea popped up in her mind and a grin spread on her face as she changed the trajectory of her descent, heading straight for the Ant Queen.
Just as the others began to wonder what she was doing, Nino summoned her wings and suddenly elerated. The Ant Queen had its eyes on her the entire time so it quickly protected itself with the barrier, but Nino didn''t slow down, crashing right into the invisible dome causing a shower of sparks to rain on the surroundings.
Knowing she wouldn''t be able to prate the barrier, Nino chose to attack one more time just to piss it off. As expected the moment she backed away the queen let out another cry causing the rest of its army to go on a frenzy once more.
"Good." Nino said with a smirk. "Nowe get me."
The entire swarm turned back on its heels and chased after the Japanese doll, except for the queen which was moving at a much slower pace than the rest.
Juni and Venti were finally able to move back and take a break, however that didn''tst for long as the Doctor''s voice came in with new instructions.
[Juni, prepare yourself.] He said. [You too, Venti.]
The two were about to respond when they saw something teleport at the back of the ant army. The pink hair gave them pause, but the real shocker was the whiteb coat fluttering in the wind right beside it.
[Doctor!!?] The two yelled at the same time.
Despite being the Valkyrie Ichigo seemed way more frightened than Sam was. Being this close to the monstrosities should''ve caused his body to tremble with fear, but with all of his emotions suppressed the giant insects didn''t have any effect on him.
"Alright¡" he said in a low voice, slowly sucking in a deep breath. He then turned to the Valkyrie holding his hand. "Let''s hope this works."
Chapter 209 Against The Giant Ants. Part 04.
?
Ichigo looked him in the eyes, the uneasiness she felt fading away. She ced a hand on her enormous bosom, made more prominent through her tightly fittedbat suit, and took a deep breath, nodding before making changes to her halo.
As he waited for her to be done, Sam raised his left hand and looked at the small orb he held in it.
It was the size of his palm with a closed metallic surface covered in a white color with green lines drawingplex patterns on it. Several thin cords extended from it and connected to a crude bracer wrapped around his forearm, something that seemed much less polished than any piece of tech ready to be taken to a real battlefield. He tapped on its surface and a small translucent green panel appeared in front of him, visible only through the sses he was wearing.
As lines of text appeared on it faster than what a normal human could keep up, Sam Selected a few things by tapping the bracer and checked a few variables. He moved his gaze back to the orb in his hand then turned to the Ant Queen a dozen meters away. Not dying it anymore, he tapped the crude bracer once more and green runes began to shimmer into existence around the fist sized orb.
"Juni." He said. "On my mark."
[Understood!]
Receiving a better reply than thest one, a small smile made its way to his face just as the green runes formed a single ring around the orb. The ring began spinning clockwise and a sphere of lime green light began to form around the orb.
The Ant Queen had its focus entirely on Nino, but then its antennas began to move and the next second it turned its head toward Sam as if noticing the danger he posed. It reacted a bit toote, however, as a wave of light exploded from where the Doctor stood, creating a green dome that continued to spread as it swallowed the giant ants.
The Ant Queen seemed to tense up as the light approached it, and understandably so. When the wave collided with the invisible dome protecting it, the barrier shattered without much resistance, falling to the ground like shattered ss.
The green dome slowly faded as it continued to spread. Just as that was about to happen, Sam looked up and shouted with everything he got.
"GO!"
Having already formed a couple of propellers and ignited them, Juni grasped her broad sword in both hands andunched herself. Her body became a blur as she broke the sound barrier, refusing to slow down even with the ground fast approaching.
The Ant Queen was still stunned from having its barrier shattered, and by the time it noticed the threat heading its way, it didn''t even have the time to will its crown like halo to move.
Juni crashed into the monster like a missile, causing a devastating explosion that shook the ground. Several of the Soldier Ants were sent flying by the impact along with a shower of rocks and pebbles. Sam raised his hand to cover his face, but the shockwave didn''t reach him. When he looked ahead to check he saw that it was stopped by an invisible wall. Despite not receiving an order Venti had created a barrier just in time.
The dust soon settled and the impact point came into view. Juni slowly rose from the crater her attack created, but the Ant Queen was nowhere to be seen. Sam felt his heart almost stop as he looked around for the giant monstrosity, but as he did he found severalrge chunks of some unknown material. A momentter he realized they were what was left of the ant queen after its body was torn apart by Juni''s attack.
"I know I''m the one who told her, but¡"
Even if it was a monster, Sam was still surprised by the brutality with which she had done it. He made a note to check on how Juni was doing mentally then went in to give the next set of instructions.
"Nino, Juni, get out of there!" He said. "Venti, the moment they''re out crush those things!"
Venti was confused, not understanding how he expected her to do what he said, but then she looked at the ants and realized their halos had stopped spinning and the white glow on their arms and mandibles was gone.
Leaving the obvious question forter, she beganpressing her barrier leaving only one opening in the ceiling for Nino and Juni to exit from. Once they were out, she closed the opening and pushed even further, pressing the giant ants against each other until they began cracking and snapping before turning into ck smoke one after the other.
By the end of it, Venti''s barrier shrunk down to a box only one meter across from each side. Inside, the ck smoke waspressed into a solid cube. Sam didn''t know what material it was made of so he believed it would be for the best to keep it sealed for now.
"What was that just now?" Nino asked the moment she teleported beside the Doctor, but instead of an answer she received a karate chop on the head. "Ouch!"
"Never leave your post." Sam said, ring down at her with ice cold eyes.
"Y-you''re the one to talk! If your safety is such a concern then why did youe all the way here!!?"
Another chopnded on her head, this one stronger than thest.
"I''m yourmander, your general." Sam replied, bringing his hand once more. "I decide where we go and when we do it. You follow orders."
"Okay okay! I understand so please stop!"
He doubted that those hits were causing her any real pain, but it was nice to see her acting like a normal girl. He doubted he would ever get tired of seeing this side of the Valkyries.
Chapter 210 I Just Copied Something.
?
"But seriously, how did you do it, Doctor?" Venti asked. She hadnded near them a few seconds ago but remained silent, enjoying watching Nino receive her punishment.
"Ah," Sam turned to look at the orb in his left hand then answered. "I just copied something I saw in the recordings of the previous battle."
The orb itself was a spare Valkyrie heart he had brought with him just in case. Using it he''s able to create preprogrammed formations of runes, just like what he did when he discovered how to modify hearts for the first time.
"I noticed that the guy named Perseus never created a halo of his own and instead used his staff." Sam exined. "I concluded that, if he had to rely on tools to make use of the runes, anything he used most likely didn''t require any mental power, which also meant I could copy it without a problem."
Normally when creating runes one has to rely on their imagination and mental power, or so Sam believed, at least. After all all of ites naturally to Valkyries and Nephilim while those who were originally humans like him and Wolf struggled to make anything they could use.
For example, when Sam was finally able to create the halo for using the Nameless Element, even though it was an exact copy of Zero Five''s he was unable to recreate her sword. All he did was draw a bunch of unstable particles into their world, from there he had no idea how to control and transform them into what he wants.
It was also for that same reason that some halos don''t work when created using hearts that aren''t connected to a conscious mind. Some simple formations work just fine, like the one for Balder''s Light, but anything moreplex or those that require a lot of control can only be used by those with conscious intent.
"I recreated the runes he used when he broke Sitta''s barrier and moved them exactly like he did." Sam said, a satisfied smile taking over his face. "And as you saw, that was the result."
The Valkyries were speechless for a couple of seconds before their eyes lit up with admiration.
"Incredible..." Venti said. "You managed to recreate it just from looking at the recordings?"
"Yeah." He replied. "The formation seems to create consistent waves of some kind. I probably will need to study it a little more before I can understand how it really works."
"Wait¡" Nino turned to him with half lid eyes. "Don''t tell me¡ is this the first time you have tried it?"
It has been only two days since their battle against the Olympians, and they have been quite busy ever since. It was unclear when he found the time to adjust the spare heart let alone give the new formation a try run.
Seeing Sam slowly look away, the Valkyries got their answer.
"And you darein when I left my position for a few minutes." Nino said with a sigh. "I feel that, if you ever got yourself killed, it probably won''t be because any of us made a mistake."
What Sam did was way too reckless. If he wanted to test the new formation he could''ve asked one of the Valkyries to do it for him, instead he put himself on the line without even knowing if he would seed or not. As Nino had put it, the likelihood of him getting himself killed through his own actions was very high.
But Sam didn''t mind it if that were to happen.
"Anyways!" Sam said in an attempt to divert the attention from him. "The real MVP today is Ichigo over here!"
He ced a hand on the pink haired Valkyrie''s shoulder and pulled her toward him. In an instant her face flushed red, both from being so close to the Doctor that she could feel his breath on her neck and all the eyes staring at her.
"Without her cleansing ability we wouldn''t have been able to incapacitate the rest of the ants!"
Sam had instructed Ichigo to use her ability right after he creates the pulse, and because of that, it went unnoticed when the Soldier Ants lost the white glow that allowed them to break barriers. Soon after they activated their orange halos, Sam used his drones to analyze the substance causing the white glow and learned that it was another unknown material, most likely from a different dimension, which meant Ichigo''s ability was the perfect counter to it.
"N-no¡ I didn''t¡ I didn''t do anything special¡" she said in a low voice, steam slowly rising from her head.
"This is the second time your power proved critical to our victory."
The Soldier Ants didn''t disappear after their queen was destroyed, which meant it could''ve taken a while to dispose of them, and who knows what they would''ve done when driven to a corner.
Ending things cleanly and swiftly was something Sam appreciated quite a lot, and that made Ichigo''s ability a lot more valuable than he used to think.
"I have yet to give you your first reward, right?" Sam leaned in and whispered in her ear. "Let''s end this quickly so we can get to it."
Ichigo''s eyes snapped wide open and her face flushed even more. She turned to look at him from over her shoulder, but Sam spoke before she could say anything.
"Alright then!" He said. "Venti and Juni will keep an eye on this ce. The rest of us will go help the others."
Though she was still blushing hard, Ichigo immediately teleported along with the doctor heading for the northern gate. Nino was frozen still for a moment, having heard what he told their pink hairedrade, but then she snapped out of it and quickly followed after them, the fire of jealousy having ignited in her chest.
Once Sam and Ichigo made it to the other gates disposing of the giant ants became an easy task. Soon enough all four gates were safe and clear, however it seemed like the real problem was starting to manifest somewhere else.
A few hourster.
Deep underground, in a room in the residential area of the sanctuary, a boy was holding his head as a sharp pain assaulted his nerves.
It was like his brain was about to explode. Countless images shed through his mind and iprehensible voices whispered in his ears. After enduring the pain for a second too long, his body copsed on the floor, blood beginning to spill out of his nose.
Chapter 211 Things That Require Attention.
?
The Giant Ants were dealt with swiftly and without a problem, exactly as Ra had envisioned.
Before running into Sam and asking for his help, her visions would always end with her people being devoured by the ant swarm. If they somehow managed to survive the first wave, the second one would finish them, but the likelihood of something else leading to their demise was much hight.
Without the Doctor''s and the Valkyries'' help averting that future would''ve been an impossible task, but fortunately they were able to make it, and there was no going back now.
Almost everything from this point onward was uncharted territory.
Before the Olympians attacked the n was to use the Bifrost to move the survivors of the Sanctuary to Sam''s world, but with the portal gate destroyed that had to be scrapped.
The only choice left was to regain control over the Nephilim pce and use the portal over there. When Sam suggested that he takes his Valkyries and go deal with the Olympians first so nothing would be in their way, Ra shook her head and told him that that was exactly what happened in herst vision.
Things were going to get chaotic soon. If he were to leave with the Valkyries another wave of monsters would attack the sanctuary, and this time the survivors would all get wiped out. Sadly she had no idea what would happen if Sam decided to stay back and handle the situation, and attempting to use her powers once more was out of the question. She was already holding on to dear life with a single thread, hoping to stay with her people for as long as possible. Asking her to risk what little time she had just so they could peek at the future was something Sam couldn''t bring himself to do.
Other than the visions where he leads her people through the portal to his world, Ra had never seen a future where they achieved their goals. Now that the Bifrost was destroyed they were trapped on the Nephilim world, and since she can''t use her powers he couldn''t rely on his future self to send him any hints through her. In the first ce, the old woman only had three more days to live. Even if she were to use her powers she wouldn''t have been able to see them seed unless he somehow managed to fix all of their problems in the next three days.
Putting aside the things he would have to see first to understand, Sam put his focus into dealing with the other things that require his attention.
With it hidden deep underground he didn''t understand how the monsters were able to find the Sanctuary not once but twice. He didn''t believe it was just a coincidence and that thought led him to the conclusion that the monsters were specifically after the humans, which should''ve been obvious from the start.
The monsters were a mystery. They aren''t native to Earth, that''s for sure, and they also have a taste for human flesh seeing how they are able to track thest few remaining humans in a post apocalyptic world. They appeared as soon as the sky went red so Sam concluded that they had something to do with the crimson tower the Olympians created.
Speaking of the Olympians, whatever they were cooking in that tower of theirs, Sam doubted that it was anything good, especially after hearing what Nino told him about the dream she had which revealed that she began to regain some memories from her previous life.
Though theycked proper context they still managed to learn a few things about what urred before Lachesis lost her life. Zeus was gathering some sort of Keys, which was quite funny in Sam''s opinion since the big bad guys always seem to be gathering something, whether it was magic stones, magic balls or magic beasts.
When Lachesis was still alive Zeus only had one Key in his possession, but who knows how many he had managed to get since then. Apparently he needs to travel to other dimensions to get more, which made Sam suspect the Olympians were on this world for that exact reason.
The oldest of the Three Fates had tried to convince the other two to submit to Zeus, but both were against it, especially Lachesis who seemed rather hostile to the idea. Apparently the three sisters didn''t have a very good rtionship with the self proimed king of gods.
Clotho, the youngest among them, had said that it was toote for their world, and that they needed to do something to prevent the same from happening to other worlds.
Hearing that, Sam concluded that the process of obtaining Keys would result in wide destruction, but after giving it some more thought he realized that it might be the opposite.
Perhaps destruction was needed to obtain the Key, or maybe it was the number of human lives lost.
Sam didn''t want to believe that the whole thing required a blood sacrifice let alone one of that magnitude, but with both sides using runes and halos to perform feats that baffled their current understanding of science he couldn''t just write other types of magic off.
The youngest of the fates had suggested that they try to create heroes that could stop Zeus from repeating what he did to their world somewhere else. Atropos hadughed at the idea, and Sam found it ridiculous as well, but he was sure that it was what got Clotho and Lachesis killed.
ording to mythology, the Three Fates were involved in deciding what kind of lives humans would lead. Many of the stories they appear in involved the kings and heroes of ancient Greece.
Clotho weaves the threads of fate, deciding if and when someone is born while Lachesis decides the length of the threads and subsequently what events they would live through.
Assuming their real life counterparts are capable of the same feats, it made sense to eliminate those two so they wouldn''t be a nuisance in the future.
Atropos cuts the threads of fate and puts an end to the lives of mortals. That made her the perfect counter to her sisters so maybe she was kept alive just in case they came back, and Lachesis reincarnating as Nino was evidence of that.
After giving it much thought and discussing the matter with Ra and some of her people, Sam concluded that the only choice they were left with was to head for the Nephilim Pce right away. Moving around two hundred thousand people across the world wasn''t going to be an easy feat, and they had to do it in less than three days. The real challenge, however, will only start after they reach their destination.
Even if they somehow make it there without any incidents, they would still have to face the Olympians.
No matter how you look at it, it''s going to be a brutal battle with only ten Valkyries to do the fighting. They know nothing about the enemy''s real numbers and strength, and Atropos alone was going to be their biggest hurdles. Her abilities, Limited Rift and World Cleaver, were just too powerful. Then there is her scissors like crimson sword.
It didn''t help that what they have on Greek mythology contained no hint of how to defeat the Fates. They were supposed to be neutral figures who represented the inevitability of life and death, not engaging in any conflict and only doing their thing.
The only hope they have is Nino remembering something from her previous life that could help them defeat her older sister, just like she did when fighting the Giant Ants. Apparently she didn''t recall anything specific back then, however the knowledge came naturally to her when fighting the monsters, as if she was already well acquainted with them.
The monsters targeting the human survivors, transporting hundreds of thousands across the world, the Olympians and their ns. There were quite a few things Sam needed to handle, but unfortunately, there was one more topic that needed to be addressed: the madness Ra had informed him about when they had their first meeting.
Compared to the rest, thest one was what worried Sam the most.
Chapter 212 Reluctant To Share
?
Thanks to the Valkyries'' presence and Sam''s help, the Sanctuary survived the first wave of monsters without a problem. Now all that was left was to find a way to transport all of the survivors across the world.
Sam wished he didn''t have to go through so much trouble when he already has enough on his te, but he couldn''t just leave them alone while the Valkyries are away fighting the Olympians.
He was forced to choose between leaving them behind and hoping the monsters wouldn''t find them, which was already established as impossible, and taking them along with him to the battlefield where they could die from some stray shots or be the enemy''s target.
Either way, he simply couldn''t afford to split his forces anymore so at some point the survivors'' lives would be left to fate.
If he had to bepletely honest Sam did consider ditching the Sanctuary and leaving its people to their fates, however he had two good reasons as to why he couldn''t do that. One of them was just a suspicion he got after hearing Nino''s recount of what she saw in her dream.
Zeus'' quest for the Keys seems to result in the destruction of an entire world, but Sam had hypothesized that it might be the opposite and that the destruction was needed to get the Keys.
Following that logic, he concluded that an enormous blood sacrifice was the actual condition, and if he were to assume that every human life on the must be extinguished for the ritual to seed, keeping the survivors alive might turn out to be what stops that from happening.
The evidence he had to support this hypothesis was that the Olympians chose a world that had already witnessed arge scale massacre once, though he couldn''t be so sure with twenty years having passed since then. Another was the monsters targeting the Sanctuary. After giving it some thought, he could only assume that the sole purpose for their existence was to ensure the sess of the ritual by making sure everyst human on the was dead.
The second reason for him wanting to keep the humans alive was another thing the old fortune teller had told him about. The madness she witnessed in many of her visions. After hearing her description, Sam became adamant about making sure those humans survived.
He already came up with a n and began the execution even before the Giant Ants attacked. First of all, he needed something big enough to transport arge number of people all the way to North America, that part hasn''t changed. Ships were out of question due to time constraints so they needed a number ofmercial airnes.
He sent out his drones to look for any airports that survived the Nephilim''s crusade, And though he managed to find a few, twenty years without maintenance meant that a lot of work was needed before any of the nes were ready to be used.
A number of volunteers from among the survivors would be going ahead to get the nes ready. Sitta, five and CS were going to apany them to make sure they were safe in case the monsters came after them.
The only reason Sam was fine with sending some of the Valkyries away was that the rest of the Sanctuary would be following after them soon enough.
A lot of preparations were needed before moving such arge number of people, and those would take a few hours at the very least.
Those few hours were most likely the only break they would be getting for a long time so Sam decided to use them well.
"Ichigo." He said, motioning for her to follow him. "Let''s take a shower together."
The pink haired Valkyrie wasn''t the only one who had to pause she heard that statement. The others, all six of them, froze in ce and looked at him with wide open eyes.
"What?" He asked.
"Um¡ well, I think we''re just thinking of how bad your timing is, Doctor." Venti said.
Now that the initial shock was gone, the girls were blushing as they tried to avoid his gaze, except for Juni who raised her hand high and said without hesitation.
"Here! I want to have sex with Doctor as well!"
This time it was It was Sam''s turn to be shocked. She said it with a clear voice and a cheerful smile. Her cheeks were a little red as well so he assumed she knows what she was talking about.
Juni''s tomboyish appearance ced her high on Sam''s list, but now wasn''t really the time since he has already decided on who he wanted to enjoy some alone time with.
Thankfully Zero Three was there to save him from the awkwardness of having to reject one of his cute Valkyries.
"Juni, Doctor has already made his choice." She said, holding her arms up in the shape of a cross. "It''s rude both to him and the Valkyrie he picked if try to join in on their private time together. If Doctor wanted more than one partner, he would''ve asked if anyone else wants to join."
When the young Valkyrie turned to him for confirmation, Sam closed his eyes and nodded.
"Besides, we are already short on time." She went on. "Doctor doesn''t like to have sex unless his schedule is open, since he can''t stop once he starts. When he asked Ichigo to take a shower with him, I''m positive that he meant they will be doing just that and nothing more."
"Oooh¡ I get it now¡ " Juni replied, looking quite astonished.
What Zero Three said was mostly true. Sam liked the idea of his first time with the Valkyries being special and because of that he had no n on going all the way when they were in the middle of a very tough situation. She was also right about him wanting his schedule to be free so so he could enjoy himself without having to worry about anything. In Ichigo''s case, he nned on spending two days straight in bed with her so the fewer things he had to take care of the better.
"Well, everything is just as Three has exined." Sam said, he then turned his eyes to Juni. "I''m happy that you want to do it with me, but let''s leave it for another time."
"Okay!"
The way she seemed to readily agree made Sam a little worried about her.
Once again he was reminded that the Valkyries were a little naive when it came to sex and romance, and that he seriously needed to do something about it before they got into trouble.
''Nine had taught them a few things but¡''
Though he felt a little bad about it, Sam was happy that the blond Valkyrie had taught the others that they were only allowed to sleep with him. He was reluctant to share any of them before, but now that he was immortal, he had all the time in the world and could enjoy a lifetime with each of them, and that made him adamant about not letting any man near them.
It might be greedy, but no man in his right mind would say no to having so many gorgeous girls at his beck and call.
''Alright¡'' he thought to himself while guiding the pink haired Valkyrie to his room. ''First will be Ichigo, then Nino, and after that Juni. Venti wille after that. She''s begging to be bred. Sitta looks like she''ll get good in bed really fast. Triska and Trenta don''t look too interested so I won''t push them too much. As for CS, I''ll probably have Five convince her to join us at some point.''
He also needed to make sure he takes care of his personal Valkyries, especially Nine and Miku since they didn''t get to go on this mission. He could already see Nine attacking him the moment he gets home. Her libido was simply way too strong.
''Well, that''s a part of her charm as well¡'' a smile made its way to his lips as he remembered how enthusiastic she was when doing the deed.
She was the exact opposite of Ichigo, who shyly averts her gaze when he looks at her, blushing to the ears while in his arms. That said, though she seems so innocent on the surface, Sam was sure she was having some really dirty thoughts in her mind right now. He was looking forward to when he would finally get to do it with her. Something told him that he was in for a night he would never forget in his life.
Chapter 213 Come On In.
When he moved to the Sanctuary along with all of his Valkyries, Sam was given an entire building near one of the entrances to make it easy for him to move when necessary.
With their ship being wrecked beyond repair he chose to relocate only the most essential of essentials there, which could be boiled down to three Eirs and the equipment needed to make use of his drones and the satellite heunched to space when they arrived.
The rooms had little in terms of furniture, but at the very least each one had a shower.
Sam took off his clothes, went in and started the shower, but after a couple of seconds he peeked outside and saw that Ichigo was still standing there, her face a brilliant shade of red as she stared at him with wide eyes.
"Aren''t youing?" He asked, holding back the urge to smile.
When they entered the room, Sam suddenly got the urge to see how the extremely shy Valkyrie would react if he suddenly began taking his clothes off.
Without dy he began stripping, as if he was alone in his own house, and watched from the corner of his eye as Ichigo stood there petrified, her eyes locked on him the whole time. He expected her to look away and feel ashamed, but maybe because he was pretending that he didn''t notice her staring, she continued watching silently all the way until he entered the shower.
She remained motionless until he called out for her, and when she realized what had just happened, her face began heating up once more.
"I¡ um¡ I''m¡"
Her lips opened and closed but no intelligible words came out of her. She was already a nervous mess, but when Sam stepped out of the shower, facing her with his already erect penis, she went rigid once more.
"Well, I guess it''s only natural that you would be nervous." Sam said, suppressing the urge to smile. "As Three said back there, we aren''t going to do anything serious, you know."
"Um¡ I¡ I''m not¡"
"You want to be my personal Valkyrie, right?"
When he asked her that question, she looked up at him seemingly surprised. The only time it came up was way back when Nino tried to diverge attention from her. Back then, Ichigo got so embarrassed that she escaped without saying anything. She tried not to think about it as much as she could, but when the Doctor brought it up she once again felt like teleporting away.
"You should use this chance to prepare yourself mentally." Sam went on. "Being shy all the time won''t get you anywhere."
Her blushing all the time was a really cute trait, but Sam understood that her shyness might turn out to be a bother once they get into the act. There was a time and ce for everything, and if she couldn''t be a little proactive when alone with him, he felt that she wouldn''t enjoy their time together as much.
Having said what he wants, Sam entered the shower once more. He opened the water and let it wash over him, and after a few seconds he heard the door open.
Ichigo was there,pletely nude. When their eyes met she quickly averted her gaze, tucking a few strands of her pink hair behind her left ear, which was tinged with a red color. Her breasts, now free from the constraints of her uniform andbat suit, appearedrger and a lot softer than before. She had to hold them up with her right arm and they seemed on the verge of spilling over at any moment.
As expected of a Valkyrie, her snow white skin was wless. Though she was taller than most Valkyries, her body type was less athletic and a bit thicker. Of course, since Valkyries didn''t lose or gain fat, it''s clear that her body was specifically designed to be like this. As he looked her up and down, Sam thanked Wolf once again for allowing him to enjoy such treats.
"Ah, I see you didn''t run away." Sam said, smiling as he turned the water off. "Come on in."
The shower room was rather small, probably because it was made to be used by only one person. Once the Valkyrie entered and Sam closed the door behind her, he noticed that she was pressing herself against the wall trying to keep as much space between them as possible.
Unfortunately for her, his sword was so close to her belly that it could touch it if he were to move even a little.
It took quite a lot of courage for her to get to this point but it doesn''t seem like her nervousness was going away any time soon. Sam decided to back away and give her a little space, hoping that she would be able to rx a little so things wouldn''t go in a back direction between them.
Ichigo was struggling with where to look. Her chest was filled with a storm of emotions and her face felt like it was on fire. Her eyes scanned the Doctor''s body. It was different from anything she saw before, with everyone around her being Valkyries and all. It appeared to be carved out of stone, with a rigid outline well defined muscles. Itcked the softness she and her fellow Valkyries, but for some reason it seemed to spark a different kind of emotion inside of her.
Unbeknownst to her, her left hand had moved on its own, reaching to touch his chiseled chest. She stopped herself and looked up at the man, feeling her embarrassment return, but Sam only smiled at her. He then spoke in a calm and gentle tone.
"Go on." He said. "There is nothing to worry about."
For a moment Ichigo hesitated, but her curiosity and excitement won in the end and her hand began to move once more.
Her thin, delicate fingers retracted momentarily when they made contact with his skin, but then sheid her hand on his pecs and began caressing them, a surprised look taking over her face.
Chapter 214 Shower. Part 01.
?
"Whoa¡" Ichigo seemed quite surprised by how Sam''s chest felt. "It''s¡ tough? It''s not soft at all¡"
She moved her right hand and used it to touch him as well, but because her breasts were held by it a moment ago they were pulled down by gravity, bouncing a little before settling in their ce.
"Well, I''m a male after all," Sam said. "Males usually don''t have the same soft features as females."
Ichigo looked up at him, looking quite interested, but it didn''t take long for her to blush and avert her gaze.
"I knew it was different, but¡ I never expected it to be this¡ rough¡"
"I see¡" Sam said with a nod. "Well, feel free to touch as much as you want."
"... Un¡"
Nodding once, the pink haired Valkyrie began doing as he said. She felt his pecs then abs, then his neck and shoulders. Her fingers traced down his arms, studying every muscle with great interest.
While his old body wasn''t in that bad of a shape, Sam had to that his new one was quite the upgrade, and that''s without considering the few inches Elina added to his spear. He felt a little bad since he didn''t work for this form, however he wasn''t about to give it up anytime soon.
Ichigo''s shyness seemed to go away traced his body with her fingers, but then her eyes fell on the fully erect meat pir. She was about to panic for a moment, but then she felt her whole body move as Sam suddenly pulled her into his embrace.
Ichigo was quite tallpared to the other Valkyries, almost as tall as Sam. Hugging her felt different. Her head rested on his shoulder, and she wasn''t even standing on her toes.
"I think it''s my turn to do the touching, don''t you think?"
When he whispered in her ear, Ichigo felt a spark run through her nerves. Sam put a little more strength into his arms, squeezing her tightly against his chiseled. As a Valkyrie, even if not specialized inbat, her strength far surpassed that of a human. But when the Doctor held her like that, with nothing separating their naked bodies from each other, Ichigo felt a sense of vulnerability, one that was strangely soothing, as if she was safe from any harm the world might try to bring on her.
Wanting to savor the feeling a little more, the link haired Valkyrie wrapped her arms around the man and returned the hug. Sam slowly caressed her back and hair, allowing her to rx a little.
"You are so soft, Ichigo¡" he said.
His hands gradually made their way to her behind, but he didn''t allow himself to enjoy it just yet. Once he felt the Valkyrie was no longer tense, Sam pulled her away from him. The way she looked at him was different from before, with dreamy eyes and a less intense blush.
"Ichigo¡" Her rosy lips were calling for him, and as if to answer their call, he leaned in and prepared to take them. "Close your eyes¡"
Normally she would''ve lost herposure at the thought of being in this situation, but now that she has found herself in one, Ichigo felt strangely calm. A strong emotion wasing to life in her chest, one simr yetpletely different from how she felt toward the man holding her. She obeyed him without a second thought, closing her eyes and patiently waiting. When their lips finally touched the feeling she had before finally blossomed, filling her body with a sensation she never experienced before.
"Doctor¡"
The kiss didn''tst long, and once their lips separated, the haze that met Sam seemed to be asking for more. Of course, he was happy to oblige.
The smooch kept getting longer and longer while Ichigo seemed to be more heated as time passed. She was momentarily taken out of her reverie when he grabbed her soft and meaty bottom hills, but she couldn''t as much as utter a word as they continued to make out. Ichigo didn''t question Sam and just followed his lead, learning to enjoy his touch as she felt her body desiring it more with each passing second. When he took the chance to slip his tongue into her mouth, she only thought of how stimting it was, moving hers around in an attempt to convey the pleasure she felt, hoping to reciprocate some of the emotions he was making her feel.
After a while, Sam made her turn around and embraced her from behind. He seemed to wish to enjoy fondling her giant marshmallows and so she allowed him to do so without protest, only asking for him to continue kissing her all the while.
As they changed their positions, one of them identally touched the faucet turning the water on, but neither of them cared, continuing to enjoy their interaction with their minds focused on each other. With her plump ass pressing against him, his meat pir slipped between her deliciously thick thighs. It gently brushed against her secret spot, sending shivers across her body causing it to grow weak for a moment. Sam''s spear was getting excited at having found its destination, however it wasn''t allowed in, forced to be content with just touching the soaked flesh trench.
Ichigo''s breasts seemed to spill out when Sam tried to hold them. They were too big to fit in his palms, and a little heavy if he had to say so himself, but they still felt incredible to touch, their shape changing whenever he squeezed them. Her aree, having the color of cherry blossoms, were quite big, and her nipples were still tucked inside. Sam began tracing their location, noticing the Valkyrie shudder a little every now and then. It seemed they were her most sensitive part, and that was soon confirmed in a few seconds.
After squeezing the gigantic milkers a few times, Sam was finally able to draw the nipples out. Everything seemed to be going normal so far, but when he moved to pinch the small protrusions, Ichigo suddenly let out a loud moan.
"Wait¡ Doct¡HYAAHHNN~?!!!"
Finding her weakness, Sam didn''t hesitate to make use of it. As her body twisted and squirmed in his hold, Sam kissed her on the neck, biting and licking it next. With him stimting her both above and down below, Ichigo felt an overwhelming urge she couldn''t control.
"Ah¡ Doc¡ Doctor¡ hah¡ I¡ I can''t¡"
The heat in her body gathered in one spot causing her to fold in an attempt to suppress it, but that only helpt press Sam''s stiffness against her secret spot, opening the door and allowing it all to flood out.
"HYAAAHHHHHAAAA~???!!!"
Chapter 215 Shower. Part 02.
?
Ichigo''s love nectar flowed out nonstop. At the same time, her gigantic breasts were spraying milk on the opposite wall as Sam''s hands squeezed them firmly.
Fifteen seconds passed before the Valkyrie finally rxed. She was panting, her breath a little rugged. She looked down at herself and saw her breasts, each one held in a man''s hand, water sliding on them as the shower continued pouting water on them. With how big they were she was unable to see her lower half, but she could already guess the mess it was in right now. Thankfully all of it will be washed away and she wouldn''t have to deal with the embarrassment.
At some point aftering to the forty sixth base, Ichigo learned to touch herself. It all started with one of those movies Nino found, and ever since her curiosity about sexual matters kept guing her thoughts. She found somefort in fondling herself, then she learned about the Doctor and his personal Valkyries, and how they get to enjoy doing the deed with him. She fantasized about the day he would invite her to his bed and do all sorts of things with her, and with that day being closer than ever now, she realized howcking her fantasies were.
The pleasure she felt from being touched by him waspletely different from when she did it on her own. The excitement was much stronger, and so was the stimtion. She loved the sensation of having her soft body press against the tough sculpture of the man, and the rough hands massaging her with such strength conveying the desire he had for her flesh.
When she finally climaxed, the pleasure was unlike anything she had experienced before. Her mind went nk for a few moments, all thoughts pushed aside by the sensual sensation. All of this came from being touched by him and nothing more. As her mind slowly began to regain its calm, she turned to look at him from over her shoulder, wondering how good it would feel when they get to the real deal.
Sam saw the pink heart in Ichigo''s eyes. Not wasting a second, he took her lips and made out with her for a while. Once her body was rxed once more, he let go of her and pushed her against the wall, grabbing her hips and making her stick her ass out.
Ichigo gazed behind her, confused about what he was doing. She saw him turn the water off and grab one of the bottles on the shelf beside the faucet.
Sam brushed aside the long pink hair, revealing her back and plump behind, then took the bottle and began pouring its content on them, using his hands to spread it around.
He massaged her ass a little before sliding his hands to her sides then belly, going up until he was once more fondling her giant milkers. When his face came close to hers, their eyes met and she tried to convey something. Her wish came through to him and he kissed her once more, but it onlysted for a few seconds as Sam backed away.
With so little time on their hands he couldn''t afford to cross the next line, however he knew he wouldn''t be satisfied unless he ejacted at least once. As the Valkyrie watched him with great great curiosity, Sam grabbed her foam covered ass cheeks and spread them apart. He then ced his meat pir at the crack between them before pressing them together once more.
Feeling his rod sandwiched between the two soft buns, a rush of excitement filled Sam''s body and he began slowly pumping his hips.
"Ah!... Hnhaah¡. Ah¡"
A couple of secondster, the small shower room was filled with wet pping sounds and Ichigo''s restrained moans. Even though he didn''t go inside her, the position and motions have the Valkyrie a sense of what it''s like to be taken from behind, and her excitement spiked since then.
After a while, Sam stopped moving and let go of Ichigo''s behind. It was a bit abrupt and she feared he was going to end things there, but then he inserted his rod into her thigh gap once more, making her press her legs together to add pressure on it. He then grabbed her hips and began humping her again.
As he listened to the Valkyrie''s pleased moans, Sam was a bit frustrated. He wanted to fuck her. He wanted to fuck her so bad. But he knew. He knew that the moment his tool prates her love tunnel, he wouldn''t be able to stop.
He had many reasons to want to finish what he came to do in this world as fast as possible. But, even though it might sound a bit silly, what he desired the most was going back home and having some fun with his beloved Valkyries.
He continued swinging his hips, leaning against Ichigo and grabbing her swaying breasts. She nced at him from over her shoulders, her eyes lowered into thin slits, her mouth open as she panted and moaned. He didn''t hesitate to take her lips, slipping his tongue inside and tasting her saliva.
As his pace increased as he approached the climax, he promised himself to take his time and enjoy every bit of the pink haired beauty once they get back to their world. Not just her but the other Valkyries as well. He would make sure to take each one of them on a date, have fun for an entire day then spend the night doing all sorts of things with them in bed. He would forget about everything and indulge himself until he was satisfied. It would be his reward for all the hard work he has been putting in and the effort he will be making to ensure they return victorious.
Feeling his limit fast approaching, Sam sealed Ichigo''s mouth and squeezed her breasts firmly. He thrust his hips one more time and let go, his white sticky liquid erupting, sshing on the wall and spilling all over the Valkyrie''s legs and thighs.
asionally missing content, please report errors in time.
Chapter 216 Surely Its Not...
?
Once the door closed behind Sam and Ichigo, the other Valkyries stood there in silence for a few seconds. It was Zero Three who came back to her senses first. She turned to face the others, pping her hands once as she spoke with a smile.
"Alright then! I guess we''re free to rx until it''s time for departure." She said. "There is no need to linger around here so¡ everyone''s dismissed!"
The others stared at her for a while, their eyes half open. Faced with such looks the young Valkyrie couldn''t help but take a step back.
"W-what!? Why are you looking at me like that?"
"Well, personally, I don''t like how you keep talking as if you''re our superior." Triska said with a sigh, twirling a few strands of her dark blue hair around her fingers.
"I mean, we know you''re Doctor''s personal Valkyrie and all." Venti added with a wry smile. "But that just means you''re his bodyguard, right? What makes you think you have the right to order us around?"
"I¡ I wasn''t ordering you around!" Zero Three shot back. "I just saw you standing there and thought I should say something!"
"We were going to go even if you didn''t tell us." Venti remarked, her expression growing serious.
"Hey now..." Juni stepped between the two, trying to defuse the situation. "There is nothing t fight over, okay? Let''s put it all aside and go enjoy ourselves a little!"
"I will go keep watch outside." Saying that, Trenta teleported away, not wanting to be part of their little argument.
Venti turned her eyes to the short haired tomboy, a hint of annoyance making it into herplexion.
"Don''t let me begin with you too." She said. "You want to have sex with him? Do you even know what you''re asking for?"
Juni recoiled, her cheeks gradually reddening.
"O-of course I do! I watched that movie as well!" She turned her eyes to Three and went on. "Three and Nine said it feels really good so I just wanted to give it a try!"
"You clearly have no idea what you''re talking about." Triska said. "If you did, you would at least feel a little embarrassed when talking about it."
Feeling a little offended, Juni puffed her cheeks as she red at Triska.
"Well, it''s not like you know much yourself. You haven''t done it yet, have you?"
"Of course not! Unlike you, I''m not eager to let that human have his way with me!"
Zero Three''s eyes suddenly lowered into a sharp re, and so were Nino''s. The air around them became chillingly cold, and the other three seemed to notice.
"''That humans''?" Three said, her voice calm and cold. "Who could it be that you''re referring to by that?"
"Surely it''s not Doctor, is it?" Nino, having kept her silence so far, turned to re at her fellow Valkyrie.
Seeing the dangerous glint in their eyes, Triska felt that her life was in danger. She didn''t understand why, but something told her that what she said was way out of line.
It wasn''t unusual for Valkyries to have disagreements, but for one to escte to the point of igniting murderous intent, she knew she was in for a lot of trouble if she didn''t apologize right away.
"The Doctor is a very important person to us." Said Zero Three. "Without him, many of us wouldn''t be standing here."
"You aren''t eager about him having his way with you?" Nino followed. "You should consider yourself lucky if he decides to."
"If Doctor says that he wants to have you, your only response should be that you''re d to be his partner." Said Zero Three. "Well, you don''t have to worry. Once you experience the pleasure of being with Doctor, you will be begging him to have you again as soon as possible."
The way Triska spoke was indeed disrespectful, but seeing the two react so strongly to it showed that any transgression toward the Doctor wouldn''t be tolerated. Venti backed away wishing to avoid being the target of those looks. Juni as well. She didn''t know that things could get this serious when it came to the Doctor, but now she understood that his personal Valkyries held him in high regard and wouldn''t allow anyone to try and belittle him.
"Alright! I get it already!" Triska snapped. "I will apologize, okay? All I did was call him a human! Was it so wrong of me to do that!?"
"Yes." Three responded, her gaze growing colder. "It''s true that he was once human, but even then his position as our savior was already solidified. You''re able to think the way you do because you only got to meet him after the war ended. You don''t know how much he had risked to ensure we had a chance at winning the war. You don''t know how much he had lost¡"
Three''s expression seemed to be somber with each word she said. She remembered the battle inside H''s obsidian pce, how Shizuru had betrayed them, and how Sam had almost lost his life in her hand.
She noticed that, Whenever they talked about what happened that day, he always seemed to hide his true thoughts and feelings, only speaking of how grateful he was for how she saved him. She understood that what Shizuru did had left him with a much bigger scar than what he let on. Then there was the disappearance of their oldmander, Alice Schneider.
The young Valkyrie knew themander and the Doctor had a special rtionship, but it was only when she asked Elina about it did she understand the true extent of his feelings for the white haired woman. The hole she left in his heart was too deep, and no Valkyrie could hope to fill it no matter how much she tries.
When she learned of this fact, Three felt a sense of defeat. Though she was his personal Valkyrie, nothing she does could ever mend the wounds that day had left on him. But she wasn''t about to give up. Her feelings for him didn''t change, and her desire to help him only grew as time passed. She even learned to suppress her jealousy and allowed other Valkyries to enjoy his embrace. Even though she wished she was the one in the shower with him right now, she was content knowing he was enjoying his time with someone he chose himself.
Feeling an itch in her eyes, Three quickly walked away. The others didn''t say anything, remaining silent until she was out of sight.
"Triska, you seem to have a better understanding of humans than most of us." Nino said, turning to look at her after a second. "You should know how much Three wants to monopolize the Doctor''s attention, but she''s suppressing her feelings and allowing us to have a chance."
"..."
"No matter how you feel, never speak ill of him in front of anyone. Three might not be our superior, but the Doctor is. This time it ended with just a few words. I won''t guarantee it''ll be the same next time."
Though she didn''t feel anything special toward him before, a lot of things changed ever since they arrived in this world. Nino was going through a lot herself, but what saved her from breaking was knowing that the Doctor was looking after her. If he didn''t say anything back then, she probably would''ve been halfway across the world by now, recklessly attempting to get revenge for what happened to B3 and JX9.
Having nothing more to say, Nino turned away from the other Valkyries and left.
Juni, Venti and Triska, all three of them were left in that hallwaypletely speechless. After a while, the one with the green braid looked down, her round sses turning white as they reflected some light.
"Sex is scary¡" she said.
The other two nodded in agreement.
Unlike Zero Three, none of them knew the Doctor that well. They didn''t understand what was so special about him, but when they noticed that each time a Valkyrie has a sexual encounter with him she suddenly starts acting strange, they realized that the wand between his legs must truly be magical.
"I will definitely get him to do it with me¡" Juni said in a low voice, her fists clutched with determination.
The other two could only nod at her statement.
Chapter 217 More Attention.
?
Nino walked aimlessly for a while, not paying any mind to her surroundings. She had a lot on her mind, but what upied her thoughts was what was happening in the Doctor''s room right now.
It''s quite ironic. Instead of thinking about more important stuff, like the memories from her past life, her identity as Lachesis, or the fact that her sister was trying to kill her, she was feeling jealous over another woman being with him right now.
''... I guess it''s my fault¡''
Maybe if she didn''t leave his side and guarded him properly, she would''ve been the one showering with him right now. Instead her pink haired friend got to have him to herself. She did earn it so it''s only fair, but the Japanese doll couldn''t help being resentful of her friend for stealing the precious time she could''ve spent with him.
"You should pay more attention to me, idiot¡"
"Okay!"
Nino felt her soul leave her body, almost dying for the second time. Her neck almost snapped when she turned around, and when she saw Juni standing behind her, her smile as bright as usual, her face began to heat up with embarrassment.
"W-w-what are you doing?" She asked.
"Eh? Well, I had nothing better to do so¡ I decided to hang out with you, that''s all!"
Juni''s energetic and easygoing nature made her a little difficult to deal with. She was a bit of an airhead, and would rarely sit still. But worst of all, she wasn''t afraid to go for what she wants, feeling no shame when she says what was on her mind.
''I can''t believe she asked him directly¡''
Nino tried imagining herself asking the Doctor to have sex with her, but couldn''t see herself doing it. Even if she were to force herself, she would never be able to be as nonchnt as the tomboy standing in front of her.
''Guess there are perks to being an idiot¡''
"Say, Nino¡" Matching her pace, Juni walked beside the Japanese doll, her fingers interlocked behind her back. "When did you get to do it?"
"Do what?"
"You know, S.E.X. you seem to have gotten close to Doctor in a short time so¡"
Nino sighed then turned to her fellow Valkyrie with half lid eyes.
"It''s just as Venti said, you don''t sound like you understand what you''re talking about."
"Not you too!" Juni sulked a little, her shoulders slumping over. "Why does everyone keep saying this to me?"
"Well, if you haven''t noticed yet, you''re a bit weird. How can you talk about such a topic without getting embarrassed?"
"Well¡" looking up in thought, The tomboy tried to think of the reason. "Ah! Right! The soldiers back at my base!" She said, suddenly recalling something. "They always talked about it openly so I thought it was normal."
Once again Nino found herself in shock at what she heard and almost facepalmed herself.
"Say, you didn''t spend any time with them, right?"
"Hm? Of course not! If anyone found out about me sneaking around I would''ve been in some really big trouble!"
"Good. Make sure you never interact with humans again. Especially the males."
It was only then that Nino understood why Nine had told them that they can only sleep with the Doctor. If the Resistance didn''t have rules that prevented the Valkyries from interacting with the human soldiers, some disgusting bastards might''ve found a way to trick the clueless Valkyries into giving themselves up.
''Hm? Since when did I¡''
Coming to a stop, the Japanese doll stared at her feet in thought.
As far as she was concerned, she was sure that she should be as clueless as her follow Valkyries about such topics. Now, however, she seemed to have a better understanding of the rtionship between men and women, and she had a good grasp on what must be avoided at all costs.
''Is it the knowledge from my time as Lachesis?''
All of a sudden, an iprehensible horror crept up her back. First it was the Giant Ants and now this. The only way to exin it was that her old self was truly seeping into her new one, and that begged the question; what would happen to her current personality? Would she be a different person? Would she still be willing to serve as a Valkyrie once that happens?
ording to Wolf, or Odin as they used to call him, all Valkyries have spent a certain amount of time in Asgard, the virtual reality simtion, to train and learn the skills they needed to operate properly. Their memories of that time were then erased leaving only the skills they learned.
But was that really the truth? If their memories really were erased, wouldn''t that have affected their personalities a little?
"Say, Juni, do you remember the first day you-"
"Ah!" Juni eximed, interrupting her before she could finish the question. She then grabbed her by the shoulder and began shaking her aggressively. "Nino, look! Small humans! It''s my first time seeing one! So cute!!!"
It seems that at some point the two had reached the evacuation site. Humans were gathering around, some moving stuff, others loading the armored trucks. The most eye catching part however was the crowd of small children gathered in one spot. They seemed to be waiting to board a special vehicle of some sort, one that was of a much better quality than the rest of the convoy.
There were a lot of adults as well, and everyone was staring in their direction. As expected, a lot of them seem scared of the two Valkyries, or Angels as they call them. They probably didn''t know that the two had better hearing than the average human which made the whispers loud and clear to them.
''Small humans, huh¡'' Nino thought, ignoring the worried looks of the adults ''I think this is my first time seeing this many¡''
Just then an image began to form in her mind. In it she was wearing a white summer dress, walking beside the doctor who for once wasn''t wearing hisb coat. The two of them smiled at each other then looked down. A little girl was walking between them, holding each of their hands with a beaming smile.
The little girl looked like a miniature version of Nino herself. At first, she didn''t understand what was going on with the strange fantasy, but then her face instantly flushed as she came to the realization.
She was imagining her future family with Sam.
Chapter 218 Higher Being.
?
Seeing the gathered children caused Nino to imagine what her future with the Doctor would be. In it the two of them had a daughter and all of them seemed extremely happy as they spent time together.
For some reason she didn''t understand, that one fantasy caused her to blush. She already knew that her feelings for him were growing quite fast, but now she was imagining them having a child together. The very thought left her with a great deal of happiness and embarrassment at the same time.
"Oh! If it isn''t Ms. Nino!"
An old voice forcefully dragged her back to the real world and her blush disappeared as if her entire body grew cold. When she turned to its source, angry that her daydream was interrupted, she saw old Ra in her wheelchair, being pushed by the same assistant they met before.
"Hello!" Juni greeted cheerfully. She didn''t seem to realize the old woman couldn''t see.
"You have brought a new friend with you." Ra said, turning in Juni''s direction. "I''m Juni! Nice to meet you!"
"I''m Ra. Nice to meet you too."
The tomboy seemed to get a lot more excited. Nino guessed that it was because it was her first time seeing a human this old.
"Did the Doctor send you by any chance?" The old woman asked, directing her head in Nino''s direction once again.
"No." Nino shook her head slowly. "We were just walking around and ended up here."
"Oh, I see¡" Once again the old woman turned her head as if looking somewhere. Nino guessed that she wanted to face the children and it seems the assistant thought so as well since she turned the wheelchair to face the crowd. "The evacuations are going well. At this pace, we will be able to depart at the intended time."
"I see."
"Since you''re here, how about you introduce yourselves?" The old woman asked with a smile. "The children have been asking a lot of questions about you. They''re dying to know more about their heroes."
"Heroes?" Juni repeated, seeming confused. But then her eyes began to sparkle as her smile spread to her eyes. "Nino! She said we are heroes!"
"Calm down." Nino said in a tired voice, closing her eyes as the tomboy shook her again.
Ra let out a shortugh, coughing a few times all the while.
"The soldiers have been talking about your battle against the monster swarm. The children were especially excited to see the recordings."
When they made their way to where they were all were gathered, the children''s eyes seemed to light up with excitement.
"It''s the Angels!" One of the boys said, pointing at the Valkyries. "That one beat the big monster!"
"It''s really her!" Another boy eximed.
"No no no." Juni stepped forward, shaking her index finger and refuting what the first boy said. "We are not ''Angels''" nting her legs firmly into the ground, she raised a fist high above her head, taking a strange pose with a big smile on her face. "WE ARE VALKYRIES!!!"
The children stared at her for a couple of seconds and then the cheering erupted.
"Valkyries are heroes who fight evil!" She went on. "Valkyries are heroes who protect humans!"
"Valkyries are awesome!" One of the children eximed.
"So pretty¡" a little girl said, looking up at Juni with great admiration.
"Say, are you always fighting monsters?" A little boy asked.
"Is it true that you''re from another world?" Another one added.
"Are you an alien?"
The question kepting one after the other. Nino quickly felt overwhelmed, but thankfully Juni seemed to handle everything just fine by herself.
As she took a step back, she noticed a familiar face standing behind the adults. It was Karim, the boy who she spoke to briefly when they first came to the Sanctuary. He was giving her a strange look, his eyes so dark they didn''t seem to reflect light. After a few seconds, he turned away and left. His actions were a bit weird, but it wasn''t anything different from how he was during their previous meeting.
''Could it be¡'' She thought to herself. ''Did he grow a crush on me?''
Obviously, the boy showed no such signs. But she could see that he was around that age so it wouldn''t be strange if his hormones reacted strongly to the beauty of a Valkyrie.
''Sorry, little boy.'' she thought, smiling as the Doctor''s image appeared in her mind ''I prefer taller, much older men.''
"So, how have things been since then?"
Ra''s question dragged Nino out of her thoughts once more. At first she didn''t understand what she was referring to, but after a couple of seconds she got the idea.
"Say, in your previous visions¡" As she was with Sam during all of his meetings with the old woman, Nino got to hear all about her vision. She had a good grasp on everything she saw, and because of that the young Valkyrie began to wonder, "We never fought the Olympians before, did we?"
"... Indeed." Ra replied, her voice bing serious. "Until I met you a few days ago, the battle never came up in my visions." She paused for a while, seeming to consider what she should say next. After gathering her thoughts, she turned in the Japanese doll''s direction and stated in a dry voice. "When I thought about it, I came to the conclusion that my ability doesn''t allow me to see anything directly rted to you. The only reason I found out about the battle was because your Doctor received a report that his ship was destroyed."
Nino was rather calm despite hearing something that should''ve left her unnerved. It was as if she found the whole thing natural.
"Well, you are just a human from a lower realm. It''s normal for you to be incapable of perceiving the Threads of Fate, especially ones that are connected to a higher being."
A moment of silence passed, then she finally realized what came out of her mouth. Nino noticed the assistant giving her a strange look, and the old woman seemed to be in quite the shock as well.
Once again Nino felt the bone piercing horror slowly creep up her back and the urge to flee the scene returned with much more strength. She took a deep breath and forced herself to calm down, then spent a few seconds reorganizing her thoughts.
It was just another instant of her life as Lachesis seeping into the present. Nothing about her has changed, only that she now knows a few things she wouldn''t have learned through normal means.
"Ah, Doctor didn''t tell you, did he?" Nino spoke, trying to hide her nervousness. "Apparently I''m a reincarnation of a goddess of some sort, and one rted to Fate at that. Maybe that''s why you were unable to see me in your visions."
"A goddess?" Ra muttered. "Is that even possible?"
"Who knows? It''s not our first time running into people who use such names to refer to themselves." Nino shrugged, trying to y the whole thing as nothing important. As far as she knew, a lot of Nephilim named themselves after characters from Norse mythology. It wouldn''t have been surprising if it''s the same for the Olympians. "Still, I don''t know what the past me was thinking when she called herself Lachesis."
The Japanese doll let out a sigh, retreating into her own thoughts. From what she learned before they departed on this mission, the entire Greek mythology is supposed to take ce in Europe. But looking at herself, she was clearly from an Asian lineage, something that''s been confirmed by the way her sister looks. That alone was enough for her to believe that the Olympians were just using Greek mythology as a base from which they draw their codenames.
When a few seconds passed without her hearing a reply, Nino nced at the old woman, feeling a sudden chill envelop her body when their eyes met. After using her ability thest time, Ra had lost her sight leaving her unable to open her eyes. However they were now open, staring at the young Valkyrie with pure white pupils, portraying a look of utter shock.
Just as she was about to ask the old woman what was happening, the conversation Juni was having with the children caught their attention. A little girl about four years old approached the Valkyrie, holding a small plushie in her hands.
"Say, you can fly, right?" The little girl innocently asked, her eyes shining with curiosity. "How do you do it?"
"Well, It''s our super power." Juni replied with a smile, forming the runes of her blue halo over her head. "We used to have this rocket thing we had to wear, but now all we have to do is make this and think about flying, then we are up in the sky!"
"Whoa¡" the little girls gapped while staring at the halo. Her eyes then moved back to Juni and she spoke with a voice full of excitement. "I wanna try it too!"
Juni didn''t know how to respond, not wanting to crush the little girl''s expectations. An idea urred to her just then. She was about to suggest carrying the little girl and flying her around, so she turned to the adults to ask for permission, but then a weak glow drew her eyes and the smile she wore fadedpletely.
Small particles flickered into existence, turning into square and rectangr shapes before joining to form a series of strange symbols.
The symbols moved in a circle, their speed too slow to make their shapes indiscernible. Still, the halo seemed to serve its function and the one who created it began gradually floating up. As the little girl slowly rose up from the floor, a halo of golden light casting a weak glow on her dark skin, everyone''s eyes followed her inplete silence.
"... Did I do it?" Opening her eyes and seeing that she was floating in the air, the little girl eximed with extreme joy. "I did it!"
Chapter 219 I Dare You.
?
When he exited his room after his shower with Ichigo, Sam saw Nino teleport at the end of the hallway. Their eyes met for a moment and she teleported again, appearing right by his side and grabbing his arm.
"I think it''s starting." She said. She then teleported him away without borating.
Ichigo who was following right behind him watched the whole thing from start to finish, but when the two of them vanished she was left standing there confused.
In the blink of an eye Sam found himself standing near the evacuation site. All it took was a single nce for him to understand the situation.
The adults were in a panic as a number of children were floating in the air, each of them with a halo over their head. Juni was looking left and right unable to decide what to do. When she saw the Doctor walking over with Nino by his side, relief seemed to wash over her as tears gathered in her eyes.
"Doctor!" She cried. "I didn''t do it! It wasn''t my fault!"
"Calm down." Sam said, patting her on the head. "No one said it was."
He left Nino to handle her fellow Valkyries and turned to the floating children. They seemed to be having a great time, as if gravity had lost its grasp on them, but since they had no experience in controlling the forces that moved their bodies in a three dimensional space they were incapable of going anywhere.
"Interesting¡"
The children all seemed to be under the age of ten, with the youngest among them being barely five. All twenty of them were able to create the most basic halo that granted them levitation, something that shouldn''t have been possible without a Valkyrie heart, or so Sam thought until a few days ago.
The Olympians were capable of using halos, but they were made out of flesh and bone just like a normal human. They were far from that, of course, but that didn''t deter the fact that biological beings could manipte reality without having to undergo aplete makeover.
"What do you think?"
Sam nced beside him and saw the old seer being pushed toward him in her wheelchair.
"To be honest, I didn''t believe it when you first told me." He replied, his eyes turning back to the children.
Since his attention was directed at the ones above, he failed to notice therge crowd on the ground. As it turns out, only a handful of the children gathered there were able to form the halo. The others were still on the ground, some watching with astonishment while others were still trying to copy the ones floating.
"They''re able to create halos, alright." He said. "That means they have force fields of their own, and are now able to manipte reality to some extent."
"And that means¡" The one asking him to borate wasn''t Ra but instead it was her assistant.
"They can use magic now."
Sam went on to exin that he only calls it that because they don''t really understand how it works. He was aware that the runes, when created using the Force Field, can manifest certain effects. How is it possible for something like that to happen? He could only attribute it to the work of the universe.
The assistant gave him a dumbfounded look. Ra on the other hand was looking in the children''s direction, though since her eyes were closed it was doubtful that she could see anything.
"Magic, huh?" She said in a low voice. "So it''s like your girls?"
"Yeah. It seems that one needs to be naturally gifted at it to be able to use it properly." Sam exined his hypothesis. "It took me days to learn how to do this much, and even then I still can''t keep it up without exhausting myself."
Creating and maintaining runes required a lot of concentration and mental power so he was always left exhausted after attempting it a few times, something that should be very difficult now that his entire body is made of nanomachines.
After he had his talk with H, the first Nephilim, he came to understand that he was missing something every being born through Freyja had, something that allowed them to control and shape the force field as easily as breathing.
The children in front of him had gained what he was missing at some point, and this was his chance to learn more about it.
"Elder¡"
As he was observing the children floating above them, a group of adults approached the old woman, their faces portraying distress. They were presumably the parents of the floating children.
"What is happening, Elder?" A woman stepped forward, clearly on the verge of tears. "What''s going on with my baby?"
"Calm down, Lesedi, there is nothing to worry about." Ra replied in a calm voice. "The children are growing up, that''s all."
"How can we calm down!?" One of the men snapped at her, his voice shaking. "Our children¡ they''re¡ they''re¡"
"They''re turning into monsters?" Ra said, her brows drawn together. "I said to calm down. This just shows that we have survived a lot. The kids have learned something that would help them from now on."
Her words seemed to fall on deaf ears as the concerned parents turned their anger to Sam.
"It''s because they came here, isn''t it?" Another man said. "It''s because you brought your Angels here!"
The man got one stop too close to Sam, and as a result, he found the sharp tip of a spear pointing right at his neck.
"Go on." Said Nino in a cold voice, appearing between Sam and the man. "I dare you."
The man was frozen in ce, fearing that his neck would be sliced at the slightest move. Sam ced his hand on Nino''s shoulder and silently asked her to lower her weapon. Of course, she was reluctant to do it, but when she saw him ncing at the floating children she realized what he meant, promptly removing her halo and causing the spear to disappear.
The children were able to use the Levitation Runes after seeing them just once. Showing them more halos wouldn''t do them anything good.
The man she threatened dropped to the floor, cold sweat drenching his forehead. He saw his life shing before his eyes, and because of that he understood that the Japanese doll wouldn''t have hesitated to kill him if he tried anything back there.
Chapter 220 For The Most Part.
?
"Sorry about that." Sam said, offering his hand to the man. "My girls are a little overprotective, you see."
The man stared at him for a couple of seconds, as if in a daze, then clicked his tongue and turned away. Seeing him stand on his own, Sam retracted his hand but kept his fake smile on.
"What''s going on here?" Just then, one of the soldiers came running over. Sam recognized him immediately and shook his head.
"Nothing, Sergeant David. We were just discussing the children and¡ well, I guess they don''t think I''m a trustworthy person."
"Wha- how can this be?" David turned his eyes to the man who tried approaching Sam. "You realize that it is only because of this man that we are alive right now? You saw how the girls he brought with him defeated those monsters, right?"
"Yeah, we also saw them make weapons out of thin air." One of the women said in a hushed voice. "I heard from my husband that they burned half of the forest above¡"
David fell silent. He couldn''t really deny her im as he was among those who took the night shift outside when the battle against the Olympians happened. He witnesses the light beams shooting in every direction and felt the explosions of countless artilleries firing at the same time. In all his years working as a guard for the Sanctuary, nothing could''ve prepared him for the horror of that night, and he wasn''t even anywhere close to the site back then.
"I understand your fears." Sam said, taking a step toward the concerned parents. "But right now, I think we should focus on the children. They''re starting toe down."
Only a few minutes have passed with them in the air but the kids were already looking exhausted. The halos over their heads have stopped moving and some of the runes were flickering out of existence. Thankfully they didn''t disappear all of a sudden leaving the kids to fall from that height and to their deaths.
The parents rushed over to catch their children, relieved that they were going back to normal. Though most of them didn''t hesitate to take the kids into their arms, others were reluctant to get close. The parents of the kids who were incapable of creating halos pulled their children away as if to put some distance between them and the others. Some were even berating their sons and daughters for trying to copy what the others did.
"This¡ is going to be a little difficult¡" Sam whispered.
"My apologies¡" Ra said. "I didn''t wish to force this on you but¡"
"No, no. No need to apologize. I''m sure everyone will understand once I exin everything to them."
Though he said that, Sam didn''t really know how he should go about dealing with the whole topic.
"That bloody thing to the west¡" David said to no one in particr. "I knew something was off ever since it painted the sky red."
"Right¡"
He couldn''tpletely disagree with the soldier now that he had an idea of what the Olympians came to this world for. The children receiving the ability to create runes as a side effect of someone trying to obtain a Key sounded like a usible exnation for their current situation.
''Is it something like a forced evolution?'' he thought to himself. ''Since they''re the few remaining humans on this, they gained the necessary abilities to resist the forces trying to hunt them to extinction?''
He shot the idea down almost immediately. What benefit is there to giving such abilities to children?
Still, that didn''t erase his suspicion of what was happening being the result of whatever the Olympians were doing on the other side of the world. And as if it wasn''t bad enough, the first Fallen has yet to appear.
''This is going to be a very long night¡''
~[]~
The halo wielding children fell into a deep slumber as soon as their parents caught them. They were then taken to the hospital ward where several tests were done on them to ensure that their health hasn''t been impacted.
In a nearby room Sam was sitting at a table with Ra and several representatives of the concerned parents. They were looking for an exnation as to what was happening to their children, and when Sam told them that he wasn''t sure, their hostility seemed to spike quite a bit.
"So basically, I won''t really know anything until I take a look at them myself." He said.
"You don''t know?" Said one of the men? "The Ang- the girls apanying you can do the same things, right? Shouldn''t you already have it all figured out?"
The man''s anger was silenced with a single re from Zero Three who was standing behind the Doctor. When she heard of what happened from Nino, her first reaction was to form her weapon and go teach the ungrateful humans what their ce was. If it wasn''t for Sam''s order to stand down she wouldn''t have hesitated to unleash a massacre.
"Sadly all of them are born with the ability." Sam shook his head at the argument. "The situation ispletely different. This is the first time I''m meeting someone who acquired those abilities when they couldn''t use it before."
Hisst statement wasn''t exactly a lie. The Valkyries always knew how to use their halos, they simply needed a heart that allowed them to manipte the Force Field ording to their will.
"But you do know what those¡ glowy things are, right?" A woman asked.
"Of course. Well, for the most part."
Once again the parents seemed unsatisfied with Sam''s answer. He didn''t know how much he should be revealing to them as the topic of Runes and halos was very sensitive, but after thinking about it for a while he realized there was no need for concern. They were the parents of the children so keeping them uninvolved wasn''t exactly an option, and if they were to cause any trouble for him he could just eliminate them.
The kids might turn out to be a very important military asset in the future. If it was anyone else, they would''ve killed the parents without hesitation just so they could get their hands on them.
Chapter 221 Something Like That.
?
Sam held his hand up and began channeling his focus. Sparks of green light began to appear over his palm, turning into small squares and rectangles before forming a number of strange symbols.
"These are what we call Runes." He said. "I''m still in the process of studying them but¡ you could say they''re something akin to a programingnguage."
"A¡ programingnguage?" One of the men raised an eyebrow. "You mean like in aputer?"
"Something like that. Using these runes one can create several phenomena that technically shouldn''t be possible, like bing weightless and flying around with no kind of special equipment, for example."
Sam released his focus and allowed the Runes to disappear. The parents who were staring at them with great interest snapped back to reality, but they were still at loss for words.
"I have a lot of theories, however a lot of research is needed before I reach a level where I can confidently say I understand thempletely."
"So you n on turning out children intob rats?" Asked another man.
Zero Three sensed the hostility in his voice, but before she could even twitch Sam nced at her from over his shoulder and silently told her to stand down.
"Of course not." Turning back to the parents, Sam spoke with his usual fake smile. "At most I would only perform a few tests to make sure nothing changed about their bodies."
There was no need to tell them that, once they make it back to his world, he would be isting the children to make sure their new powers don''t identally cause another apocalypse. It would only take one of them opening a portal to an energy dimension like that of Balder''s Light to cause a nuclear holocaust, and because of that they needed to be ced under strict supervision and taught when it is eptable to use their halos.
The Valkyries were forced to be loyal to the Resistance from the starts. Even though they''re now free from the mind chackles Odin had ced on them, they still follow the orders of their superiors just because that''s how they have lived their entire lives.
The children on the other hand were going to be a lot more troublesome. Their minds couldn''t be restrained like the Valkyries'', not that he ns on doing so. That makes training them into obeying his authority withoutints his only choice.
The parents might be in the way in that case. Thest thing he wanted was for his teachings and theirs to sh, causing the children to go astray.
''Now I''m thinking that parents are in the way of me grooming kids to follow my orders¡'' Sam took his sses off and messaged the bridge of his nose. ''Where did my life go wrong?''
"Still, I don''t understand why it''s only happening to our kids." A woman said. "What''s so different about them that they have to go through this?"
"As I said, we won''t know until we perform a few more tests and do further investigations."
Unsatisfied with his answers, the parents turned their eyes to the old woman beside him.
"Elder, please tell us!" One of them demanded. "What''s going to happen to our children? Why do they have to go through this?"
A moment of silence passed before the old woman responded, but when she did, she only shook her head slowly.
Of course, she has already seen what was going to happen, and it''s exactly because of that that she couldn''t tell them.
In her previous visions, the children would eventually learn how to summon the halos on their own even without a Valkyrie being there to show them. It was a cause of concern, but not much happened because of it. Well, at least not until the adults started gaining the same abilities as well.
ording to Ra, unlike the children who were able to control their powers with ease, the adults seemed to be struggling with something beforepletely losing their minds. Once that happens they would turn into mindless monsters that would attack anyone in sight.
After disposing of the adults who went berserk the survivors turned their sights to the children. The sanctuary split into two sides from that point onward and things got ugly really quick. One side argued that they should kills the children, fearing that they would lose control as well. They even went as far as to use their mothers ofying with the Angels and giving birth to their children. The other side rejected the idea for obvious reasons.
Things got out of hand when one of the soldiers lost it and killed both his wife and two children. Apparently he had been suspicious of his wife, using her of infidelity. When the rumors about the children being the offspring of Angels began to spread he was the first to believe them and take action, opening the floodgates for the others.
Everything went into chaos from there on. The madness spread and the survivors began killing each other indiscriminately, sparing no one, not even the women and children.
Ra had noted that, when the incident happened during one of the visions he was involved in, Sam had noted that something was effecting the humans, causing them to behave erratically.
Before the Ant army attacked a strange wave spread across the globe. Sam was still in the process of studying it, however it seems the equipment he had on him was insufficient for the job. He had a guess that, whatever was happening, it was caused by that strange wave, which once again pointed at the crimson tower the Olympians created being the prime suspect for everything that''s about to unfold.
"The situation hasn''t changed." Ra said in a firm voice. "All we can do is survive until we make it to the Doctor''s world. Hopefully, things would get better after that."
The parents didn''t seem convinced, and their reluctance to put their fates in the hands of a stranger was clear and understandable. Still, what choice did they have?
Sam and his Valkyries were their only hope at surviving whatever disaster the Olympians were about to bring down on this world. If they were to refuse his help, the only thing that awaited them was madness and death.
Chapter 222 Interview.
?
"A strange dream?" Sam asked.
"Yea." A little boy nodded. "My head started to hurt really bad, and then I heard strange voices, and I saw these reaaaaally strange pictures. But I don''t think it was real. I mean, when I woke up it was all gone."
"Do you remember what was in those pictures?"
"Nope."
Sam turned to the woman sitting beside him.
"You said you found him passed out, right?" Sam asked. "Were there any signs of nosebleeding?"
"Yes." The woman answered, looking a bit distressed. "I was nning to take him for a check up but¡ we were a little busy preparing for the evacuations¡"
"I see¡"
Sam wrote something down on his tablet, his mind in deep thought. After a few seconds the woman asked him a familiar question, one that every mother has asked in thest neen interviews.
"Doctor, is there something wrong with my son?"
"Hm? Of course not." Sam replied, wearing his fake smile to put her heart at ease. "Your boy is perfectly healthy, as the tests have shown. You have nothing to worry about, ma''am."
Her expression seemed to change at that moment, her eyes widening a little before she turned away with a slight blush on her cheeks.
"I-I see. That''s great to hear¡"
"Alright, only one more thing before you''re free to go." Sam turned his sight to the little boy. "Earlier when you were flying up in the air, did it feel like you were getting tired really fast?"
"Yeah! I was having so much fun but then¡ but then I got really sleepy¡"
"I see." Sam said with a nod. "Remember to listen to your mom, And do not use your new superpowers, alright? We don''t want the monsters to find you."
"... Okay¡"
The little boy seemed a bit disappointed as he walked out with his mom. After his meeting with the parents, Sam managed to convince them to allow him to personally do a check up on the children. Of course many of them were against the idea, but when he suggested that the parents can be present they finally agreed to it.
Sam looked at the tablet in his hands where he had written down the data he managed to gather from the interviews. Most of them had simr answers to the questions he asked, which means they all went through the same process before gaining the ability to use halos.
As expected, it all started when the strange wave washed over the world. Though the adults felt only a slight prickly sensation, the twenty children who would go on to manifest halos had apletely different experience. All of them reported hearing strange voices and seeing strange images in their heads. Some of them said that they felt like they understood everything they saw and heard, but at the same time it felt like they didn''t. It was like a strange hallucination that caused them a great deal of pain that eventually led to them passing out.
Twenty children under the age of ten, all of them saw and heard iprehensible things that led to them losing consciousness. It was clear that those hallucinations didn''t juste out of nowhere, and knowing that the strange wave was the cause, Sam could only theorize that it had forcefully uploaded something into the brains of the children.
The process was rather painful and the stress resulted in the children bleeding from various ces such as the nose, the ears or even the eyes.
Another strange pattern was that only the children who were left on their own were effected. Those who were around adults only experienced the strange sensation on their skin.
''Do the adults work as some kind of deterrent?'' Sam thought. ''This doesn''t make any sense¡''
Then again, when did anything ever make sense?
Logic has been flipped over its head ever since they arrived in this world. No, he was sure it began long before that. Sam had long since lost track of the absurdities he had to deal with, but if he had to decide on a point where it all started, it would be when he agreed to move to the forty sixth base at Alice''s request.
''Alice¡'' remembering his white haired childhood friend, a strong sense of loneliness filled Sam''s chest.
He wondered what she was doing at the moment, if she was safe, and if she was still angry about everything. Learning that she wasn''t who she thought she was must''ve left her with a much deeper scar than anything Sam could imagine, and because of that she decided to leave with Shizuru, the one other person who was in a simr situation to hers.
With everything that''s happening to Nino Sam realized that Alice''s situation might be even worse. Unlike most Valkyries she had lived her life as Alice for more than twenty years. If she were to regain the memories of her past life a sh of identities would be unavoidable.
In the end Sam never had that one conversation with Wolf. They tried talking about it many times, but in the end neither of them could bring themselves to think about it.
Whatever the old man''s reason was, Sam didn''t care about it. The only Alice he knew was the Alice that has always been by his side since they were little. Though her memories before then were just a copy of the original Alice, the ones they shared were real and nothing would change that.
Sam wished he had the chance to tell her that''s how he felt, maybe then she would''ve stayed with him.
"Doctor?"
His thoughts were cut when the door opened and Zero Three walked in. To ensure that the parents had nothing toin about, Sam had asked the Valkyries to wait outside until he was done with the interviews. Now that thest one has ended she was eager to return to her position as his guard, however when she came in she noticed he had a sad look on his face.
"Ah, Three." Sam quickly wiped whatever expression he was wearing and reced it with his usual smile. "Did something happen outside?"
"Nothing, really." Zero Three answered, staring at him for a couple of seconds.
She turned to the door and nced outside. After a while she came in and locked it behind her before turning to face Sam once more, a hint of red on her cheeks.
"Say, I know we don''t have the time but¡ it''s been a while since west got to cuddle..." She spoke with a smile, looking at him with upturned eyes as she fidgeted in her ce. "I mean, it''s okay if you don''t want to, but¡"
Now that she has mentioned it, he never had the chance to spend some time with the young Valkyrie on her own ever since he woke up after the battle against Shizuru.
Right now they were in the middle of preparing for their next confrontation with the Olympians so it was unlikely that they would have another chance until everything has ended.
After thinking about it for a couple of seconds, Sam let out a sigh and motioned for her toe over.
Three''s eyes lit up and she quickly walked over, climbed on hisp and wrapped her arms around him, burying her head into his chest with a satisfied smile on her face.
Sam returned the hug and gently patted her chestnut colored hair. As her warmth slowly spread to him, the loneliness he felt began to fade away.
Chapter 223 Whispers Of Madness. Part 01.
?
Due to the incident with the children, the trip to the airport was dyed a few hours. The schedule became much tighter and Sam had to find ways to save time, especially after he enjoyed cuddling with Zero Three a little too much.
The second wave of monsters attacked right before they departed. This time, the Valkyries were able to deal with the swarm on their own. Following his example, they learned the Runes the Soldier Ants used to break barriers. With their weapons coated in the white glow, they managed to dispose of the queens much faster than before.
Though he was a bit disappointed that he didn''t get to do anything this time, the time they saved was more than wee.
The repairs team that was sent ahead was attacked as well, but Five and the others were able to handle the situation on their own.
By the time the convoy departed, only two days were left until the deadline Ra had given them, not enough to make the trip on the ground. Because of that, some rather drastic measures had to be taken.
Sam wished he had learned the Runes Shizuru had used to open portals in the obsidian pce, back when she brought the container housing the original Alice from the forty sixth base all the way to North America. That would''ve made things a lot easier.
The only way to make the trip as short as possible was to travel the entire distance in a single, straight line. Normally something like that would''ve been impossible, however thanks to the Valkyries they were able to do it somehow.
With her control over the Nameless Element being the best, B3 would''ve been able to create something that could carry the survivors all the way without an issue. Sadly with her being out of it they had toe up with an alternative, and that''s where Sittaes in.
With her mastery over barriers she was able to create a tunnel over the forests and mountains, allowing the convoy to travel the entire distance as nned. The only problem was that she had to create multiple barriers in quick session to achieve this effect, since barriers couldn''t be moved from the spot they first appear in.
The orange haired Valkyrieined several times, but in the end she still managed to do it and the convoy arrived at the destination in just four hours.
The airport Sam found seemed to have been abandoned long before the Nephilim went berserk. That''s probably why it was still rtively intact, unlike the nearby city which was ttened to the ground.
About tenmercial airnes were stored in the hangers, eight of which were in perfect condition. Sadly that much alone wouldn''t be able to carry the two hundred thousand survivors so a lot of modifications had to be done. All seats were removed in order to fit more people in, and the cargo hold was also put to use. The survivors where instructed to only bring things that they can carry by hand to minimize the extra weight.
Sam was already expecting it, but as the time approached he began to feel more and more stressed about leaving so many people squeezed in a small space. If a Fallen ¡ªwhat he chose to call the people who lost control in Ra''s visions¡ª were to appear during the flight, the entire ne and its passengers would be in grave danger.
An announcement was made and the survivors were asked to take caution of a few things. First, everyone was instructed to report if any of them heard strange voices or had strange, iprehensible thoughts. Secondly, and this should go without saying, if they notice anyone bleeding from their nose, ears or eyes, they must inform the ones in charge and iste them immediately.
Each of the nes would have a Valkyrie on board. Their job would be to enhance them using their Force Fields, which was going to be a difficult task since they had no experience covering something sorge. The other reason was so they could handle any Fallen if they were to appear. Sam instructed them to iste the individuals behind a barrier until they have the time to figure out if it was possible to help them. Alternatively, if it looked like they were going to be a danger to the ne and the other survivors, the Valkyries were instructed to dispose of them immediately.
~[]~
The next twenty hours were going to be the most stressful in their life, and that''s only the time it would take to reach their destination on the other side of the world.
Back in the Sanctuary, Sam had asked Ra to talk to her people and exin to them the situation. They were heading to what could be considered a warzone so they needed to steel their resolve and prepare themselves for the worst.
Sam had to make his preparations as well. Just like back when he went to face H, the Nephilim queen, he would be putting his life on the line. His personal Valkyries were there to protect him, but knowing how chaotic things could get, he needed to ensure he wouldn''t be a burden.
"Whoa¡"
With his concentration breaking, Sam opened his eyes to see David looking at him with an astonished expression.
"Doctor, was I seeing things or were you glowing just now?" The dark skinned soldier said.
"Did you need something, Sergeant David?" Sam asked, getting down from the box he was sitting on.
"Ah, well, not really. I was just thinking we could chat before the takeoff."
Though he wanted to use the time to practice a little more, Sam decided to take the soldier on his offer and walked out of the warehouse.
"How''s everyone?" Sam asked. "Anything out of the ordinary?"
"Well, except for this whole situation," David walked beside Sam as he answered. "Nothing strange happened so far. The tension is a bit high, but I guess that''s to be expected."
The soldier went on to say that none of the adults had reported any signs of the strange wave affecting them. Of course, there was no way to tell if they were all speaking the truth or not, but the time constraints made it so that they couldn''t confirm things.
"Say, Doctor. Is there really no other way to go about this?"
The question came up many times before, but the answer was always the same. Sam couldn''t just leave the survivors while he and his Valkyries fought the Olympians, unless he wants the monsters to get them, not to mention the prophecized madness. He couldn''t spare any of the Valkyries so the only way to protect everyone is to keep them within reach, even if that doesn''t seem to decrease the danger they were in.
"I''m afraid our enemies this time are nning something far more sinister than I had expected." Sam said. "If I had known we would be facing such a decisive battle right from the start, I would''ve made sure to bring more support."
It''s hard to believe that only a little over three days have passed since they arrived in the Nephilim world. A lot of things happened back to back and sometimes Sam finds himself forgetting the main objective behind the trip.
One thing for sure, twelve Valkyries weren''t nearly enough to handle everything they were going through. Losing B3 had dealt a huge blow to their forces, and the same went for JX9. Though he trusted the abilities of the others, Sam was afraid that they won''t be able to handle the uing battle, and that made him miss his other personal Valkyries all the more.
''Nine would''ve been a great help right now¡'' he thought. ''Maybe I went too far with their punishment. Miku wasn''t really in the wrong as well¡''
Chapter 224 Whispers Of Madness. Part 02.
?
While thinking about his blond Valkyries they passed by some of the survivors having thest meal they''ll be able to eat in peace. As expected, his presence drew quite a bit of attention, but thankfully the looks he was getting seemed to have much less hostility in them. Well, for the most part, at least.
"Hey, is it just me or are some of the men¡"
When he looked more closely, Sam noticed that most of the not so friendly looks came from the men. While there were some women who shared their emotions, a lot of them seemed neutral or even happy to see him around.
"Ah, well, I guess you could say it''s jealousy." David said, scratching his left cheek with a smile. "Apparently your poprity has increased quite a bit among the women, and the men aren''t really happy about it."
"I¡ see¡"
Apparently, during the interviews he had with the awakened children and their parents, Sam somehow managed to charm many of the women he spoke to. The rumors spread from there and now he was the main conversation topic among the female survivors.
The men Don''t seem to like the fact that an outsider, and a white one at that, was receiving so much attention from their women. Not only that but they were jealous of him having a harem of the most beautiful creatures in the world all to himself.
"Actually, I''m a little angry too." David said with a wry smile. "My wife seems to be captivated by you as well. I trust her enough that I know she wouldn''t betray me, but I don''t know about the other women. Please don''t take this the wrong way, but I hope that you would keep your distance from our women. Not that we could do anything about it if you decide to."
Sam was a bit bbergasted, not having expected things to turn out this way. He did predict that the men would be jealous of him having all of the Valkyries for himself, but he never even considered that the women might find him attractive.
Sam remembered something Ra had told him and his uneasiness increased from there. After a moment of thought he came up with a n that would hopefully put out some of the mes that were starting to burn.
"Sergeant David, did you know that the Nephilim, or the Angels as you call them, are all females?"
"... What!? Seriously?" The soldier looked quite surprised by the revtion. The survivors had lived in the Sanctuary long before H and her Nephilim went on their crusade. It wasn''t strange for the soldier to not know anything about them.
"Indeed. They''re a race made entirely of females, and they can''t reproduce. They can''t have children."
"I¡ I never even considered something like that¡" The Sergeant said. "Well, I guess that''s to be expected. I mean, they''re something like gods¡" Pausing for a moment, he turned his eyes to Sam, his curiosity peaking. "What about you, Doctor? Well, I hope it''s not rude to ask but¡ what are you, exactly? You said the Angels are all females so¡"
"Me? I''m a human." Sam answered curtly.
"Huh? But you¡."
"Ah. You know how I said we had a war on my world as well?"
"Um, yes¡"
"Well, a couple of months ago I received a rather severe injury that almost took my life. I had to rece most of my body with machines and¡ well, this is the result."
"I¡ I see¡" David''s astonishment only increased after hearing Sam''s story. He was about to ask another question, but then a voice came from behind startling him quite a bit.
"So you''re a cyborg?"
Turning around, Sam saw Karim standing behind them. The fact that he never noticed when he got there sent Sam on high alert. Three and Nino were following them from a short distance away and they didn''t seem all that worried.
The boy was David''s son so maybe the two didn''t consider him a threat, but still, Sam couldn''t help but get a sense of uneasiness from his dark eyes.
"A cyborg? You could say that." Sam answered, carefully observing the boy.
"Did your life change from before?" He asked. "You look like a normal human, and most wouldn''t notice if you don''t tell them. I can see you blending in society just fine."
"You have a point." Sam nodded. "I might''ve said that I reced most of my body with machines, but the truth is I used nanotechnology to do it. You can imagine how it works, right?"
"What about your brain?"
Once again the sense of unease he got from the boy returned.
Thest question was like a gun pointed directly at Sam''s head. The philosophical concept behind it was something he was trying to avoid ever since he awakened in his new body. There were many ways to look at his situation, and not everyone would have the same interpretation, which would impact the way they perceived him.
Sam felt extremely ufortable about the question, and something told him that lying wouldn''t work. The boy continued to stare at him, and Sam refused to look away.
After a while, something clicked in Sam''s head. The boy''s strange behavior, though his father did say it wasn''t anything unusual, the eeriness it birthed was something that couldn''t be considered normal. He was way too calm for a child his age, and the way he spoke showed that he perceived things not even the adults could notice.
After the incident with the children and the subsequent interviews, Sam learned that something was affecting the minds of the children. With that realization, he killed all of his emotions, forcing himself to think purely on logic, making a guess based on everything he has learned so far
"Hey kid¡" Sam narrowed his eyes. "Since when were you able to use the Runes?"
David''s eyes turned into saucers and he began looking between Sam and his son. The other two ignored his presence, continuing to stare at each other until the boy decided to give an answer.
"Probably right before you arrived. Though I can''t say for sure. I have yet to give it a try."
"Then how do you-"
"The whispers." Karim interrupted. "They have been around for far longer than you think, but recently they have been getting stronger, and much clearer as well."
"Karim¡" David dropped down to one knee and ced his hands on the boy''s shoulder. "... Why¡ why didn''t you tell me?"
"Tell you what? That I''m hearing strange voices in my head? Wouldn''t you think I''m crazy?"
"No! I-"
The boy ignored his father and returned his gaze to Sam.
"Something ising." He said. "It has been on its way for years now, even before I was born, but ever since that red tower appeared, it''s been getting faster and faster." Pausing for a moment, he closed his eyes and heaved a sigh. His eyes then wandered to the other survivors, and for a while he remained silent. When he opened his mouth again, what he said was supposed to be something obvious. Even so, hearing it from the boy made it much more foreboding, his voice having conveyed the inevitability of the end gradually approaching them.
"Once it arrives, everyone will die." Karim said. "You can''t do anything about it. It''s toote."
Chapter 225 Whispers of Madness. Part 03.
Chapter 225 Whispers of Madness. Part 03.
"Toote, you say¡"
"Your brain is no longer biological." The boy spoke, confident in his statement. "You also have that Force Field. You and your Valkyries will not be affected by its presence. Everyone else¡ they won''t be able to handle it. Their minds aren''t protected, and unlike the children, they had long since lost their innocence. Their darkest thoughts will be amplified. It''s going to be ugly."
Though he couldn''t believe what he heard, for some reason Sam was sure that the boy was telling the truth. The Olympians were ok the process of performing a ritual, one that''s necessary to obtain the Key Zeus desires. But how would they obtain this Key? Were they creating it in that giant tower of theirs? Or did it serve another function?
''A beacon¡'' Sam suddenly came to the realization. ''They aren''t creating the Key. They''re summoning it¡''
"Ah, I''m sorry, Doctor." David spoke, smiling wryly. "It seems my son isn''t doing well. Maybe you should go rest, Karim. I doubt you''ll be able to sleep once the nes take off."
"Kid¡" ignoring the concerned father, Sam addressed his son directly. "You said something ising¡" Pausing for a moment, he took a deep breath before gazing into the darkness in his eyes once more. "What is it¡ what ising?"
The boy gazed back at Sam, and so did the darkness he held. After a long moment of silence, one that seemed tost for an eternity, he finally opened his mouth to speak-
"GYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!"
¡ª A blood curdling scream startled Sam, drowning everyone''s attention to the crowd of survivors. A woman was on the ground, her face twisted with horror as she crawled backward, holding her right shoulder from which a limp, crushed arm extended. She was looking up at a man, two meters tall, wearing a camouge uniform. He was a soldier, but that didn''t matter much. What halted Sam''s thoughts were the runes that appeared above his head. They were of a dark red color, jagged with uneven shapes, unlike anything he had seen before. They were unstable, that much he could tell, and looking at the man''s face, it was clear he wasn''t doing well.
"S-stop! What are you doing Ma-"
The woman''s words were cut short as her head was stumped to the ground, crushed under the sole of the man''s boot. Blood spattered, creating a dreadful circle around his foot. Everything was silent for some time, but then one of the soldiers took out his gun and pointed it at the man, prompting the others to do the same.
"WHAT ATE YOU DOING, MADUAKU!!?"
Though he was just done murdering someone, the soldier, named Maduaku, was strangely calm as he looked down at the scene he had caused. He turned around, looking at the guns pointed at him one after the other, then a sinister grin smeared his face, revealing crushed teeth as blood trickled out of the corners of his mouth.
"The¡ bitch¡" the man spoke, his voice tinged with anger, but a sense of calm apanied it. "She¡ she was looking at him¡ the man in white¡" his head turned in Sam''s direction, his expression slowly crumbling into the very picture of rage, hatred and disdain.
It was the Fallen Ra had warned him about. An adult who had awakened Runes, but was unable to control them and had lost his mind, sumbing to the madness that would eventually lead to the survivors'' demise.
Staggering once, he faced the Doctor, his shoulders rising and falling with eachbored breath. The halo over his head moved and he seemed about to charge. Three moved, teleporting in front of Sam with her triangr shield held up. Nino did the same, holding her spear and readying herself.
"The¡ bitch¡ She¡ She¡"
Time seemed to stretch once more. Sam was trying to decide how he should handle the situation. The soldiers had their fingers on the trigger. The other Valkyries noticed themotion and were about to draw their weapons.
Everyone had their attention on the man, and when his bloody halo began to spin, they all prepared for a battle.
No one noticed the single boy raising his hand, pointing his palm at the mad Fallen. A single dot appeared on his chest, instantly expanding to form a hole filled with primordial darkness. The world began to swirl around it, forming a vertical whirlpool and changed, forming a new halo. When his eyes opened, the first ones to meet them that seemed to swallow everything.
In an instant, the Fallen man''s body twisted, its shape following the swirls as it flowed into the ck hole, disappearing behind a wall of absolute darkness.
The hole in reality disappeared the next second, leaving behind an eerie silence as everyone stared at where the soldier was once standing.
Sam turned to look behind him and saw Karim slowly lowering his hand. He looked at his palm once, then let it fall to his side. As a long sigh escaped him, the crimson halo over his head came to a stop, but it didn''t disappear. The runes making it switched and changed, forming a new halo. When his eyes opened, the first ones to meet them were Nino''s. He spared her only a nce before turning his gaze to the man in the whiteb coat.
"Thanks to your Valkyries, I was finally able to learn the teleportation runes." He said, his body slowly floating up. "I already had it in my head, of course, but it would''ve taken years to understand it on my own."
"Karim¡" David said, watching in horror as his son slowly rose to the sky. "Where are you going, Karim!"
A short distance away, one of the women stood up, walking in unsteady steps while looking up at the sky. Karim nced at her for a moment, but only a moment. His sight then turned to the old woman sitting in a wheelchair before returning to his father, a hint of sorrow making it to his stone cold face.
"Sorry, Father. There is nothing I can do to save you and Mother" He said, closing his eyes. "I''m going to the other side. If I manage to convince them to recruit me, I will probably be sent to their world. That way I will at least guarantee my own survival."
"Karim!" The woman suddenly shouted, but her voice was ignored.
The halo over the boy''s head began to spin, the Runes making it turn to a blur as they formed aplex pattern. When he opened his eyes, his gaze fell on Sam, the darkness that was there before having already disappeared.
"Doctor, instead of trying to y the hero over here, you should hurry up and go back to your world." He said. "You have nothing to gain by staying here, and these people will die anyway. If you want to save someone, you should start with your own people. Once that thing arrives here, your world will be its next destination."
Sam was speechless, the boy''s words having had a much deeper impact than he liked to admit. The ritual carried out by the Olympians is intended to summon something, something that would bring chaos to this world. The boy med the madness on its whispers, he believed that nothing could escape its presence, and so he gave up on everyone, even his parents, and was about to desert to the enemy''s side in order to save his own life.
Sam had to admit that, in a sense, Karim was the more logical one between them. He was willing to abandon everything to secure his survival while Sam wasn''t even focusing on his main objective, opting to try and save the lives of those few humans instead of looking for the Nephilim.
His chances of sess decreased with each passing second and as amander he had to make a decision.
Should he continue trying to save the humans? Or should he leave them there to die?
He looked at his Valkyries one by one, then at the old seer watching from a distance. He found himself unable to choose, but at that moment, another scream resounded through the abandoned airport, the horror it portrayed announcing that his time had run out.
Chapter 226 Whispers of Madness. Part 04.
Chapter 226 Whispers of Madness. Part 04.
The screams came and never stopped. Some conveyed horror, others conveyed wrath. Several halos shone with the dark crimson color of the Fallen, appearing among the crowds one after the other.
A woman lifted her hand, her nails jutting out likerge ck scythes, and brought it down on the soldier beside her, cleaving his body in half with a single strike.
A short distance away the survivors moved back from a man who had just pushed a woman to the ground and began ripping her clothes. Two men tried to pull him away from her only for their arms to catch on fire moments after they touched him.
Two men began punching each other without a warning, their faces twisted with gleeful grins. Four women surrounded a young girl, pulling on her hair and wing at her skin.
The same scene repeated all over the abandoned airport. At first their movements seemed thoughtless and random, but after a while it became apparent that there was intent behind them.
The Fallen didn''t attack the person immediately next to them. They looked around and wandered until they found a target. From there they would proceed to follow the darkest desire sealed in the depths of their hearts.
Murder, assault, r.ape. The Fallen brought out the worst of humanity in a matter of seconds. Bullets were fired in an attempt to stop the horrible acts. Some found their target, shattering the cursed runes by blowing the brains of their owners. Others were much less lethal, only serving to cause more anger and thus even more chaos.
The scene depicted a horror one wouldn''t see in the worst of their nightmare. As he watched everything unfold, Sam remained calm and unperturbed, his emotions sealed away to save his mind from the impact. Holding a hand to his ear, he gave an order to all of his Valkyries.
[Kill anyone with the Fallen halo.]
He was naive. He underestimated the true insanity of the situation. Even though he had known everything that would happen, he still believed he could stop the madness.
With their weapons already in hand, seven Valkyries swept down at the crowd, putting an end to the mad survivors one after the other. Most went down with a single strike, but as the others took notice, they stopped whatever they were doing and moved their sight to the beautiful girls d in tightbat suits.
The dark red halos flickered and changed. One of the Fallen, a middle aged man, suddenly grew a pair of bat like wings made from a strange gooey material. The wings struggled to keep their shape, but even though they were full of holes the mad man into a barrier she had erected upon noticing him.
Firing a few arrows, the ponytailed Valkyrie tossed her bow aside and summoned her was still able to take off into the sky charging directly at Zero Five only to smash right into a barrier she had erected upon noticing him.
Firing a few arrows, the ponytailed Valkyrie tossed her bow aside and summoned her katana, cing a hand on her face and covering it in her oni mask. Staring at the Fallen as he banged on the invisible wall, she prepared to strike then removed it. With a loud hiss the mad man continued his charge but before he knew it his head was sent flying.
CS weaved her way through the crowd ripping the targets with her ws. Usually she would have a thrilled grin as she indulged in the pleasure of fighting, but now she couldn''t even bring herself to smile.
The blood sttering all over her body caused her a great deal of difort. It wasn''t that she couldn''t handle the crimson substance, after all she had no problem when fighting the Olympians, however with her opponents having been civilians until a couple of minutes ago it simply didn''t feel right to y them.
The other Valkyries were the same. None of them seemed pleased by what they were doing, but they had their orders and nothing woulde in the way of fulfilling them.
"I really didn''t want to see this¡" Karim said with a sigh. "Well then, I will b-"
His words were cut short when a red spear collided with an invisible wall in front of him. Looking down, he saw Nino had flung one of her weapons at him and was in the process of creating a new one, three others were floating around her.
"Nino, what are you doing?" Sam asked, his voice eerily calm.
"He''s going to side with the enemies." Nino replied. "We should eliminate him while we can."
Her logic was sound, but it still didn''t feel right. As she grabbed another spear and prepared tounch it, David suddenly got up and charged at her.
"S-stop!" He yelled. "That''s my son!"
Though he was inside the barrier Zero Three had set, the soldier found himself mming into a second invisible wall stopping him before he could reach the Japanese doll.
Nino only spared him a single, cold and indifferent nce. She then took her spear, coated it in the white glow then flung it at the boy.
Realizing that his barrier wouldn''t be able be able to stop the spear, Karim teleported, appearing a short distance away.
"Whoa¡" he gasped. "That felt weird¡"
He didn''t get to think much before more spears came flying at him. The boy had no reason to remain there so he prepared to disappear, leaving the survivors to their fate as he looked for a way to save himself. He spared his mother one more nce, then he turned to his father. His thoughts halted at that moment.
"Stop! Don''t... Attack¡ My¡ SON!!!"
David kept mming his fist against Three''s barrier, the skin on his knuckles peeling off leaving bloody marks in the air. The whispers amplified all feelings and desires. Whether it''s a man''s lust for a woman, a young girl''s hatred for her abuser, the jealousy harbored by some toward another.
A father''s determination to protect his child.
All of it swelled and grew under the whispers'' influence, eventually corrupting the mind and birthing the iprehensible thoughts known as madness.
As he raised his fist once more, particles of white flickered into existence coating it in their glow. Blood trickled down David''s cheeks following the trail left by his tears. His fear transformed into anger, his eyes filling up with hatred. As he red at the monster d in the form of a young girl, he struck at the invisible wall, shattering it to pieces. He reached for the ck hair with one hand and the red eyes with another. His desire to rip the girl apart manifested in sharp ws, cutting what was left of the distance between them in as instant.
Only a single centimeter separated him from the cold, blood colored irises, however the ws went still.
Silence seemed to take over the abandoned airport, the chaotic battle against the mad Fallen became muted, a monochrome filter appearing to cover everything that wasn''t colored in red. The crooked runes, the bloody tears, and half a dozen spears. As a gust of wind yed with her long raven hair, Nino''s crimson eyes stared emotionlessly at the man who had attempted to charge at her. With a cough, his life essence began spilling out, first from his mouth, then from the holes all across his body.
Even with the madness filling him with strength, David could do nothing as six red spears impaled his body, holding him in ce like a frozen statue.
"Ka¡rim¡" as the broken runes began to flicker out of existence, the man used every bit of strength he had left to force a single word out. "Run¡"
Chapter 227 Whispers Of Madness. Part 05.
?
The white ws peeled off, turning into small particles before disappearing into the air. David''s hand fell to his side. Life left his body and the light in his eyes went out.
Nino remained motionless for a moment before returning her sight to the boy above in the sky. Meeting her gaze, the darkness returned to Karim''s eyes, but his expression remained unchanged.
As the Japanese doll grabbed another spear, the boy turned away from her. A momentter he was gone.
"Should I follow him?" She asked.
"No." Sam replied. "We don''t have the leeway¡"
"Tche¡"
Nino seemed rather irritated. She had expected the boy to lose control after seeing his father get murdered, however he was able to control his emotions and escape.
Sam stared at David''s corpse for a few seconds then turned his gaze to Nino. She understood what he wanted her to do without him having to say it.
The red spears disintegrated setting the man free. Sam caught him before he fell and slowly lowered his body to the ground,ying him on his back and staring at him once more.
With his emotions suppressed, Sam felt nothing. He felt no remorse, no sadness, no anger. He understood that it was wrong, but he had no choice but to keep everything locked until the situation was under control.
He ced his hand on the man''s eyes and closed his eyelids. After a moment of silence he stood up and faced the mayhem rocking the abandoned airport.
The Fallen had turned their sights to the Valkyries allowing the remaining survivors to escape. Sadly their safety didn''tst as more and more crooked halos appeared, feeding the madness by spreading even more negative emotions.
Sam''s n of isting the mad ones seemed to be pointless, the reason being that most of them were now using the barrier breaking ruins, coating their nails, arms and legs in the white glow as they charged at the Valkyries.
Though their attacks were reckless and clumsy, some of them proved that they had the ability to dodge and parry attacks, giving the Valkyries a much harder time simply by not dying from the first strike.
''They''re learning¡'' Sam thought at first, but then he remembered what Karim had said.
The Runes were already in his head, all he needed was for someone to help him understand them.
The strange wave forcefully uploads something into people''s brains. The children said it was iprehensible gibberish, but apparently it contained the secret to using Runes and halos.
The adults were corrupted by the wave, by the whispers. Even though they lost their minds because of it, they also received the knowledge and the ability to use halos. It was difficult to believe that they were able to copy the Runes and create them while in this state, but that''s exactly what was happening right now.
It seemed like the madness didn''t mean theplete loss of all thoughts.
''Damn it¡''
Sam could only grimace at his situation. It was here, right in front of him. If he still had his human body he would''ve been able to obtain the secret, but that was impossible.
ording to the boy, His new brain, made entirely of nanomachines, was protected against outside influence. The whispers can''t reach it simply because it was no longer flesh and blood, even though the ASC were supposed to mimic the functions of his cells perfectly.
For a moment he was tempted to turn his Force Fieldpletely off just to see if he would be influenced as well, but then he gave up on the idea, not wanting to end up like a mindless monster.
"Everyone¡" Sam held a hand to hismunicator and sent newmands to all of the Valkyries. "Use only physical weapons. Avoid anything energy based."
The number of Fallen didn''t seem to end. The extreme horror of the massacre led to the other survivors transforming one by one, and each time they seemed more powerful than thest. Some of them even began summoning weapons of their own. They were crude spears and machetes, but the shape didn''t matter. It showed that they were now able to summon the Nameless Element, which meant it was only a matter of time before¡ª
BOOM!
Sam''s fears came to life faster than expected. One of the mad men, dressed in a torn up soldier''s uniform, was able to create a rocketuncher. As the smoke from the explosion dissipated Triska''s figure came to sight. She was perfectly fine, but her wide eyes told that she didn''t expect thatst attack.
As if triggered by one of them managing to create a familiar weapon, the other Fallen soldiers tossed their crooked creations and began summoning new ones. Unlike their first attempt, the new creations seemed to have a more stable form, taking on the shape of handguns, rifles and rocketunchers.
The battle became more violent from there on. Explosions shook the airport, and a number of nes were damaged. Juni positioned herself in front of one and used her bat to deflect anything that came in its direction. Sitta and Trenta joined her the next second.
Unlike the other nes, the one they shielded was special. It contained the equipment from their ship, not to mention B3 and JX9''s unconscious bodies.
Sam watched as his n caught on fire, but his face remained expressionless.
How to get out of this situation? He didn''t know. The situation was too chaotic for him toe up with anything, and the only solution left was to just kill everyone, whether they subed to the madness or not.
There was nothing he could do. The survivors were done for. This was the end of the road for them. In his opinion, it was already amazing that they managed to make it this far. They were normal humans, and though they had someone who could see the future, the fact that they avoided several extinction level events showed their resilience.
Unfortunately, this is the end of the road for them. Sam closed his eyes, and with his suppressed emotions threatening to break out, he prepared to make a difficult choice.
Suddenly, the whole airport was enveloped in a pink wave of light. Sam looked up, his eyes shot open as he realized what was happening. But that wasn''t what caught his attention.
The Fallen seemed to freeze, their halos flickering in and out of existence. Their mad screams filled the sky as they dropped their weapons and held their heads, clearly going through some unbearable pain.
Sam turned in Ichigo''s direction and saw that she had her halo out, her hand tightly sped in front of her chest as if in prayer. Her brows were tightly drawn together, showing that she was struggling to maintain her power over such arge area.
"... We need her equipment¡" he said. The next second he turned around and began running toward one of the ne Juni and the others were protecting.
ncing around he quickly located what he came for; arge container about two and a half meters tall covered in a bright pink paint.
Zero Three and Nino arrived a momentter wondering what he was looking for. cing his hand on the panel located at the center of the box, Sam turned to the two girls and spoke in a determined tone.
"We need to get these out."
Chapter 228 Whispers Of Madness. Part 06.
?
Though she tried her best, Ichigo was unable to keep her cleansing ability up for long. Expanding her Force Field took too much concentration and mental power, and since all she had to before was to release a single pulse, keeping the pink dome up was quickly taking a toll on her.
In less than thirty seconds, she copsed to the ground, panting as if she was about to suffocate.
With the cleansing field gone the Fallen seemed to recover gradually, but instead of attacking the Valkyries they were already targeting their eyes turned around to the pink haired one.
Screams full of rage and hatred shook the sky for a very long moment. Feeling her stomach drop, Ichigo looked up to see more than a hundred Fallen diving down at her, their bloodied faces depicting every negative emotion one could feel toward a living being.
New weapons formed in their hands. The mad soldiers pointed their rifles at her and rained bullets without a pause. The pink haired Valkyrie tried to gather her strength and create a barrier to protect herself. It was then that she realized that her halo was refusing to form.
As her eyes widened in surprise, Ichigo immediately understood what was happening to her. She had never expanded her Force Field as far as she did this one time. Usually she would use her special equipment forrge scale cleansing, but since she tried to put all of the burden on her own heart and mind, she exhausted herself in a single attempt leaving her unable to summon her Force Field, and by extension, incapable of creating Runes.
Defenseless as she was, Ichigo squeezed her eyes shut and prepared for pain to reach her body. A momentter she heard the sound of thousands of hammers striking an anvil and she opened her eyes to see a familiar back facing her.
"Not this time¡" Sitta said, her hands held up as if to block the rain of fire.
Several explosions detonated on the other side of the invisible wall as the Fallenunched rockets and threw grenades and explosives causing constant shes that blinded the orange haired Valkyrie.
"This is getting annoying¡" Sitta gritted her teeth, turning away from the source of light and shielding her eyes with one arm. Of course, the light from such weak explosions couldn''t possibly harm the eyes of a Valkyrie, however that didn''t stop it stop it from being annoying so she reflexively tried to protect herself.
At that moment the Fallen who had created crude short range weapons reached the barrier, mming right into it while ignoring the scorching heat from all of the explosions. Their weapons were coated in the white glow of the barrier breaking Runes and with a single strike they all pierced a hole in the invisible wall and wed their way inside.
Without flinching Sitta slowly breathed in and created another barrier, one that surrounded the hundred or so Fallen all at once.
The mad survivors immediately struck at the box shattering its walls with ease, but new ones formed almost instantly pushing them back toward the center. Sitta kept at it, creating a new box each time smaller than the previous one. Before long the box was so small that it left the Fallen no space to move their limbs. Without enough impact force the white glow wouldn''t be able to break the barrier.
With their movements restrained the mad survivors couldn''t do a thing besides screech and scream. Their crooked halos moved in one direction then the other, the Runes making them constantly changing shape. Some seemed to incorporate teleportation Runes as they attempted to flee their prison only to fall silent when it didn''t work.
Having used teleportation to ensure that she could reach Ichigo in time, Sitta considered the possibility of the Fallen having learned its Runes. Because of that she made sure that the barrier she trapped them in was of the anti-teleportation variety and could only smirk when her guess turned out to be on the mark.
"HASHYAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!"
Unfortunately, even though she was able to trap most of them in that little box, a few others were able to avoid capture and even more were being born with each passing second.
The other Valkyries tried the same trick, but since their control over barriers wasckingpared to their ginger friend they were unable to stop the Fallen from breaking them, leaving the Valkyries with no choice but to kill them to ensure they wouldn''t reach the target.
"Ichigo!"
Looking up with a start, Ichigo turned to the voice and saw the Doctor running toward her holding something in his hands. She recognized the tool at first nce and understood what she had to do, and so with a bit of struggle she pushed herself up and stood on her own two feet..
"Three and Nino are cing the drones at the intended locations." Sam said as he handed her the tool. "Be ready to use your ability at a moment''s notice."
Seeing the seriousness in his eyes, Ichigo nodded without saying a word. Her heart seemed to have recovered just in time and her halo began to form once more.
The tool he handed her was a white pewter staff with a long shaft. When she held it in her hands, the six rings decorating it began floating up as her Force Field spread out and enveloped the entire tool.
[Doctor!] Zero Three''s voice came in through themunicators.
[We are ready!] Nino''s voice followed an instantter.
Ichigo''s special equipment consisted of a series of drones, each one equipped with a Valkyrie heart, although with slight alterations. They weren''t the downgraded Version Wolf had created to stop the girls from essing their halos, but they also didn''t have the upgrades Sam had introduced himself.
The hearts were created for one purpose only; to create and enhance Ichigo''s unique Force Field by resonating with her own.
To quicken the process, Sam had ordered Three and Nino to teleport around and ce the drones at their certain coordinates. After a few seconds spent warming up, the hearts inside the drones fired up and the pink haired Valkyrie felt their presence.
"Doctor!" She called, informing him that the resonance had begun.
"Do it!"
Chapter 229 Whispers Of Madness. Part 07.
?
On Sam''smand, Ichigo closed her eyes and activated her ability, Transcendent Purge.
Outside the abandoned airport, six cube shaped drones lit up with a pale red aura as the Force Field covered each one.
The aura continued to spread, eventually merging together as the area each drone covered continued to expand. Soon enough the whole airport was inside a giant pink dome. Everything seemed to go still for a single second, then came the pained screams of the Fallen.
Just like when she used her cleansing ability before, the mad survivors Heald their heads and wailed, the crooked halos over their heads flickering and on the verge of disappearing. Some of them slowly floated down andnded safely, others lost the ability to fly and just fell, and the lucky ones were able to die right away.
It wasn''t just the fallen who were affected by the Ichigo''s cleansing. Some of the survivors, those who have yet to lose to the madness, were suffering from the same pain, all of them holding their heads and screaming until their voices could no longer be heard.
"Keep at it, Ichigo." Sam instructed.
"Understood¡"
The burden she experienced was far lighter than before, but that didn''t mean she would be able to keep Transcendent Purge going indefinitely. Ichigo was willing to follow the Doctor''smand to the very end, no matter how exhausting it was to do so
She ignored the pained wails of the Fallen as they suffered under the effect of her cleansing ability and continued pouring her focus into keeping it up.
She was making a great effort and contributing to the battle even more than before. Once all of this ends, she is sure the Doctor will reward her just like he did after they defeated the ant army. This time she was sure they would go all the way. She would finally get to experience being loved by him, and once that happens, she would be one of his personal Valkyries.
Her chest was filled with anticipation as she imagined how her life would be once the battlees to an end, but then the world seemed to suddenly grow cold as a chill enveloped her entire being.
THUD
She felt the impact even before the sound could reach her ears.
THUD¡ THUD¡
Though it was created by expanding her Force Field, Transcendent Purge wasn''t a barrier ability.
THUD¡ THUD¡ THUD¡
Anything could enter and exit the area it covered, there was nothing isting the inside from the outside.
THUD¡ THUD¡ THUD¡ THUD¡
If something is unable to enter the boundaries of her ability, it means that thing is entirely alien,cking anything that couldn''t be disintegrated by the purifying effect of her Force Field.
Ichigo opened her eyes. She nced before her and saw the Doctor, his body was motionless, his head facing the left as he gazed at something with eyes spread open.
THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD
Something told Ichigo that she shouldn''t look. She should ignore the sound, ignore the sensation, and just close her eyes. If she were to turn to the left right now, whatever was there, she was sure her mind wouldn''t be able to handle it. That''s why she should just close her eyes and continue to pray.
THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD
THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD
She should''ve done it. She should''ve done just that. She should''ve closed her eyes and prayed, that''s the best choice she had. But she couldn''t handle it. She couldn''t handle hearing the sound in the dark. The screams of the Fallen had already faded. They were still there, but her mind couldn''t perceive them. She couldn''t hear anything. Even if herrades were to call for her, even if the doctor were to give her amand, her ears couldn''t pick any of it.
The only thing she could hear was the sound of somethingrgezily hammering at the outer surface of a giant wall.
THUD. THUD. THUD. THUD. THUD. THUD. THUD. THUD. THUD. THUD. THUD. THUD. THUD. THUD. THUD. THUD. THUD. THUD.THUD. THUD. THUD. THUD. THUD. THUD. THUD. THUD. THUD. THUD. THUD. THUD. THUD. THUD. THUD.
The sound suddenly came to a stop, and for a long moment there was nothing but a blissful piece. Believing that whatever it was that had been striking at the dome created by her ability was now gone, Ichigo slowly opened her eyes. She hesitantly raised her head, then, her body moving with morbid curiosity, she turned in the direction of the sound.
The horror that met her was unlike anything she had faced throughout her life.
A single, giant eye stared down at them, its size towering over thergest building in the abandoned airport. It looked simr to a human''s, but at the same time not. It had no eyshes nor did it have eyelids. Only an eyeball floating in the air, surrounded by a hazy darkness as if it was peeking from beyond a translucent veil.
Long tentacles extended from beyond the same thin membrane, each onerger than the nes scattered around. They seemed to be made of old dried flesh, covered in scars and wrinkles brought about by the passing of countless years.
The pink haired Valkyrie instantly recognized it. Those things were what had been striking at her Transcendent Purge. She could see burn marks on each of them, showing that the dome formed by her ability had dealt quite a bit of damage to whatever that thing in the sky was.
The Valkyries were frozen, and so was their Doctor. The entity staring down at them struck fear into their very being, but the one who had it worse was none other than Ichigo.
The giant eye was toorge to discern what it was looking at, however for some reason Ichigo alone felt that it had its gaze on her.
The reason should''ve been obvious. Whatever it was, that thing had recognized the pink haired Valkyrie as its enemy. Without uttering a word, it demanded that she take down the dome preventing it from reaching whatever was inside.
"Ichigo!"
A p on the cheek snapped her back to reality. In front of her was the Doctor, his expression void of any and all emotions. He looked her in the eyes and remained silent for a few moments. He then opened his mouth and gave her onemand, his voice faltering once, the horror he was struggling to suppress threatening to break out at any moment.
"Don''t even think of stopping your ability." He said, his eyes conveying his desperation. "No matter what, you hear me?"
Chapter 230 Whispers Of Madness. Part 08.
?
Sam''smand erased the strange thoughts from Ichigo''s head. For a moment there, overwhelmed by the presence of whatever was looking down at her, she almost followed its order and deactivated her Transcendent Purge.
If she had done that she would''ve been the first to receive an untimely end at the hands of that entity. Her ability stood between it and what it desired so it was only natural that she would be the first target.
Ichigo nced up once more, trying to avoid looking directly at the eye at the same time. She saw the tentacles that seemed to have been purned after striking the dome forming the range of her ability.
Her Force Field has the ability to cleanse anything alien that could be harmful to a human''s body. It worked best on really small things like microscopic viruses or harmful or radioactive materials, and, as confirmed by previous experiments, it can also remove particles drawn from other dimensions, although under some specific conditions.
Normally it wouldn''t have an effect on somethingrge enough to be fusible to the human eye, but it was able to block the tentacles despite their size, and that could only mean one thing. Whatever that thing was, its very existence was harmful to humans. No, to life in itself. It''s like everything making it goes against the very concept of living, and though they didn''t understand what it wanted to do, they all had a guess that it wasn''t anything good.
The giant continued to stare down at Ichigo, but the Valkyrie refused to budge. Seemingly growing tired of the wait, its tentacles began moving once more, this time mming against the pale red dome with much more speed and force.
The strike made a sound but it seemed to reverberate in the opposite direction. Another strike followed, and another one. Each time the dome seemed to leave arge burn mark on each of the tentacles, showing that no amount of force could get it inside no matter how much it tried.
Suddenly, a loud cry shook the whole region, a cry that added to the horror of everything that was happening. The sky above the airport began shimmering, splitting open in several locations from three more eyes appeared. The eyes stared down the humans, the Fallen and the Valkyries. Each one of them then moved toward the first one and stayed still for several moments.
Another wicked cry reverberated through the airport. Hundreds of tentacles appeared around the other eyes, wriggling around the dome and touching its surface only to retract upon making contact.
The four eyes seemed to look at each other for several seconds, then all turned to the pink haired Valkyrie, the pressure from all of their gazesing down on her like the weight of the world itself.
Even though the otherworldly entities were ignoring their presence, Sam and the others still felt the overwhelming intensity of those beings. They could no longer look up at them so they lowered their heads and hoped that everything woulde to an end very soon.
Unfortunately for them, The whole ordeal was just getting started. Another cry shook the airport. The fallen had gone silent for a while now. Even in their maddened state they seem to have recognized the horror they were in. The human survivors weren''t doing any better. Most of them had lost consciousness the moment they looked up at the sky, and those who somehow managed to stay awake, they all sumbed to the whispers of madness, the horror they felt amplified a thousandfold until their minds could no longer take the burden. Being inside Ichigo''s barrier, their horror was soon turned into pain, but despite that they kept their mouths shut and gritted their teeth. The eeriness of it all caused Sam to think that what they were facing was far worse than what he thinks.
"Doctor¡"
Sam turned to Zero Five and met her gaze. She had a difficult expression on, but the way she spoke carried a lot of determination.
"I ask for your permission to engage." She said. "I''m unable to create new weapons while still inside Ichigo''s rage, that''s why¡"
Ichigo''s Purge erases materials drawn from other dimensions, which meant the Valkyries were incapable of using the Nameless Element to form new equipment. The ones they already had before weren''t affected, since the particles making them had been transformed into normal materials, but all of them were made for meleebat and weren''t suited for fighting an enemy of that magnitude.
Both Zero Three and Zero Five had experienced fighting the Ragnarok heralds. Though they were about the same size as the giant eyes peering down on them, something indicated to the two that the Cmities were far less dangerous inparison.
Five was able to destroy Fafnir with a single sh of her sword, however she doubted that she would be able to do the same in this situation.
"... Be careful." Sam said after a long silence.
The only thing he could do was grit his teeth, cursing his inability to do anything.
He still had one choice left; to take his Valkyries and simply run away.
The situation was hopeless and no one would me him for looking after his own people. In the first ce, he had no obligation toward the humans of this world. He did everything in his power to help them live so far, even though they should''ve long since been dead. There was only so much he could do with what he had.
"I will go as well." CS spoke, bringing him out of his thoughts. "Those things really piss me off. Even if we''re unable to kill them, surely we can destroy a few of those tentacles"
"Maybe if we hurt them enough they might decide to leave." Trenta said. "I''m sure a single st of Balder''s Light will scare them away."
Though she said it jokingly, using light beams was the most logical step when facing something that''s basically a giant eye.
Looking at the three volunteers, Sam prepared to do the difficult thing of asking them to go out and fight an impossible foe. It was only recently that he became their Commander, and the times he had to send them out in desperate situations could be counted on a single hand.
He wondered if it would ever be easier for him to make suchmands, and as he did, he realized that he had stopped suppressing his emotions at some point.
"Hey¡ something is happening¡"
Venti''s voice was tinged with horror. She was looking at the eyes, or rather, the tentacles they control. The long wriggly masses of ancient flesh slowly went down to the ground. Particles of light flickered at the end of each one, and in less than a second a series of Ruins formed creating a ring around each tentacle.
Stopping a few meters above the surface, a wave of smoke seemed to gather under each of the rings. Sam recognized the strange ck material and the absolute despair he felt reached a new level.
In just a single moment, an army of giant stone monsters surrounded the abandoned airport. All of them stood still as the enormous tentacles retracted above, and as if to announce the purpose behind their creation, an ominous red light shined in the depths of the single hole in their heads.
Chapter 231 Whispers Of Madness. Part 09.
?
At first nce, Sam recognized what the stone giants were. The rocks making up their bodies had an obsidian like ck sheen to them, much like the Giant Ants that had attacked the sanctuary twice so far. They had a crude gori like shape with very long, bulky arms and short legs. Their heads were small, and the only feature on their faces was arge hole from which an ominous red light shone.
An army of thousands surrounded the abandoned airport. Sam nced up at the gigantic eyes, the first question toe to his mind being if those things were the ones targeting the human survivors all along.
As his mind worked up more questions for him to stress over, he saw a series of twinkles in the distance and almost immediately Sitta shouted from beside him.
"THREE!!!"
The two Valkyries teleported to the edge of Ichigo''s Transcendent Purge and held their hands up. The next moment hundreds of red beams collided with a translucent gray wall scattering in every direction like water sshing against a polished floor.
The other Valkyries moved as well, creating barriers all over the airport to block the barrage ofsers shot at them from every direction. A series of explosions sent violent tremors through the ground, the resulting heat melting everything in its way.
The light itself would''ve been deadly if not for Sitta''s quick wittedness. She chose a type of barrier that could block all light saving everyone from being blinded by the first attack.
The barrage went on for three whole minutes during which everyone was isted inside a semi-transparent gray box. The drones Sam had scattered around for surveince were destroyed, thest bit of data they sent indicating that a nuclear disaster was currently overtaking the surrounding areas.
When the lights stopped shing and the tremors halted, everyone was relieved to have survived the first round, but then, not a minuteter, a weak quake reached the airport, following the sound of hundreds of stone feet and fists touching the ground as the giants took the first step.
Sitta adjusted the properties of her barrier so it would be possible to see what was happening outside. The scene was straight out of a nightmare, with an army of ck figures marching in unison as the world around them burned. The forests were gone, the buildings were obliterated and the only thing left at the edge of the barrier was a sea of mes and molten rock.
As he looked at the bubbling surface of theva pond that had formed, Sam couldn''t help but wonder if the heat would kill the humans without the barrier''s protection. Ichigo''s ability protected them from radiations, but it could do nothing about the scorching wind that would flow in the moment one of the Valkyries takes down her barrier.
''... What am I thinking?''
The humans were thest of his worries right now. They were in the face of a force far beyond their pathetic perception of war, one capable of creating armies of monsters surpassing the Ragnarok Heralds like it was nothing more than a simple trick.
As he gazed at the ck stone giants, Sam saw the orange halos over their heads. The situation was helpless, and thest thing he had to worry about was a bunch of humans he had no idea how to save even before this disaster struck.
"I''m heading out."
Speaking in a resolute voice, Zero Five took a step toward the barrier. Sam was about to call her, but the words got caught in his throat. By the time he regained the ability to talk the ponytailed Valkyrie had already teleported away.
CS and Trenta followed after her, and Juni went next, leaving the others to handle the barrier.
The heat outside must''ve been truly unbearable as the four had to turn their Force Fields up to the maximum seconds after they appeared on the other side. Without having to discuss their next move each of them created a Proton Cannon in the blink of an eye then fired a concentrated Balder''s Light at the marching army. Another violent detonation shook the region, but when the light faded it became clear that things wouldn''t be so easy. The giants weren''t entirely immune to energy weapons, but they were practically unscathed after receiving the st head on, continuing the march with a stop.
The girls fired another st, but this time instead of hitting the advancing army the beams bounced off an invisible wall, showing that their enemy was capable of creating barriers as well.
The second barrage of beams came soon after. The giants ignored the girls attacking them and focused their fire on the abandoned airport. The four ascended to a higher altitude to escape the fire. It was then that they ended up near one of the monstrous giant eyes. Faced with such entities, Five and the others felt extremely small, like specs of dust floating in the air, their presence not even worth the entity''s attention.
CS was the first to lose her temper, pointing her cannon at the eye and pressing the trigger. The cannon shattered as itunched a beam muchrger than before. Unlike JX9 who was able to alter her weapons to withstand greater strain, all CS could do was to sacrifice her creation to increase the output.
The resulting beam could''ve erased entire countries if it were fired at the ground, but as long as it was pointed to the sky the aftereffects could always be dealt withter on. Or so everyone thought.
Sam had expected the eye to manifest a barrier to block the energy beam. It was the most likely thing to happen considering everything so far.
But no. The beam wasn''t blocked, and it didn''t stop. It continued toward its target unhindered, but when it seemed like it was about to hit, the golden ray vanished without a trace.
No one could believe what they had just witnessed. There was no impact, no explosion. The beam was simply erased the moment it entered a certain range, only a few meters away from the ridiculously enormous pupil.
The second bombardment ended and the giants continued their advance.
Sam was once again expressionless, his emotions suppressed to keep his mind intact. Three had retreated back to his side, waiting for him to give the order everyone instinctively knew was the only one left.
Triska left her side of the barrier to Venti and rushed to the ne where B3 and JX9 slept. Sitta gritted her teeth as she watched the advancing giants while Ichigo fought to keep her ability active.
Nino watched the scenery in silence. Despite all the deaths and destruction, she seemed rather indifferent, even a bit cold. She felt a strange sense of tranquility. Everything that''s happening around her, all of it was meant to happen. Such is Fate. Once the Tapestry is woven, changing it simply bes impossible.
''Not even Lachesis could''ve done it¡''
As the end slowly drew near, she began to reminisce about the past. Memories of her past life began resurfacing, and same as before none of them felt alien.
''Fate¡''
It was the subject she and her sisters had spent centuries researching. Was life nothing more than a series of coincidences? Or was there some coherency to everything humans had to go through?
Eventually, their studies led them to a definite answer. Every life was born with a thread. That thread starts from the moment of conception, and ends at the moment of death.
Each living being has its own thread, and when those threads intermingle, the Tapestry of Fate is created. A majestic work of art depicting every life, every path and every event in existence.
Perceiving it was beyond the abilities of most living beings, but the three sisters were able to find a way to observe the paths and even interact with them.
''Ah, so that''s how it is¡'' Nino thought, recalling what her older sister had done to B3 and JX9. ''She severed their paths¡ getting them back will be quite difficult¡''
The Japanese doll began to wonder where her own path led from there. Would it still follow along with the others? Will the Doctor abandon the humans and choose to save his Valkyries? Nothing could confirm that the strange alien beings gazing down on them would simply leave them be if they decided to escape now. Knowing that, would he decide to stay and fight to the bitter end?
If only she could see what lies ahead, maybe then she would''ve been more useful to him. Unfortunately, even though she had regained some of the memories from her life as Lachesis, the ability to gaze at the Tapestry of Fate has yet to return to her. Whatever it was that granted her such an ability, it seems that death had deprived her of it.
''Well, even without it¡'' Closing her eyes, Nino heaved a long sigh. ''I can still see how this will end¡''
Just when that thought crossed her mind, a cold sensation enveloped her hand. Startled beyond words, the Japanese doll almost teleported away, the horror she felt taking her mind off the battle happening beyond the barrier she had created.
The fear she felt didn''t go away when she saw who it was that held her right hand, but she managed to keep her barrier intact.
She saw the bony fingers and the dark skin, then the strange torn clothes and wrinkly face. An old woman was looking at her with white colorless eyes, and for an entire second Nino didn''t recognize who it was.
"The path¡" the old woman said. "You have to¡ You have to show them the path¡"
Chapter 232 Ramla Zadzisai.
?
Compared to the average child, I was entirely different. By the time I was five years old, my body and mind had already matured enough for me to pass as a twenty-year-old. Thankfully I had realized this very early on and so I decided to run away from home three years before, soon after my parents began panicking over my elerated growth.
I didn''t want to end up as someb rat for the people who wanted to discover why I was aging faster than everyone else. I also had a mission, one I had to aplish after using my powers to see what awaited me down the road.
To my horror I witnessed everything burn around me. Someone named Odin would unite the entire world against him, and though he was but a single man the evil he would unleash was going to be enough to put an end to humanity.
I saw the Angels descend from the sky, their wings brilliant and their halos shining. No one would be safe once those majestic beings dered war on humankind.
From the very first time I got to see it I was determined to walk down a different path, one that would help me avoid being killed in the Angels'' crusade. Saving the world was out of the question so the only thing I could do was try and save the people I cared about.
The ability to see the future gave me an edge no one else had. In a short few years I was already one of the wealthiest people on the and with it came connections I didn''t particrly like.
I even got to meet Wolf Schneider, the man who would go on to be the viin named Odin. To my surprise he was an honest person who held not an ounce of evil in his heart. In fact, I found his wife much more frightening than him. The white hair, the red eyes, and the otherworldly beauty that overshadowed everything else. She looked just like the Angels from that fateful day, and seeing her in person reminded me of the first time I witnessed my own death.
After that meeting I made sure to keep myself informed about the state of the two, and using my power I was able to see the results of doing so.
I saw Wolf''s slow descent after his wife''s death, as well as his daughter''s illness and what he had to go through to ensure she would survive. The pieces began to gather and I soon learned the true reason behind the war, which was only possible thanks to the change in status and my climbing to the upper echelon of the world. As it turned out, not everything was just ck and white as I had seen in my previous visions.
Human greed was the true cause behind the world''s end, but knowing the consequences wouldn''t discourage the elites from pursuing that which their heart desires.
Immortality was something very difficult to ignore. Even if I tried to bury it the truth would eventuallye out. All paths led to the same end.
Knowing I would be incapable of stopping the world''s top from going after what they desired, I took everything I owned and began building a ce where my people could hide.
The idea of a sanctuary wasn''t at all umon in the circles of the elites. Many were fascinated by the idea of the apocalypse and sought to create a ce where they could hide when the time came. Unfortunately for them, unless they''re able to see iting their preparations were always going to becking. I was the only one capable of truly cheating death.
I chose the location least likely to suffer from the Angels'' crusade and built my safe haven there. The people I chose to invite to it were a few rtives and friends, none of whom were particrly influential. I despised the idea of saving the greedy bunch who decided that living forever was more important than the rest of the world.
I tried to warn them, of course. Well, in the futures I saw, at least. One doesn''t need any special ability to be able to tell that they would never give up on what they desire.
Looking into the future wasn''t at all a pleasant experience, and it didn''t help that I only saw things that happened around me. The deaths I witnessed were always of people I was close with, and the weight of having to see them go again and again was too much for me to handle.
But if there is one thing that terrified me more than anything, it was my own end. While I''m looking into the future, the path sometimes just reaches a dead end beyond which only darkness resides. Through choosing and changing my own actions I was able to push it farther and farther away, but at one point nothing I did extended my life.
I soon understood that what I saw was my natural death. Using my Ability consumed my life as fuel, leading to me aging faster than usual. There was a limit I couldn''t go beyond, and once I reach it, my life would run out and I would leave this world.
Knowing that made the idea of immortality rather appealing. I was a human, after all. It was only natural that I would wish to live longer, especially after learning that I won''t live beyond my thirties. Not that thinking about it mattered anyway. The Angels would wipe the world clean, and the only way to survive beyond that is to hide deep underground where their sights wouldn''t reach.
Things would be peaceful for twenty years, and after that, another disaster would strike the world. This time surviving it was going to be much more challenging, but there was nothing I could do about it this time.
Maybe it would''ve been much better if I wasn''t born with the power to peek into the future. I never got to be a child and with the weight I carried I couldn''t bring myself to fall in love. If I were a normal human from the beginning, maybe I would''ve been happy, even if it meant dying at the young age of ten years old.
I''ve asked myself those questions many times before, and I''ve always wondered why I had to have this power if using it meant burning away my life.
I always knew the answer, of course. Seeing the future wasn''t my true ability. If it was only that, changing the events I saw in my would''ve been impossible.
I was able to see, interact and alter the Threads of Fate. Not just mine but that of people around me as well. I was nothing but a needle, one capable of weaving a tapestry, but without a hand guiding it, the path it follows couldn''t be changed.
Ra Zadzisai had her limit. She couldn''t defeat the madness and her life would soon reach its end. But there was nothing to worry about. Just as she was nearing the end of her Thread, the True Weaver came along to pick up the needle and continue her work on the Tapestry of Fate.
Chapter 233 Needle.
?
"You have to¡ You have to show them the path¡"
The words went over Nino''s head as she couldn''t believe what she was seeing. The old woman holding her hand was none other than Ra Zadzisai, the fortune teller leading the human survivors and the one who had warned them about the horrors they were having to face right now. Supposedly she had lost the ability to walk long ago. Not only that but her eyes were incapable of sight which added to the mystery of his she had made it so far.
The answer was the golden halo over her head. It was simple and had few runes, but the support it provided helped the woman navigate the ruined airport and find her way to the Japanese doll.
''What are you doing here?'' Nino thought to herself, but before she could say the words out loud the old woman suddenly copsed in her hands.
"Old hag!?" Nino yelled, catching Ra while being careful enough to not let her control over the barrier falter.
"Now¡ now that''s a bit rude." Ra replied with a stifledugh. "I''m not that much older than your Doctor, you know."
"That''s not the point!"
The halo over the old seer''s headcked the bloody red color and the messy Runes, which showed that she didn''t lose her mind to the Whispers of Madness, something that was difficult to believe considering the way she behaved.
"You¡ you said your name was Lachesis, right?" Ra spoke, coughing all the while.
"Eh? Well, that was in my past life so¡"
As the memories returned to her Nino found out that Lachesis was indeed her name, and not just a codename or a title given to her for being a part of the Olympians.
"Lachesis¡" the old woman broke into a fit of coughs. She tried to suppress it as she spoke, but the words kept getting cut. "The¡ sis¡ters¡of¡ of Fate¡ you¡ You can see the¡ You can see the Thr¡ eads¡ you¡ you must¡ guide them¡"
Though she understood everything, Nino could only grimace and look away.
"I''m sorry¡" she said. "I¡ I lost that ability after I died¡"
"I¡ know¡" Ra replied, a pale light shining in the hand clutching Nino''s. "You¡ you need the Needle¡ you can''t¡ you can''t see the Threads¡ you can''t weave them without¡ the Needle¡"
Slowly, a red piece of metal began to form in Nino''s hand. It had a slender cylindrical shape with one of its sides ending in a sharp tip while the other had a small hole in it.
The Japanese doll recognized the tool almost immediately and turned to the old woman with eyes full of surprise.
"You¡ where did you get this?" She asked, her voice slowly trembling.
"You tell¡ You tell me¡" Ra replied,ughing between the coughs. "Weren''t you¡ the one who hid it¡ inside me?"
"I¡"
When she tried to recall, Nino couldn''t remember how she lost the needle. She remembered Atropos'' betrayal and how she escaped along with Clotho after Zeus decided to get rid of them, but how everything ended has yet toe back to her.
Looking at the needle once more, Nino felt a slight pain in her chest. Even if she were to die her younger sister would''ve never left the Artifact behind.
''No¡'' She shook the idea out of her head. ''There must be another exnation¡''
"Lachesis¡ no¡ Nino¡" Ra coughed once more. "You have to¡ you have to stop him¡ please¡ save¡ my people¡" Drawing in what she she knew was herst breath, the old seer closed her eyes and made her final wish. "Even if it''s only the¡ children¡ please save them¡ Doctor¡"
As thest bit of life left her body, the Runes over Ra''s head flickered out of existence. Her body rxed as it lost all of its strength, the trembling and shivers settling as if she entered a deep slumber.
Nino stared down at the old woman, then at the Needle in her hand. She wondered how the Artifact ended up in her possession, but most importantly, how much she sacrificed in order to use it.
"Clotho¡ what were you thinking¡" Nino asked, wondering what her younger sister had in mind. The more she thought about it, the less sense it all made. Why did she choose to abandon the artifact, and why did she force it on a human from a lower realm. She should''ve known that the woman couldn''t use it, and without anyone there to im it after her death it would''ve been left in this lifeless world.
''Hold on¡ could it be¡ did she use it, perhaps?'' Nino suddenly came to the realization. ''Did she know I would arrive here, and that''s why she decided to leave it behind?''
After thinking about it for a few seconds, she concluded that it couldn''t be the case. Just like Atropos'' scissors, the Needle was one of the powerful Artifacts the Thee Fates had created. To ensure that they couldn''t be used against her or her sisters, they added a failsafe that prevented the user from seeing the Threads that involved any of them. Even if she were to use her own Artifact, Clotho would''ve been unable to see a Path where Lachesis makes an appearance.
''If that''s the case, why did she leave the Needle behind?...''
Looking up with a start, Nino turned around. Her gaze fell on the man d in the whiteb coat, standing amidst the Valkyries with a solemn expression on his face. Suddenly, everything made sense.
The n her younger sister had suggested; going to other worlds in order to raise a hero who could defy Zeus.
If Clotho had seen the fate of this world then she would''ve known about the Doctor visiting it and the inevitable sh with the Olympians. She left the Needle somewhere close for him to find before leaving for another world.
''Did she choose the Doctor?''
For some reason, Nino didn''t even consider the possibility that the hero her sister had picked might be one of the Valkyries. In her mind, she had already decided that the only one capable of stopping Zeus was the man named Sam Sanderson.
He has already shown that he could snatch victory even under the most desperate of situations. Armed with the power to alter the Tapestry of Fate, she was sure that he could put a stop to the Evil King''s heinous ns.
''Thank you, Ra¡'' Nino thought as she ced the old seer''s motionless body on the ground. She then stood up and looked at the needle in her hand. ''Clotho¡ I know you didn''t mean for me to be the one to find it, but thanks to your actions I will be able to be of much better assistance to Doctor¡'' The small red piece of metal began to glow, and at the same time a number of Runes began to appear over the head of the Japanese Doll. ''Don''t worry, sister. I will make sure to take really good care of the hero you chose.''
Chapter 234 Ten Minutes.
?
Nino''s raven hair flowed along the gust of wind that enveloped her body. The Runes over her head formed multiple rings, turning into a series ofplex shapes as they spun around. At the same time, the Needle in her hand began to expand and grow, morphing into a muchrger took and taking on the shape of a long spear, with a short shaft and a really long head.
The glow soon faded revealing the new weapon, which resembled a traditional Omi Yari. In the hands of the Japanese doll, the long crimson spear looked quite fitting. It seemed to be carved out of a single material with a simple look to it. It didn''t have any engravings, but just by looking one could tell it wasn''t nothing more than a rusty piece of metal.
Feeling the familiar sensation in her hand, Nino let a smile y on her lips as she spun the spear around. Her chest was filled with excitement as she prepared for the next part, but at the same time a crippling fear was wing at her back trying to prevent her from going forward.
''What is there to be afraid of?'' she asked herself, mming the bottom of the spear into the ground and opening her eyes. ''We''ve already experienced the true horror of this world!''
Willing her power to activate, a series of runes sprang to life around the head of the spear, and a crimson aura enveloped the young Valkyrie.
Noticing the strange light shining in the corner of his eye, Sam turned to look and was surprised to see Nino glowing as several rings of Runes surrounded her.
He saw Ra''s motionless body nearby and his confusion only grew, however he didn''t dare to say anything right away. He allowed the Japanese doll to do what she wanted, and after a minute she turned to him with eyes full of determination.
"Doctor!" She called. "Ten minutes! We just need to hold on for ten minutes!"
Without asking where she got that number, Sam held up hismunicator and addressed the rest of the Valkyries.
[You heard her, everyone.] His voice reached all other Valkyries. [We need ten minutes.]
Even though she couldn''t see him, Zero Five somehow knew that the Doctor had a smile on his face at that moment. She summoned her bow, this time making itrger with a more intricate shape than before. The arrow she created next was different from normal, with a spiraling head that curled around the entire shaft.
The ponytailed Valkyrie knocked the arrow and drew the string. The bow made sharp creaking sounds as its shape contorted, and the white glow of the barrier breaking Runes slowly enveloped the arrow. Once it was covered in its entirety, five released the string and an explosion resounded through the sky, followed by several more as the sound barrier was prated several times.
Sensing the approaching missile, several giants raised their heads. The holes in their heads glowed as they prepared to fire back, but it was already toote.
The spiraling arrow prated the barriers like they were made out of paper before piercing through multiple giants at the same time, the first among them being hit right through the hole in its head. An explosion followed the arrow piercing the ground, and a second one came after as the giants themselves exploded, taking with them the ones in their immediate surroundings.
Amazed by her fellow Valkyrie''s power, CS was determined to not lose. She quickly enveloped herself in her white armor and dived down into the ocean ofva. A secondter a majestic beast emerged from the mes, the beastial roar it released shaking the world. If it wasn''t for its rigid mechanical shape, no one would''ve doubted that the Great White Tiger was a living being.
Roaring once more, the beast dashed toward the marching giant army, sending tremors through the ground with each step it took. Noticing it approaching several giants turned their heads in its direction, and without dy they all fired their red beams intending to pulverize it.
The Great Tiger leaped into the sky avoiding several beams. The second round was fired immediately after that, and with it still in midair dodging was difficult. It looked like the beast was about to receive direct damage, but before the red beams could reach its body it swatted them with its paws effortlessly deflecting them into the ground. The giants prepared to fire another beam, but it was already toote. The Great Tiger had already reached their ranks, its maws spreading wide before biting off the head of a vanguard. Without pause it continued ravaging through the ranks of the Titans, tearing them apart with a swing of its ws and a bite of its jagged fangs.
"So coooool!!!" Juni eximed, her eyes sparkling as she watched the giant tiger tear through the stone army.
"I''m going to handle the southeast." Trenta took off after saying that.
"Eh!? So that leaves¡"
Zero five was handling the south and southwest, CS went west and was moving northwest, and Trenta was handling the southeast. All that was left was the north, which meant Juni had to handle it herself.
"Hngh¡" the tomboy clenched her fist, her brows drawn together as she racked her mind over the choice she had to make. "I wanted to save this for the final battle but¡" Coming to a decision, she made some alterations to her halo then took a pose, forming a cross with her forearms with her leg slightly spread apart.
"Come to me-" She said, particles of light gathering to form a strange blue device on her right wrist. "SUPER JUNI ROBO!"
A blinding light suddenly shone through the battlefield forcing everyone to cover their eyes. The battle seemed to halt for a few moments, and once the light began to fade the silhouette of a mysterious giant figure came into sight.
In Juni''s ce a humongous blue robot appeared, standing on one knee with its head hanging down. It had a slender body and long limbs, which made it look somewhat naked, with the only armored parts being the head, arms and feet. A single horn decorated its helmet and two small boosters were attached to its back.
As if announcing its activation, a brilliant blue light shone through the visor of the helmet, followed by arge halo appearing above it and six diamond shaped panels forming wings on its back.
The mechanical giant stood up, its movements seeming a bit sluggish to anyone looking up from the ground. Its head moved as if it was looking down at itself, then a momentter a disappointed voice came from it.
[I guess I still have a long way to go¡] it was Juni the excitement she had before now gone. That didn''tst for long though as the giant blue robot pointed at the marching army apanied by the girl''s cheerful voice. [Even if I''m not at my full power, I won''t let you evildoers get away!]
As if to respond to her deration, the stone giants stopped one after the other, the holes in their heads gleaning with a red color as they prepared tounch another barrage ofser attacks.
[I won''t let you!]
The blue robot kicked the ground, dashing toward the ck line of enemies without a hint of fear. Each step sent a devastating quack through the ground, the rumbling it created sounding like the impacts of countless meteors falling into theva pond.
The giants fired, their uncoordinated beams indicating that each one was targeting the dashing blue robot, which easily dodged the redsers.
The moment it reached the halfway point, the giant robot leaped into the sky, leaving behind a giant crater, and spun around itself nimbly avoiding the the deadly fire as it closed the remaining distance.
[SUUUPEEEER JUNIII-] Reaching the highest point of its jump, the giant robot flipped twice before spreading out, one leg directed at the ck army. [KIIIIIIIIICK!!!!]
The boosters ignited pushing the robot with incredible force. The ck army fired another barrage in its direction bit it was useless. Thesers were easily deflected, and the white color of the barrier breaking Ruins envelope the stretched out foot of the blue giant as it shattered the multiple invisible walls blocking its way before crashing into the line of ck giants, causing another violent shockwave that spread throughout the whole region, creating fissures wide enough to swallow the enemy despite their size.
Chapter 235 Path.
?
[Five.]
The ponytailed Valkyrie was floating in the sky, surrounded by flickering lights as she created more and more arrows. She fired them one after the other in quick session, her eyes locked on the advancing army of giants.
When the voice reached her ear through themunicator, she was surprised to hear Three''s voice instead of the Doctor''s.
"What''s wrong, Three?" She asked, firing another arrow.
[This¡ it reminds me of what happened a few months ago¡] the young Valkyrie spoke, her voice tinged with worry. [It''s just like when we fought the Evil Eye¡]
Five paused for a moment before grabbing another arrow.
"What are you saying, Three?" She pulled the string then released it. An explosion followed theunch of the spiraling arrow and she had to wait a little before speaking again. "This is nothing like that time. We are different as well."
Five raised her head and gazed up at the overbearing eyes staring down at them. She understood what her fellow Valkyrie meant. The fight against the Evil Eye was their first big battle. The territory of the forty sixth base had been peaceful up to that point with only the asional D ss Cmity showing up, but suddenly they were thrown against an S ss without getting the time to prepare the proper equipment.
The parallels to that incident were obvious. The enemy this time was a giant eye in the sky as well, and its main ability was creating soldiers to fight in its stead.
In the previous battle Five had suffered a severe injury due to her lowering her guard a little too early. Three must''ve been worried about the same thing happening again so she felt the need to talk to her about it.
[You should focus on guarding Doctor, Three.]
The young Valkyrie couldn''t help but frown. Here she was worrying about her friend but all she got in return was being told to do her job.
"I know already¡" she puffed her cheeks. "Just¡ be careful, okay?"
[Don''t worry.] Five said, her voice steady with determination. [Things will be different this time.]
As the conversation between the two ended, Zero Three nced behind her checking on how the Doctor was doing. She could feel the tension he was enduring despite the cold expressionless mask he wore.
Her gaze then moved to Nino who was standing a short distance away from them holding a spear, one that seemed different from her usual creations, with rings of Runes slowly spinning around her.
"Nino." Sam suddenly spoke, startling Zero Three. "You said we just need to hold for ten minutes¡" pausing for a moment, he took a deep breath before asking the question he was holding back on. "Will something change if we manage to do it?"
"Sorry! I''ve already changed our Path!" Nino replied, turning to look at them with a wry smile. "We can no longer choose something else!"
Sam was somewhat dumbstruck by her answer, even though it didn''t show on him.
"Can you at least give me more to work with?" He asked.
"I don''t think that''s a good idea!"
Even without her exining things, Sam already had a guess as to what was happening just from looking at the spear in her hand. Seeing that it was made from the same material as the scissors like sword Atropos used, he was confident that the spear wasn''t just an average weapon created using the Nameless Element.
''Clotho spins the Threads, Lachesis measures their length and Atropos cuts them at the end¡'' he thought. ''Unlike her two sisters, Lachesis is said to be the one who decides the destiny of mortals and the events they experience throughout their lives. Does that spear allow her to¡''
Ra''s motionless body being close to the Japanese doll was another hint that didn''t go over the Doctor''s head. In just a few seconds he managed to obtain a good idea of what happened, and from that he concluded that Nino had regained the ability to see the future.
''She has already changed our Path?''
Even with his emotions suppressed, Sam still felt a great deal of stress just from what Nino said. He trusted her judgment, of course, but that didn''t stop him from doubting whether it was the right choice or not.
She said that they could no longer choose something different. Does that mean that abandoning the human survivors and escaping on their own wasn''t an option?
He wished she would just exin everything to him. That way maybe he might be able to understand if they were making the right choice or not.
"Doctor¡" Nino spoke again, this time keeping her gaze straight ahead. "I won''t lie and say it''ll all work out..." She paused, watching as Juni''s humongous robot kicked one of the ck giants into the air. "Our victory rests in the hands of those four. If even one of them falls¡"
Even now she was still searching the Tapestry of Fate for a better Path. Unfortunately, there was no stopping time, and with each passing moment an alternative Path is lost to them as they''re forced to walk down the one they had already set themselves on.
The Doctor was their leader and so everyone''s Threads were intertwined with his.
His choices decided what Path they were going to follow, and just a couple of minutes ago Nino had influenced him into choosing one of two.
The first Path was the one Sam had decided on; the Path where he would abandon the human survivors and escape with his Valkyries. Fortunately she managed to deter them from following it just in time, otherwise they would''ve reached a dead end.
The other choice had many Divergences in close session and only one Path leading to the oue they desired. Avoiding the Divergences depends on the actions of the four fighting outside the barrier. If even one of them caves in it would be the end.
"Don''t disappoint me now, everyone!" Nino spoke with a smirk. "I won''t forgive you if you ruin my moment!"
Chapter 236 Black Stone Giants.
?
Trenta leaned down, her hand on the hilt of her sheathed sword. Time seemed to slow down as the ck Giants turned in her direction, but before the red light representing their deadly beam became too bright, she opened her eyes and drew the katana, sending out a white arc that sliced their heads off, the halos decorating them disappearing in a second showing that they were destroyed.
"Not enough¡" she murmured, teleporting away evading a series of beams targeting her. "At this rate¡"
The giants weren''t particrly hard to destroy. Once their barrier gets destroyed, it would take them quite a while to create a new one. Before that happens the Valkyries could destroy them easily. The problem was their size. Without a wide range attack killing multiple at the same time was a difficult task. This could''ve been mitigated by having one of the Valkyries destroy the barrier while another one used a Balder''s Light to destroy the enemy, but with them short on hands that strategy was unachievable.
Not to mention, the ck stone the giants were made of seemed to be the same material as the ants they fought before, which meant they were highly resistant to energy attacks, leaving physical ones the only option.
Trenta''s ability, I Am The Storm, was quite powerful, but its range was too small for a battle of this magnitude. Even if she put all of her focus into a single sh the most she could do was destroy three giants simultaneously, and with it taking time to prepare she couldn''t just go around spamming it.
Dodging another beam, she turned her focus to the others. They were gradually shaving at the number of giants as well but at this rate it was inevitable that some would reach Ichigo''s Transcendent Purge. The mysterious beings looking down at them must''ve realized that, for whatever reason, they couldn''t bypass the pink haired Valkyrie''s ability and so they created the army of giants to do it in their stead.
Thankfully, it didn''t seem that she and the other three had to finish off the entire army alone. All they had to do was hold them back for ten minutes, and that didn''t seem like an impossible task.
"Alright."
Picking the spot from where she wouldunch her next attack, Trenta ced her right hand on the hilt of her sword and readied herself.
A short distance away, a more savage battle was taking ce. An enormous beast was tearing through the marching giants, splitting them with its long glowing ws and ripping them with its sword fangs.
The sabertooth was a violent and brutal being going on a frenzy in the midst of the enemy ranks. Several giants slowed down to surround it, firing their red beams of death at it while it was biting on the head of another giant.
The beast leaped away just in time evading thesers, but its rage could be felt as it prepared for another attack.
On the other side of the battlefield, a blue giant was engaging with the ck one. Its movements were quite nimble for its size, and its speed was too fast for the sluggish ck Giants to follow.
Inside the giant robot, Juni stood inside a sphere that wasrge enough to contain her small frame. Its inner walls were transparent, or it would be more urate to say they were screens disying what was going on outside as seen through the visor of the blue robot''s helmet.
Locking onto the next target, her smile spread wide and she began running. The blue robot replicated the Valkyrie''s exact movements, seemingly undisturbed by thews of physics.
When it seemed like the giant was about to fire a beam at her, Juni leaped forward and slid on the floor of her sphere. Outside, her robot did the same dodging the beam but causing a lot more destruction in the process. Having closed the distance it used its arms to push itself up, kicking the giant then using it as a foothold to jump away.
Spinning around itself, the blue robot stopped in the air facing the giants below it. It held one of its arms out then crossed it with the other creating a plus sign.
Inside the robot, Juni''s smile spread to her eyes as excitement filled her body. As the sensation flowed through her chest, she executed the move she had been looking forward to for quite a while now.
[SUUUPEEEER JUNIII-] pausing for the dramatic effect, she then added [BEAAAAAAAM!!!]
A cross shaped white beam of light shot out of the robot''s forearm hitting one of the giants at the center of its torso. The barriers were already broken so there was nothing stopping it, but as expected an energy attack wasn''t very effective against the ck Stone Giants.
That said, Juni didn''t back down. She continued pouring more and more power into her beam, and though she seemed to be enjoying herself quite a bit, an unsettling doubt and painful regret were tormenting her all the while.
Super Juni Robo was an ability she had developed from her desire to protect those she cared about. After failing to do anything to help B3 and JX9, her wish became to obtain enough power to defeat any enemy that came her way. It was then that the image of the giant robot appeared in her mind. She didn''t understand where it came from, but it was so clear that she instinctively knew she could create it from the first try.
[HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!]
Juni knew right from the start that the robot was iplete, and that itcked a lot of things, but this was all she could do on her own. This was the limit of her ability, so if it couldn''t defeat their enemy using it, there was nothing else she could do. That''s why, without allowing her smile to falter, she continued to fight, giving it her all despite the odds.
The beam might''ve been incapable of destroying the ck Giants, but it packed enough force to push them back, throwing them off bnce and dropping them to the ground.
The blue robot twisted in the air drawing a line across the marching ck Giants. A series of explosions followed it throwing a big portion of the army off bnce, causing some to crumble under the force of the impact and dropping others into the fissures she had previously created.
Juni''s attack dealt a notable blow to the ck Stone Giants, and for a moment the battle seemed to be going in the Valkyries'' favor. Unfortunately, their true enemy wasn''t the marching army, and what happened next reminded them of that.
Another malevolent cry reverberated through the region, and the next moment, the unknown beings in the sky lowered their tentacles to the ground.
Chapter 237 Demons.
?
[... No¡]
Juni''s voice was low. It had a hint of resignation, and a bit of frustration. The others shared her fear and anger as they watched in silence. Sam was losing his hold on his emotions. He gritted his teeth as he fought against the storm raging inside of him, and with each passing second the urge to scream became much and much stronger.
In less than ten seconds, the ck Stone Giants Army replenished all of their losses and even added some more. For every hundred or so of obsidian monstrosities, a different giant stood at the back row. They seemed to be a new type, each one ten timesrger than the rest and much more menacing. Compared to the bulky build of the average ck Giant, their forms were leaner and much more polished with thin arms and torsos. A pair of horns decorated their heads, and instead of the single hole with the red glow they had three.
Sam didn''t like it, and the moment the Demons moved he understood why. Their movements, while still slow, weren''t as sluggish as the rest of the army. He watched them raise their arms over their heads, the red halos crowning them shining with an ominous light.
A cloud of ck dust gathered around each of their hands, solidifying in the span of a few seconds and forming long obsidian spikes.
As the white glow of the barrier breaking Runes covered the spikes, rm bells rang in Sam''s head and he yelled into hismunicator.
"THEY''RE GOING FOR THE DRONES!!!!"
Unfortunately, despite his warning, the Valkyries had very little time to prepare. Each of the Demons stretched its arm back preparing tounch the spikes like gigantic javelins. There were twenty of them. Even if the five maintaining the barrier moved as well, the girls were still not enough to stop what was about to happen.
Fiveunched two arrows destroying the arms of two Demons. CSunched herself at one and managed to force the glowing spike out of its hand. Trenta teleported in front of another one and severed its arm down from the shoulder. Juni kicked one in the head sending it tumbling backward then fired her bean at the one next to pushing it down as well.
Unfortunately, even with all their efforts, six Demons were still able to finish their motions,unching the giant spikes at the abandoned airport. The obsidian thorns covered in the white glow looked like divine spears raining from the sky to smite the enemies of the gods.
Zero Five teleported in the trajectory of one of them, her katana shining with the blue light of her force field. Zero Three moved to block another one, creating a triangr shield hundreds of timesrger than normal.
Venti did the same and so did Triska. Ichigo closed her eyes and clutched her staff, Sitta gritted her teeth and Sam red at the sky.
Nino firmly held her Yari with both hands, and knowing what was about to happen, she braced herself for the impact.
A violent earthquake shook Africa in its entirety. The abandoned airport, along with theva pond surrounding it, was covered in arge cloud of sand and dust. A couple of minutes passed before the aftermath became visible, and to the surprise of the eyes in the sky the barrier and the purged area it protected were still there, the spikesunched by the giants having pierced the ground around them.
Five struck a spike but only managed to deflect its trajectory, the force of the blow shattering her right arm along with her weapon and sending her hurling toward theva pond. Three''s shield held on, but only for a single second. She managed to tilt it a little altering its course but was sent flying as a result. Venti and Triska weren''t so sessful, but they managed to achieve the same result, though they suffered some severe injuries as a result.
Juni was able to deflect one of the spikes at thest moment using her beam, and CS did the unthinkable, blocking one of the spikes by tossing one of the giants at it.
That said, everyone''s efforts would''ve been in vain if not for Sitta''s quick reaction. With the others going out to block the spikes, she was the only one left to keep the barrier protecting the airport active. Even with her skills in barrier creation covering such a wide area was going to be a challenge, and with the spikes being coated in the white glow it seemed only inevitable that they would prate the invisible wall.
Keeping that in mind, she waited until thest second, studying the altered trajectory of the spikes and creating a new barrier with five walls, each of them leaning at a different angle that served to deflect the spikes.
The barrier breaking Runes should''ve rendered her efforts useless, but the orange haired Valkyrie took that into ount, making the barrier smaller than Ichigo''s Transcendent Purge causing the white glow to be cleansed off the spikes before they collided with the barrier.
"Doctor¡" Sitta spoke, smiling as she panted despite having no need for air. "This sex thing the others keep talking about¡ it better be worth it, you hear me?"
"Ah¡" Sam let out the breath he held, only to grimace when he saw what was happening in the distance. "Once we make it back home, I will make sure each one of you has the best night of her life."
The ck Stone Giants began marching.
The tentacles came down once more. This time they seemed to repair the broken Demons instead of creating another batch. Once they were back in one piece the giant demons raised their arms and new spikes began to form in their hands.
Five was severely injured. The same went for Venti and Triska. Three had to quickly go around and pick them up before they melted in theva pond. CS, Juni and Trenta were doing their best to take down as many Demons as they could, but there was only so much they could do.
Just as he gave in to the despair and was about to admit defeat, Sam heard Nino''s voice, her tone so rxed it almost seemed like the current situation didn''t affect her at all.
"Just to be clear, Doctor-" She turned to him with a smile, winking as a reddish color spread on her cheeks. "Next is my turn, okay?"
Behind her, something shed in the distance, and the next moment, the entire army of ck Stone Giants exploded, huge globes of fire swallowing them as the horizon was painted in their orange color.
The sound reached the airport a secondter followed by the shockwave resulting from hundreds of simultaneous explosions. The violent tremors dwarfed anything that came before, forcing Sam and the others to kneel down just so they wouldn''t tumble and fall.
Everyone was confused about what happened, but when the light faded and the dust settled down, they all looked up and saw it:
An army of Angels slowly descending from the sky.
Chapter 238 Can You Handle The Rest.
?
Sam was speechless, his eyes torn open as he gazed up at the red sky.
At first, he thought it was just a flock of birds with some rather colorful wings, but with his vision zoomed in on them he soon understood who had just bombarded the Army of ck Stone Giants.
With their brilliant wings spread wide and their halos shining over their heads, the Angels descended on the ck Stone Devils and their army. One of them took the vanguard, diving faster than the rest. Lightning gradually enveloped her body until she turned into a single massive bolt, and the sound of thunder crackled through the sky as its light shed in the distance.
"STORMBREAKER-" reaching the halfway point to the ground, the bolt suddenly shot down at light speed. "BLITZ!!!"
The tremendous bolt of lightning fell straight on one of the Demons, shattering it in an instant. The shockwave from the impact hurled the surrounding giant as if they were insignificant pebbles, and the tendrils of electrical energy mmed into them, shattering their stone bodies despite their high resistance to energy attacks.
A smile spread on Sam''s face as he recognized the person behind the massive lightning attack. Flying out of the dust cloud and spreading her wings once more, with her armored body still enveloped in lightning, Mj?lnir retracted her helmet and allowed her short silver hair to flow along the violent wind. She immediately turned her gaze toward the pink dome at the center of the mayhem, and a secondter, an expression of pure joy took over her as her eyes met Sam''s.
"Doctor!"
Even with such a long distance between them, Sam felt himself making eye contact with the silver haired Nephilim. A sense of relief washed over him and he almost lost bnce, but before he could fall over Nino teleported to his side and helped support him. After taking a moment to regain hisposure, he noticed a small window in the corner of his vision saying that hismunicator had picked a familiar signal.
"Took you long enough." He said, raising the small device to his mouth.
[Doctor!] Mj?lnir''s voice came in. [It''s really you! What are you doing here!!?]
"Is that really a question to ask?" He replied with a weak chuckle.
[Right! Mimir said you woulde to investigate since we didn''t show up on time!] Pausing for a moment, a loud scream suddenly came from her side. [GYAAAAA!!!! WHAT IN THE WORLD IS THAT!!!?]
Sam could tell that she had just noticed the otherworldly giant eyes in the sky. Since they seemed to be peeking in from a gap in the fabric of space, he had guessed that the Nephilim couldn''t see them from the angle they arrived from.
"Mj?lnir, how many Cleansers do you have on your side?"
[Cleansers? Ah! You mean those with Purification abilities?] She asked. [We have plenty! They''re in the back though, since, you know, they aren''t really useful inbat!]
Her voice was drowned by the sound of lightning as she went back to battle; the surviving Stone Giants weren''t going to just let her stand there. The recurring loud impacts audible through themunicator suggested that she had taken out her hammer and was going around smashing boulders.
"You saw those things above, right?" Sam said. "I don''t know what they''re, but it seems they can''t handle the special Force Field the Cleansers create. I want you to tell everyst one on your side to prepare themselves. We will need their power to stop those things before they replenish the ranks of their army."
[I¡ don''t really get it but roger that!] Mj?lnir eximed. [Tell the Cleansers to prepare for a wide area Purge, is that it?]
"Yes. Guard them very well. The Eyes might try to target them if they notice their presence."
Ever since they first appeared, the giant eyes had kept their focus on Ichigo and ignored everyone else. Her Transcendent Purge was what prevented their tentacles from reaching whatever they were after and so Sam concluded that they would prioritize eliminating anyone else with the same ability, paying no mind to the others as if they didn''t register as a threat.
[Roger that!] The sound of fierce battle continued before the connection ended. Sam took one more look at the battle before turning to Nino who was still holding onto his arm and supporting his weight.
"Is this¡ is this the surprise you were preparing?" He asked the Japanese doll.
"Yup." Nino smirked. "Everything should go smoothly from here on so you can rx." She turned her sight to pink haired Valkyrie beside them next. "Ah! Ichigo, this might be a bit rough on you, but could you hold on for a few more minutes?"
Ichigo had to look up at Nino, having fallen to her knees from the pressure of the mysterious eyes gazing down at her. Her face was somewhat pale, and if it weren''t for the fact that Valkyries didn''t sweat at all, she would''ve been drenched at the moment after all the stress she was going through.
"Okay¡ got it¡" she said after a moment then closed her eyes and inhaled a deep breath.
"Doctor!" Three''s sudden call drew their attention to the ne where their equipment was loaded. She had teleported there after helping the others who went out to block the Demons'' spikes, and from the looks of it she was the only one still conscious.
Zero Five seemed to be in pretty bad shape and the other two appear to have sustained quite some damage. Though he wanted to see how the battle would y out, Sam quickly sealed his emotions once more and moved to do his job.
"I''m fine now." He said as he propped himself up. "I''ll go help the others. Can you handle the rest?"
Nino stared at him for a moment, wondering if he really was okay. He realized that wiping his face clean of expressions didn''t help his Valkyries rx and so, while cing a hand on her head, he allowed a genuine smile to return to his face.
"You did great." He said. "I owe you a big time."
"Fufu~ well, if you say that~" Nino''s cheeks flushed as she allowed herself to enjoy the head pat. "I''ll be looking forward to our first night~<3"
Chapter 239 The Angels.
?
Just as Sam left to treat the injured Valkyries, the Nephilim army began making its move. Some of them conjured their weapons and coated them in their force field, going ahead first. The few left behind began constructing a number of much moreplex creations;rge aircrafts and battleships, giant monsters and beasts, then there were the robots. Lots and lots of robots.
[WAHOOOO!!!!] Juni''s excited exmation came from her blue robot as it craned its neck to watch the spectacle above. She had to quickly retreat to avoid being caught in the fire, but as the Nephilim began wreaking havoc through the ck Stone Army she began to feel the need to rejoin the battle herself.
"We can''t let them take all the glory, can we?"
When she heard the voice, the blue giant turned its head and faced the speaker. Trenta was there, floating beside it with a smirk on her face.
[Let''s go!]
Even before Juni made her decision, the enormous white sabertooth had already charged at the Stone Giants with renewed vigor.
[Damn you Nephilim!] Came CS''s angry voice. [Don''t steal my prey!!!]
Having noticed that their initial bombardment wasn''t as effective as they had expected, the Nephilim chose physical weapons for the second wave of attacks. Their movements were quite coordinated. First came a shower of arrows that shattered the Stone Giants'' barriers like thin ss, then a rain of spears followed drilling holes into the enemies and tearing off their limbs.
The normal Giants fired their beams, but none of them were able to damage the ships and aircrafts raining fire on them from above. The Demons triedunching their spikes at them but were incapacitated in a matter of seconds. Multiple beasts stabbed them with their fangs and ws while the giant robots crashed into them before using various weapons to render them into piles of rock.
As the battle raged on, a great number of drones began moving in the background following after a number of Nephilim. Among them some seemed to be carrying staves much like the one Ichigo was holding, although with different colors.
In order to avoid getting caught in the fighting they had to circle around the battlefield, but their real reason for doing so, as well as why they had lowered the output of their Force Fields to the bare minimum, was that they didn''t want to draw the attention of the mysterious giant eyes, having heard that the Cleansers were the prime target of those monstrosities.
[Doctor!] Mj?lnir''s voice came in through themunicator. [The Cleansers are ready!]
"Great." Nino said. "Tell them to wait for my signal."
[Eh!? Who are you!!? Where is Doctor!!?]
"He''s tending to the injured." Nino replied, her smug smile spreading even further. "As for who I am, I''m Doctor''s lover and Personal Valkyrie! He leftmanding this operation to me!"
[You''re what now!?] The crackling of thunder resounded for a few seconds before she spoke again. [I guess he already has his hands full. Anyway, I will connect you with the Cleansers now. They aren''t used to fighting, you know. I wanted the Doctor to tell them something so they would stop freaking out but¡]
"Just leave it to me." Nino said.
[Oookay, got it.]
A couple of secondster a beeping sound came from themunicator Sam left in Nino''s hands. Looking at the screen she saw that forty new contacts have been forwarded to it, the number of Nephilim with Cleansing type abilities she was expecting. Smiling to herself, she held the device up and spoke in a steady and confident voice.
"This is Nino, I will bemanding this operation from here on." Pausing for a moment, she raised her gaze and looked up at the giant eyes above. "Everyone, I''m sure you''ve already deduced that the enemy we''re up against is unlike anything we''ve ever faced before, so I will spare you the details. All you need to know is that it''s impossible for us to defeat it right now."
She could practically feel the color draining from the Cleansers'' faces at that moment, and that forced a chuckle out of her despite her sharing their feelings.
"Don''t worry. Our objective isn''t to kill it." She said. "All we have to do is scare it away. That shouldn''t be too difficult to do."
Through her memories as Lachesis and the information she obtained from peeking at the Tapestry of Fate, Nino was able to learn a few things about their enemy. For one, though the multiple eyes made it seem like they were fighting multiple entities, the truth was that all of them were a part of a bigger whole. Their real form was on an entirely different ne of existence, and at the current moment it didn''t seem to have the power to cross to the ne they were on. Because of that, she expected the entity to retreat the moment it felt that its life was in danger.
''Well, I doubt it''s one of the Outer Gods¡'' Nino thought to herself. ''A little burn should be enough to scare it away¡''
"Are the drones in their ce?" She asked.
[Y-yes!] Came a voice from themunicator, its owner appearing to have a really bad time keeping herposure. [We have surrounded them¡ it from all sides.]
By focusing her eyes Nino was able to see several dots spread evenly across the crimson sky. She silentlymended the Nephilim for doing exactly what she wanted without her having to say anything then spoke into themunicator once more.
"Wait for my signal. We only get one shot at this. Don''t mess it up."
[U-understood!]
The sound of battle was gradually fading. The number of red beams decreased as more and more Stone Giants fell to the Nephilim''s assault, and by now everyst Demon was destroyed, leaving behind smashed statues held in ce by the spikes they used as support while facing the onught from the ruthless Angels.
Even though she was already aware of the exact moment she should give the signal, the fear brought on her by the possibility of failure was unbearable. Victory wasn''t the only thing she was after. Her aim was a wless one, a path where neither herrades nor the Nephilim die. Unfortunately, even if she times everything right, luck yed a big part in the final Divergence. It was impossible topletely control Fate, and most of the time, the number of Threads and variables involved caused the oue to be decided by pure luck. There was no guaranteed way to obtain the oue she desired in this situation, but even so, Nino refused to give up.
''C''mon now¡'' she thought, tightening her grip on the Needle as the real world marched toward the point of Divergence. ''Stay on the Path¡''
Chapter 240 Divergence.
?
Evading the red beam fired in her direction, Trenta drew her de and sliced the Stone Giant''s. She immediately moved away just in time as a squadron of Nephilim came down with their swords and spears hacking at it until it was nothing but a pile of rocks.
While they were perfectly in sync in their assault, she couldn''t help but feel they were purposefully ignoring her presence, going after her targets instead of choosing others.
''Ah!...'' she suddenly came to the realization. ''Am I the nuisance in this case?''
She looked around her and studied the rest of the battlefield. Unlike her friends, she was the only one without a gigantic creation of some sort. Juni''s robot and CS''s Sabertooth were easy to spot and no one bothered to get in their way. Even the ships and aircrafts up above avoided the areas they were in, recognizing them as allies and not getting in their way.
She on the other hand was all alone. The Nephilim, those fighting with normal abilities and weapons, showed smoothness and high level coordination, owing to the fact that they were a trained army. Her movements didn''t match theirs causing her to be the hindrance, getting in their way and stealing their kills.
''Maybe I should look somewhere else¡''
She considered just kicking back and leaving the work for everyone else, but the idea was tossed right away as she couldn''t bring herself to do it. The battle was far from over. Just because the Nephilim showed up, it doesn''t mean their victory was guaranteed.
''I hope those things don''t spawn anything new¡''
Thest time she and her friends dealt a lot of damage to the Stone Giants army not only did the alien beings above replenish their ranks but they spawned the Demons as well. With how powerful they were, she expected the next new types to be much more difficult to deal with. They knew nothing about the limits of the eyes in the sky, and as long as they were up there, there was a high likelihood that the battle could keep going until All Valkyries and Nephilim were defeated.
[I hope your n works, Nino¡]
Trenta''s concerned voice arrived through themunicator, but the Japanese doll didn''t respond. She continued observing the battle and waiting, focusing on the movements in her field of vision and trying to sync them to what she witnessed on the path she saw on the Tapestry of Fate.
The number of Stone Giants has dwindled quite a bit. An enormous humanoid lizard bit the head off of one before mming another with its tail. A different beast created by a Nephilim was ripping and crushing the ck giants with its tremendous jaws, this one looked a lot more animalistic and mechanical, like a giant robotic dinosaur. To the left a simr one was dashing around, stabbing its three horns into anything blocking its way like a mad bull. Looking up Nino saw what she thought was an aircraft making a free dive toward the enemy, but upon closer inspection it turned out to be another type of reptile, although this one had wings.
With each passing second, another Stone Giant was destroyed. In a matter of minutes, the army that had surrounded the airport, casting a shadow of death on the Valkyries and their Doctor, was rendered into nothing but gravel. Only a few were left, and Nino held themunicator up preparing to give the signal as she looked at thest titan to be destroyed before the Ancient Horror looking down on them moved to create a new army.
A bolt of lightning smashed into the Stone Giant shattering it to pieces, but what followed was nothing but an eeriely cold silence.
''... Huh?'' Nino''s eyes slowly widened. ''Why isn''t it-''
Her thoughts crashed to a halt as a devastating cry shook both heaven and earth. She looked up and the horror wing at her suddenly grew stronger, her stomach dropping as she watched the tear in space steadily grow wider.
It shouldn''t have been possible. They were too far from the crimson tower and the ritual had yet to bepleted. The monstrosity shouldn''t have the power to cross, and the nes should still be separate from each other.
''Why...'' Nino thought, her breath bing strained. ''Why is it crossing over already!?''
The Ancient Horror was attempting to invade their ne of existence. It tore through the fabric of space and was slowly pushing itself through the hole. This didn''t happen in the future she had envisioned. There was no such Divergence in the path she had had observed and yet it was happening right in front of her eyes.
''What should I do?'' she thought, the hand holding her Yari shaking. ''This wasn''t supposed to happen¡''
The Fallen, which had been silent for a while now, suddenly began screaming and screeching. Ichigo recoiled at their outburst. They were still targeting her, their eyes burning with hatred as they spilled tears of blood.
The Ancient''s influence was getting stronger by the moment and Nino was slowly panicking. She had to make a decision and fast; should she give the signal to activate the Purge? Or should she gaze at the Tapestry of Fate once more to see the possible oues? Would the second choice even change anything? Time was running out, and the Ancient Horror had already shown its ability to create Divergences and forge Paths different from the one they were currently traversing. Once it crosses over to their ne, nothing she does will have any effect. The path will be set and it''ll only lead to their doom. She had overestimated her ability to manipte the Threads, and because of that, Fate decided it was time for her to pay for daring to mess with its work.
It was hopeless. Even if it wasn''t one of the Outer Gods, their enemy was still an Ancient. It should''ve been obvious that nothing she did would result in their victory. Their demise was set in stone, and even if she tried to walk down a different Path, Fate will weave its Tapestry to ensure she couldn''t escape.
"What are you doing!?"
Just as she was about to resign herself, themunicator she held slipping away, and an angry voice yelled at her from behind before a cold hand wrapped around hers.
Looking behind her, Nino saw the Doctor gazing down at her with an equally paleplexion.
"Doc-"
"Just do it!!!"
With the order shattering every ounce of doubt she had, Nino felt herself regaining the absolute confidence she had before. She brought themunicator to her mouth and, with a mocking grin spreading across her face as she gazed at the Ancient Horror, she yelled with everything she got.
"NOW!!!"
Chapter 241 Dont Worry.
?
[NOW!!!]
Although they were starting to panic, watching the holes in space spread wider and the alien monstrosity enter their world, the Cleansers reacted instantly upon hearing the signal activating their halos and Force Fields in perfect unison.
In a fraction of a second, the drones linked together to form a single globe that enveloped the entire battlefield, the colors of each Nephilim merging into a pure white wave that washed over everything inside.
The world once again trembled at the wretched scream of the Ancient Horror. The pain it suffered was clear, and though inaudible, anyone listening could tell the alien entity was spewing curses at them as its anger burned along with the flesh of its tentacles and its eyes.
"C''mon¡" Nino gritted his teeth. "Just go away¡"
"Don''t worry." Sam said. "We aren''t going to lose this."
The Japanese doll looked up at him once more, surprised by his newly found confidence. Not that long ago he was about to abandon the fight and attempt to escape, but now he was so sure of their victory that he wasn''t afraid to look the Ancient right in the eye. His expression didn''t have the nkness left by his suppressed emotions. At longst he finally seemed to regain hope of their survival and he was able to rx his expression as if the battle was already over.
As the Wide Range Purge ate at its limbs, the alien entity refused to give up and continued spreading the hole in the fabric of space. Even if the Purge was incredibly effective against it, the monster would still survive as long as it managed to cross to their ne. Even with an area of effect asrge as that, the Wide Range Purge couldn''t hope to epass the entirety of the Ancient''s true form. The wounds it caused would be nothing more than a scar once the entity gets a hold on them and with its natural enemies dealt with it could finally turn its eyes to the Apostles who have heeded its mad call.
Smoke continued to rise from the searing lumps of flesh and the Ancient felt its hold on the hole in space weaken. In a desperate attempt, it lowered its tentacles and tried to create a new army hoping to buy some time and maybe destroy the wretched creatures daring to stand against it. Unfortunately, hundreds of Angels were at the ready, holding their weapons and preparing to strike it now that they were done with the obsidian Stone Giants.
[TAKE THIS!!!] Juni yelled as she fired her cross shaped beam. Beside her, six Nephilim moved their own mechanical creations, each modeled after one of the now extinct giant reptiles. As they stood in a single line with three on each of her sides, they all opened their jaws and shot their own beams striking the tentacles before they could summon their Runes.
Following their examples, the rest of the Nephilim switched to using energy weapons in order to stop the Ancient from creating any more Stone Giants. The ships above fired their turrets while the beasts and robots on the ground used their cannons. The Angels formed rifles and sters then rained fire on the alien being. Though the eyes themselves seemed to be able to negate anything thrown at them, the disgusting tentacles weren''t covered with that ability so everyone focused the bombardment on them.
"--------------!!!!"
Another wrathful cry shook the Earth. The damage caused by the Wide Range Purge was starting to show on the Ancient Horror, with burn marks eroding its illogically enormous eyes and its tentacles rapidly shriveling to half their size. Unable to withstand the purifying Force anymore, the Ancient Horror retreated into the hole they came from, the fabric of space gradually repairing itself as the hateful cry echoed until it waspletely gone.
In a matter of seconds the sky returned to normal. Even though it had yet to regain its natural blue color, the fact that it was clear once again was enough for everyone to believe that despite the odds they really did manage to im victory.
[We¡ we did it¡] The silence was broken by a very loud whispering from Juni''s giant blue robot. A momentter, it raised its fists high as her excited voice announced [WE DID IT!!!!!]
Cheers erupted all over the battlefield the next moment followed by the howls and roars of the giant beasts. The ships above fired a few rounds into the sky in celebration and the white globe slowly faded as the Cleansers and their drones were finally able to release the strain.
"Good work, everyone." Nino spoke into themunicator, having received Sam''s permission to announce the end of the battle. "I believe we have survived the worst of it. You can rx now, but don''t let your guard down."
She went on to ask for a few Cleansers toe down to the abandoned airport so they could take Ichigo''s ce and keep the Fallen from acting up. The pink haired Valkyrie was at her limits, appearing to have gone sick from exhaustion despite it being impossible for a Valkyrie.
The festivities went on until Three spotted arge battleship slowly making its way toward them. Thankfully it was just the temporary base of the Nephilim, the only thing they managed to escape with after the Olympians took over their base. "Doctor!"
The moment she arrived at the airport, Mj?lnir came running toward Sam, her hands stretched out with her eyes tearing up. Three and Nino stepped in to block her way, but to everyone''s surprise Sam gave the Nephilim his permission so without hesitation she threw herself into his arms and cried in his embrace.
The young Valkyries watched the scene with restrained jealousy, but when Sam gave them a wry smile as he slowly caressed the Nephilim''s silver hair the two gave in and let them be, at least until Juni showed up and asked to be hugged next. For the next hour or so the Valkyries took turns to enjoy Sam''s embrace, and to his even CS participated wanting to know what''s all the buzz about.
Sam had already released his hold on his emotions. He was holding on pretty well at first, but as each Valkyrie hugged him tightly, he felt the storm of emotions raging inside his chest leading to tears of happiness spilling out like a waterfall. The lucky one to be in his arms when that happened was Zero Three, and as everyone watched her each with a different expression, she let a smile y on her lips while gentlyforting him.
Chapter 242 Its A Bit Frustrating.
?
While tending to the injured Valkyries the day ended before he knew it. By the time Sam came out of the ne the humans who had lost consciousness were starting to wake up. Fortunately, the whispers of madness didn''t seem to be affecting them anymore, but just in case he had the Nephilim Cleansers take turns using their ability to avoid any more Fallen from appearing.
Speaking of the Fallen, all of them were restrained, drugged and put to sleep. The Nephilim were surprised to learn that there were humans who survived the war from two decades ago, but thankfully none of them seemed to react negatively to their presence, even offering to help keep an eye on them to allow the Valkyries to rest.
After all the horror they had to go through the survivors didn''t have the energy to think too much about the Angels being there. Most of them went back to sleep, still exhausted after everything that happened. When they woke up the next time they immediately began tending to their deceasedrades. All of them unanimously agreed to keep the mourning for ater time. The crisis has yet to end so there was no point in crying over anyone''s death just yet.
Despite it being nighttime the sky still glowed red. The crimson tower was visible in the distance, looking like a thin line reaching into the depths of space with no end in sight. As everyone else prepared food and spoke of the day''s battle, Nino was on her own, sitting away from the others as she gazed at the stars above.
In her hand she held her Yari, having transformed it into its Needle form. Hearing the sound of footsteps she turned to look behind her. She had recognized who it was even before that, however it didn''t stop her from hurrying to meet his gaze happy that he left everything toe and check on her.
"How are you doing?" Sam asked, stopping right beside her.
"Better than ever, I guess." She said with a shrug.
"You¡ your memories have returned, right?"
There was a moment of silence, but then a long sigh escaped Nino, a bit of disappointment making its way into her voice as she spoke the truth.
"Sadly, turns out I''m recalling less than I initially expected. I can''t even remember how I died."
"... I see¡"
"It''s a bit frustrating, you know?" She went on. "I remember being a brilliant scientist, but none of that knowledge made it to this life."
"Seriously?" Sam couldn''t help but grimace.
"Yeah. I was probably on a much higher level than even you."
"Such a waste¡" letting out a sigh, he slowly shook his head. "Let''s just hope you remember more over time."
"About that¡ I doubt it
will happen¡" Nino let her gaze fall, searching her mind for something. "It''s already a miracle that I was able to remember so much. Reincarnation is supposed to wipe one''s Soul clean. It''s the reason why resurrecting the dead is a pointless endeavor."
"You sure? I mean, your very existence proves that wrong."
"Yeah, that''s why I said I probably won''t remember much more." She said with a sigh. "Odin''s clone, the one calling herself Loki. She was the one behind my appearance, right? Extracting that much from what''s supposed to be the soul of a newborn, that alone is a feat unheard of even in the higher realms. As far as I remember, of course. Maybe there is something special about everyone born from Freyja?"
Right now, Sam didn''t want to think too much about the possibility of other Valkyries regaining memories from their past lives. A total change of personality is to be expected, and their goals might not align. It would be idiotic to expect them to turn out the same as Nino, and he couldn''t guarantee that they would remain loyal to him once that happens.
Most Nephilim and Valkyries were created using the designs Wolf came up with during his weeb days. He could have the old man check each and every one of them to figure out who had an appearance he didn''t design, but that didn''t necessarily mean they were the only ones who were messed with.
Sam began to understand that Shizuru was most likely a much bigger threat than he previously thought. If she''s capable of things that boggled higher realm scientists then there is no telling what else she could do.
''Could it be¡'' he thought to himself. ''Did she regain her memories as well? Is that why she decided to rebel?''
"Say¡" Nino spoke after a while, cutting his line of thought. "I didn''t tell you anything about the future I saw. How did you know that I would fail at the very end?" She paused for a moment then added. "I don''t even know how you guessed I was able to do it in all that chaos."
"Haha, anyone could tell just by looking at the situation." Sam heaved a sigh, still smiling. He then turned his gaze to the red sky above before speaking again. "I realized the future you predicted might not be the one we end up with. I mean, this isn''t the first time things turn out differently from what we were promised, remember?"
Sam had already given up on the idea of messing with Fate to obtain the oue he desired. Being informed about things before they happen was bound to be useful, but Fate had already proven its readiness to weave a different Path soon after someone took a peek at its Tapestry. Relying on future sight blinded them to other possibilities, and because of that they almost ended up dead. If they were still going to make use of it, they would have to be prepared for sudden changes like thest time.
The two continued to discuss other things for a while, but at some point Sam decided it was time for them to get some rest since they had a long day ahead of them. He was about to walk away, but then he was stopped by something pulling on his sleeve. When he turned around, he saw that it was Nino, her blushing face making her intentions clear from the get go.
"Um¡ Doctor, you see¡" she paused for a moment, fidgeting in her ce as she tried to gather the courage to say what was on her mind. "I¡ when I was Lachesis, I never got to experience¡ love¡" her face became redder with each word that came out of her mouth, however she didn''t stop, doing her best to convey what she desired. "We''re going to be really busy from now and¡ the worst might still happen, you know¡"
Even though he already understood what she was trying to say, Sam still kept his silence, enjoying the young maiden''s struggle to make her request.
"I¡ I want to be with you at least once¡ before we head out¡"
Nino thought that all of it was weird. In such a situation, the one thing she should be feeling is the fast beating of her heart, however due to her bodycking the organ all she felt was a strong sense of warmth in her chest. She didn''t hate it at all, even though she wished she could experience a more normal romance. But nothing was normal about her current situation, and the faster she epts that fact the sooner she manages to obtain happiness.
Sam remained silent for a moment then looked around them, checking if they were being watched. It was obvious that some of the other Valkyries were keeping an eye on them, but thankfully they seemed to have read the mood and kept their distance. Nevertheless, there was no way to tell how they would react if they knew what he was about to do so he wanted to be a little more discreet while granting the Japanese doll''s wish.
"The¡ the trucks we rode in on the way here¡ they had some pretty good beds, right?"
A few secondster, Sam and Nino disappeared from the abandoned airport.
Chapter 243 Roleplay.
?
The trucks the Sanctuary survivors used to reach the abandoned airport were some pretty good vehicles. In addition to their solid armor and strong engines they were also equipped with everything needed for a long journey.
The beds, although small, were quitefortable. The trip wasn''t that long so Sam only tried them once, but now he was about to make use of them for a purpose.
When he arrived inside his designated truck along with Nino, he immediately picked up the Japanese doll and ced her on the bed. His swift action left her even more flustered, and when he gazed at her while shey down on her back she looked away bashfully.
Nino''s Asian appearance was perfect, and her clothes, which were designed after the famous sailor uniform worn by Japanese school girls, made her look like a real anime character.
Her cuteness urged him to move and in a second Sam took off hisb coat and climbed on top of her.
"Nino¡" he spoke to her, waiting for their eyes to meet. "You''re so cute¡"
Nino''s cheeks flushed even more as she moved to meet his gaze. Seeing his face so close to hers, the warmth in her heart grew stronger and she closed her eyes, puckering her lips and waiting.
Sam kissed her on the mouth, carefully enjoying the softness of her lips. He didn''t let the first onest for long, and when he noticed the Valkyrie rx afterward, he began making out with her, their kissing bing more passionate with each passing second.
''Ah¡'' Nino thought to herself, unconsciously moving her arms and wrapping them around his neck. ''So this is love¡''
Though her memories as Lachesis werecking, one thing she was certain about was that she never got to love someone in her past life. She didn''t know the reason, but neither she nor her sisters had any kind of romantic rtionship, not even a one sided crush, though she knew for a fact that they stole the hearts of many men back then.
Who could''ve known that it would take dying and reincarnating for her to find the one. As she savored that blissful moment, the happiness she felt was unlike anything she had experienced before. She wanted to put her feelings into words, but then she realized how embarrassing it was realizing she wasn''t ready to admit it.
''I love him¡'' she thought. ''I really do¡ but¡''
It was simply too much for her at the moment. They were about to have sex so a little confession shouldn''t be much of a problem. In fact inviting him to do it should''ve been much more embarrassing and she was able to do that. Why was she so reluctant to do it? It took her a few seconds to find out.
She remembered the first time she tried to seduce him and how he turned the tables on her with ease. It was then that the first spark was ignited in her heart and ever since he always had the upper hand on her. She remembered the fantasy she had the day before, the one about them having a daughter and being a happy family.
''Ah! Now I get it¡''
Though she enjoyed the way he made her feel, it frustrated her that he was always so calm when dealing with her. It might be because he had much more experience, but just thinking about it made her a little angry. To her he was someone special, the man she was in love with, but to him she was just another Valkyrie, one of the hundreds making up his own harem.
The more she thought about it the angrier she got. Sam had no shortage of beautiful women around him. If he decided to have a new one each day, months would pass before he gets with the same Valkyrie again.
She was still in the safe since he only sleeps with his personal Valkyries at the moment, but she knew it wouldn''t take long for him to expand. The twelve he brought with him on this mission are already the next in line. If she yed nicely and let everyone have their turn it would be quite a while before she gets to be with him again, and that didn''t sit well with her.
''I need to do something¡'' she thought. ''I need to make sure he sees me differently from the others¡''
Nino''s slender body shivered as Sam slowly slid his hand into her skirt. He was about to enjoy the sensation of the smooth skin of her thighs, but then the Japanese doll suddenly pushed him away.
Sam was frozen, almost as if a bolt of lightning had hit him. Nino was looking away, still holding her hands up to keep him at a distance. Her lips were tightly pursed, and she had tears in the corners of her eyes. He saw her body slightly trembling, and for a moment she seemed like a frightened little girl, not the proud and powerful Valkyrie he always knew.
"Y-yamete kudasai, Sensei!"
It would be an understatement to say that he was bbergasted, and it took quite a bit of willpower to not burst outughing. Sam instantly realized what the young Valkyrie wanted to do, and so, following after her he replied in Japanese as well.
[What''s wrong?] He said with a smile. [Are you having second thoughts?]
The fluency with which he spoke surprised Nino, but she thought that it was only normal that he could speak thenguage. A scientist on his level would have mastered a secondnguage or two at some point.
[This is wrong¡] The act was quite humiliating, but the embarrassment she felt only helped her improve, making every word, every action strangely natural. [We shouldn''t be doing this¡ I¡ I''m your student¡]
Even before her memories returned Nino had learned about how the uniform worn by the Valkyries was based on the Japanese sailor uniform, or serafuku as they call it. She understood that, despite its simplicity, it was quite a stylish garment, and since she had the appearance closest to a Japanese teenage girl she realized it suited her perfectly.
Later she learned about how Japanese school girls were fetishized in various mediums. Lusting after young girls was nothing new among male humans, and with how youthful Japanese women looked even when they became adults, simply donning a school uniform was enough to make them an irresistible allure.
Nino understood that she had a really great card to y. She already knew that the Doctor had no qualms about being with Zero Three and Miku, both of whom looked dangerously young, and so she decided to lean in on that side of him hoping it would have a positive impact.
[... Is that so¡] Sam continued to smile, having understood what role he yed in this act. [But, Nino, how am I supposed to resist a cute girl like you?] He gently brushed some strands of her long raven hair. [You know I''ve been looking forward to this moment, don''t you?]
[Sensei¡] she said, looking at him with upturned, glistering eyes. [C-calling me cute won''t get you anywhere! I already know you tell that to the others!]
Sam let out a chuckle.
[Are you jealous, perhaps?]
[N-no! That''s not¡] pausing for a moment, the young Valkyrie moved her hands away from his chest then covered her face. [I¡ I know you''ve been sleeping with other students in secret¡ I¡ I think it''s cruel¡ using our emotions and toying with us like that¡]
[Toying with you?] Despite knowing it was an act, Sam still felt that there was some genuine concern in what she was saying. [I would never-]
[Don''t lie!] Nino suddenly shouted. [I¡ I know you don''t actually love me¡ You just want to use me like you did with the others, and once you''re done¡]
"Nino¡"
Chapter 244 Greed.
Chapter 244 Greed.
Nino''s words struck Sam at a very sensitive ce. He felt exposed, and his chest was filled with a strong sense of disgust directed at none other than himself.
It was true that he did at one point consider the Valkyries as nothing more than ythings. Back then he was under the belief that they were nothing but robots, and ones created for the sexual pleasure of men at that. He didn''t care about their feelings and just wanted to toy with them as he wished, but a lot of things have changed since then.
[... So you''re jealous after all, huh, Nino?...]
"Eh?"
His desire to sleep with the Valkyries was still as strong as it was back when he couldn''t even dream ofying a finger on them. Now that he was in a position to ess each and every one of them, he nned on using that privilege to its limits.
It would be hypocritical of him to say that he was now a changed man, and that he could love everyst Valkyrie all the same when there are hundreds of them if he included the Nephilim.
Just the other day he promised himself that he would enjoy each of the Valkyries that went with him on this mission. He had no intention of holding back, and once they returned home he would indulge himself as much as his heart desired.
[Nino, do you hate it when I''m with other girls?] He asked.
Nino didn''t answer and only stared at him for a while. It was indeed her intention, but now that their little act had led to a real concern of hers she found herself giving more thought to her answer.
[I¡ I hate it¡] she said. [Sensei already has me! You don''t need any of the others!]
[Is that so¡] Sam caressed her cheek then slowly leaned toward her, and with small smile on his lips he whispered. [You''re quite greedy, aren''t you, Nino?]
He sealed her mouth before she could reply, and for a few seconds he enjoyed her struggle to stop the kiss. After a while the young just gave up and closed her eyes, choosing to enjoy it while itsted.
"Ah!"
When he finally let go of her lips Sam moved to her neck, kissing it gently before licking it a little. Nino''s moans were somewhat adorable, and the way she squirmed when he slipped his hand under her shirt helped turn him on even further.
As he was touching her skin directly, Sam guessed that she had removed her battle suit even before they had that conversation earlier. It meant that she intended on asking him to spend the night with her from the start and he was d he had epted her request despite having little time on their hands.
[You see, Nino, I''m a greedy man myself¡]
"Ahh~?!!"
Sam spoke as his hand massaged the small bumps on her chest, and Nino stopped wasting her time at trying to suppress her gasps and moans, instead putting her focus on every word he said.
[I have a lot of beautiful students ¨CValkyries¨C and I can''t help but want all of them for myself¡]
[Sen¡ hah¡ Sensei~? ¨CDoctor¨C¡ ahhn~~?
]
[I''m sorry but¡ I can''t be with you alone¡ but¡] pushing himself up, he looked down at the young Valkyrie, her shoulders moving up and down along with herbored breaths. [If you want me to spend more time with you, then all you have to do is show more results¡]
[Re¡sults?] She asked, looking at him with hazy eyes.
[You still have your reward from the other day, remember?] Pausing for a moment, Sam switched to English, conveying that what he was saying wasn''t just a part of the act. "I will take special care of those who put in the effort. If you want to be with me more, all you have to do is stand out."
Sam''s desire to sleep with the Valkyries wasn''t one sided. He knew that eventually each one of them would want to have her turn, and since he had no intention of sharing them with anyone else he would have to take care of their desires all by himself.
He needed to create some sort of system to ensure that things wouldn''t be unfair. And that''s where the position of a Personal Valkyriees in. Those who wish to be with him have to show their potential during missions, and if their wish was to serve him further then they would be granted the position. A rotation would allow each one of them to have a go every once in a while, and in case that wasn''t enough, they would have topete for more time with him.
Of course he would still pick any Valkyrie that suits his fancy whenever he wants, even if she hadn''t proved herself, but those with the title will be granted priority.
[I knew it...] Nino said, pouting. [In the end¡ hah¡ in the end you''re going to treat me the same¡ as the others¡. In your eyes I''m¡ hahh¡ I''m not special at all¡]
At that moment Sam felt a hint of annoyance. He understood that, no matter what he said, the Japanese doll would never change her position. He doesn''t me her for feeling the way she does, but what she wants from him is directly against his own desires. He didn''t want to think that way, but in the end he simply couldn''t give up on all of the other Valkyries just to be with one, no matter how special she was.
[I¡ I want you to pay more attention to me¡] Nino said, her innocent gaze erasing the negative thoughts he had and trapping him in her enchantment. [I want to be the only one for sensei! Because I¡ because I¡] stopping for a moment, Nino finally spoke her true feelings. "Because I love you, Doctor!"
Sam was astonished for a moment, his eyes going wide. He felt his heart skip a beat even though he no longer had the organ, and as he stared down at the young Valkyrie he felt himself strangely attracted to her, even more than before.
He went down and took her lips, this time going for a deep kiss right from the get go. He only stopped to strip her of her clothes, not giving her the time to think about anything. He took his off as well, and in a matter of seconds the two of them were naked as they continued to make out on the bed.
"Nino, I''m happy you feel that way about me." He said. "You might not believe it, but you hold a special ce in my heart. I will always be there for you if you need me, and I''m sure you''ll do your best so you can remain by my side."
"Doctor¡"
As their lips met again, Nino couldn''t help but go through everything he said again. Soon enough she epted the reality of her situation.
She was nothing but a single Valkyrie, one of many. Her feelings alone weren''t going to make her a special existence to him and because of that she would have to work much harder than any of the others, all so that she could distinguish herself from the rest and stand proudly by his side.
Chapter 245 Delicious.
Chapter 245 Delicious.
When he finally let go of her lips, Nino let out a long sigh full of sensuality. She closed her eyes and basked in the feather like sensation of his hands caressing her exposed body, learning to enjoy the pleasure of being touched by him.
Things changed when he ced his hands on her knees, and when she opened her eyes to look at him she was horrified to see him about to spread her legs apart.
"W-wait! I''m not ready to-"
The Japanese doll quickly slid a hand down her stomach and covered her secret flesh, her face heating up quite a bit all the while.
[Hm? What did you say?]
When Sam replied to her in Japanese the embarrassment she felt only grew stronger, but as he continued to look at her with that teasing smile of his her shyness took over and she averted her gaze.
[I¡ I''m not ready¡]
She nced at his thing and was shocked to see it fully erect. She already saw it before so she knew it was quite big, but now that it was so close to her entrance she couldn''t help but stare in disbelief unable toprehend how he nned to put something that massive inside of her.
[Don''t worry¡] Sam said, grabbing her ck long socks and removing them one after the other. [We''re only getting started¡]
Watching the embarrassed Nino desperate to cover herself was enough to light a fire inside of him, and as he resisted the urge to let his instincts take over, transforming into a monster that would ravish her, he allowed himself to enjoy her cute reactions as he slowly proceeded.
He gently pulled her legs apart, holding them from the back of her knees then pushing them up until they reached her shoulders. He then ced his right hand on hers, and though she resisted him a little, he was able to uncover what she was hiding before long.
Nino''s honeypot was already dripping with her juices. Being held in such a position only served to excite her, and as she waited for his next move, she let out slow little gasps, her mouth watering up as her anticipation grew.
[N-no¡ wai-Hnyaaaaahhn~?!!!]
Sam only stroked her slit once, but the moment he did a strong current ran across her nervous system, her body going rigid like a block of ice. Though she rushed to cover herself again a clear fluid began spraying from her entrance, taking Sam by surprise as it sshed all over him.
Her mind went nk for a few seconds, love juice continuing to squirt from her slit. When she came back to her senses she felt such a great shame that she wanted to teleport away, but while still held up in that position all she could do was cover her face.
"N-no! Look at what you made me do!" Realizing she slipped out of character she quickly changed back only to cause herself even more humiliation. [This is so embarrassing¡]
Looking through the gap between her fingers, she watched as the Doctor took off his sses and wiped his face with the nearby nket. Realizing they were going to get in the way he tossed them aside then looked back at her.
Seeing her trying to hide her expression, Sam couldn''t help but smile, and before she could say anything he dived down and kissed her lower lips.
"Ahh~?!!!"
She threw her head back sharply as her body arched, the strong stimtion taking her by surprise. Sam didn''t give her a moment to process what was happening and began greedily sucking and licking.
[Ah! Wai- hahahah!!! S-sto- ahhn!!!]
The feeling was so intense, so incredible, that she couldn''t stand it and started squirming and screaming. She reached out with her hands and tried to push his head away, but her body couldn''t escape his tongue and soon she lost the strength to resist, her moans getting louder as if she was begging him to stop.
"Ahh~?!! Hahh~?¡ ahn~?¡ ahhn~?!!!"
Unfortunately her moans only excited Sam further. While holding her legs in ce, he used his thumb to pull on herbia, spreading her entrance open. He then startedpping at her like an animal, trying to get every drop of juice out of her.
Sam''s actions made Nino go crazy. She could feel her body heating up even more, and she felt herself getting wetter and wetter. Soon her juices began flowing out onto Sam''s tongue, her body now on fire, burning with passion.
"Mmm~? ¡ mhah~?
¡ mmm¡?"
Sam continued to lick Nino''s pussy while holding her legs steady so that she wouldn''t try to move away. He kept licking until she started shaking violently, and then he pulled away just in time for her climax. "AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!"
She screamed, unable to control herself anymore. Nino closed her eyes tightly shut, trying desperately not to make any sound. But it was toote; the truck was already filled with the sounds of her orgasm.
Sam smiled as he watched Nino experience yet another orgasm, enjoying the sight of her losing control. To see this beautiful girl cumming all over the ce, it was one of the pleasures he got to experience as the only man having ess to the Valkyries. He waited patiently until she was done before he moved back toward her. His mouth went straight between her legs once more, licking at her sensitive spot and making sure that not a single drop of her love nectar escaped.
Not allowed to catch her breath, Nino continued to cry out in pleasure. She tried to fight back against Sam''s assault but couldn''t stop herself from cumming again. Once more she let out another scream as she experienced yet another orgasm.
[Wai-... N-no! I jus- hyaaAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHNN~~~~???!!!!!!!!!!]
Once again, instead of letting her rest, Sam kept going. He licked faster and faster, wanting to taste as much as possible. He didn''t understand it himself, but for some reason he felt that the Japanese doll''s virgin pussy was incredibly delicious, to the point that he could keep licking it forever. Nino couldn''t hold back her voice anymore. She was screaming uncontrobly now,pletely helpless against Sam''s attack. He continued to lick her without pause, ignoring the fact that she was now having multiple orgasms.
Chapter 246 Tsundere.
Chapter 246 Tsundere.
Eventually, Sam came to a stop, satisfied that he had gotten everything he wanted. He sat up and looked down at Nino''s exhausted figure. Her face was red with embarrassment and she was breathing heavily, trying to recover from the intense pleasure she''d just experienced.
She never expected it to be this intense. They had yet to even get to the real act, but there she was, cumming repeatedly just from being teased by his tongue.
[You''re so cute, Nino.] Sam said.
Nino blushed even more when she saw him smiling at her and she looked away shyly.
[Y-you really enjoy teasing me, don''t you?]
Sam chuckled and gently caressed her cheek.
[You''re even cuter when you get all flustered like this.]
[Shut up¡] Nino mumbled under her breath. She was angry, but not at him. Even with all the embarrassment he caused her, the warmth in her chest increased each time he called her cute, and realizing she was happy about it only served to humiliate her more.
Samughed at her response then moved closer. He leaned down and kissed her lightly on the lips, pulling away after a few seconds and smiling at her again.
[So, what should I do next?] He asked yfully.
Nino was surprised by the sudden kiss, remaining frozen for a moment. Coming back to her senses she quickly turned her head to the side.
[No... Please, no more¡] she said quietly.
Sam tilted his head to the side, looking confused as he raised an eyebrow at her.
[Why not? Are you not enjoying it?] he asked curiously.
Nino kept her silence for a while, but then she spoke in a low voice.
[I am¡ but¡]
Staring down at her, he waited patiently until she turned to him again. He stared into her eyes intently, trying to read what she was thinking. He saw fear in them, but also desire. A desire that manifested in the shape of pink hearts, the sign that a Valkyrie had reached the peak of her arousal and that she was now ready for the real act.
Contrary to her words, Nino clearly wanted him to proceed. Having reached the limit of his patience Sam immediately grabbed his throbbing rod and ced it at her entrance, beginning to slide it over the soaked slit as he prepared to invade it.
He could feel her trembling beneath him. She was scared and excited at the same time, closing her eyes tightly and bracing herself for the pain she knew wasing.
Seeing that she had prepared herself, Sam slowly pushed his hips and entered her pussy. Nino groaned softly as she felt his cock stretch her tight walls, but as he went deeper her moans became louder and louder, turning into a single scream as he thrust the whole thing inside her.
"HYAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!"
Sam''s whole body went rigid as he felt his rod being crushed by Nino''s incredibly tight pussy. In his eagerness he had moved a bit too fast, and because of that he didn''t give it much time to adjust to his size leading to the young Valkyrie experiencing such an excruciating pain making her fear that her insides were being ripped apart.
"N-Nino¡ are you¡ okay?"
"I¡ it''s¡ hot¡ so¡ so big¡"
"D-don''t worry, it¡ it''ll get better soon¡"
Valkyries, or their bodies to be exact, were literally made for sex. Though the pain from being deflowered was unlike anything she had felt before, it was only a matter of time before she adapted to it.
Sam didn''t move an inch. He waited patiently, not wanting to make her suffer any longer than necessary. But his body was screaming for him to move. It took all of his self-control to hold back, but he couldn''t help letting out a few groans as he felt the tight walls coiled around his cock twitch.
To keep his mind off their lower halves, he went for her lips once more. The deep kiss made Nino forget about the pain, and after a few seconds Sam''s hips began to move on their own.
He was slow and gentle at first, sliding his shaft back and forth, getting a feel for her.
"Aaah¡ ngh¡ mmnnnh~?..."
[Is it better now?] He asked, reverting back to the Sensei character to check if his cute student was doing well.
[Y-yes. I... I''m fine now¡ ahh~?!]
[I see... That''s good¡]
He had been holding back, afraid of hurting her, but now he realized that he didn''t need to anymore. Nino was adjusting quickly and already seemed to be enjoying the sensation.
[I can go all out now, right?]
By the time Nino understood what he meant, most of his rod had already slid out of her. She looked up at him, her eyes widening in shock, but before she could say anything he rammed his entire length into her.
[Aaaaaaah~?!!!]
The young girl moaned loudly as she felt his shaft reaching the very depths of her pussy. This was not like the slow and steady rhythm he had just used. Each thrust was powerful, hitting the back of her pussy every time and sending jolts of pain and pleasure through her entire body.
[Aaah~?¡ haa¡ aaah~?¡ haaaangh¡ aaaahn~?¡ aaaaaaaaah~~???!!!]
The room was filled with the sound of wet squelching and the moans of the ravished young Valkyrie. Nino had forgotten about her previous embarrassment, focusing solely on the pleasure that was making her mind go nk.
[Ahn~?¡ ahn~?¡ aaah~?¡ haaanng~?, aaaaaaaaah~?! Ah~?, hii, aaaaah~?, aaaaahn~?, aaaaah~?, aaaaaah~?!!!]
It didn''t take long before her insides started twitching uncontrobly. Sam had only been moving for a couple of minutes, but the stimtion had been so strong that her body couldn''t hold back anymore.
[Hyaaaa~?! H-hyaaaaaa~?! Noooooooo~?! Aaaaaaaaaah~?! Noooo~~~???!!!]
Nino could only let out screams of pleasure as her body convulsed in ecstasy. The sensation of her pussy squeezing down on his rod was enough to send Sam over the edge, and after a couple of final thrusts he blew his load deep into her womb.
[HyaAAAAAAAA~~~???!!!]
Chapter 247 Like a dream.
Chapter 247 Like a dream.
As the first shot of semen invaded her core, a shock ran through Nino''s body, causing her to orgasm yet again. The second, third, fourth, and fifth spurts of seed followed one after the other, painting the inside of her pussy white.
[Ahn~?¡ ah¡ haaaaah~?!!!]
Nino continued to moan as Sam kept his rod inside her, his balls pulsing against her butt as he emptied his testiclespletely. Only when thest drop had been milked out of his shaft did he pull it out, and a river of semen flowed from the gaping hole the instant the head popped out.
[Ha, ahn, hahh~?.]
Sam watched her twitch for a while, mesmerized by the lewd sight. His dick was still hard, even though he had just unloaded a massive amount inside her freshly deflowered pussy. He had spent a lot of time ying with her body, and by the time they actually started he had built up so much semen that it felt like a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders.
[Hey, are you okay?]
Nino looked at him. She was still blushing, the fear and embarrassment were still present in her eyes, but the satisfaction she felt outweighed them, and the pink hearts glowing faintly seemed to demand he take her for another round.
[Y-yes¡ I¡ I''m fine¡]
[You''re not hurt anywhere?]
[No¡ I¡ I''m not in pain¡]
[That''s good to hear. Then¡] he let a grin form on his face. [Do you want to continue?]
Nino blushed even harder. Her eyes swam left and right as she looked for what to say. After a while, the intense gaze he directed at her forced her to give in, and with a suppressed voice she answered.
[S-sure¡]
[Alright, thene here¡]
[What do you-]
Her question was cut short by a surprised gasp as he turned her around andid her down on her side. He positioned himself behind her and, without waiting for her to understand what was happening, he pushed his rod back into her hole.
[Eh!? Wait! Ah! This... this is... a little¡ hyaaahhh!!!!]
[It''s okay¡] he said. [Just¡ just enjoy the feeling¡]
[Ahh~?! But¡ hahh¡ I¡ ahhn~?]
[Here, I''ll start moving, okay?]
[Wait- nooooo! Aaaaah! I''m not-?????????????!!!!]
Sam sealed the young Valkyrie''s lips as he began pumping his hips. He used his right hand to grab one of her small breasts, massaging it then pinching the small protrusion at the peak. He used the other hand to lift one of her legs, spreading her wide as he continued to slide his meat pole into the slimy tight walls of her love tunnel, enjoying the way they undte trying to suck his man milk out.
"Aaaah~?¡ah~?¡aaaahn~?¡mnaah~?¡hahh~?, aaaaaaaaah~???!"
Even as he ravaged her, the girl continued to deny her lust. Her voice was filled with embarrassment and shame, but her attempts to escape were futile, as if she was just pretending. She couldn''t bring herself to part from him, not after having experienced the pleasure of being one with him.
Sam had taken a liking to the way Nino was struggling. The fact that she was trying to resist her desires despite her body begging him for more was strangely arousing, and her reactions were cute.
[N-nooo! Ahh~?! Don''t¡ don''t look at meee~?! Please, don''t loooook~?! Noooooooooooooo~???!]
As her body shook with each thrust, the young girl''s mind was in a haze. The pleasure was too great, and she was slowly losing the ability to think. Despite being the one who asked for such an experience, Nino felt ashamed of herself. Ashamed that she had given in to her desires, and ashamed that her body was begging him for more. She felt that it had something to do with the memories she could no longer reim, but the more she thought about it the less she cared.
Sam could tell that she was nearing her limit as her walls were starting to contract around his rod. He pulled out and flipped her over, forcing her onto her knees.
[Wha-what are you-?]
[Don''t worry. We''re just switching positions.]
He said as he inserted his cock into her pussy.
[Ah!!! Ahh~?¡haahh~? aaaahn~?!!!]
Nino couldn''t protest. She couldn''t think straight anymore, her body had gonepletely limp and the only thing she could do was to allow him to use her.
[Nino, does it feel good?]
[Ahh~?¡ hahh¡ mnhaahh~?¡hahh~?¡]
[What?]
[Y-yes~?¡ hahh~?¡ it feels¡ it feel so good~?!!!]
[I''m d to hear that.] Sam said, grabbing her hips more firmly as he prepared to increase his pace. [Let''s keep going.]
[MNAAHHH~???!!!!]
Sam was pounding her tight walls furiously, pushing her down and forcing her face into the pillow. She was no longer able to talk, only letting out muffled moans and cries, everything in her vision melting from all the pleasure flooding her mind.
"Aaahn~? aaaah~? haahh~?, mnaahn~?, aaaan~?, aah~?, aaaaah~?]
As the tip of his meat pole mmed into the entrance to her womb, Nino''s body arched back, her arms and legs shaking. She could feel the heat rising from her core. It was as if something was pushing against the opening, trying to escape.
[AAHAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHNN~???!!!]
The moment his shaft had hit the entrance to her womb, a sudden rush of pleasure had coursed through her body, overtaking everything she had felt before. As if a dam had burst, she let out a loud cry as she came, her walls mping down on his rod, trying desperately to milk the cum from his balls.
As his cock sprayed her insides with his thick semen, the young Valkyrie was sent into a state of euphoria. With each new spurt, her body convulsed, her limbs trembling, her eyes rolling back, and her tongue sticking out. Her mind was nk, her thoughts consumed by the pleasure.
[Mmnuhh¡ uhhh¡ hahh¡ ahh~?]
When thest spurt had finally ended, Sam withdrew his dick from her, leaving a trail of white fluid leaking from her pussy. Nino was left panting and gasping, her body twitching as the pleasure continued to wash over her.
[How was it, Nino? Did it feel good?] Sam whispered in her ear as he leaned over her, her body still bent as she stuck her ass out.
[...yes~?... yes it did...?]
Sam smiled at her response, noticing the state of ecstasy she was in. Nino was the fifth Valkyrie to lose her virginity to him. As good as it made him feel, it always pleased him to hear that he made their first experience enjoyable as well. It was the most he could do in return for getting the chance to enjoy being with them.
Deciding that they could use a break, Sam sat on the bed and waited patiently for Nino to recover. After a while, she finally managed to sit up. Her eyes were still zed over, and she was still breathing heavily, but there was a satisfied smile on her face. Without saying a word, she climbed on hisp, cing her hands on his shoulders. Just as he began to wonder what she was doing, she leaned in and kissed him. She then wrapped her arms around his torso and rested her head on his chest, closing her eyes and heaving a satisfied sigh.
[This¡ it''s like a dream¡] She said, nuzzling her head against him. [You were a little rough but... It felt good... I''m happy Sensei was my first¡]
Sam began caressing the long raven hair cascading down her bare back. He felt a sense of pride, knowing that he had made her feel good. Her attitude toward him hadpletely changed. Gone was the smug Valkyrie with the sharp tongue. Right now, only a young maiden in love was sharing a bed with him.
Nino felt an incredible sense of happiness, having achieved something she failed to do in her previous life. She apologized in her heart to Clotho. She was sure her younger sister had chosen Sam as her hero, and though she had no proof, something told her that the youngest of the Three Fates was interested in this man as well. Unfortunately for her, Nino had already gotten her hands on him. She hoped her little sister wouldn''t hate her for it, but if she did, there was nothing she could do about it.
Chapter 248 I can’t do it.
Chapter 248 I can''t do it.
[Hey, Sensei¡] Nino said suddenly, a hint of worry in her voice. [Do you like me? Or am I just another toy to you?]
Sam was taken aback by the question. He thought that they had already gotten over that part, but apparently the young Valkyrie still wasn''t convinced. It was then that he remembered that she had confessed to him. Seeing her eyes looking up with anticipation, the corners of his mouth curved up slightly. He leaned in and took her lips, and after a few seconds he let go of her and smiled again.
"Of course." He said in in English. "I love you, Nino. That''s why I chose you to be my personal Valkyrie."
"Your¡" she stared at him for a moment before a smile bloomed at her face. "Right. Your personal Valkyrie. Ipletely forgot about that."
"It''s an important role, you know?"
"I¡ I don''t really want it¡" Nino said after a moment of contemtion.
Once again Sam found himself surprised, and of course he was. He never expected her to reject the position. As the worst scenarios began to form in his mind, he tried to calm himself down sensing that there was more to her response.
"Say, Doctor¡" Looking up at him once more, Nino spoke with utmost seriousness. "You mentioned that I can ask for a reward, right?"
"Yes?"
"I¡ my Needle, it allows me to see the future, but only from my point of view¡" pausing for a moment, she breathed in then continued. "In order for me to see yours, I have to always be close to you, but¡"
"Hm?"
Remaining silent for a while, Nino then turned away, her cheeks slowly reddening. Sam was confused by her actions, but when she spoke a secondter he understood what was making her so embarrassed.
"I¡ I can''t do it¡" she said. "Unless¡ unless you ask me to, I¡"
Sam had already concluded that Nino''s powers were identical to Ra''s. He understood that, if he wanted to make use of them himself, his only choice would be to have Nino by his side at all times. It didn''t mean that she wouldn''t be able to see his future otherwise, after all they were closely involved with each other. But it might be for the best if he had her at arm''s length all the time. Future sight was a power that many would kill to have so keeping its owner close to him would ensure her safety too.
"Alright." Sam said with a nod. "I will be relying on you from now on."
After giving it some thought, Sam couldn''t help but smile. Nino wasn''t ying games. Right from the start, she managed to secure her position among his Personal Valkyries. He began to wonder if what she said about not being special was just a part of the act, and if this was her n all along.
"... No¡"
When he heard her quiet whisper, confusion struck Sam once more.
"I¡ I want you to say it¡" she said, still blushing as she looked away from him. "I want you to ask me to stay by your side¡ now and forever¡"
With each passing second Sam''s libido was recovering, and having this cute girl shyly asking him for something was causing his desire for her to grow. Wanting to get back to the act as soon as possible, he didn''t give what she said a lot of thought and because of that he fell right into her trap.
"Nino, I want you to stay by my side¡" he said in a clear voice, pulling her toward him for a kiss. "I want you to continue supporting me, now and forever¡"
It was then that something clicked in his mind, but by the time he realized it, it was already toote.
"Yes!"
Nino eximed, throwing her arms around his neck as she jumped to hug him. The two lost bnce and Sam fell on his back with her on top of him.
"You¡ you got me¡" Sam said, a defeated smile drawn on his face.
Nino giggled and got up, a smug smile returning to her face as she celebrated her victory over him.
"You can''t take it back, okay?" She said. "You proposed, and I agreed. We are practically husband and wife now! I won''t allow you to dump me after thyaAAHNN!!!"
Before she noticed it, Nino''s position had changed and was once again under Sam. She realized that he had thrown her on the bed, and when she opened her eyes to look at him, the look on his face scared her a little.
"I won''t take it away." Sam said with a grin. "But even if it worked, that little trick of yours would only make us engaged."
"Eh? I¡"
When she thought of her n she believed it to be wless, however she had overlooked that little detail. Just because she tricked him into proposing to her doesn''t mean they''ll be married if she agrees. A lot of things need to happen before the two of them are recognized as a married couple, things that require a lot of time.
"I-"
Before she could say anything, Sam took her lips and silenced her. As the kiss went deeper doubts began to take over Nino''s mind, but when they finally departed she was taken off guard by what he said next.
"If it''s marriage you want then sure, I will marry you." He said, the look in his eyes conveying how serious he was. "But first you''ll have to help me achieve my goals. Do that and I will make you my wife."
Nino didn''t need any further exnation to understand what he meant. She had heard all about him from Elina and the other Valkyries, and she knew that his goals, or at least one of them, was to find Alice Schneider, the woman he had been in love with since he was a child.
Before regaining her memories she didn''t really understand his obsession with the white haired Commander. After all she was just a Valkyrie with no concept of love and romantic rtionships. Now however she understood the importance Alice held in his heart, and though it pained her quite a bit, she was willing to give him all the help she could provide. She wasn''t going to let jealousy get in the way of her obtaining what she wanted.
"I understand¡" she answered. "I will do my best¡"
Sam looked her in the eyes, feeling her determination. He went down and kissed her once more, and after that, the two of them indulged in each other''s embrace, blissfully unaware that the other Valkyries and the Nephilim were looking for them in order to discuss their future ns.
Chapter 249 Cold shower.
Chapter 249 Cold shower.
Sam''s first night with Nino proved to be a little too intense. By the end of it all, his body was no longer able to produce the loads of cum he shot inside the young Valkyrie. Despite thest three rounds being all nks, the pleasure he felt wasn''t reduced. He could''ve kept going just like that but he decided to put an end to it at that.
Nino passed out soon after. He took the time to clean her body, which was stained by his sticky fluids, and watched her sleep peacefully, a satisfied smile on her face.
He went on to take a shower before heading out. There were a lot of things to take care of, and time wasn''t exactly something they had plenty of right now.
''Maybe spending an entire night fucking wasn''t a good idea¡''
Normally he would dy having his fun until he was done with all of his work, but this time it was different. He couldn''t resist the Japanese doll''s charm, and he needed to relieve some stress after everything he experienced.
As the cold water washed over his body, scenes from the previous battle shed in Sam''s mind. The beams, the fire, the violent quacks. The titans walking in the distance, the alien eyes staring down at them. The screaming and screeching of the people suffering as they lost their minds.
The apocalyptic visions assaulted his mind, filling his chest with an awful sense of dread. He was sure that, if he had a heart, it would be beating uncontrobly right now, threatening to stop and take away the fear tormenting him.
As the visions continued the scenery began to change, turning to the burnedndscapes of arge city. Explosions resounded in the distance, and buildings crumbled, mes spreading through them like wildfire. The acrid scent of burning debris hung heavy in the air, stinging the senses. Charred remnants of what was once a bustling urban center littered the scorched earth, and the once-paved streets were now jagged pathways through the ruins. The sky above was a canvas of dark, ominous clouds, illuminated sporadically by fiery bursts of destruction. Amidst the chaos, distant cries and sirens pierced the eerie silence that followed each deafening explosion.
''Damn it¡''
Sam gritted his teeth, the memories from a distant pasting back to haunt him. He was one of the few lucky to have survived the Cmities'' first attack. Back then, if Alice wasn''t there to drag him away he was sure he would''ve perished in that spot.
He remembered seeing the strange constructs flying in the distance and thinking they were under an alien invasion. A lot has happened since then, and through some effort, he managed to forget all of it. At some point the horrors of the war became something he only heard of through other people, but now he was forced to remember. He was a bug. A worthless insect tossed around in a conflict between entities that far surpassed human logic.
The obsidian pce came next. H''s hateful eyes bore down on him, the strong distaste for his kind clear without her having to voice it. He could''ve died at that moment, but he survived once again, only to be betrayed by his own lover, not once but twice at that.
''Alice¡ Shizuru¡''
As the pain grew too much for him to bear, Sam reluctantly turned off his emotions. Unfortunately, that didn''t even help him feel relief. Only emptiness was left behind, but it was much better than suffering under the weight of all the trauma that would surely torment him for a long time toe.
With his mind finally at peace, he released the breath he was holding in and allowed the water to wash over his face.
''Water is nice¡'' he thought. ''... Cold water¡''
~[]~
Done with his shower, Sam put on his clothes and made sure to check on Nino one more before leaving the truck.
The moment he opened the door he saw that someone was waiting for him, and from the look she was giving him it was clear that she wasn''t very pleased with him.
"Say, Doctor¡" Venti said. "Do you know what kind of situation we''re in?"
She was smiling at him, but the way she stood there with her arms crossed under her stacked chest allowed him to sense the anger she wished to direct at him.
"We just had our biggest battle sinceing to this world. There are hundreds of Nephilim around. Then there is the topic of humans and the Fallen. You''re our leader! You can''t just disappear for hours and-"
She began ranting the moment he started walking toward her. Her anger was boiling and she intended on unloading everything on him, but just as she was gaining momentum her words suddenly stopped as her body was yanked forward.
"... Eh?"
She found herself in the man''s embrace, one of his hands on her waist while the other held the arm he pulled her from. She looked at him with wide open eyes, and before she could say anything her lips were sealed.
"Don''t worry." Sam said after a few seconds. "You''ll get your turn once we get back home."
He went on to make out with her for a while. Once he was done, Venti watched him walk away in silence. She copsed to her knees the next second, and as her mind registered what happened her face suddenly flushed, steam exploding from her head as her body heated all at once.
She realized that he knew, and that caused her embarrassment to reach new heights. A few hours ago, when everyone noticed his disappearance, the Valkyrie went around searching for him. The others warned her not to do it, but she refused to heed their warning, especially after hearing that he was with Nino before his disappearance.
She was angry that he had decided indulge in his carnal desires at such a critical time and so she intended on stopping him and ruining his fun.
Well, that was her n until she reached the truck. Peeking through the window which was only covered by a thin curtain, Venti''s whole body went frozen. She saw Nino standing on one leg, leaning against the wall with her other legs raised up, held by the Doctor''s arm as he mmed his hips against her. She watched as the long and thick rod slid in and out of the young Valkyrie''s hole, now stretched open beyond what she previously thought was impossible.
Fortunately the two seemed to climax soon after she caught them, but before she could make her presence known they immediately went for another round.
Remembering Nine''s warning about watching people when they''re in the middle of such acts, Venti quickly made her retreat, deciding to wait until they were done before reprimanding them. Sadly her wait went on for quite a while leading to her anger returning. Unbeknownst to her Sam had noticed her presence earlier, and when she understood that he knew about her peeking a sense of shame and humiliation assaulted her, making her feel an embarrassment many times stronger than what she felt earlier.
"Nooooooo¡" she cried, covering her face with both hands. "What should I do now?..."
Chapter 250 Recordings.
?
With Sam having returned it was time for a meeting to decide how things would proceed from now on. Zero Five took it upon herself to guard him and Trenta apanied her this time. They led him to the Nephilim ship where those participating in the meeting awaited his arrival.
Representing the human survivors was Kam, Ra''s assistant. The old seer had passed away in the chaos and with the current situation being what it is the responsibility fell on her shoulders. She seemed quite stressed out, and who could me her? On one side she had the Valkyries who killed her fellow humans only a day ago, and on the other she had the Angels that exterminated the humans of her world, bringing them to extinction and forcing the survivors to live underground for twenty years.
Sam wanted to offer her some words of constion, but his mind was upied with something he believed to be more important; the one representing the Nephilim.
He knew something was off since the previous day but only now did he understand what it was. As he took his seat at the table, the Nephilim was the first to speak, standing up and greeting him.
"It''s very nice to finally have the chance to meet you, Doctor Sam Sanderson." She said, bowing her head a little. "My name is Mimir. I''m Queen Thor''s consultant and the currentmander of our forces."
The name brought the image of a talkative old man''s severed head to Sam''s mind, but the one standing in front of him was far from that. Obviously, like all other Nephilim, she was a beautiful young girl. She was a bit on the short side, but not on the same level as Three and the others. Her dark green hair was tied into a bun over her head with some strands falling over her face. She wore the same grey uniform as Mj?lnir who was standing behind her, but unlike the smiling silver haired Nephilim she looked like a tired officedy, worked to the point of exhaustion and then a little more.
"Ms. Mimir¡" Sam began.
"Just Mimir is fine." She replied with a sigh.
"Then, Mimir¡ I''ve been wondering for some time now but¡" pausing for a moment, he finally asked the question. "Since you''re the one here, is your leader-"
"She''s alive, at least." The green haired Nephilim interrupted him saying "She stayed behind to slow down the enemy, but apparently she was captured in the process."
"Captured?"
"Yes. From what we have seen, the enemy was more interested in capturing us than taking our lives." Letting out another sigh, she then added "Doctor, I''m sure you''ve seen the red tower in the distance, correct?"
"Indeed." Sam replied with a nod.
"It appeared a few days after the enemy took over our stronghold. We sent a few scouts to investigate but¡"
Silence filled the small room. Seeing the difficult expression Mj?lnir had on, Sam concluded that what happened wasn''t exactly pleasant.
"I think it would be better if you see for yourself."
She tapped the table twice and a small panel appeared on its surface. After sliding her fingers on it a few times, a translucent window appeared in front of Sam and a momentter a video began ying, although it wasn''t what Sam expected.
"Um¡ Ms. Mimir¡" he said, looking up from the floating screen. "I think you''ve made a mistake¡"
Thankfully Sam had his emotions suppressed, he didn''t know what kind of expression he would have shown otherwise. He didn''t know what he expected to see, but he never thought the recording would show a naked woman rxing in a bathtub.
She was a tall beauty with long legs and massive breasts, clearly a Nephilim. Her crimson hair was tied over her head, and her features had a mature vibe to them. She seemed to be watching something on a floating screen as well. With how she was acting and from the camera angle Sam could tell that the video was taken in secret.
"Ah, my apologies. It seems I''ve selected the wrong recording." Mimir said, her monotone voice making him suspect that she did it on purpose. As she slid her fingers on the small panel again, she paused and looked up at him once more. "That was our current queen, by the way. Isn''t she beautiful?"
"Um¡ yes, she is¡" Sam said, ncing at the floating screen and seeing that the video was still ying.
"Does seeing her naked body instill in you the desire to copte with her?"
The question left Sam dumbfounded for a couple of seconds. He cleared his throat then returned his gaze to the green haired Nephilim, but she met it with an unchanging expression.
"Ms. Mimir, you might not know this but¡ it''s rather inappropriate to record such things without permission, let alone show them to other people."
"I''m aware of that fact." She replied with a nod. "Anyways, even if it was a mistake I believe it''s a good thing that you saw her highness like that. It would''ve been a big problem if you had the wrong impression after seeing what I''m about to show you."
When the bathing red haired woman disappeared from the screen Sam almost sighed in relief. The serious mood they had was ruined, and he felt a dangerous auraing from behind him, likely from Five who wasn''t too pleased for some reason.
A new video began ying and Sam returned his attention to the screen. This time, as expected, the crimson tower was the center of focus. The runes he saw from the footage he obtained from the satellite were much more clear. Each of them was massive, exuding a sense of dreadful power that could be felt even through the recording.
"Hm?"
As he continued to watch, the footage zoomed in on the rings of gigantic Runes. It was difficult to see at first how bright things were, but after a while he noticed something hovering among the Runes, and the next moment he understood what it was.
A Nephilim, he was sure of it. She stood there, motionless with the diamond shaped wings holding her in ce. She had no halo over her head, but what drew more attention was the strange headgear she wore, which covered only the upper half of her head.
The scout most likely tried to approach the girl as the scenery changed, but then arge bolt of red lightning came down from above forcing her to retreat. After being exposed running away should''ve been her highest priority, but the scout remained still and filmed everything, most likely stunned by what she saw.
Slowly descending from the sky was a woman. The red dress she woreplimented her beautiful figure. In her hand she held a cknce that reached beyond her height, its weight appearing to be of little bother. Behind her six diamond shaped wings glowed with the same red color as her dress, and same as the Nephilim from before her head was covered in a strange headgear, although this one appeared to be a lot more sophisticated, resembling a party mask a lot more than a piece of technology.
Sam recognized who she was without anyone having to tell him. After all he had seen her scarlet hair just a few seconds ago. Without a doubt, that was Thor, the current Nephilim queen.
Despite the beauty she depicted, Sam couldn''t help but feel a sense of terror as he gazed at her appearance. Even with his emotions suppressed she managed to instill a strong fear inside of him, and for a moment he thought he understood why Mimir had shown him the first recording.
"The scout who brought back this recording had managed to teleport away just in time." Mimir paused the video as she spoke. "The others weren''t so lucky, and I doubt they were taken as captives.".
Chapter 251 Fiance.
?
As if things weren''t bad enough, now they find out that some Nephilim were captured and brainwashed. Sam was lost for words. He stared at the floating screen, the recording paused on Thor''s image as she descended from the sky.
One look was enough for him to know that she was going to be quite the challenge to deal with. The question is would they be able to free her from the enemy''s control or was she a lost cause?
"And I thought the Nephilim were immune to mental attacks¡"
In addition to their brains being made of nonbiological materials, the Force Field enveloping their bodies was supposed to shield them from anything that might interfere with their minds. Seeing that the Olympians had a way to bypass those limitations, Sam needed to make some adjustments to his ns.
"Do you have any data on the enemy?" He asked. "We already had two encounters with them, but I doubt they allocated all of their forces to us¡"
An army of several hundred Nephilim couldn''t possibly lose a battle against eight individuals, especially ones that barely held their ground against eight of his Valkyries. Then again H''s forces were suppressed easily by the morebat experienced Valkyries so it wouldn''t be strange for the same thing to happen again.
"We do have recordings from the first battle." Mimir replied, sliding her fingers on the panel on the table. "To be honest, at first we suspected that you went back on your words and decided to attack us. It was only after we saw male soldiers in the enemy ranks that we realized they had nothing to do with you."
Sam watched a few seconds from the video ying in front of him then asked the Nephilim to send it to him after the meeting. He would need to analyze the whole thing if he wanted to find something that could help them win this war.
"The captured Nephilimplicate things a lot more." He said. "Now we have to look for a way to free them too¡"
Now that he had the Nephilim''s support he hoped to just barge in and crush the Olympians. Well, not really. He knew something was off when he saw that they weren''t on the other side of the world trying to do it themselves, but he never expected it to be their leader being captured and forced to serve the enemy.
"Doctor Sanderson." Mimir spoke. "Am I right to assume you have an idea of what the enemy''s objective is?"
Faced with that question, Sam remembered the conversation he had with Nino the previous night. He had learned that his previous guess was mostly true so after taking a few seconds to reorganize his thoughts he looked the green haired Nephilim in the eyes and exined what he knew.
"The red tower is a beacon." He said. "the Olympians are trying to summon some magical creature to extract something from it so they could create a key of some sort "
"... That''s¡"
"I won''t me you if you didn''t get it." He let out a sigh. "I still don''t understand it myself."
"Then allow me to exin." Hearing the voice they all turned to the door. The Japanese doll stood there with her arms crossed and her head held high. Seeing her the two Nephilim grimaced, but she ignored their reaction and quickly made her way to Sam''s side, pulling one of the empty chairs close to him before sitting down and wrapping her arms around his left.
"... Nino, this really isn''t the time¡" Sam said with a sigh.
"I should be the oneining." She replied with a pout. "I woke up and you were gone! Why didn''t you wait for me to wake up?"
"I didn''t think you''d be up so soon."
Mj?lnir continued to stare at the Japanese doll with a hardened expression, her confusion clear. This wasn''t her first time meeting the young Valkyrie. Even so the silver haired Nephilim found it difficult not to have conflicted feelings about her appearance.
"Doctor, I''ve already heard about this from Mj?lnir, but¡" Mimir hesitated for a moment before addressing the elephant in the room. "I still don''t understand why one of your Valkyries has the exact same appearance as one of the enemy leaders."
"It''s a bitplicated, but¡"
Exining reincarnation would surely create some unnecessary distractions, something he didn''t want at the moment. However he didn''t know how he should go about exining Nino''s situation.
"Long story short, Nino here used to be one of the Olympians before she became a Valkyrie." He said, giving up on keeping the matter secret. "She knows a few things about them and it was thanks to her help that we were able to survive thest battle."
"Doctor, don''t you think you should introduce me properly?" Nino said, looking up at him with a smile. "A lot of things have changed through the previous night."
"Drop it. This really isn''t the time."
"No! I think it''s the best time for people to know the kind of rtionship we share." Standing up from her seat, she ced a hand on her chest and dered. "I''m Nino, Doctor''s personal Valkyrie as well as his fiance!"
""Fiance?"" Everyone repeated, turning their sights to Sam.
He couldn''t help but facepalm himself at that moment. Of course she would make that deration. He didn''t know why he hadn''t seen iting even before then.
His mind shed back to the time Miku casually told everyone that she was his personal Valkyrie. Same as back then, the judgemental looks he got were quite painful.
The one who had the strongest reaction was Kam, of course. She was looking at him with a pale face, clearly asking him why such a young girl was iming to be his fiance.
He could feel Five''s intense gaze on his back. He was sure she didn''t have any idea about what the word ''fiance'' meant, however it was clear that she had already arrived to her own conclusions.
"Fiance?" Mimir said, turning her gaze to the Japanese doll. "You mean as in the woman he promised to marry?"
"Indeed!" Nino responded, taking her seat and hugging Sam''s arms once more. "Doctor proposed to mest night. He asked me to stay by his side forever!"
The dangerous auraing from behind them suddenly got stronger, but only Sam seemed to notice it.
"Nino." Letting out a long sigh, Sam decided to put an end to the young Valkyrie''s little skit. "Keep acting like this and I will break the engagement."
"Eh?" Nino looked up with a start, and when she saw the serious look on his face she immediately let go of him and straightened her back. "I''m sorry! I won''t do it again!"
"This is an important meeting so I would appreciate it if you took it more seriously."
"I understand¡"
Though the conversation moved on from Nino''s little announcement, Mimir still seemed to have her eyes locked on the Japanese doll. What she had on her mind was unclear, however anyone could tell that she didn''t like the young Valkyrie all that much.
Chapter 252 Truth.
?
"Doctor Sanderson." Mimir spoke. "Please exin what you meant by Ms. Nino being a part of the enemy."
"Please don''t say it like she''s still their ally." Ray replied. "What I wanted to say is that Nino came from the same world as them. Apparently she refused to work for their leader and lost her life because of that."
"Lost her life¡"
Sam noticed a glimmer in Mimir''s eyes after a few seconds. Something told him that she had already deduced the truth and her next question proved him right.
"So she knows what the enemy is after?"
"Well, yes and no." Nino said with a shrug. "I''ve only heard about it but I never saw it in practice, that''s why I can''t tell for sure I have a perfect understanding of how to stop it."
"Just tell us what you know."
"Okay, sensei~?" smiling at him for a moment, she then cleared her thought and switched to a more serious tone. "As you might already know, there are some horrors beyond humanprehension. They''re beings with powers that far exceed anything we know of, and their presence alone is enough to throw the whole world into chaos."
She didn''t need to say anything for them to understand. All of them had seen it with their eyes and experienced the terrible things it leaves in its wake on their own.
"Those beings are usually indifferent to human existence, unbothered by the existence of worthless microbes like us. But as you might''ve already guessed some people simply can''t keep their hand to themselves."
"Zeus, huh?" Sam said.
"Yes¡" Nino nodded.
"Zeus?" Mimir''s eyes narrowed. "The Greek king of gods?"
"Apparently." Sam sighed.
"Zeus had always been obsessed with power. He is an arrogant fool who ims to be a god and seeks the means to cement his rule. However having control over his domain wasn''t enough. His sights were set on existence in its entirety and he isn''t willing to give it up."
"Existence¡"
"Yes. He''s trying to rule over the entire multiverse. To be the one and only god." Nino''s gaze wandered down. "He doesn''t care how impossible such a goal might sound. He would stop at nothing to achieve it, and life is cheap in his eyes. I''m afraid a great many worlds have already perished because of him."
"As I thought¡" Sam said, rhythmically rapping the surface of the table. "Death is required for the process of creating those Keys he''s trying to obtain. Is that correct?"
"I wouldn''t say it''s necessary." Nino shook her head. "It simply elerates the process, I think? I don''t remember the conditions very well, but¡" pausing for a moment, she searched her mind trying to make sense of what their enemy was doing. "Humans are an intelligent race so¡ right! Since they''re an intelligent race, their sudden disappearance creates a disturbance in the universe. It was already proven that it''s one of the only ways to attract the attention of the Primordials. Some specte that those thingse to feast on the world after it is saturated with the souls of dead humans, but no one attempted to study them and lived to tell the tale."
"Sounds like a great pain." Sam said. "By Primordials you mean that thing we faced yesterday, right?"
"Yes. As far as we know, they''re the first living beings to ever exist." Nino exined. "They seem to be sentient but¡ it''s believed that their minds are tooplicated for us to understand."
"Tooplicated, huh¡"
"The whispers." The words seemed to catch Kam''s attention as she fixed her gaze on the Japanese doll. "It''s believed that the Primordialsmunicate telepathically. Unfortunately, thenguage they use and the image they try show are indecipherable through any means, and being subjugated to them results inplete loss of sanity most of the time, but¡"
Silence filled the room once again, but it didn''tst for long.
"I believe it would be better if I exined Zeus'' objective first. That way it would be easy for you to understand what happened in the past few days." Nino said, looking up at Sam as if to ask for his approval. When he responded with a nod, she turned to look at the others one by one before closing her eyes and taking a deep breath.
"As I''ve already said, Zeus is trying to be the one and only god, but he isn''t just looking in the dark. He¡ he said that he had received a revtion. Most of us didn''t dwell too much on the whispers after hearing them, afraid to lose our minds like many others did. But Zeus wasn''t. He kept pondering the whispers for years then decades, and one day he dered that he had reached enlightenment, and that he got a glimpse of the Truth."
"The Truth?" Sam''s eyes narrowed.
"Yes." Nino nodded. "He imed that the Primordials were trying to teach us, those who had survived extinction, about the true nature of existence, and by consequence help us evolve to the next realm of existence. He believes that the knowledge they provided was nothing more than a drop of water in a vast ocean, and that by obtaining all of it he could evolve into the one true God, the pinnacle of all existence."
"I see¡" Sam said, now understanding what kind of enemy they were up against. "I think I get what you''re trying to say¡"
The Primordials were going aroundmunicating telepathically with any sentient beings they could find, revealing the truth of the universe in the process. Those who hear their whispers would lose their minds, but the few who are able to handle the burden woulde out of it with new powers. One look at the Runes was enough to conclude that they''re letters from some kind ofnguage, and those letters grant the ability to manipte reality.
Even if they''re unaware of it, those who heard the whispers had learned the truth of the universe, and that allowed them to manipte it to a certain extent.
Zeus wasn''t satisfied with the limited power he gained and is now seeking even more of it, hoping it would grant him the ability to mold Existence in the way he sees fit.
"ording to Zeus, the Primordials had revealed a way for him to obtain Truth." Nino continued her exnation with a grim expression. "He called it Akasha. A location beyond space and time. The ce from which Existence itself originates."
Chapter 253 Akasha.
Chapter 253 Akasha.
"Akasha¡"
As he repeated the word, Sam got a feeling that he had heard it somewhere. It didn''t take him long to remember that it was a term derived from Eastern religions such as Hinduism and Buddhism, adopted by Western ultists in thete neenth century andter poprized by various works of fiction.
The most known mention of the word is when referring to the "Akashic Records", a theoretical concept of a ce where everything is recorded. Every word, thought, intent, action and event whether it''s past, present or future, all of it is umted in one ce outside of human reach.
Nino''s description matched what he already knew so Sam found it easier to ept what she said. Still, a part of him wanted to scoff at the idea of such a fictional concept being real.
"Are you sure Zeus didn''t go mad from the Whispers?" Sam asked.
"I believe he had always been crazy." Nino replied with a shrug. "He wouldn''t have done half what he did otherwise."
Wanting to be a god was enough of a reason to doubt someone''s sanity. That level of obsession with power and control couldn''t possibly be the work of a normal human mind.
"So Zeus wants to reach Akasha so he could obtain Truth and learn how to rule over existence¡" Sam summarized. "And he needs those Keys to get there?"
"Yes." Nino answered with a nod. "Primordials are made from Aether, an element that only exists outside of time and space. Zeus believes that, by gathering enough of the ancient beings'' essence, he would be able to create Keys that could open a gate to Akasha."
"I don''t know what to think anymore¡"
Sam could only sigh, his head starting to hurt, although he was aware that it was just his imagination. Why did he have to deal with another lunatic when he already had enough on his te?
Akasha? Truth? He didn''t care about any of that. He just wanted to find his beloved childhood friend and spend the rest of his life banging Valkyries left and right.
"Let me guess, we can''t allow him to achieve his goal, right?"
Sensing the annoyance in his voice, Nino shrunk into her chair, carefully choosing the words she was going to respond with.
"He has alreadymitted countless atrocities in his quest for the Keys." She said. "Who knows what else he might do if left alone."
"This is ridiculous¡"
Sam''s annoyance only continued to grow the more he thought about the matter. He already realized that he couldn''t just keep his distance and ignore what the self proimed god is doing. Just by engaging with Atropos and her gang, Sam already had the spotlight on him and his Valkyries. He doubted that the Olympians would just ignore their presence in the future, especially after they ruined their ns here in the Nephilim world.
"So in the end we would still have to go to war with the Olympians, huh?"
"Doctor." Nino spoke, looking at him with eyes full of determination. "I will always be by your side, no matter what path you choose!"
Sam could only stare back at her, her deration havinge as a surprise. After a few seconds, he let a smile form on his face and patted her on the head.
"I will be relying on you, then." He said.
Watching the strangely warm scene in front of her, Zero Five was filled with a sense of unease that swelled until she could no longer keep her silence. Taking a step forward, she turned to face him, straightening her back and saluting as she made a deration of her own.
"As Doctor''s Personal Valkyrie, I swear to do everything within my ability and more to ensure Doctor achieves whatever goal he sets his eyes on. I will be the sword that ys your enemies, the shield that protects you from harm. And¡" she went silent for a moment, her cheeks reddening a little. "I will be your partner whenever you ask. Your word is mymand, Doctor."
"I¡ I''m d¡" Sam replied with a wry smile. "But don''t overdo it, okay? I don''t want you to keep getting injured likest time."
Five''s stoic expression brightened and a beautiful smile bloomed on her face.
"Yes, Doctor! I will do my best to not disappoint you!"
As the ponytailed Valkyrie returned to her position, Nino turned away and clicked her tongue.
"Flirting with other women right in front of your fiance. Doctor has no shame, huh?"
"Well, if you want to be my wife eventually, you have to learn how to control your jealousy." Sam replied with a shortugh. "As I said, I''m a greedy man."
"You sure are popr among your Valkyries, aren''t you, Doctor Sanderson." Mimir said while fixing him with a cold re. "I read that great men have great lusts. Is it the same in your case?"
Confused by her question, Sam could only stare nkly for a while. He then made a very bad misjudgment, smiling at the green haired Nephilim before speaking.
"Well, if you would like, we can discuss this topic in more detail." He said. "Just the two of us, in private."
Mimir''s expression remained unchanged, but he caught her left eyebrow twitching and immediately took it as a sign of him having messed up. He also felt his skin being pinched and strong auraing from behind him, informing him that his Personal Valkyries weren''t all too pleased about him setting his sights on another girl, especially one who isn''t even arade of theirs.
"I appreciate the offer, but I have to decline." Mimir replied, bowing her head apologetically. "My tastes swing in a different direction so I''m confident I wouldn''t enjoy such a private conversation."
"Oh, I see¡"
Sam''s eyes widened a little, having not expected to be rejected like that. It didn''t feel too bad, and he was more intrigued than disappointed.
"That said-" his thoughts were interrupted as Mimir spoke again. "Her highness might be interested. Unfortunately, we would have to save her first to know her response."
Sam saw a glimmer in the Nephilim''s eyes and he understood what she''s trying to say without her having to borate. With the corners of his mouth curving up a little, he looked back at the green haired girl.
"Mimir, huh¡" he said. "I think we might be really good friends from now on."
Chapter 254 Uninvited Guests.
?
Grains of sand fell down a small hourss one after the other. When thest one left the upper side, Atropos opened her, remaining still for a few seconds before pushing herself up.
It had been quite some time since shest slept on such afortable bed, and the tranquility it brought made her wish she couldy down for another day or two. Unfortunately, time was something she didn''t have and so with great regret she left thefort of the sheets and began her preparations, a hint of annoyance making it to her heart as she remembered what she had to do that day.
Four maids were awaiting her near the door. They helped her shower and put on her kimono -a ck one with red flower patterns- before dismissing themselves without saying a word.
"Oh my~ a littlete today, aren''t we?"
As she walked down one of the vast hallways, Atropos was greeted by a face that ruined her mood the momentid her eyes on it.
"Pheme¡" Atropos grimaced. "Did Zeus send you?"
"Nope. Not really!" The girl said. "I just heard a strange rumor so I came to check!"
Her cheerful energy came through as annoying instead of the cute youthfulness she was trying to convey. Her pale pink hair was cut short and the clothes she wore were quite colorful, as if several buckets of random paint were sshed onto her.
Spinning around herself as if performing a dance, she approached the other girl then bowed her head. "A new race, one of nonbiological origin!"
"Is that really a reason toe all the way here?" Atropos asked. "I already said I would be bringing them back with me once I obtain the Key."
She knew from the start that sending a report would result in such unweed guests, but unfortunately keeping quiet would''ve led to the same oue. She didn''t care much for the women they captured, but at the very least she didn''t want anyone interfering with her mission, especially when she had a reunion with her dead sister nned for the foreseeable future.
"Well, I only came here to take a look." Pheme said with a shrug. "Unlike some people."
Just then the pce was shaken by a loud explosion followed by a violent tremor. Atropos turned to the window and her frown deepened, while the other girl giggled as if aware of what was happening.
"They''ve already started!"
In the bare wastnd outside the pce the pce, a cloud of smoke and dust slowly dissipated revealing the battered body of a young man. He had several burn marks all over the ce and a number of arrows jutting out of some rather deep wounds.
"Damn¡ it¡"
It wouldn''t have been strange for one to think he was dead considering the state he was in, but after some pained groans and a few curses here and there, he managed to pull out the arrows and activate some healing Runes spreading up his regeneration.
"FUCK YOU ARTEMIS!!!" He shouted, looking down at the state he was in. "DID YOU REALLY HAVE TO DO THAT!!?"
"I warned you." A cold voice replied, icicles forming in the surroundings with each word. "I told you to not even try it."
"Oh c''mon! You''re even protecting the prisoners now?" The young man protested.
"Prisoners or not, it doesn''t give you the right to force yourself on them."
A young woman descended from the sky. Wind yed with her long lime colored hair, unlike the skirt of her short dark green dress which remained static the entire time as if held in ce by an invisible force. She was a pale beauty, her body appearing thin and frailcking the curves of a fully matured woman. In one hand she held a bow almost as tall as her. The severed head of a man dangled from the other, held by the long hair that was tied in a single braid.
"You''re taking this a bit too far!" The youth shouted again. "Zeus will take them anyway! What''s the harm in us having some fun?"
The young woman stared at him for a while then let out a sigh. She tossed the head she held in his direction, her halo glowing brighter than before. She produced an arrow out of thin air then knocked it on her bow.
"Guess I should''ve ended you long ago." She said. "I can''t believe you''re my brother."
"W-wait! Don''t do it!"
Another explosion resounded through the wastnd.
"Whoa¡ she already got Orion¡" Pheme said, shielding her eyes from the bright light. "Guess this might be it for Apollo as well."
"One after the other¡" Atropos was shaking with anger. "Why can''t you keep your noses out of my business!"
"Now now. No need to get so worked up. It''s a good thing that Artemis came, right? Besides, you had no problem requesting Hephaestus'' help, right? Don''t you think it''s a bit-"
Atropos snapped her fingers and four white discs appeared from behind her.
"W-wait! What are you doing!"
The pink haired girl jumped away, her attitude taking a drastic shift.
"You already know that Portals interfere with the ritual, right?" Specs of light flickered into existence and in a matter of seconds a series of Runes formed. "How many days do you think your interference will cost us?"
"H-hey now! It''s just a couple of days!" Pheme cried, looking around for an escape route.
"Just a couple of days? You mean I have to put up with you for that long?"
"C''mon! I only came to take a look! It''s Apollo who you should be angry about! He was the first to open the gate!"
"I''ve been looking for an excuse to kill you anyway. I guess I will just get it done now."
As one of the white disks split into four parts, the world was painted red as a massive bolt of red lightning fell from the sky.
"Whoa!"
"Tche¡"
Atropos clicked her tongue. The lightning has be something of an intruder alert after she captured a number of the strange residents of this world, but unfortunately it only worked on those who came from outside.
''Are they already here?'' she wondered, the image of her younger sistering to mind.
[Mdy.] Came a voice from themunicator in her ear.
"Perseus¡" She said, keeping her voice low even though Pheme had already escaped. "Is Lachesis already here?"
[No, mdy. This seems to be a different matter entirely¡] She felt his confusion through the short pause, but before she could ask he continued. [It''s¡ a boy? The readings say he''s human but¡]
"... One of the survivors from this world?" Suddenly she understood the reason behind his confusion.
"[Apparently. He''s managed to hold his ground against Red though. Is that even possible?]
"Uh-oh¡ he must be quite talented then." Snapping her finger, a floating window appeared in front of her disying the footage caught by some security drones.
[He''s already capable of teleportation.] Perseusmented. [How was he able to learn the Runes in such a short time?]
"Clearly my dear sister andpanion taught him." Atropos smiled. "I wonder, though, what brought him all the way here?"
[Shall we capture him alive?]
The Fate didn''t answer. She continued to observe the footage, watching as the young boy skillfully teleported in time before the woman dressed in her skewered him with hernce. He was panting and sweating, exhaustion clear on hisplexion. It appeared like he was going to pass out at any moment, but for the time being he continued dodging the attacks thrown at him avoiding death by a hair''s breadth.
"Alright, bring him in." Atropos said after a while. "Let''s see what he got."
Children who show talent at wielding the Runes are held in high regard in Olympus. For the time being they would interrogate him to learn his purpose. Once they''re done with that, she would decide what fate he would have.
"Two days, huh¡" Atropos sighed. She turned around and gazed at the red tower behind her, the frown returning to her face as she realized how much waiting she had ahead of her. "I hope you won''t take long, Lachesis¡"
Chapter 255 Apology.
?
Among the survivors from the Sanctuary, only four thousand were still alive, about two hundred of them had sumbed to the Whispers and fallen into Madness.
The losses were much greater than Sam had anticipated, but with his emotions sealed he found it difficult to empathize with with those left behind.
He could tell Kam wasn''t all too happy about how unaffected he seemed, and it didn''t help that the Valkyries didn''t seem to care at all.
With the Nephilim army around the decision became clear. For the time being, the humans followed orders and didn''t start any problems, but no one knows when that might change.
"So there is no known method to return the Fallen to their previous selves¡" Sam said.
"Unfortunately, no." Nino replied with a somber expression. "As far as I can remember, the effects of the Madness are irreversible."
"I see¡" Kam said, her head hanging down.
An eerie silence enveloped the room. The case of the Fallen wasn''t one that was simple to handle. If it was just a mental issue, Sam would''ve spared no effort to help them. But their problem wasn''t that they lost their mind, it''s that they had enough power to be a danger to themselves and everyone around them.
Maybe a quick death would be the merciful thing, but Sam knew he couldn''t just take the easy way out.
"There is an infinite number of universes out there." He said. "Surely one of them has the solution to our problem."
The others turned to look at him, and he let out a sigh.
"There are humans in our world too." He said. "Lost more than eighty percent of the world poption in a very short time. If that''s enough to draw the attention of one of those Primordials, we would have to deal with the Madness as well."
"Doctor Sanderson." Mimir stood up and bowed her head deeply. "Our peace treaties have yet to be officially signed, and you have yet to meet with our leader, but please allow me to apologize on behalf of all Nephilim."
"Stop it. This isn''t the time." Sam let out a sigh. "I already know that most of you were against the war. Mj?lnir has already informed me."
Contrary to how things appeared at first, the truth was that those who supported H''s campaign to retrieve her sister were quite few, most of whom were the first generations who were born before Alice went to sleep, those who witnessed the humans'' relentless war against Wolf and their greed for the secret of immortality.
Unlike the Valkyries who lived in Asgard, the Virtual world where time could be elerated, the Nephilim had to live at a normal pace which meant that most of them were kids back when H started her crusade.
Sam doubted that those who participated did it out of malice. The hatred of the few might''ve seeped into the others, and it wasn''t hard to imagine a bunch of kidsshing out at the world because of ack of understanding.
The crusade must''ve left a lot of them with deep scars and because of that H didn''t get much of a support when she decided to do the same in Sam''s world, which forced her to rely on the drones ¨CCmities¨C instead.
"Still, that doesn''t change the fact that we let such atrocities happen without even trying to stop them. We now understand the gravity of our actions, and we will strive to stone for our sins to the best of our abilities."
Raising her head, Mimir then turned her eyes to Kam.
"Allow me to apologize to you as well. Despite being innocent, your people were forced to live in fear because of us. I hope we can work together to ensure that such a tragedy doesn''t happen again."
Sam saw the conflicted look on Kam and understood that she felt uneasy at being in this situation.
Even if they were being sincere, what does an apology even aplish? The Nephilim were powerful beings, much more powerful than what any human could wish to be. Saying they''re sorry after all the harm they caused was more akin to a p on the face.
"Please raise your head, Ms. Mimir." Kam said eventually, a determined look painted on her dark features. "Apologizing won''t achieve anything."
"I¡ I''m not sure I understand¡" Mimir replied.
"You had your reasons for what you did, and an apology won''t turn time back. Admitting that you were wrong will only embolden those who wish to see your downfall. You should always hold your head high and show the world that they must tread carefully when dealing with you."
From the beginning of time humansmitted crimes against other humans for one reason or another. What the Nephilim did might dwarf anything any human ever did, but technically speaking, all of it was just them retaliating against those who attacked them first. Choosing a less drastic solution wouldn''t have worked. Humans would''ve turned on them at some point. Though he didn''t like to admit it, Sam believed that what H did was the right choice.
"... I see¡" Mimir nodded. "That''s indeed an interesting way to look at it."
"Anyways, as I was saying¡" Sam paused for a moment and tried to recall what they were talking about before. "Since we can''t do anything about the Primordials visiting our world the only thing we can do is prepare some ways to deal with the Fallen." He turned to Nino, hoping her memories as Lachesis would help. "Ichigo''s Force Field seems effective against them, but I wonder if it could prevent the whispers from taking effect¡"
Unfortunately, unlike a normal Force Field, those with cleansing properties get that effect from the mind of a Valkyrie. It was the same thing as the halo for manipting the Nameless Element requiring conscious intent, which is something that couldn''t be replicated using machines.
If he asks for the Nephilim''s help they would have enough Cleansers for each city. The problem that remains would be the number of drones required to expand the Transcendent Purge. Each of them had to have a heart that could resonate with the Valkyrie or Nephilim that would be using them, and hearts weren''t cheap or easy to produce.
Chapter 256 Telepathy.
Chapter 256 Telepathy.
"I don''t think there is any need to rush things in our world." Nino responded. "The only reason the Primordial arrived in this world so soon is the beacon the Olympians created. Without it, a few more decades will pass before we would have to deal with the same problems."
"That boy¡" Sam nced in Kam''s direction before continuing. "Karim, he said he heard the Whispers long before anyone else did. Doesn''t that mean that we can''t let our guard down?"
"I would say he''s a special case." Replied the Japanese doll. "It might be that he had strong psychic abilities since birth, or at least the potential to awaken them. That''s why he was able to sense the Primordial''s presence long before it started to have an effect on others."
"I see¡"
Psychic abilities. Teleportation already exists, and Nino said that the alien entitymunicates telepathically. She also mentioned something about reincarnation, souls and resurrecting the dead. Sam understood that it was a bitte for him to realize this, but they have been delving into the realm of the supernatural for quite some while now.
''And here I am,pletely locked out of it¡''
In exchange for surviving death and gaining immortality Sam had lost his chance to hear the Whispers, but that might be a good thing in the long run. He was already an adult after all. The likelihood of him falling into madness was way too high for him to consider taking the risk.
"Maybe I should prioritize creating some anti-telepathy measures." He murmured to himself. "We already have anti-teleportation barriers. If we apply the same concept¡"
The problem was how to test the effectiveness of something like that. For that to happen, they first need someone with telepathic abilities, but would something created to defend against a normal human work on a Primordial?
"What are you saying, Doctor?" Nino asked, tilting her head a little. "You''ve already created the best mental protection one can create, don''t you?"
For a moment Sam didn''t understand what she meant, but then he remembered. Despite being present when the giant eyes attempted to invade their world, he was the only human who wasn''t affected by the Whispers. He never heard anything, nor did he see any strange images in his head.
"The Force Field blocks most mental attacks, and your brain is¡ well¡" Nino stopped herself, wondering if she should reveal such sensitive information.
"I don''t think many would wee the idea of switching their brain cells with nanomachines." Sam said, shaking his head slowly.
The philosophical implications of what he did to himself were up for debate, and it was doubtful that most people would agree to let the same happen to them. Whether it grants immortality or not, some might not be able to live with themselves knowing that they might already be dead, and that what kept on living was just a robot with their memories. Even if the individual themselves epted their new life and didn''t think much of it, those around them might have another idea. Sam was just lucky enough that the people he was close with didn''t treat him any differently from before.
"Speaking of telepathy," Mimir spoke. "We would have to find a way to free her Highness from the enemy''s control. There are our other brethren as well."
"Right¡"
Just like him, Nephilim and Valkyries are supposed to be impervious to telepathy and psychic attacks. Even so the Olympians somehow found a way to brainwash and turn them into obedient puppets. With that put into consideration, Sam began to think he might not be as safe as he thought.
"I also find it a bit odd¡" Nino held her chin in thought. She then looked up at Mimir and asked a question. "You were only attacked recently, right?"
"Yes." The green haired Nephilim answered. "About twelve days ago."
Turning her sight to Sam, the Japanese doll exined what was on her mind.
"We, both Valkyries and Nephilim, should be apletely new specie to the Olympians. Our constitution might not be tooplicated, but our minds are a ck box. I find it difficult to believe that they were able to understand us enough to create something that could restrain our free will, especially in such a short time."
Sam remained silent, tapping his finger on the table. The others could tell that he was bothered by something, but they couldn''t really tell what it was.
"About that¡" he said after a while. "We technically had all of you under control not that long ago, remember?"
Nino was confused for a moment but then her eyes widened as she remembered.
The captured Nephilim being under the enemy''s control might''vee as a surprise, but considering the Valkyries'' situation it really shouldn''t have been. It was only recently that they were able to remove the mental barriers Odin had ced on them, and before that they were basically forced to obey their superiors, going out to fight battles they didn''t choose to fight.
"But¡ that doesn''t¡"
"You''re right. I doubt less than two weeks would''ve been enough for them to understand what you are, let alone make something that can control you, unless¡" Pausing for a moment, Sam clicked his tongue, his frustration growing as he considered the possibility. "Unless they have someone helping them. Someone who knows everything about you."
Once again the silence filled the meeting room. Everyone was confused. Though he was knowledgeable about Valkyries and their bodies, Sam was oblivious when it came to their minds. The only one who knows more should be the one who created the medium containing them, but why would Wolf give up such knowledge to an enemy they only met the other day?
For a moment no one seemed to remember that there was one more person who knew everything about the Valkyries and the Nephilim. Mimir was the first to deduce who it was, her gaze moving to Sam, disbelief clear in her eyes. Nino was next, then Mj?lnir and Zero Five.
"Loki¡" Sam said. "Just what are you thinking¡"
Chapter 257 The first.
Chapter 257 The first.
"Loki¡"
The moment that name left Sam''s mouth, an oppressive aura enveloped the room. It was like a switch had been flipped, and the heavy weight of hatred and anger fell on the room.
Sam nced behind him and saw Zero Five. Her eyes were wide open, her pupils having shrunk to small dots as a shadow fell over her face. A strange haze enveloped her body and her hair was slowly floating up, moved by an invisible force.
Trenta who was standing beside her was startled and immediately went to form her halo. She nced in Sam''s direction for a moment as if asking for his orders.
On the other side of the table, the same thing was happening with Mj?lnir. Her anger was clear as tendrils of lightning enveloped her body.
"Five." Sam called and the ponytailed Valkyrie immediately snapped back to reality.
"Eh? M-my apologies, Doctor!" Her expressionpletely changed as if the strange state she was in was just an illusion. "It seems I''ve spaced out for a moment."
"Mj?lnir, you calm down as well." Mimir said with a sigh.
The room was tense for a few more seconds. The ones most affected by the sudden change of atmosphere were Kam and herpanion. They looked quite stressed out, like a pair of animals who had just been exposed to some very loud noise. After a while, the human woman raised her hand and asked for permission to leave.
"I believe I''m not in a position to hear such information." She said. "May I excuse myself?"
Sam nced in Mimir''s direction, and when the Nephilim gave her approval Sam nodded as well.
"You''re wee to stay if you want." He said. They''ve already discussed a number of things that should be confidential so there was no reason to start hiding things now. "But if you want to leave, that''s your choice. We can discuss the details of how we will handle the case of the Fallenter on."
"Understood!" Kam stood up, practically jumping to her feet. "Then, we will be taking our leave!"
When the metallic door closed behind the two humans Sam heaved a long sigh and nced in Five''s direction once more. Another problem suddenly came out of nowhere and he didn''t have the mental capacity to think about it. He was simply too tired.
''Now they''re manifesting auras¡'' he sighed again. ''Was inter-dimensional magic not enough?''
He could only hope that, whatever that was, it wouldn''t get in the way of the uing battle.
A few more seconds pass in silence. When the mood finally calmed down Mimir decided to break the ice and restart the conversation.
"If it''s Loki then it brainwashing our brethren won''t be an impossible task." She said. "She has Father''s memories, after all."
Sam raised an eyebrow at her statement.
"Father?"
Mimir seemed confused, but then she understood what his question meant.
"Our rtionship with Odin is a bitplicated, as you already know. The early generations believe that we''re his daughters, referring to Alice as our sister. Others believe that we''re Freyja''s, and refer to him as our grandfather." Pausing for a moment, the green haired Nephilim averted her gaze, looking rather ufortable. "Some believe both, iming that Freyja is our mother and Odin is our father."
"Oh¡" Sam couldn''t help but grimace.
The ones who gave Wolf and Alice those names were the humans of their original world. Their goal was to paint the old man as a pervert who set his eyes on a little girl and so they attached one of the most messed up stories to them despite the two being father and daughter.
"Well, none of this matters." Mimir said. "He never considered any of us as family to begin with¡"
Though he never said it out loud, Sam was aware that Wolf harbored some conflicted feelings toward the Nephilim as well as the Valkyries. He saw them as the reason for his daughter''s condition, which was the source of his resentment, but he also believed that they were innocent, knowing they didn''t invade her body of their own volition.
"Loki is a name none of us chose to take." Mimir said. "We had our suspicions when she appeared in front of us, but we couldn''t convince Queen H to not listen to her. Her love for Alice always blinded her actions." Pausing for a moment, she let out a long sigh then looked up at Sam. "Back to the main topic. Loki should be able to mess with our minds, but even if that''s the case, why would she help those¡ Olympians? I can''t see why she would do something like that."
"Who knows?" Sam shrugged. "One thing for sure, she''s definitely nning on betraying them once she gets what she wants."
"True¡"
Loki''s goal is to create a species that stands above everything else in the multiverse, or so she said. She took the Original Alice with her for that reason, nning to use her for that goal. But when considering everything they had learned so far, simply making more Valkyries/Nephilim won''t help her achieve that goal. The multiverse is endless and full of species that are as strong if not stronger than those girls. The only way she can ensure that her people are sitting on the top is by erasing anything that might stand in their way. And there is only one way to do that.
"All we can do is assume that she''s trying to reach Akasha as well." Sam said.
"That''s¡ reasonable¡" Mimir replied.
If they thought about it like that, it was easy to see that his former lover was trying to steal the keys in Zeus'' possession. Their two biggest enemies at the moment are vying for the path to Akasha. Knowing that, Sam''s mind began to head in an obvious direction.
"At this rate, our sh with the Olympians is only inevitable." He said. "We can''t allow Zeus to get his hands on more Keys, and Loki has been our target to begin with."
Mimir fixed him with a stern gaze, having already guessed what he was about to say.
"Even if we manage to stop those two, there is no telling if some other fool with a godplex will attempt the same thing, which leaves us with only one choice..."
Pausing for a moment, Sam breathed in and let the idea sink into his mind. It was the obvious choice, but just thinking about it made him sick to his stomach. He didn''t know if he was ready to stand on the same ying field as a bunch who were trying to be gods, but that wouldn''t stop the others from doing what they wanted, and he couldn''t just let them be knowing that doing so might lead to him losing everything dear to him.
"We have to be the first to reach Akasha." Sam dered, forcing the doubts and indecisiveness to a dark corner of his mind. "That''s the only way to ensure it doesn''t fall into the wrong hands."
Chapter 258 Only two.
Chapter 258 Only two.
The meeting went on for a couple of hours during which Sam and Mimir decided their next course of action and ironed their objective in the next battle.
Now that they had several hundred Nephilim on their side, reaching the portal gate was no longer their top priority. However Sam saw it fit to leave a detached force that would focus on that part. Getting reinforcements from the forty sixth base would definitely tilt the scales in their favor.
The second objective would be freeing the captured Nephilim. This was an obvious step, one that was absolutely required to get Mimir''s support. Eliminating them wasn''t an option so it was going to be a really tough nut to crack, especially when considering the final point.
The third objective, and the most important in Sam''s opinion, is stealing the Key the Olympians were trying to obtain. This was what made things a bitplicated.
Nino had limited knowledge about the ritual, but she knew some of the details. The Runes that create the Crimson Tower require a greater deal of mental power, so much so that it''s impossible for one individual to create all of them on their own. Even if multiple people work on it at the same time, the pressure would still be too much, eventually leading to their deaths if they attempt to maintain it for a long time. To get around this limitation without having to sacrifice their own soldiers, the Olympians would normally use the awakened children instead. This time, however, they had the Nephilim so they used them instead of bothering to find the human survivors.
And there lies the problem. The ritual puts a great deal of pressure on those performing it, which leads to their deaths by the end of it. Knowing this, it was obvious that the correct course of action was to stop the ritual to save the captured Nephilim, but if they were to do that it would take away their chance of obtaining one of the Keys.
Achieving the second objective meant giving up on the Key, but prioritizing the Key meant risking the deaths of several Nephilim. There wasn''t much of a discussion before choosing which route they would take. Obviously, saving the Nephilim was the top priority. Even if they were in a race to determine who reaches Akasha first, Sam didn''t want to deploy the same methods used by his rivals. He understood that his reluctance to make sacrifices would put him behind the others, however he still wasn''t going to fall so low.
Still, all of that assumed that the Nephilim wouldn''t be able to handle the ritual. The awakened children are, well, children. It''s only natural that they would die if forced into such a position. ording to Nino, although they were different from the humans of his world, the Olympians were humans as well. Although they had achieved immortality through different means, they were still flesh and blood which left them vulnerable to the same level as normal humans.
The Nephilim, and by extension the Valkyries, have bodies and brains made out of ASC, which are more resilientpared to biological cells. They also have high resistance to psychic attacks so, although they''re currently under the influence of mind control, they should still be able to withstand the weight of the ritual.
Even if they were going to stop the ritual this time, Sam was looking toward the future. They have the opportunity of obtaining another by performing the ritual back in his world so he was hoping to learn a few things in order to increase the chances of their sess.
''First of all, we need to learn the ritual itself.'' He thought. ''Everything elsees after that¡''
"Hmm¡" Nino drew her brows together in a frown. "This¡ doesn''t look good¡"
She was holding her Needle, now transformed into a Yari. The halo over her head and the rings of Runes around the spear showed that she was currently using her powers, gazing at the Tapestry of Fate to see what awaited them in the near future.
"Is it that bad?" Sam asked, his arms crossed as he stood at a distance.
"Well¡" the Japanese doll replied. The Runes around her dimmed before disappearing. "It seems Atropos got some unexpected reinforcements. The ritual was slowed down because of that."
"Seriously?"
"Remember how they destroyed our portal the first time they attacked us? Apparently inter-dimensional portals create some sort of interference that weakens the effects of the ritual. It''ll take at least one more day for it to reach its full potential once again."
"And here I was sure they did it to prevent us from running away or asking for reimbursements¡"
"It''s a bit weird though¡" Nino looked up at the red sky. "That massive barrier should make it impossible to open portals into this dimension. The only way in would be through a portal opened from this side."
She went on to exin that Atropos wouldn''t have risked slowing down the ritual just to summon reinforcements, which meant someone on her side did it without her permission.
It''s been five days since they arrived in the Nephilim world. Since they hadn''t sent any words back to the forty sixth base so Sam expected Elina to think something was off and send someone to investigate, especially with Nine and Miku still there. Now he understood why no one came.
"The ability to see the future¡" Mimir said, gazing at Nino with amazement in her eyes. "That''s indeed a very useful power to have."
"Of course it is!" Nino said, puffing her chest with pride. A momentter her shoulders slumped over and she let out a long sigh. "Well, it should''ve been, atst."
"So our odds are¡" Sam said.
"Not very good," Nino replied. "If it were just Atropos and her army we might''ve had a good chance but¡ of all people Artemis has decided toe over. Apollo is around as well and they''ve brought along quite a few of their followers."
"Only two?" Sam raised an eyebrow. "Would they really be a problem?"
"Maybe not Apollo, but Artemis is a real pain in the neck. She really doesn''t like men, you see. I''m afraid you''ll be her main target, Doctor."
"Well, I guess that would make sense¡"
Chapter 259 Listen Well.
?
Even with future sight, the options Sam and the others had were quite limited. Nino studied every divergence she saw, every important step and its possible oues, then discussed all of it with Sam and Mimir. In the meantime the preparations for departure were underway. Everything was loaded onto the Nephilim ship, but there was one problem that remained and it''s the human survivers.
The atmosphere was thick with tension and unease. The adults were trying to be cooperative, but there was no denying their deteriorating mental state.
The kids on the other hand were outright terrified. Some would begin to cry as soon as the the Valkyries try to talk to them. They had seen the girls kill the Fallen with no hesitation at all, and with theck of understanding only made the situation worse.
Another thirty had awakened which makes the number of childern capable of using halos fifty. During the previous battle most of them got to see the Valkyries teleport around and use the Nameless Element to create weapons. Some already tried to use their powers to run away by themselves, while others tried to rebel thinking they could fight both the Valkyries and Nephilim and win.
"Listen well!" Juni said in a loud and clear voice, standing in front of the children with her arms crossed, an angry look on her face. "With great poweres great responsibility! You must not use your powers when you still don''t know how to control them! If you do so, you might end up hurting yourself and those around you!"
The children were sat down on the floor to be reprimanded for their recless actions. Juni seemed to be the one mostpatible with them so she the others left everything to her, but even with all her effort she couldn''t get through to them at all.
At some point one of the boys just snapped at her.
"How dare you!" He yelled, tears flowing down his cheeks. "You killed both dad and mom! You aren''t our friend! You are just a monster!"
Some of the other kids started crying as well. Juni was hit pretty bad with that statement and she almost started tearing up herself, however with some effort she managed to restrain herself, thinking of another way to help handle the situation.
"I¡ I didn''t want to do it¡" she said, holding a hand to her chest as she gazed at the group of kids. "And I promise you the others didn''t want to either. But what should''ve we done? You saw how they were attacking everyone, right? If we didn''t do anything they would''ve killed all of us! We had to stop them!"
"Liar!" Another girl cried. "Mama would never hurt me! She would never do it!"
"That''s right." Juni nodded. "Your parent would never hurt you. But those weren''t your parents¡"
"... What?"
Suddenly, the kids went silent, their eyes turning to the short haired Valkyrie.
"The evil viins we are fighting. The ones who sent those monsters who attacked us before." Juni went on telling the story she had created in her mind. "They''ve summoned a much bigger monster, one so big even I couldn''t defeat it with my giant robot¡"
Though they were still skeptical, the story seemed to catch their attention, helping them listen even if anger prevented them from doing so before.
"It was a terrible monster, with eyes so big they could cover the sky!"
The children gasped.
"It also had big long tentacles. So many of them! It tried to attack all of us, but my friends and eye created this huge barrier to protect all of us!"
"Whoa¡"
"That big monster, the one with long tentacles. It''s the one who made the others attack everyone."
"What!?"
"That''s right! It attacked us with its huge wriggly tentacles, but our barrier was strong!" Stopping for a moment, Juni then turned to Ichigo who was standing at a small distance behind her, pointing at her as she continued the story, adding more excitement to her voice. "But Ichigo here has a powerful ability! The ability to erase evil!"
All eyes turned to the pink haired Valkyrie causing her to flinch from all the attention she was suddenly getting.
"The enemy knew this, that''s why they tried to hurt her before! And thanks to her ability, the monster wasn''t able to eat all of us!"
Juni continued with the storey, telling the kids about the army of giants, the demons and everything else. The boys were especially intrigued when she told them about her Super Juni Robo.
Little by little, they began to calm down and soon enough they warmed up to the girl once more. She promised to teach them how to use their powers once the battle ends, hoping that it would calm them down until they return to the forty sixth base.
~[]~
"They''re cute but¡ I don''t think I can handle them for long." Ichigo let out a long sigh, feeling utterly exhausted. "Maybe you would have had a better time. N-not that I''m saying you have a childish appearance or anything."
She was currently in the infirmary having a one sided conversation with B3. The guilt she felt after being saved had left her quite depressed. It was only during thest fight that she was able to ovee it, having proved to herself that she wasn''t just some dead weight.
Her ability was essential to keeping everyone safe, and that granted her a great boost in confidence, but the insecurities kepting and they wouldn''t stop.
"I guess I''m not that special after all." She said. "Well, it''s not like I was the only Cleanser back home, and it makes sense that the Nephilim have a lot more. I guess I won''t be able to do much to stand out from now on."
Closing her eyes, Ichigo tried to imagine what her friend would say. B3 was always great at uplifting others and encouraging them. If she were still around, Ichigo was sure that their chances at victory would''ve increased dramatically. Yet because she couldn''t defend herself they lost an important asset, one that could''ve made a much bigger difference than her.
As the tears began to gather in her eyes, the infirmary door slid open and someone came in.
"Ah! Ichigo!" Nino said. "You came to check on them as well?"
Recognizing the voice, the pink haired Valkyrie quickly wiped her eyes and turned to face the other visitor.
"Yes." She replied, forcing herself to smile. "I thought B3 might get lonely, even if she had JX9 to keep herpany."
"I guess we thought the same."
Nino walked over to the beds and stood beside B3''s. She gazed down at her, remaining silent for a while before reaching out with her hand and brushing some strands of her brilliant red hair. A smile formed on her face after that, one thatcked the pity or sadness the others had when seeing someone close to them in such a state. It was Nino''s usual confident to the point of arrogance smile, and as a strong sense restlessness filled her body, she delivered the news to her friend, trying her best to not sound too excited.
"Hey, B3, guess what?" She said, pausing for a moment as if waiting for an answer. "I had sex with Doctorst night!"
"COUGH!"
The reaction came from Ichigo who suddenly started coughing out of nowhere. Of course, she already knew about it. Juni had noticed the Doctor disappearing with Nino the previous night, and Zero Three had told them that they were probably going to do it, although she only had a hunch.
Nino nced at her pink haired friend, still smiling, then went back to telling the story of why happened, exaggerating a few things here and there for her own entertainment. After a while, the mood shifted and her voice became a lot more serious. Her smile had disappeared as well, showing that she was under the same amount of pressure Ichigo was going through if not more.
"I have regined more memories from my past life." She said. "Turns out I know quite a few stuff. Apparently Lachesis was quite the big shot back on the Olympians'' world." There was a long pause after she said that much, as if she wasn''t too sure of what to say. Once she had her thoughts in order, she took a deep breath and delivered the news, speaking for Ichigo to hear as well. "I''m sorry. I can''t really bring you back with my power."
In her hand she held the long red Needle. Despite allowing to gaze at the Tapestry of Fate as well giving her the ability to alter it, the Artifact could do nothing about a thread that has already been severed. At this rate, both of her friends were at risk of remaining in this state for all of eternity. Nino understood that that she couldn''t do anything to bring them back, but she wasn''t about to give up.
"Don''t worry, I know someone who could help us get you back." She said, the smile returning to her face. "I have a sister. No, not Atropos. Her name is Clotho and she''s the youngest among us. She was the one who figured out immortality back in our original world, can you believe it? Her Artifact, it allows her to weave new Threads that could be used to extend one''s life. Once we find her, I''m sure she will be happy to weave new Threads for you and JX9. It might take a while, but please be patient, okay?"
Normally, Clotho''s Threads could do nothing about someone who already reached the end of their Path. For her to be able to extend someone''s Thread, it must still have a few more years to it, and someone who''s already past the end of their Threads couldn''t be brought back to life. B3 and JX9 were a special case, however. Their Threads have been cut using Atropos'' scissors, a method that goes against what Fate had in store for them. Because of that, it is possible to extend their threads, reconnecting them at a certain event to ensure their return.
"I will need to deal with Atropos first, only then would I be able to walk forward." Nino said, her eyes gleaming with determination. "So wait for me. I will do everything in my power to bring you back as fast as possible."
Chapter 260 I Dont Believe It.
?
"Um¡ Three?"
"... Yes?"
"What are you doing?"
"... Nothing¡"
Zero Five was a little confused. Just like everyone, they had boarded the Nephilim ship and were waiting for it to take off. Though she wanted to spend the trip alongside the Doctor, he had dismissed her and the other Valkyries saying they needed to be prepared for the battle. Of course as their leader they couldn''t just leave him alone so Venti and Sitta were guarding him right now.
With that said, the others were free to spend the time on the trip however they liked, at least until they arrived at the Red Tower. Juni was with the human children telling them stories to keep them distracted. A number of Nephilim joined her and they seemed to get along very well. Triska and Trenta were mingling with the Nephilim as well. Nino and Ichigo were checking on their unconscious friends. As for CS, she was probably taking a nap somewhere.
Five was on the deck trying to rx before the big battle, but for some time now she was unable to do it. Ever since she came out of Eir, Zero Three has been a bit too clingy to her. She understood that the young Valkyrie was worried about her because of what happened during thest fight, but that didn''t prevent it from being a little ufortable.
"I wanna go home¡" Three said after a while. "I want to go swimming."
She was sitting right beside the ponytailed Valkyrie, her arms wrapped around her waist and her head resting on the soft melons. Five didn''t know how to react to the sudden closeness so all she could do was allow her to remain like that.
"It would be nice to sleep on my bed after everything that happened." Five said, trying to y along with what she said.
"I wish Nine was here as well¡"
When the blond Valkyrie was mentioned, Five felt a weak pain in her chest and suddenly she felt like she knew what Three was feeling. It was loneliness. Even with Nino and the others around the two of them still felt like they were missing something. No matter how they looked at it, without their friend around their team wascking, and the more they thought about it the more they missed her.
"Maybe it was for the better that she didn''te." Five said after a while. "Who knows what will happen going forward. The enemy this time is unlike anything we have fought before."
"I miss the days when the worst we had to face was a C ss Cmity." Three said.
"You mean the days we had nothing to do?"
The two fell silent for a few seconds then started giggling. Their memories of the forty sixth base were calm most of the time. Unlike the other bases which had to fight high ss Cmities all the time, the forty sixth was always peaceful. Because of that the Valkyries had all the free time they could get except for their daily patrol and mandated checks.
In those days, Three had spent most of her time swimming in the rooftop pool. It became her favorite ce immediately after moving to the new base. When she''s submerged in the cold water, her mind bes clear and she forgets all her worries.
"Say, what do you think about Nino?" The young Valkyrie asked.
"Hm?" Five was confused for a moment.
"You know how she now remembers her previous life or something, right? From what I understood, apparently she was apletely different person before she became a Valkyrie."
"Ah, now that you said it¡"
"I think Doctor I trying to avoid talking about it to us. I can see why, though."
Three fastened her hold on her teammate and closed her eyes. Unbeknownst to her, Five had started caressing the young one''s hair allowing her to rx more. The slight difort she felt before was now gone, and the only thing she could think of was how cute her friend was.
"Hm~ hm~, very nice!"
A voice said, startling both Valkyries and when they looked to the left they saw a bizarre sight. Behind the corner, a young girl was holding a small rectangr device up and looking at it with a broad smile. Her bright blue hair and eyes revealed that she was a Nephilim, however neither Valkyrie seemed to recognize her.
When she noticed that the two of them were looking at her, she tore her gaze from the small device and nervousness made its way to her face. After a while she stepped out and walked up to them, bowing her head and apologizing.
"Sorry, I didn''t mean to interrupt you." She said. "You looked so cute together I couldn''t help but take some photos."
"Photos?" Five and Nine looked at each other.
"I know I should''ve asked for permission first, but please ept my apology." The blue haired Nephilim said and bowed her head. "Please let me keep them! I want such a genuine show of affection to be a part of my collection!"
"Um¡ I don''t get it, but¡"
"You''ll let me!? Thank you thank you thank you!!!"
Seeing his excited she was, Three felt herself incapable of refusing. She remembered the time the human soldiers had asked to take photos with her so she saw no problem with the Nephilim taking one as well, however she still felt a little confused.
"Alright then! Do you mind if I ask you a few questions?" The Nephilim said.
"S-sure¡"
"Since when were the two of you together!?"
"Since when¡" Three looked up at Five. After a while she answered honestly. "A little over four years, I think?"
"Four years!!?" The Nephilim eximed, tapping the screen of her device furiously. "Who was the first to confess her feelings?"
"... What?"
Seeing that the two were confused, the Nephilim seemed to get even more excited.
"So you have yet to confess!" She eximed, hugging herself while wriggling with a slight blush on her cheeks. "A~h! This is the best type of rtionship! Two Nephilim getting close to each other without even knowing it! Their feelings grow stronger through the challenges they ovee together, and over time their bond bes unbreakable! This is what I call true love!!!"
Three was the first to understand what she was rambling about and quickly let go of Five, feeling quite embarrassed. Five remained oblivious, tilting her head slightly as if asking the Nephilim what was going on.
"We aren''t Nephilim though." She said. "We are Valkyries."
"Eh?" The Nephilim froze in her ce. After a second she turned to them and asked. "Isn''t that the same thing?"
"Well, technically¡" Three said. "Valkyries aren''t born on this world so¡"
"I see. I guess we still need to make that distinction." The blue haired Nephilim said, nodding.
"Also, we aren''t lovers or anything!" The young Valkyrie added. "Both of us are Doctor''s Valkyries."
"Doctor? Ah, you mean Doctor Sam Sanderson?" She raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean his personal Valkyries?"
"A lot." Three answered, starting to feel annoyed. "And one of them is that we are his lovers."
"Eh?" Once again the blue haired Nephilim seemed to freeze, this time however she waspletely stunned, her colors fading as if she had turned into a stone statue. "B-b-b-but he is a human male!!!"
"So what?"
"How can you be in love with him!? He isn''t even one of us?"
"Again, so what?"
Three stared at the blue haired Nephilim who looked quite distressed. After a while, when she realized the young Valkyrie was serious, she staggered backward as if she had lost her bnce and then leaned on the railing for support.
"... I knew it¡" she muttered, tears beginning to gather in her eyes. "I couldn''t save them and now¡ a man has gotten his hands on them¡"
"Um¡ what are you talking about?"
Hearing Three''s question, the Nephilim almost snapped her neck as she turned. After a moment of silence she let out a sigh, inhaled a deep breath then stood straight, cing a hand on her ample bosom and spoke again.
"My name is Sigyn! I made it my life''s mission to document the beautiful romantic rtions between our kind!"
"... I don''t get it¡" Three said.
"Of course you don''t." Sigyn said, shaking her head. "You have been tainted by the touch of a human male, tricked into believing that you are in love with him." Her eyes snapped open and she pointed her hand at the young Valkyrie. "Nephilim are only supposed to love other Nephilim! Falling for a human male is a grave betrayal! Males aren''t supposed to be a part of our lives! There is a reason all of us were born female! Everyst one of us!"
It was only then that Three noticed such an important detail, having gone over her mind the entire time. The Nephilim as well as the Valkyries, all of them were female. She wondered if all of it was just a coincidence, but she shook the idea out of her mind almost immediately. There had to be a reason for it to be this consistent, but then again their case was specialpared to humans.
If they considered Freyja to be their mother, then it would make sense why there were no male Nephilim or Valkyries. They were born from the mind of a little girl and had no father. That exins it all.
"Nephilim are only supposed to love other Nephilim?" Five said questioningly. "How does that even work? I mean, you can''t even have sex¡"
"S-s-sex!!?" Sigyn was once again stunned.
"Yes." Five nodded. "I mean, none of us have penises, right? I don''t think I can love someone without a penis¡" Realizing what she had just said, Five''s cheeks began flushing and her gaze fell to the floor. "Well, not that it matters. I don''t think I can love anyone other than Doctor¡"
As a warm and fuzzy atmosphere enveloped the ponytailed Valkyrie, a smile formed on Three''s face and she turned to look at the blue haired Nephilim.
"I agree with Five on this." She said. "You probably never had sex before, that''s why you can say what you say. I''m sure all it would take is a few minutes with Doctor and you would be worshipping the floor he walks on."
Three couldn''t even begin toprehend how two Nephilim can fall in love with each other. Having sex with the Doctor was the best thing about being in love with him, and though she knew she had gained feelings for him even before they did it for the first time, she still felt that doing the deed with him was why solidified her bond with him. Without it, she doubted that she would''ve been as attached to him as she was now.
"I¡ I don''t believe this¡" Sigyn said in a low voice. After a moment of silence she suddenly took off running, her voice echoing in the distance. "I DON''T BELIEVE IT!!!"
The two Valkyries watched as she disappeared and then looked at each other, a long sigh escaping both of them.
"What a weirdo¡"
Chapter 261 Barely.
Chapter 261 Barely.
The Nephilim ship took off, starting the countdown to the battle at the Red Tower. It would take eight hours to reach the destination, but there was no way to know when the fighting would start. ording to Nino, there were several Divergences where the Olympians decided to attack them during the trip. Since they all depended on their enemy''s movements, there was no way to tell when it would happen so everyone was on edge. Well, almost everyone, at least.
Mj?lnir stood in front of the closed metallic door leading to the meeting room. She was quite nervous, twiddling her fingers as she debated whether she should go in or not. After a while, she ced a hand on her chest and took a deep breath. Having gathered the courage she needed, she nodded to herself and reached for the panel, tapping its screen and opening the lock.
The door slid open and three heads turned her way, causing her to flinch. She had expected as much, but when the eyes fell on her she felt the nervousness return and a desire to run away was born.
"Ah, Ms. Mj?lnir." Sam said, smiling. "Did something happen?"
Obviously, he was aware that the silver haired Nephilim didn''te over for any particr reason. But he wasn''t going to embarrass her by showing that he knew she was there only to hang out.
"I came to check on you and¡" She said, her cheeks reddening a little. "And to see if you needed something."
"Is that so?" Sam said. "Well, we don''t really need anything right now, but why don''t you hang out with us a little? It has been some time since west seen each other so how about we catch up?"
"That''s¡ I don''t really want to bother you¡"
"What are you saying? We are friends, aren''t we? A little talk won''t hurt anyone."
"I-I see¡"
Mj?lnir''s expression softened as she breathed in relief. With the door closing behind her, she looked around the room and greeted the Valkyries on guard duty. The one with orange hair returned the smile and waved, but the green haired one seemed to be forcing herself.
When she returned her sight to the Doctor, her eyes immediately went to the green halo over his head. The Runes were visible as it wasn''t moving too fast so she was able to know what it does.
"So you''re able to use Runes now?" She said as she approached him.
"Barely." Sam replied, smiling wryly. "It takes a lot of effort to do anything."
"Because you haven''t heard the Whispers?"
"Yeah. I''m afraid it''ll be a very long time before I''m able to do the bare minimum."
Though he''s able to generate a Force Field thanks to the Valkyrie heart he equipped for himself, creating and manipting Runes was still a daunting task. Without the knowledge provided by the Primordials he was incapable of replicating what the others did, whether it''s the Valkyries, the Nephilim or even the Awakened human children.
"It''s a bit strange. I don''t remember ev-" Mj?lnir''s words were interrupted as her head hit an invisible wall. Realizing what was happening she immediately turned her eyes to the two Valkyries demanding to know why they were blocking her way.
"My apologies, but I can''t allow you to get too close." Sitta said with a smile. "That''s our leader over there. We might be in a truce, but that doesn''t change the fact that you''re from a different force."
The Valkyrie was speaking the truth and Mj?lnir knew she had no right to object. Instead of getting irritated though she only seemed to be sad for a few moments.
"Now now, there is no need to be so strict, Sitta." Sam said. "Mj?lnir is my friend. Can you let her pass?"
"... Fine."
With a long sigh, Sitta took off the barrier. Venti was about to say a word ofint but one look from Sam was enough to silence her.
"So¡ what are you doing right now?" She said, ncing at his halo once again. "Trying to learn how to create a weapon of your own?"
"Well¡ not exactly¡" Sam replied. "I still have very little control over the Nameless Element. It''ll be quite a while before I''m able to make anything stable enough to be used."
"I wish I could help you, but¡ unfortunately I don''t know how it works myself." She said, lifting her hand and looking at it. "It justes to us naturally."
"Yeah, Queen H has already told me."
As Sam understood it, the Valkyries and Nephilim had heard the Primordial''s Whispers in their past lives leading to them learning how to use the Runes. The problem is what Nino told them about reincarnation. ording to her, death is supposed to wipe one''s soul clean, leaving only the essence that would be reborn into a new life. Freyja''s Children ¨Cthe name he chose for those born from the original Alice¨C are clearly special in that regard. Considering everything they''re capable of, they seem to have retained the most crucial memories somehow, allowing them to use them even after they die.
"My only choice is to keep practicing and hope I will one day be good enough." Sam said with a sigh. "Unless I find a safe way for me to hear the Whispers without losing my mind."
"Do you really need to learn them, though?" Said Mj?lnir. "I mean, you have us by your side¡"
It took Sam a moment to understand and when he did he turned to the silver haired Nephilim, one eyebrow raised. Mj?lnir didn''t seem to understand his confusion, but after a second her face took on a brilliant red color.
"I-I-I didn''t¡ I mean¡ we are allies now and¡"
Her hands moved around frantically as she tried to exin herself, but when she saw the smile he wore as he watched her the embarrassment she felt stole her words and she fell silent, hanging her head as steam slowly rose from it.
"Thank you, Mj?lnir." Sam said. "It''s good to know I have strong allies by my side."
As she watched their interactions from the back, Venti looked quite annoyed, unlike her orange haired friend who was quite amused.
"I can''t believe it." She said in a low voice. "He''s even going after the Nephilim now¡"
Sitta, who was sitting at the table resting her head in her hands, only nced at her green haired friend once before going back to watch the show.
"Jealous?" She asked in a teasing tone.
"J-jealous!? Me!? Why would I-"
"I mean, you''ve been waiting for him to do something this whole time, right?" Sitta said. "I guess you couldn''t wait till we got home~"
Venti was confused for a moment, but then her eyes slowly widened, her cheeks slowly reddening as she realized her friend knew everything.
"You¡ you saw¡"
"Despite everything you said, in the end you still want his attention just like the others."
"Th-that''s not¡"
"Don''t worry. There is nothing to be ashamed of." Sitta sighed and returned her gaze to the man in ab coat. "I''m also looking forward to my turn. I hear it''s the best reward we can get for our effort."
Venti fell silent and went back to watching the Doctor. She convinced herself that she was just doing her duty as his guard, but the more time she spent staring at him the more vivid her memories of what happened yesterday became.
"Somehow, it feels a bit cold in here¡" Mj?lnir said.
The two Valkyries noticed it as well. The temperature inside the meeting room was slowly dropping which led to them heightening their guard. But as seconds passed nothing seemed to happen.
"Maybe the air-conditioning malfunctioned..." Mj?lnir said, slowly rubbing her arms as her breath turned white. "The ship isn''t really in its best shape¡"
"Do you feel cold?" Sam said, stepping up toward her. "How about I help you stay warm?"
"Eh?"
Before she could say anything, the silver haired Nephilim found herself wrapped in the man''s arm. She hadn''t noticed when he got so close and by the time she realized it Sam already had her in his embrace.
Being hugged from behind sent Mj?lnir''s mind into a frenzy and in a couple of seconds she was already burning up to the point that Sam felt her heating up.
"How is it?" He asked. "All better?"
"I¡ I¡"
A small distance away, Venti was stunned, her facepletely red as she watched the scene y in front of her. Sitta''s interest peaked, and to make sure her entertainment wasn''t interrupted, she ced a sound blocking barrier around her green haired friend.
Mj?lnir felt her whole body hearing up. His arms were wrapped around her waist and she could feel her back pressing against him. He wasn''t applying too much strength, but for some reason she felt like she couldn''t escape his hold. As a few passed, she felt herself gradually calming down, a strange sense offort enveloping her. She rxed and surrendered herself to his embrace, happiness slowly filling her chest.
As a small smile began to form on her lips, curiosity took over her and she turned to look at the man behind her. Their eyes met and she felt the shyness return to her, but before she could say anything his mouth moved first, and the words he said sounded like amand she couldn''t refuse.
"Close your eyes."
As the sweet whisper reached her ear, the silver haired Nephilim did as she was told. Her long eyshes went down and everything went dark for a second, but somehow she was able to tell what was happening. His face was already close to hers but she could tell he was getting even closer. She instinctively puckered her lips and waited, then, not a secondter, she felt his touching hers, a strong warmth suddenly flooding her chest.
Chapter 262 A little cold.
Chapter 262 A little cold.
The kiss didn''tst long, but for Mj?lnir it felt even shorted. When Sam let go of her lips, she slowly opened her eyes and looked at him. With swift movements she freed herself from his hold, turned around and kissed him again. Sam was stunned for a moment, but then he seemed to rx, his hands going back to her waist as the kiss went deeper.
"Uh-oh~" Sitta let out an amused voice then nced at her green haired friend.
Venti was silent, her mouth agape as she watched the scene with a flushed face.
As they made out, both Sam and Mj?lnir ignored the two Valkyries. The silver haired Nephilim had her arms around his neck. Her full breasts,pressed by her tight battle suit and grey uniform, were pressing against his muscr chest. His hands moved down to her hips then to her lower back. She felt a weak shiver spread like a wave across her body when he caressed her soft behind, which was wrapped in a tight miniskirt, and when his fingers dug in she couldn''t help but gasp.
Just then they heard the sound of ss shattering and they all turned in the same direction, looking at Venti who was holding her fist out as if she was done throwing a punch. Seeing the white color covering it, Sam realized that she had just broken out of a barrier most likely put around her by Sitta.
"WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU!!?" Venti yelled. "We are on our way to the biggest battles of our lives so far and what are you doing? You''re ying around with another woman! How can you be sox in such a situation!?"
Sam was stunned by the sudden outburst and so was Mj?lnir. The Nephilim began to feel embarrassed and was about to pull away, but she found herself unable to as the man kept holding her close.
"What are you saying, Venti?" Sam asked, lifting the Nephilim''s ass a little. "This requires quite a bit of concentration, you know?"
"Ah!" Mj?lnir couldn''t stop the gasp from escaping her, leading to her embarrassment skyrocketing.
"I-Is this really the time to be indulging yourself!? We might get attacked at any moment!"
Though she was trying to mask it with her anger, Sam could tell that the green haired Valkyrie was overwhelmed with embarrassment as she watched the way he handled their silver haired friend. He didn''t know if it was jealousy or not, but it was clear that she was feeling rather conflicted at the moment which led to her outburst.
"You don''t have to worry, Venti." Sam said as he continued to massage Mj?lnir''s ass. "Mj?lnir here was feeling a little cold. I''m just helping keep her warm, that''s all."
The silver haired Nephilim looked up at him with hazy eyes, her breathing out as small puffs of white mist. Seeing how aroused she had be, Sam moved in and kissed her again, their tongues meeting inside as the passionate kissing continued.
Venti was lost for words, the Doctor''splete disregard for her opinion shocking her. But things were only getting worse. Her ginger friend stood up from her seat drawing everyone''s attention to her. Without a care to the looks she was getting, she walked over to the man in ab coat, wearing a smile as she reached out and ced a hand on his forearm.
"Doctor~?" Sitta said, her voice sounding strangely seductive. "I''m feeling a little cold as well~?"
Sam stared at her for a moment, taken aback by her unexpected behavior. That didn''tst long though as he ced his left hand on her waist and pulled her toward him. He smiled at her and she let out a short giggle, and when their eyes met once more she closed hers and prepared her lips.
Sam took them without hesitation, carefully savoring their softness. Sitta''s eagerness was clear in the way she was pushing against him, and to his surprise she went straight for a deep kiss showing that she didn''t have the shyness other Valkyries had.
Mj?lnir could only gaze at them in silence, her sullen expression telling of how she felt neglected. Of course Sam was aware of that, and so was Sitta. Not wanting to cause any arguments, she broke the kiss and allowed him to return his focus to the Nephilim putting her in a good mood once again.
Unlike everyone else, the Valkyries with ginger hair felt rather excited in such a situation. She didn''t mind being held by a man as he kissed another woman right in front of her, mainly because she knew he didn''t forget her presence as her ass was being squeezed by his hand all the while.
As she patiently waited for her turn, Sitta turned to Venti, seeing that she was still frozen in her ce.
"Feel free to join in, if you want~?" she said with a smile. At that moment Sam let go of Mj?lnir''s lips and turned to her. The two started making out once more and the silver haired Nephilim rested her head on his shoulders as if she were in a trance.
Venti couldn''t believe what was happening, her anger boiling with each passing second. She did feel the temperature dropping in the room, however she couldn''t believe that it was the real reason they were engaged in such indecent acts. If they wanted things to be warm they could''ve gone somewhere else, but they were here submitting themselves to that man and allowing him to enjoy their touch slowly driving them into an aroused state.
In the corner of his eye Sam saw as the green haired Valkyrie turned around and walked to the door. He guessed that what they were doing was too much making her decide to leave. He returned his focus to Sitta''s lips, enjoying them for a few seconds before he switched back to Mj?lnir, but just as he was about to turn his head he felt something tug on hisb coat.
It was Venti, looking rather embarrassed as she tried to get his attention. She had taken her sses off and was avoiding his gaze, but the blush on her cheeks told him everything he should know.
With just a nce Sitta understood what he was trying to say and moved a little making some space by his left side. Sam grabbed Venti by the waist and pulled her to his embrace, then, without waiting another second, he kissed her on the lips and silenced any word of protest she might have had. In just a couple of seconds her body rxed as she submitted herself to him.
Chapter 263 This isn’t good.
Chapter 263 This isn''t good.
"Ahh!"
Sam sat on making out with Sitta who was sitting on hisp. On his right side was Mj?lnir. Her miniskirt was pulled up revealing her plump white behind, one of the soft cheeks squeezed firmly in the man''s hand making her gasp in delight. On his left side was Venti. She was trying her best to suppress her voice, going so far as to bite one of her fingers, but with his hand having slipped under her shirt and into her battle suit she couldn''t stop the coquettish moans escaping her each time he massaged her breast and pinched her nipple.
Sam didn''t even get a second of rest. When the Valkyrie with ginger hair was done with her turn his face was immediately turned around by Mj?lnir who ced her lips on his eager to make out as soon as possible. He thought Venti would be a little hesitant about kissing him, but no. The shyness she had shown before was nowhere to be seen as she extended her tongue out, touching his lips then his own tongue.
"Somehow, this is rather exciting~?" Sitta said, watching as Venti indulged herself despiteining not that long ago. Soon enough it was her turn again, but she felt that it didn''tst that long this time as the Doctor soon moved on to the silver haired Nephilim.
Though she didn''t mind sharing at first each time he let go of her to kiss another girl a drop of greed fell into her chest making her desire for the man grow even more.
She might''ve ended at the center but it felt like she wasn''t getting as much attention. Not wanting to stay motionless as she waited Sitta began looking for something to do and at that moment her eyes fell on Sam''s neck, a smile forming on her face as she licked her lips.
She reached out with her right hand, cing her index and middle fingers on his necktie, pulling it down and undoing it. She then moved on to his shirt, unbuttoning it all the way down.
"Oh my~?"
Seeing his muscr pecs and abs caused the ginger to shudder. Carefully, she ced her fingers on his skin and began feeling his chest, slowly going down to his abdomen amazed by how rigid and tough his body feltpared to hers and the other Valkyries.
"You like what you see?"
When she looked up, Sitta saw that Sam was smirking at her. He was done making out with Venti so now was her turn, but when he saw her observing his body he remained silent and waited for a while.
Mj?lnir and Venti didn''t speak as well, their eyes locked on his exposed torso. Unlike Sitta, the two of them were blushing to the ears, wanting to try and touch his sculptured muscles but too embarrassed to do so.
"You purposefully made it this way, right?" Sitta said with a grin. "I would say it is to my taste."
The truth was that Elina had added some improvements on her own volition, but Sam didn''t get the chance to respond as Sitta moved in and started kissing him passionately. When her turn was done, she didn''t back away and instead moved on to his neck and bit him there. She then went on to kiss it, gradually moving down until she was licking his chest. The other two mimicked her movements after oveing their shyness continuing to feed their arousal as they waited for him to make out with them again.
''Ah, this isn''t good¡'' Sam thought. ''Maybe Venti was right¡''
At first he only nned on teasing Mj?lnir a little bit. He had noticed her feelings for him a long time ago when she worked as a liaison between him and the Nephilim and wanted to add her to his harem at some point. But when Sitta joined in and invited Venti as well he decided to have some fun thinking he would be done in no time.
It has been quite a while since he had a foursome. With three beautiful women throwing themselves at him, all of whom are more on the mature side, Sam felt his gears turning and his restraints breaking making him wish he could go all out.
With his focus being on the three he lost control over the halo was maintaining through the entire session. He was trying to see how long he could go but in the end he felt like dedicating all of his attention to the lovely girls seeking his love.
"Say, Doctor~?" Sitta whispered in his ear. "Can I take a look at this?"
Her hand was on his crotch, gently massaging the bulge that had long since formed there.
The pink hearts had yet to appear in her eyes so he guessed she was just asking out of curiosity. Sam found himself torn between his carnal desires and wanting to remain cautious, however after a long internal debate he finally gave in.
"Be quick, okay?" He said with a wry smile. "And make sure to not soil your uniform."
A single blow job wouldn''t hurt, that''s how he convinced himself that it was okay. He didn''t really have to worry about the uniforms as they would be taken off when the battle starts anyway, but he felt that if he saw the Valkyrie with ginger hair covered in his cum he would have no choice but to fuck her right then and there, which added to his uneasiness as he watched her stand up from hisp before kneeling down between his legs.
Driven by curiosity as well, both Mj?lnir and Venti had their eyes locked on Sitta''s hand as she carefully unbuckled his belt. They gulped simultaneously when she grabbed his pants and, their anticipation peaking, then when the seal was removed and the monster rushed out the two of them gasped as they saw the meat pir stand tall right in front of them.
Chapter 264 Disappointed.
Chapter 264 Disappointed.
"Um¡ uh¡ wow¡"
Sitta waspletely lost for words. She had heard from the others that their Doctor was packing a massive thing in his pants, but now that it was in front of her she didn''t know what to think.
Venti was stunned and so was Mj?lnir. All three had some basic knowledge about sex and they instinctively reached down to where their legs connected wondering if it really was possible for something like that to fit in.
"Doctor¡ did you really use this one on Nino yesterday?"
"Hm? What else would I use them?" Sam asked. Despite her yfulness, Sitta''s reaction showed him that she was still a pure maiden, same as the others.
"I¡ I mean, something this big¡"
"You don''t have to worry, your bodies were made to adjust to any size." Saying that, Sam nced at the other two then returned his gaze to the Valkyrie with ginger hair. "Unfortunately we don''t have the time today. Since you took it out I will have you use your mouths to service me, but once we get back home I will make sure each one of you gets the best experience."
"Doctor¡" Mj?lnir spoke, her eyes moving between him and his meat pole. "You¡ you have been doing it with your Valkyries, haven''t you? Sex¡"
"Hm? Well, yeah¡"
The silver haired Nephilim was silent for a few seconds, but even though she was still blushing, he could tell she was quite upset.
"I thought you were supposed to do those things only with those special to you¡"
"Of course." Sam replied.
"Then¡ how can you go around getting close to so many¡ I¡ I didn''t think too much of it when you started kissing those two, but¡"
Mj?lnir was in love with Sam. She was so happy to see him again that she jumped right into his arms the day before, and when he hugged her back she felt an indescribable sense of joy. That feeling didn''tst though as the Valkyries took turns hugging him the moment she moved aside. Even so she didn''t let it discourage her and she tried to get close to him again.
When he kissed her earlier she was convinced that he shared her feelings, but then the orange haired Valkyrie came in and kissed him as well. When the green haired one joined them she felt disillusioned. She wasn''t that special. She realized that, if he did anything with her, he probably already did it with the Valkyries or would do it soon enough. She couldn''t resist making out with him despite being forced to wait as the other two got their turn, but when she saw his penis she became hesitant to go along with the act.
"Disappointed, aren''t you?" Venti scoffed. "The fact that we are doing this at such a sensitive time should tell you. He''s just a pervert who can''t wait to get into a woman''s panties. You have no obligation to y along with his games so if you want to leave then you should leave."
"I''m actually surprised that you know how to use those words." Sam sighed with a smile. He guessed that the green haired one was trying to take out thepetition, but her trick didn''t seem to work as Mj?lnir continued to stare at him. "Alright then. I guess it''s about time I teach you an important concept."
Letting go of the two, Sam stood up and motioned for them to kneel down beside Sitta, one on the left and the other on the right with his cock at their center.
"Listen well. With how many Valkyries are there, and how limited my time is, it''s impossible for only one of you to have me all for herself." Sam spoke, and the three looked up at him while listening attentively. "Not only you would have to share, but sometimes you''ll also have to work together with others at the same time, just like what you''ll be doing today." He saw that Mj?lnir was still having a frown on her face so after some thought he tried to rify things. "Just so you know, you having to share me doesn''t make any of you less special. Your feeling is something I cherish and I always give my all to each and every one of you!"
There was a moment of silence. Since he was no longer suppressing his emotions so he could enjoy thepany of the three, Sam began to feel a hint of embarrassment pinching the back of his neck. He couldn''t allow it to show on his face though so he tried to keep calm as he looked for something to say.
"I see. Doctor sure is a greedy man." Sitta said with a giggle. Her gaze moved back to his cock and she held her hand up and pocked the tip, smiling as she asked him a question. "So, you said I will be using my mouth but¡ how should I go about it?"
Sam looked at the two Valkyries then the Nephilim before answering.
"For how, you''ll lick it." He said. "All three of you, at the same time."
"At the same time!!?" Venti eximed. Mj?lnir shared her perplexion.
"Of course. I mean, I can have each of of you do it separately, but this way you''ll learn how to work together."
"Together¡"
Unlike the other two who began blushing intensely just from thinking about it, a beautiful smile bloomed on Sitta''s face as she looked up at him. Without hesitation, she leaned in toward the erect meat pir and ced her lips on the head.
Venti''s eyes shot open when she saw her fellow Valkyrie kiss the penis. Mj?lnir was as surprised, watching carefully with a hand on her chest which was filled with conflicting emotions raging inside.
Ignoring the intense gazes directed at her, Sitta extended her tongue and began licking as she was told. She noticed the salty taste of the precum in her mouth and began going down hoping to get more of it, but her longue hair was getting in the way and she found herself having to brush it back multiple times.
"What are you waiting for?"
When they heard his voice both Venti and Mj?lnir looked up with a start. Sitta only moved her eyes, but when she realized he wasn''t addressing she returned her focus to his cock.
The other two understood what he was trying to say but they were unable to make a move. After a while, Mj?lnir managed to suppress her hesitation, closing her eyes and leaning in to kiss the penis. Once she had her lips on it the shyness she felt seemed to recede a little, but not enough for her to move as fast as the ginger. She brought out only the tip of her tongue and started licking along the shaft. Over time she got morefortable and soon enough her saliva covered most of the meat pole.
Venti was thest to move. She was reluctant to put her tongue on something so vile, but seeing the two greedily licking and sucking made her grow hot and bothered, so much that her honeypot began leaking. Soon enough she felt herself getting in the mood and before she knew it she was licking as well.
"Good¡" Sam said, a smile forming on his face. He found himself enjoying the scene more than the pleasure of their tongues sliding on his cock. "You''re doing well¡"
Sitta stopped for a moment and looked up at him with a smile.
"Do you like it, Doctor~?"
"Yes¡ it feels so good¡"
"Is that so?" Going back to licking the head she then added. "I''m d~"
The three were amateurs as clearly shown by their awkward movements. Even Sitta was struggling a little despite the confidence she was sowing. Being from the fifteen Valkyries that arrived at the forty sixth base after the Resistance headquarters were destroyed, she most likely saw the indecent movies Nino had shown them. At the moment she was trying to replicate what she saw in one of those movies so after licking the cock for a while she took the head into her mouth and all the way to her throat.
"Wai-... Si¡ tta¡!!!"
Her sudden move took Sam by surprise causing his whole body to go stiff. Sitta wasn''t any better, not having taken into ount how it would feel to have something so thick in her mouth, even though she only gobbled half of the nine inch rod. That said, she didn''t let herself remain motionless for long, closing her eyes and starting to move her head back and forth. Valkyries didn''t need to breathe so she had no trouble at all and before long she settled into a steady rhythm that increased in pace after a while.
Mj?lnir and Venti couldn''t take their eyes off the ginger haired Valkyrie for a while but then a weak grown drew their attention to Sam and they realized how much of an effect Sitta''s actions were having on him. Seeing how overpowered he was they got the idea that they must make the feeling stronger so they began licking him once more.
Venti went for the base of his cock while Mj?lnir began sucking on his balls. They could feel the meat pir throbbing and twitching informing them that he was about to reach his limit. Once again Sitta pushed the thing all the way to her throat and at that moment a stream of hot thick liquid erupted in her mouth.
Chapter 265 Not Again.
?
"Hnahh!!"
Though she tried, in the end Sitta was unable to drink all of Sam''s load causing it to leak from the gap between her lips and his rod.
Sam let out a satisfied sigh as his ejaction came to an end then he looked down at the three to see their reaction.
"What are you doing?" He said, seeing that Mj?lnir and Venti had stopped moving. "If you aren''t going to lick it then who will?"
Shaken out of their daze the two took their tongues out and began licking the cream staining his cock. Having had her fill, Sitta swallowed then looked up at him, a confused look on her face.
"It tastes a bit¡ weird¡" she said.
Sam could only smile at her response and she immediately went back to cleaning the mess she had created. Just then the door suddenly opened and all of them froze.
"... Having fun, huh, Doctor?" Nino said, looking at him with half closed eyes. "Not only do you have three at the same time, one of them is a Nephilim as well. I can only say I''m impressed."
"D-Doctor¡" Ichigo was tomato faced in a second, her eyes wide as she stared at the fully erect meat pir and the three women kneeling down in front of it.
"Well, it''s good to relieve some stress before the big battle." Sam replied.
He took a small handkerchief from his pocket and handed it to the Valkyrie with ginger hair.
"Do you mind wiping it for me?"
As Sitta cleaned the saliva off of his rod, Mj?lnir and Venti both stood up, their heads hanging down as they tried to hide their embarrassment.
"I-I should get going now." Mj?lnir said as she walked toward the door in quick steps.
"S-since Nino is here, I guess you won''t be needing me anymore." Venti said. "May I be dismissed?"
"Sure."
Receiving Sam''s permission, the green haired Valkyrie summoned her halo and teleported away. Apparently she couldn''t handle the shame anymore.
"You even got Venti." Nino said with a sigh. "And she was so vocal about not wanting to get it on with you."
"What can I say. I have an irresistible charm." Sam said jokingly.
"It''s done, Doctor." Sitta said.
"Alright. You''re dismissed as well."
The ginger wasn''t as embarrassed as the others, but Sam thought it would be for the better if she left for now. He pulled his underwear and pants up then fixed his shirt.
"Hold on!" Nino said as she walked over with a smile. She then began fixing his tie, though she had some trouble because of the difference in height between them. "This is something we would be doing quite often once we are married, right?"
"I thought you would be more angry." Sam said with a smirk. "You caught your fiance with three women and this is your reaction?"
Returning the smirk, the Japanese doll pulled on his tie and forced him to lower his head before standing on her toes to kiss him.
"If I keep stressing over your sex life I would lose all my hair."
Sam pulled her into his arms and kissed her once more. Seeing the two make out caused Ichigo to blush even more to the point that she had to avert her gaze.
"Alright. I get that you want to show how much you love me, but now isn''t the time." Regretfully pulling away from him, Nino fanned her hand as she tried to cool down her heating body.
"Did something happen?" Sam asked.
"I peeked at the Tapestry once more. A new convergence appeared not that long ago."
"Not again¡" Sam could only sigh and hold a hand to his forehead. "What''s the point of future sight if the future we see keeps changing?"
"Well, it''s not really the future, remember?" Said the Japanese doll. "It''s the potential future. I choose one and try to lead us down its path, but there is no guarantee that nothing will happen and push us into another one."
Sam could only sigh hearing the exnation one more.
"So? What was it that caused this change of paths?"
"Probably the Primordial we fought before." Nino answered. "You should see for yourself."
She motioned for him to follow her and the two headed for the door. Ichigo turned around to follow them as well, but when she did she found her lips connected to Sam''s sending her thoughts into a frenzy once more.
"I might''ve yed it cool so far, but we really are running out of time." Despite her act so far, Nino was clearly annoyed, seeing her man kiss another woman right in front of her.
"Just a moment¡"
Sam ignored her warning and went on to make out with Ichigo for an entire minute, getting to feel her plump ass all the while. When he was done, the pink haired Valkyrie teleported away as well.
Smiling to himself, he turned to the Japanese doll and told her to lead the way.
~[]~
"Is this¡ space distortion?"
At the bridge of the Nephilim ship, Sam looked at a floating screen that showed a few images captured by the scouting drones.
Right now they were halfway through the Antic Ocean, and the world seemed to be flipping in itself. Near the coast of the North American continent, water was flowing upward in a reverse waterfall. Several tornados ravaged thend and whole chunks of earth were rising to the sky creating an archipgo of floating inds. And that was the least bizarre of what awaited them as they headed for the Red Tower.
"As I said before, the Primordial of this world has no intention of just letting itself be turned into a Key." Nino exined. "Its Madness is spreading as it prepares to cross over to this in, but thankfully we aren''t the targets of its wrath at least for now."
It''s obvious that such a powerful ancient being wouldn''t just let a bunch of insects turn it into raw materials for their little science project. Seeing how theirst battle went, Sam was sure that the Olympians would have a lot to deal with during their Ritual and so he took it into ount when making their n.
"So it has already started¡"
"I''m sure Atropos wasn''t expecting this." Said Nino. "The Primordial just tore a hole in space and is in the process of crossing, even though the Ritual should''ve been dyed because the inter-dimensional portal was used a couple of days ago."
"Isn''t this a little¡ bad?" Mimir asked.
Since they nned their movements ording to the timeline given to them by Nino, the ship still has at least four hours before it reaches the Red Tower. If the Olympians manage to get what they want in that timespan, Sam and his allies would have to fight an uphill battle as the enemy would be able to escape or summon reinforcements.
"Well, not really." Said Nino. "Space distortions, remember?"
Sam didn''t get what she meant for a few seconds, but then a lightbulb lit up above his head.
"Don''t tell me¡"
"Yup." She nodded. "The Primordial''s rampage has created several warp points we could use to immediately cross the distance to the Red Tower. I''ve already used my Needle to see which one leads to where. We are good to go as soon as you give the signal."
While he weed the sudden decrease in the length of the trip, nervousness made its way to Sam''s mind as he felt that jumping into the battle right now wouldn''t be in their best interest.
"No, we shouldn''t be too haste." He said with a shake of his head. "The future you foresaw has already changed, right? That means we have to alter our ns to the new Path and¡"
"I think it''s pointless to do so." Said the Japanese doll. "From what I saw, no major changes have urred to the battle we would be fighting, aside from it being pushed forward a few hours. And as you said the future might change at any moment so¡"
"You mean we should follow the same n we agreed on before?" Though she tried to keep her expression calm, the green haired Nephilim was clearly displeased, most likely sharing Sam''s wariness about Nino''s proposed course of action.
"Please keep in mind that the oue doesn''t depend on our actions alone. There are other factors affecting what path we end up with, and our enemies have as much influence as we do. Most of the Divergences are decided by who wins which battle. No matter how much we try nning our moves, unless we have a sure way to overpower our opponents we are stuck with an uncertain oue. Well, if we could overpower them we wouldn''t even need to look at the possible futures."
Their alliance with the Nephilim had ced them on equal footing with Atropos'' forces, but that was it. The Tapestry of Fate showed many Paths that lead to different oues, but all of them had equal chances of bing reality. Unlike thest battle which depended entirely on whether the Nephilim reached the abandoned airport on time, the uing battle will be decided by whether they win all of the major fights or not.
After discussing the matter with Mimir some more, Sam finally came to a decision. Only fifteen minutes separated them from the start of the battle. They had the element of surprise as Olympians were unaware of the space distortions so they were going to make use of it to the best of their abilities.
Chapter 266 Dont Be Ridiculous.
?
"Perseus! What in the world is happening right now!!?"
On top of being in a bad mood because of the nosey guests, Atropos was hit with another unpleasant surprise.
When the rm rang she teleported outside, and the moment her eyes fell on the spatial rift she cursed her luck. The Ritual should''ve been halted when Artemis and the others arrived. They still had a few hours before its effect went back to its maximum output, however the Primordial was already attempting to invade their in of existence, arriving much earlier than anticipated.
[Mdy, there is nothing to worry about.] Said Perseus, his face appearing on a small floating screen. [I''ve already anticipated that this would happen. The second phase of the Ritual is ready. All that''s left is to wait for the right moment.]
"You already anticipated this?" She asked, a little perplexed.
[Mdy, do you remember my report from two days ago?]
"... I see. I now understand¡"
Inter-dimensional portals to the world they were in couldn''t be opened due to the barrier surrounding the entire, which meant Artemis couldn''t havee of her own volition. Atropos concluded that someone from her own retinue must''ve opened the portal and invited them, and before she could wonder who did it Perseus came forward and admitted it was him.
After a well deserved beating she had him exin why he did it. It was then that she learned about the Primordial''s first attempt to cross ins and how Lachesis and her allies managed to stop it.
The Primordial was after the few remaining human survivors who were under her sister''s protection. After its apostles failed to finish them off, the ancient beings decided to show themselves and handle everything on their own, but that ended up backfiring when the so called Nephilim joined the battle and helped drive it away.
After licking its wounds, the Primordial was now trying to get its revenge, but not before restoring the power it lost by consuming the Aether gathered using the Ritual.
Humans and other sentient beings are special because their souls are made out of Aether. Once freed from their flesh prison, the Ritual would gather them in a single point creating what''s basically a bait made out of the mysterious element.
Normally the Primordial would take decades to reach the that had its sentient race annihted, but with the Aether from human souls concentrated in a single point it would rush over fearing that someone was trying to steal its prey.
"Lachesis sure did a number on that thing." Atroposmented as she watched the burnt tentacles creep into the world.
[Mdy, from what we have gathered so far, Lady Lachesis seems to have retrieved the Artifact.] Said Perseus. [She is on her way here, but from the looks of it she won''t arrive until after a few hours. Could it be that she failed to foresee the Path we are currently on?]
"Primordials aren''t bound by the Tapestry so there is no way to tell." Said Atropos. "This works in hour favor. We need to finish creating the Key before my dear little sister arrives."
[Understood.]
Five gigantic eyes seeped from the spatial holes like drops of water and a devastating cry shook the entire continent. The weather took a dramatic change and natural disasters started one after the other. Massive chasms split mountains apart, hail rained down, each one the size of a human head. Debris from the ruined human cities took to the sky and soon after entire patches of earth began rising up as if the force holding them together was no longer there.
A single typhoon appeared around the glowing Red Tower. The Primordial continued its descent, unperturbed by the destruction its presence was causing. As she watched from a distance, Atropos couldn''t help but grimace. The Whispers were bing too loud for her to ignore. So far she was able to tune them out, but with the ancient being right in front of her she was powerless. Her only choice was to withstand the mental assault until the Key was created.
"Uh-oh! This one is pretty wild, huh?" Pheme appeared right beside Atropos and gazed at the spectacle in front of them. "I guess taking it down won''t be easy!"
"Mind your own business." Atropos clicked her tongue, annoyed by the cheerfulness of her annoying guest.
"I guess you aren''t too worried, huh? Is it because you''re using those so called Nephilim? Hephaestus has told me about their abnormal resistance to telepathy¡"
Atropos kept her silence, having no interest in taking part in the unnecessary conversation.
Controlling the Nephilim was no easy task. Their minds were an enigma, holding secrets that couldn''t be uncovered without properly studying them first. That said, for some reason Hephaestus already had something that could put them in a state of hypnosis allowing them to be used in the ritual. He said it was just a slightly modified version of the masks they usually use to control awakened humans, but very few believed that excuse.
With each passing second, more of the Primordial''s true form became visible as it crossed ins. The countless tentacles reached for the ground, forming Runes and creating giant humanoids out of a strange ck material. Some of them towered over the rest and had horns on their head. Each one created a halo of its own, and in a matter of seconds they formed giant spikes holding them in one arm as they took a throwing position.
"Tche! They''re targeting the Sacrifices!"
The newly created ck Stone Giants had only one job; to take down the Nephilim forming the runes surrounding the Red Tower. The second phase of the Ritual had yet to begin, however the Primordial already understood what was happening and was trying to sabotage everything by destroying the only thing holding it together.
Countless red lines carved their way to the sky as the giant shotser beams at the Nephilim. Obviously such a weak attack couldn''t hope to prate the defensive barriers set around them beforehand, but the same couldn''t be said about the spikes held by the Demons, which were being covered with the white glow of the barrier breaking Rune.
"Perseus! Don''t let them shoot the spikes!"
[Don''t worry.] A different voice reached her ear at that moment. [I will handle this.]
Just then, a green light shed above the chaos, shattering the next second as it rained over the army of ck Giants. A storm of arrows came down piercing everything in its wake, shattering the Stone Giants and turning them into lifeless rocks. Atropos recognized the attack as well as the voice she heard, but instead of feeling relieved her frustration reached a whole new level.
"I don''t remember asking for your help, Artemis." She said, anger clear in her voice.
[You think I would sit still in this situation?] The voice said. [I''ll hold back the Apostles. Just focus on the Ritual.]
Atropos clicked her tongue again. One of the reasons she didn''t want to call for backup was the favors she would owe the ones who answered her call. Even if they were allies, the Olympians weren''t on such good terms that they would help each other without expecting something in return. She guessed that Artemis was trying to take the Nephilim for herself as payment for her help. Atropos didn''t mind using them as pawns in a bargain, but she hated the fact that she wasn''t even given the chance to refuse.
A bolt of crimson lightning shot down shaking the entire region. When the dust settled and the smoke dissipated, only a sea of charred sand was left behind. Pheme summoned a small window to check what caused it and with an understanding nod she turned to her raven haired friend and spoke with a smile.
"This one is pretty strong." She said. "You think she could take down Heracles?"
Atropos looked at the screen or a moment before turning away with a scoff.
"Don''t be ridiculous. That bastard might be strong, but he won''tst a single minute against her."
"Whoa¡ the Fate herself is praising someone that much." Pheme backed away, covering her wide open mouth with both hands. "Did she give you that much trouble?"
"Killing her is one thing, but capturing her wasn''t easy."
Atropos remembered her battle against the crimson haired Nephilim quite well. She had avoided using her Scissors back then, not wanting to sever the Threads of her opponent after deciding to use them in the Ritual. Thankfully her opponent was too focused on protecting the other Nephilim as they retreated resulting in an opening the Olympians were ready to take. If the two of them fought with everything they got, Atropos wasn''t sure she would''ve been the one toe out on top.
[Mdy, I think we might have a problem.]
When Perseus'' confused voice reached her, Atropos got a very bad premonition. Before she could ask him to exin what he meant, she noticed Pheme lean forward and squint her eyes,
"Hey, what''s that?"
The mountains in the distance, their shape seemed to be quite blurry. At first she thought it was the strange weather, but then she realized that the light was being distorted as it passed a number is small areas creating a strange haze like effect.
[Mdy-]
Even without him exining what was happening, Atropos realized that what she was looking at was in fact space distortions. Just then something clicked in her mind, but before she could form the thought a new distortion appeared right outside the area surrounded by the giant Runes.
''Lachesis¡'' As her eyes slowly widened, a maniacal smile appeared on Atropos'' face. ''I should''ve known¡ shame on me!''
As the haze blurred everything it covered, a small opening appeared at its center parting the distortion like a thin curtain. Something massive emerged from beyond the opening and the Olympians recognized it at first sight. It was the ship that had managed to escape taken by the surviving Nephilim. Perseus had informed her that they had joined forces with her sister so Atropos was sure that she was there, and the screen that appeared in front of her the next moment confirmed that guess.
"Hold on¡" Pheme said, her eyes going wide. "Isn''t that-"
Before she could answer the raven haired Olympian disappeared from sight. The Ritual was far from finished but the battle had already started.
Chapter 267 Impressed.
Chapter 267 Impressed.
[Everyone. The time has arrived. We will be charging the enemy stronghold in a matter of minutes, and we have two goals to achieve.]
Just as the ship was about to enter the spatial distortion, Mimir''s voice came through the speakers spread throughout the craft as she made the announcement. The Nephilim had already been informed of the change of ns which gave them enough time to prepare. Each one had donned her armor and summoned her,?ready to fl out at any moment.
[Out first goal is to free our brethren from the enemy''s mind control. Do not hesitate to incapacitate them if the need arises.] Though they didn''t like the idea of fighting their own, the Nephilim were left with no choice. If breaking the mind control turns out to be tooplicated, they were instructed to disarm the brainwashed girls and injure them enough for their bodies to shut down. Unlike humans, Freyja''s Children didn''t bleed to death. Even if they were to lose all four limbs, as long as they''re able to withstand the shock they would be able to go back to normal after a few days.
[The second goal is to suppress the invaders and capture their leaders. In order to ensure we have the upper hand in future wars, we need to learn more about the enemy. Those key figures hold a great value to us and our allies so it''s necessary that we don''t allow them to escape.]
The appearance of the key figures was already known to everyone participating in the battle thanks to Nino''s ability. That said, even if they didn''t have their description, thebatants wouldn''t have much of a difficulty recognizing them as they are the most troublesome opponents they would have to deal with and thus stood out like a sour thumb.
[This battle will be the first of many. Unlike the one waged by Queen H, our fates and futures are on the line. Let us show those ignorant fools who they chose to mess with. Let us take back out home and teach them that we are a force to be reckoned with, each one of us!]
There were no cheers and no battle cries. Everyone simply focused and prepared their minds, the halos over their heads spinning faster as a signs of their readiness.
Sam was in the bridge surrounded by his Valkyries. Each one of them had her role to y so they were readying themselves to depart.
"Are you sure about this, Nino?" Sam asked, looking a bit worried.
"Well, if I''m not the one to do it then who would?" The Japanese doll replied, shrugging with a wry smile on her face. "She is my sister so I have to be the one to face her."
"But fighting her alone¡"
Atropos was a strong fighter and a formidable enemy. After seeing what she did during her fight against B3 and the others Sam was hesitant to let his fiance face her alone.
"I''m happy that you''re worried about me, but please rest assured." Nino said. "I''ll end things quickly with her so we can have our wedding as soon as possible."
Sam could only smile back at her, feeling the confidence in her voice. When she pulled on his sleeve he leaned down and kissed her on the lips. A momentter she teleported away, hoping to get some time with herself before the big confrontation.
"Alright, then." Sam said, turning to the others. "This is your chance. Anyone else wants a kiss before the battle starts?"
He looked at the Valkyries one by one, all of their cheeks flushed as they struggled to decide what to do. He expected Zero Three to ask him for a kiss, but since she was going to stay by his side she decided not to. The others felt that it would destract them so they put it off as well. The only one to step forward was Zero Five. She was selected to y an important in the uing battle so she wanted him to kiss her as some sort of wishing her good luck.
"Doctor." Five said, a determined look on her face. "I love you."
For the first time in a while Sam felt a quite embarrassed. The sincerity of her words broke through his defenses and hit him right in the chest, and with so many eyes war hing them he felt his face hearing up with each passing second.
"I love you too." He said, kissing her again to hide his embarrassment.
Five volunteered to handle Thor, the current Nephilim queen. Sitta and Trenta would be her support, but even with those three Mimir wasn''t sure they would be able to do much against the crimson haired queen.
Despite her warnings, Five insisted that she would be the one to do it. Sam was worried as the ponytailed Valkyrie was used to overexerting herself, but in the end he decided to put his trust in her.
Five teleported away as well, leaving only four Valkyries around Sam.
CS and Juni were already gone, having joined the ranks of the Nephilim who would handle disrupting the Ritual. Their gigantic creations were well suited for wide area destruction so fighting outside was left to them.
Zero Three, Venti, Triska and Ichigo were going to apany Sam and infiltrate the pce. Their role was to activate the portal to their world and call for reinforcements.
The countdown began and the ship entered the spatial distortion. The world seemed to blur for a moment as colorful lines traced the outline of their surroundings, but after a very long second everything returned to normal signaling that they had arrived at the other side.
~[]~
The nauseating feeling of the spatial warp was soon reced by the ear splitting cry of the of the wrathful Primordial being as it tore its way into their in of existence.
The moment the Nephilim ship appeared on the battlefield, all five of the otherworldly giant eyes turned in its direction as if drawn by its presence, or he presence of something carried on its back.
Another devastating cry resounded through the region, and the hole in space from which the Primordial peeked began to widen. Gradually, more and more of its unsightly form squeezed through the gap in the fabric of space.
At the same time, small light particles began to flicker into existence, forming glowing white rings over the heads a number of women, each one wearing a mask that covered the upper half of her face.
Those were the remaining captured Nephilim saved for the second phase of the Ritual. As the Runes making up their halos blended together in a single ring of white light, more light particles began to form around them. In a matter of seconds a new set of Runes shimmered into existence. Those were muchrger than the ones typically used by those who get a glimpse at he Truth. Creating them was beyond the abilities of a single person, but with the coordinated efforts of a few dozen it was possible to achieve something of this magnitude.
The Primordial being released another cry at the appearance of the white ring. It could already sense its effects making it realize the mistake it made. The Red Tower shttered, its walls turning into dust that disappeared in the wind. At the same time the hole in space began repairing itself cutting of the Ancient''s escape route.
Above Odin''s pce a small orb of light floated, shining with a pure golden light suppressed inside the walls of a multiyered barrier. The orb was thepressed essence of every dead human on the, the umted souls gathered by the Ritual to create the only bait that could draw the attention of a Primordial.
The five eyes moved around frantically. They gazed at the approaching ship, the closing hole and the glowing orb. Should it choose the feast? Or should revengee first? The white Runes were slowly stealing away the Aether that made up its very being. Unlike the purge it had experienced before, the process was much less painful, although it could feel its power seeping away alerting it of the dangerous situation.
Unfortunately, escape was no longer an option. The hole in space was already closed and opening a new one would take too much effort. The Primordial was left with only one choice; to destroy anything and everything that stood in its way. Only then would it be able to ensure its own survival.
The ck Stone Giants became motionless for a moment, but in the next they all released a collective battlecry that shook everything for miles. Immediately after their attacks begame more vigorous as they targeted the Nephilim trying to imprison it and take its essence away. At the same time, the ancient alien being reached out with its tentacles trying to take hold of the umted human souls. White disks zoomed past them, splitting into smaller parts, taking their ce as thin blue lines connected their corners.
"World Cleaver."
The next moment, translucent blue walls appeared in the sky severing the elongated tentacles before they reached the orb. Standing at a distance, Atropos watched as the severed parts disintegrated, turning into small white particles as they slowly seeped into the Aether Orb causing the barrier surrounding it to expand.
"I''m impressed." Said a voice. "I''ve never seen this amount of Aether in one ce before."
Hearing the rxed voice, a smile slowly formed on Atropos'' lips. With her crimson de in hand, she turned around and let her eyes fall on the person who had just teleported behind her. If it weren''t for the clothes they wore and the weapons they carried, the thought that she was looking at a mirror would''ve crossed her mind.
"We meet again, dear sister." As she spoke, several white disks manifested from behind the raven haired Olympian.
Nino gazed back at her, and the next moment a smile formed on her face as she let out a sigh.
"I know it''s been a while, but¡" spinning her Yari around, the Japanese doll took a battle pose. "Can we get done with this a bit quickly? I don''t want to leave my fiance alone for too long."
Chapter 268 Strange offer.
Chapter 268 Strange offer.
"Alright then." Sam said, holding his arm out for Ichigo to grab on. "It''s time for us to get going."
"Understood." Mimir said. She then closed her eyes and bowed her head slightly. "Please stay safe."
"You as well."
His gaze moved to the side where a blue haired Nephilim was standing. She was giving him a sharp re and he felt the animosity she wished to portray. At first he didn''t give it much thought, knowing that not all Nephilim were happy about their alliance. But then he learned of her name and suddenly he became very wary of her presence.
He nced in Mimir''s direction once again and she locked eyes with him. The two had a mutual understanding, but seeing them look into each other''s eyes caused the hate in Sigyn''s re to grow even further.
Sam nced at the pink haired Valkyrie, nodding once as he gave her the signal. The next moment they were gone from the bridge of the ship and soon after the other remaining Valkyries followed after him.
"I don''t like him." Sigyn said with a huff.
"Is that so?" Mimir replied, sounding unconcerned.
"He is a vile human! And he dared to get his hands on our brethren!"
"So? What he does with his subordinates has nothing to do with us."
A tired sigh escaped the green haired Nephilim. She took her sses off and cleaned them with a small piece of cloth. The battle had just started and she was already exhausted, thest thing she wanted was to listen to her wife''sints.
"I thought the two of you would have a lot inmon." She said. "Your tendency to sleep around is something you share."
Suddenly the blue haired Nephilim went stiff, the angry expression she had on copsing in a matter of seconds.
"W-w-what are you talking about, dear? I-I-I don''t think I understand¡"
Looking at her with half lid eyes, Mimir let out another sigh then turned her gaze to therge screens in front of her.
"You should learn to show him respect, even if you don''t particrly like him." The image of a crimson haired woman in a red dress was disyed. Mimir gazed at her and a slight pain drew her right hand to her chest. "If things go well, we will finally have a king after so long."
~[]~
Zero Five ced a hand on her face causing small rectangr shapes to appear around it. She never understood why, but soon after learning how to wield her halo she found herself instinctively creating the strange mask each time she wanted she needed to gather her focus.
The essory itself didn''t have any effects to speak of. That said, the ponytailed Valkyrie always felt at ease while wearing it. Looking through the small holes making up the eyes of the terrifying mask, the stress weighing on her when she stood face to face with the crimson haired woman vanished in an instant and she gripped her katana.
"Are you sure you don''t need help?" Trenta asked. "We aren''t allowed to kill her, you know?"
They were up against Thor, the current Nephilim queen. The warnings they got didn''t stoping until they departed, and now that she was standing in front of them they understood why she was so feared. Despite being under the enemy''s control, or maybe because of it, her presence alone was enough to nt fear into their minds.
From what they heard she was a much more capable warriorpared to her older sister. That alone was bound to make for a really tough battle, but to add salt to injury they were forbidden from killing her unless no other choices were avable. The difficulty of their mission increased dramatically because of that and they couldn''t do anything about it.
"Leave the red lightning to me." Sitta said. She was offering her support from a short distance away. Trenta was tasked with guarding her in case more enemies joined the battle.
"Ah. Let''s get this done with already." Said Zero Five, holding her de at shoulder level, its point directed at her crimson haired opponent. "I need to return to Doctor''s side."
~[]~
"Fiance?" As she uttered the word, Atropos'' eyes lowered into thin slits.
"That''s right." Nino replied in a cheerful voice. "He proposed to me not that long ago. We are getting married as soon as we finish some business we have."
She could tell that the news didn''t please her older sister, which was what she intended from the start. Nino no longer wanted to y along with the scenario Atropos hadid before. She couldn''t remember how she died so she had no reason to be angry, and though her sister saw things differently, she had no obligation to consider how she felt.
"So in the end you will always be the first to fall." Heaving a long sigh, Atropos then gripped her sword and took a pose herself. "I always thought Clotho would be the one. She had the softest heart among the three of us."
"Well¡ she did¡ kinda¡" bracing herself, Nino shifted her weight to one foot. "My man is the hero she picked, you see."
Hearing the word halted Atropos'' thoughts, freezing her for a fraction of a second. When she came back to her senses she saw the de of her sister''s Yari heading straight for her neck. Unfortunately, she managed to block the strike just in time, which was something Nino had expected as her expression remained the same.
"The hero, huh..." Said Atropos, sliding her crimson sword along the spear''s shaft and swinging at the Japanese doll. "You don''t mean that scrawny guy in theb coat, do you?"
Nino spun around herself avoiding the de then stabbed with her spear once more.
"Actually he''s quite muscr, despite the nerdy appearance. Not to mention-" With the de of her spear blocked she created a new one out of the Nameless Element and shot it straight at Atropos'' head. "He has a terrifying
monster hiding down there."
Atropos froze again and almost lost her head. Nino''s second spear cut through her hair, and as she tried to avoid the first once again she ended up losing some strands.
"Hmm¡ I take it you''ve already given yourself to him, am I correct?"
A third spear appeared, but the raven haired Olympian didn''t bother dodging, instead using her Limited Rift to block. With all of her attacks notnding, Nino jumped back and made some distance between them, readjusting her grip.
"Could it be¡" her cheeks reddened a little as a smug grin returned to her. "You have yet to find a partner, dear eldest sister?"
Atropos didn''t answer. Her expression didn''t as much as twitch, but something about her smile seemed to change. Nino knew she had struck a very sensitive cord which caused the smugness of her smile to increase exponentially. The air between them changed dramatically, but Nino couldn''t care less.
"I see, I see. I don''t know about Clotho, but at this rate you''ll be thest one to lose her virginity. To think the first one to be born will be thest to find love. This is very sad." Preparing to resume her attack, she summoned two more spears. "Well, considering our current situation you will most likely die a virgin."
"I guess dying once didn''t take away that annoying side of yours." Said Atropos. "You should''ve kept your mouth shut. Now that I know about your precious future husband, I will take him for myself once I''m done with you."
A moment of silence passed and the two vanished in the next. Their weapons shed sending a violent shockwave through the surroundings, cracking the floor and stone walls of the pce roof beneath them. They kept exchanging blows at a speed that blurred their movements. Atropos blocked and swung her Scissors while Nino spun her Needle and stabbed at any opening she saw. She kept creating more spears and shooting them like projectiles, but the white disks seemed to always be positioned at the right spot to deflect them.
"Oh I''m sure you''d fall for him right away if you get the chance to talk." Said Nino. "How about it? If you give up and surrender you might get the chance to be with him every now and then."
"Uh-oh¡ that''s quite the strange offer." Atropos smiled. "You never were the one to share. I wonder what changed..."
"Well, I''m sure Clotho wouldn''t be too happy about me stealing him for myself." Teleporting behind the Olympian, Nino swung her spear in a wide arc only for Atropos to teleport behind her as well. "Besides, I''m sure Doctor wouldn''t be able to resist sleeping with you if he gets the chance. His appetite is simply out of control."
Sam already has hundreds of girls to choose from, adding one more to the mix wouldn''t change anything. Obviously, there was no chance of the raven haired Olympian surrendering. She was curious about the man who managed to conquer both of her sisters'' hearts, but that wasn''t enough for her to have a change of heart.
"I see. He does sound like an interesting man." Backing away a few steps, Atropos held her sword in both hands. "I will take my time getting to know him after I''m done with you. Don''t worry, I will make sure to take really good care of him."
Chapter 269 Super.
Chapter 269 Super.
"Whoa¡ not those things again..." Juni said, grimacing at the sight of the ck Stone Giants.
"They aren''t that difficult to deal with though." Standing beside her was a Nephilim with short ck hair much like hers, although less messier. She was a bit on the short side, and instead of the grey uniform worn by her peers she opted for a hooded jacket. She also wore some spats under her shor skirt as well as a pair of running shoes which gave her a slightly rebellious look making her stand out among the Angels.
"You don''t get it, Ingrid." Juni shook her head. "Those things won''t stoping unless we get their leader."
"That''s gonna be a pain¡" another Nephilim said, heaving a tired sigh as she looked at the abomination floating over the sky. Her purple was a bit too long, falling over her face and most of it. She seemed to be suffering a severe case of bed head, and with how messy her uniform was, in addition to the wool sweater loosely hanging on her shoulders, it was easy to get the impression that she had just woken up.
"Can''t we just, you know, cleanse the whole thing?" Another Nephilim asked, pointing at Primordial with a small lolipop she held between like a cigarette between her index and middle finger. This one was a bit on the shorter side, a rarity among her brethrens who had their bodies modified to simte the process of growing up. Her hair was a pale shade of pink tied into two short pigtails. Her eyes were quite sharp making it seem as if she was ring the whole time.
"Now that I think about it, we could''ve done that from the start, right?" A forth one joined the conversation. "If we kill that thing it would be our win¡"
She was a bit on the taller side with wheet blond hair much shorter than any of the others. Her androgynous looks made her appear like a very handsome man, and it didn''t help that she was wearing a male version of the grey uniform.
"That''s right!"
"We should just cleanse it!"
"Lady Astrid is right!"
"They should listen to Lady Astrid!"
"That''s right!"
A group of twelve or so were a short distance away holding signs and gs with the words "WE LOVE ASTRID" written on them along with heart and flower decorations.
The Nephilim wearing the male uniform turned around and smiled at them, and the next moment they erupted is cheers and delighted screams.
"Damn it, you should do something about your fans, beanpole." Said the short one with pink hair.
"Ah! Ulfhild! When did you get here?" Astrid said with a bright smile on her handsome face. "You''re so tiny I didn''t see you at all!"
"Tche! Are you picking a fight?" Ulfhild said.
"Me? Pretty sure you were the one who started throwing names." Astrid shrugged.
"Seriously¡"
Hearing the word, the four Nephilim froze. Juni was confused for a moment, but then she turned around to look and saw that the fifth Nephilim has arrived.
"Ah! You''re a bitte, Tove!"
The Valkyrie was oblivious to the strange red aura enveloping the Nephilim with the long hair of the same color. The other four didn''t even turn around, keeping their sights ahead as theirplexions went pale.
"Ingrid!" She called, her voice tinged with wrath.
"Y-yes!!!" The first one replied, her voice a few tunes higher.
"Wear your goddamn uniform properly! Don''t make me say it every time!"
"U-understood!!!"
"Solveig!"
"Y-yes!!?" The second one seemed to wake up at the mention of her name. She tried to fix her purple hair quickly, but it was already toote.
"We''re going to war youzy piece of shit! Didn''t you get enough sleep already!!!?"
"I-I''m sorry!!!" She replied, tears already sliding down her cheeks.
"Ulfhild!!!"
"W-what!!?" The short one turned around, gathering every bit of courage and returning the re, hoping that her sharp eyes would help. "Are you going to tell me to shange my body again!!!?"
Unfortunately for her, she was up against an active volcano and nothing she could do would stop it from burning her.
"Did you think that just because we are heading to battle,?no one would notice you sneaking snacks?"
"Eh?"
"I''ll decide your punishment when all of this is over."
"... Okay¡"
Seeing the short Nephilim slump her shoulders in defeat, a smug smile appeared on Astrid''s face only to be reced by a horrified expression as she realized the murderous gaze was now directed at her.
"And you!!!"
"W-what!!?"
"You cut your hair again!!?" Tove roared. "And you''re wearing those clothes again!!?"
"W-what''s it to you? I can wear whatever I want!"
That was the wrong response. The aura surroundung the red haired Nephilim grew several folds and they all began to feel the pressure she was emitting. The girls that were squealing a moment ago teleported away in the blink of an eye not wanting to get caught in that mess.
"I can forgive the hair, but the clothes?" Tove held a hand up, embers of fire starting to ignite on her clenched fist. "WE HAVE A UNIFORM FOR A REASON DAMN IT!"
BONK! BONK! BONK! BONK!
A mighty fist of anger and love fell on the heads of the four Nephilim causing cries of pain to escape them. There was no escaping the pain, and using their Force Fields to block the blow would''ve resulted in a much more intense beatingter on. Of course, Tove wasn''t so sadistic that she would use all of her power to hot the girl. Doing that would decapitate them and she didn''t want to deal with the mess thates from that.
"Just look at Juni over there! She''s well trained and has proper maners! Unlike you little rascals."
"Well¡ haha¡" Juni was getting nervous herself, scratching the back of her head as sheughed awkwardly. Seeing how cool her new friends looked in their unique clothes, she was starting to wonder if she should alter her own uniform. Being held as a symbol of discipline didn''t suit her at all.
"Damn it¡" Ulfhild gritted her teeth, holding both hands to her head.
"Hm? Did you something?"
Tove''s cold voice shut down any arguments they might''ve had and they all gave up on resisting her.
"I will decide your punishment after the battle." She said, crossing her arms. "Now, get going already!!! What are you waiting for!!?"
"RIGER!!!"
The enthusiasm of their response came from their desire to flee from her presence rather than their excitement to join the battle. Except for Juni, that is.
The tomboy walked back a few meters. Everyone gave her curious looks, wondering what she was doing, but then a wide smile appeared on her face and she started running, Runes appearing over her head one after the other.
"COMD TO ME!" She yelled, crouching down then jumping with everything she got. Her inhanced strength in addition to the flight Runes sent her all the way to the outer ring of giant Runes. "SUPER JUNI ROBO!!!"
A bright light shined over the battlefield, fading away after a couple of seconds. At its center, a giant mechanical figure appeared, covered in a light blue color that contrasted the crimson sky above.
[SUUUPEEEER JUNIII-] holding it''s arms in a vertical cross, the robot''s forearms began to glow. [BEAAAAAAAM!!!!]
A massiveser shot out carving a single line through the army of Stone Giants. A series of detonations followed immediately and mes erupted swallowing everything near the line drawn by theser.
"Tche. Showoff." Ulfhild said, putting the lolipop into her mouth and shattering it with a single bite.
"Did she really need to jump?" Solveig said, yawning after a desperate try to stop herself.
"It looked quite fun though." Ingrid said with a grin.
"Quite crude, if I had to say so myself." Said Astrid, shaking her head with a small smile. "Shecks a bit of elegance."
"JUST GET GOING ALREADY!!!"
With Tove''s yell as a starting sign, the four Nephilim teleported, appearing right above the ck giants, their faces still warped in a terrified expression. Each of them took a different pose, but all of them had the same halo over their heads, and a small device manifested on the back of their right hand each shining with its own unique color.
""""COME TO ME!"""" They all shouted in unison.
"SUPER REX!" Came Ingrid''s voice.
"SUPER TRIHORN!!!" Although she tried, Solveig''s voice stillcked vitality.
"SUPER SCALETRON!" Ulfhild''s voice followed.
"SUPER SHARPWING!"
The sky was once again illuminated, this time by four bright shed, each one of a different color. The light faded acter only a few seconds and four new mechanical creations appeared, all of them diving down at the enemy at the same time.
[I will distract the Demons!] Astrid''s voice came from the only winged creation, a bright yellow one that vaguely resembles a Pterodactyl.
[I will go east.] Ulfhild''s said. Her creation was a giant humanoid covered in pink scales.
[I will go west, then.] A sigh escaoed Solveig showing that she was reluctant to join the battle. Despite how she acted, the moment her giant purple Triceratopsnded it began wrecking havoc with each step it took.
[Leave some for me!!!] Ingrid cried, the jaws of her green Tyrannosaurus rex already ripping apard one of the demons.
Several more giant creations entered the battle in the next few minutes, and the number of stone giants began to dwindle in no time.
As she watched the spectacle from above the ship, a wide grim appeared on Tove''s face, showing her satisfaction.
"I guess I should join them as well."
Chapter 270 Sabertooth.
Chapter 270 Sabertooth.
Right uponnding, CS summoned her Sabertooth. The giant white beast materialized and her senses extended beyond her body allowing her to control the creation as if it was a part of her.
She didn''t know why, but it all felt so natural. Whether it was her white armor or the giant creation, just by being enveloped in one a sense of relief unlike anything she had experienced before filled her chest, but at the same time, an intense thirst took over her mind, making her aware of every enemy she had to destroy.
In front of her were rows and rows of the ck Stone Giants she had fought before. As their heads collectively turned in her direction, she began dashing, seeing that the holes they had for eyes were beginning to shine with an ominous red color. The Demons at the back ignored her presence. They were too focused on attacking the Nephilim holding the Ritual which gave her the opening she needed.
A barrage of red beams zoomed in on her and she jumped high to avoid them. Some more tried to take her down while she was still in the air, but all she had to do was twist her body a little and she managed to dodge them with ease. Despite the Sabertooth''s size and weight it flipped in the air and swung it''s tale sending a sharp arc of energy at the giants. CS was surprised herself as the motion was only intended to help her get closer to the enemy, but it ended up decapitating several giants as well.
With more and moreser beams being fired at her, CS headed straight for the Demons at the back while dodging and evading the fire, swinging her tail every now and then to open a path for herself.
As she arrived at the rear she saw something quite peculiar but understood what it was soon enough. The giant was being attacked from a different direction and clearly by a bunch that wasn''t a part of the Nephilim army.
The Olympians had more reasons to take down the stone giants so it made sense for them to attack the things, though most of their forces were up in trying to prevent the Nephilim from freeing their captured friends.
''fools¡''
A wide grin spread on her face as she once again leaped into the sky. The Olympians were already aware of her approaching, but when she made the jump they all backed away and looked up preparing for the attack toe. The tail began glowing then the ws and fangs followed. CS'' Sabertooth was motionless for a moment, but then it began spinning, arcs of energy flying off its curled up figure as it fell toward the back of the stone army.
The Olympians were too slow to react and many were sliced along with the ck golems. The first cries of pain filled the battlefield, but CS kept on ignoring them and mmed her creation into one of the demons, jumping at the one next to it right away. A swing of her ws was all it took to slice through them, and she began to wonder why the so called Primordial bothered with creating so many useless things when it should be capable of more.
Just as she locked her sight on the next Demon, CS noticed a faint sh above her location. A momentter a strange green rain began falling down, but upon taking a closer look she realized that the streaks were in fact arrows.
Trying to escape seemed useless as the green arrows covered a wide area. She was sure that her Sabertooth would protect her real body, but she couldn''t afford to let the Creation get too much damage. Making a new one took too much effort and she didn''t want to exhaust herself right from the start.
Having made up her decision, CS willed her beast to raise its head and open its maw. The moment it did, a loud howl exploded from it spreading out in a translucent yellow dome that pushed away everything that came into contact with it.
The rain of arrows was blocked but at the same time quite a few giants in her immediate surroundings were shattered, leaving her standing in a wide empty circle which made her stand out quite a bit.
As she examined the area CS noticed another sh in the distance. This time she made the right choice by jumping away, and as soon as she did something pierced the spot she was in leaving behind a green trail that slowly faded away.
As expected, the thing shot at her was an arrow. The Valkyrie sighed in relief, grateful for having practiced dodging arrows with Zero Five. She followed the fading trail of the arrow half expecting to find nothing, but to her surprise the archer was right there, slowly knocking another arrow on her longbow while observing the yellowish white beast.
"Those Nephilim¡" Artemis muttered, her eyes scanning the battlefield before returning to the Sabertooth. "How many of them are capable of creating suchrge scale constructs?"
Having already seen the battle records given to her by Atropos'' subordinate, she was aware that they were up against a formidable enemy, which exined why reinforcements were necessary. That said, now that she was facing them head on she began to consider what it would really take to grasp victory.
"They''re attacking the stone giants as well¡" she muttered, slowly drawing the string of her bow. "They''re capable of wide range Purge. Why aren''t they using it instead¡"
The Primordial''s Aether was extremely toxic to normal living creatures which made it a clear target for cleansing. If they wanted to stop the Ritual, Purging the Primordial should''ve been their first choice. Instead they were spreading their resources, attacking the golems on the ground as well as trying to free the Sacrifices above.
Just as she was about tounch the arrow, Artemis came to a sudden realization.
"They''re trying to steal the Key!" Her hand slipped at that moment and the arrow went flying. "Ah!"
The giant Sabertooth saw iting and dodged once more, this time returning the fire by shooting a white arc of energy from its tail. Artemis teleported to the side easily evading it, but her mind was still upied as she tried to understand what was happening.
''What''s going on here?'' She thought. ''Perseus said they were from a lower realm, but everything shows that they weren''t that underdeveloped. Were they able to decode the Whispers as well? Have they learned about Akasha?''
She turned her sights to the pce above which the Primordial''s Aether was being gathered. Once the entire ancient being was absorbed, the third phase of the Retual would start to transform the umted Aether into a Key. Once they reached that point, her allies were going to be forced to fight a defensive battle to protect it, and without the option to call more reinforcements they were risking being annihted.
''Atropos¡'' she began looking for the Raven haired girl intending to ask her to rify things. ''Dies she knows¡''
Artemis teleported once evading another arc of energy. She was aware that the Sabertooth was approaching her all the while, but her focus at the moment was directed at confirming whether her concerns were correct or not.
"... What?"
Finding Atropos wasn''t very difficult. Her task was to prevent the Primordial from getting to the orb of Aether, which was a perfect fit for her Limited Rift and World Cleaver abilities. She was on the rooftop of the pce doing her job, but at the same time she seemed to be locked in a fight and the enemy she was up against caused Artemis to doubt her eyes.
"Clotho¡?" She wondered, but then her eyes widened even more, seeing the Omi Yari the other girl held. "Lachesis!!?"
The realization hit Artemis at the same time as an arc of energy. Her Force Field was lowered so she took a bit of damage, but despite that she continued to ignore the Sabertooth, at least until it reached her location and tried to swat her with its wed paws.
[You sure have some guts.] An amused voice came from the white beast. [Turning your back to me like that.]
Artemis had already teleported out of the beast''s range, but she continued to ignore it, her eyes locked on the twins fighting on the pce roof.
[Hey now. I came all the way here just for you. You''re that Artemis girl, aren''t you? I was told you''re quite powerful.]
Hearing her namee from the beast''s maw, the green haired Olympian returned her attention to it and put the Sisters of Fate in the back of her mind. She wondered how the enemy knew about her when this was her first time confronting them, but the answer came to her quite easily now that she knew they had Lachesis among them.
"This is getting troublesome¡" she muttered, forming a new arrow out of thin air before knocking it on her bow. "I didn''t sign up for this."
Chapter 271 Tiny.
Chapter 271 Tiny.
"OUT. OF. MY. WAY!!!"
Thunder roared as Mj?lnir swung her great warhammer, crushing a number of Olympians with a single move.
She was angry, frustrated. Her wish was to apany her beloved Doctor to the pce, to help guard him throughout his dangerous mission. But unfortunately, she wasn''t a Valkyrie. She was a Nephilim, and a high ranking one at that.
Mimir had tasked her with leading the assault on the Olympians, with freeing their capturedrades as her second objective. It was an important job, one she would''ve taken pride in if the circumstances were different, but that had changed soon after she began to understand the warm feeling in her chest, and because of that she found herself desiring to be beside that man.
''I hope his opinion of me doesn''t change because of this¡''
Logic told her that it wouldn''t happen, but her anxiety did a lot to push the idea back into the darkness. She recalled what happened less than an hour ago when she was forced to share him with two others. She had epted the fact that she wouldn''t be able to have him for herself, and as if that wasn''t bad enough, she was reminded of her status as an outsider. The Doctor might''ve taken an interest in her, but in the end there were a lot of barriers separating her from him.
As the anger continued to boil in her chest, she reached out with her left hand and grabbed an enemy who thought it was a good idea to attack her while she was deep in thought. She pulled him, kneed him in the stomach then channeled an absurd amount of lightning into his body, frying his brain and everything else.
As she let the smoking corpse fall, she decided to banish her personal feelings for now and focus on the fight. One of the things that caught her attention, having already killed many of the so called Olympians, was theirck of Force Fields. It would be more urate to say that what they have is far too weak and easily broken.
The Force Fields generated by their hearts granted Freyja''s Children a level of protection unlike anything the enemy had to offer. Most of them weren''t even able to create barriers and only opted to use simple runes for flight and weapon creation. Even the weapons they manifested using the Nameless Element were simple andcked any details. She began to wonder if what they were up against was just cannon fodder. The best they could do was resist a little, exchanging a few blows before perishing. The other Nephilim weren''t struggling at all which made her all the more worried.
''Something isn''t right¡''
The enemy was far weaker than those they had faced during the first invasion. That shouldn''t be possible. Back then they were able to go toe to toe with most Nephilim, but now they were being crushed easily. Such a stark difference didn''t make any sense at all.
''Could it be¡ are these different soldiers?''
A melody resounded through the sky, silencing the chaos of battle and drawing eyes toward its source. A young man descended from the sky, his elegant figure illuminated by gentle rays of golden light, standing out against the oppressive crimson of the sky.
He looked to be in his early twenties, with a lean body draped in white cloth that seemed to barely hang to his body. His hair was a golden blonde, beautiful despite its curliness, matched by the golden harp he held in his arms.
His fingers danced on the strings and another melody came out. A smile spread on his face as both foes and allies stopped fighting, and a momentter he spoke, his voice exaggerated with a sorrowful tone.
"Oh, how cruel can this world be!" He said, ying another tune. "Beautiful maidens, their allure beyond anything I have seen. d in unsightly armor, ying my followers and sowing hate into my heart."
Shaking his head, he yed another tune.
"O beautiful maidens! Why must you hurt me so much! Why must we fight, why must we hate when we can love instead!"
Gazing at the battlefield in front of him, the man let a well practiced smile form on his handsome face, taking the hearts of his followers and captivating some of the Nephilim as well.
"This conflict is bound to bring only suffering and hate. Come with me! Let us-"
His words were suddenly cut and the world around him seemed to bend at a strange angle. Everything was blurry for a moment, but then he felt the cold embrace of bare ground. By the time he understood what was happening the pain from his broken ribs and arm set his brain on fire.
"GOD. FUCKING. DAMN IT!!!!" He cursed, the act he had performed slipping away.
Just as he gazed up at the sky a lightning bolt came down crashing on him. His electrified voice was audible among the crackling, and his pained screams continued until the strike ended.
"You sure talk a lot." Said Mj?lnir, slowly descending toward the charred man.
She had recognized him at first sight, having heard his description from the Valkyrie named Nino. He was one of the special targets they were supposed to handle with care, and since she was the first to find him it fell on her now to take him down.
"How¡ how dare you¡" the man said, his burned skin peeling as he tried to stand up. "All¡ all I wanted was to talk¡ I¡ I wanted to get to know you¡"
"Less talking, more fighting."
Mj?lnir couldn''t care less about what anyone else wanted, especially if they were an enemy. The only thing on her mind were her own desires, and the sooner the battle ends the sooner she gets to confront her own thoughts and n how to approach the Doctor in the future.
"Damn it¡" Apolo said. "Why, maiden with the silver hair!? What have I done to earn your wrath!? We have only met so why must youe for my life!!!?"
Now it was starting to sound even more strange. The fact that he could still stand after taking a hit from her lightning set him apart from the other Olympians. Focusing her eyes, she was able to see that his body was healing itself. His broken bones were already back in ce, and the burnt skin was slowly regenerating. One thing wasn''ting back though. The loose robe he wore. It was gone, and gone was the protection it granted him.
As his flesh began to regain its natural color, Mj?lnir was exposed to the undesirable sight of his full naked body, however his expression didn''t waver, her eyes descending to his crutch before a single word escaped her lips.
"Ah, tiny."
At that moment, Apollo received the most devastating blow he had ever experienced in his life. He looked down at himself and realized that, with all the pain and excitement, blood had rushed to his lower half causing it to stand. It was standing, alright. But no matter how one looked at it that thing seemed to becking quite a lot.
"Th-that''s not it!" Apollo cried, his voice breaking as he rushed to cover himself. "It has yet to regenerate, that''s all!"
"What are you talking about?" Mj?lnir replied, her expression portraying disgust. "You''ve already healed so-"
"No!!!" He cried, his face twisting in anger. "This definitely isn''t all I have! I¡ I¡ that''s right! We are in battle right now! There is no way I would be able to show my full potential under such circumstances! Maybe if we were alone, and on a bed¡"
Though his reaction confused her, the silver haired Nephilim already had a guess that the man felt humiliated by his private parts being exposed. She wondered why he would stand around and show his body if he wasn''tfortable with others seeing his twig, but then she remembered that his weird behavior ¨Cas if it wasn''t weird to begin with¨C had started when shemented on how small his tool was.
"Lord Apollo!!!" A voice called, drawing her attention to a group of three women who had just teleported a small distance away. They quickly made their way to the blond man carrying what seemed to be a change of clothes.
She watched as they quickly dressed him up, his new attire appearing more suited tobat than what he previously wore.
"Don''t listen to her, my Lord." One of the women said.
"There is no man alive who could match your glorious body!" Said the second one.
"That''s right!" Added the third one. "Lord Apollo is a man among men! No one could hope to match his skills, whether it''s inbat or in bed!"
Though their praise seemed to be genuine, it did little to put out the anger and frustration the man felt. As if to add fuel to the fire, Mj?lnir chimed in on their conversation shutting them down without even knowing what she was doing.
"No, I mean, I don''t know about skills but¡ there is only so much you can do with just ''that''" she said, her eyes once again pointing at his crutch. "It''s not even half as long as Doctor''s, and don''t let me start on how thin it is¡"
The three women stopped moving their hands, blood draining from their faces. The next moment a heavy pressure suddenly befell the entire area. Mj?lnir felt it and immediately prepared herself, and the three women quickly teleported away seeing the ck aura slowly enveloping the man named Apollo.
"Doctor, huh? You''re referring to that man who sneaked into the pce, right?" Runes began to form and soon enough he had a halo hovering over his head. Holding his left hand out, a long bow began to form in it. As three golden arrows materialized in his left hand, he gazed up at the silver haired maiden and forced a malicious to take over his face. "You hold him in such high regard, huh? Fine. I will make sure to keep him alive, if only so he could watch me have my way with every woman he adored!"
Chapter 272 Infiltration.
Chapter 272 Infiltration.
Amidst the chaos of the battle, Sam, along with four of his Valkyries, were about to infiltrate Odin''s pce with an objective in mind.
Their job was to reach the portal room so they could open the Bifrost and summon more Valkyries to join the battle. Of course, nothing could be that simple.
They were basically at the center of the enemy stronghold; there were many Olympians lurking around and since portals can affect the ritual, the portal room itself was going to be heavily guarded.
There was also a condition that had to be met before they could execute their n. Using her powers, Nino had determined that their enemy wasn''t going to give up on the Ritual even if they managed to free the captured Nephilim. The ring of giant Runes wouldn''t disappear unless over half of those creating it abandoned their positions. As the Sacrifices are freed one by one, the Olympians would realize that they have no choice but to take their ce, taking on the burden themselves.
That solved their biggest dilemma, drawing them closer to achieving their goal of obtaining the first key, which was what created the condition they had to follow.
The inter-dimensional portal punches a hole into the fabric of space, warping reality and connecting it with another dimension. That creates an interference that weakens the effects of the ritual, and with the Primordial having already arrived, there was a risk that it might be able to escape. The condition for opening the portal was to wait until the ritual was done. Once that''s fulfilled and the Key is created, they would move on to the next step, which is overwhelming the enemy and stealing the Key.
"Not good¡" Triska said, tapping her hand against a semi-transparent red wall. "It''s an anti teleportation barrier."
"You gotta be kidding me¡" Zero Three seemed quite annoyed, her eyes scanning their surroundings as she guarded the rear with her rectangr shield.
Breaking the barrier itself wasn''t a problem, even if they didn''t have the Barrier Breaking Runes. The problem was what came afterward. The caster most likely would repair it as soon as they entered, and once inside, they would be robbed of a very vitalbat tactic.
Teleportation was one of the most important tools the Valkyries had in their arsenal. Fighting without it wasn''t impossible, but not being able to use it reduced theirbat abilities quite a bit. Of course, facing such a hurdle didn''t mean they would turn around and head back. Nino has already seen several Paths where they face this kind of barrier, and though it was an inconvenience, they had to press forward no matter what.
"I''ll break it." Venti said, taking a step toward the barrier with a white glow covering the head of her spear.
As he waited for them to be done, Sam turned his gaze to the monstrosity hovering high in the sky. A grotesque giant mass of tentacles writhed up there, gathering around five eyeballs that kept moving from one direction to the other. From where he was only the corners of three were visible, and the monster didn''t seem to be concerned with his group at all.
Ichigo was still holding onto his arm ready to teleport away at any moment. He could feel her trembling slightly, clearly still affected by the time she was forced to endure the Primordial''s re for what must''ve felt like an eternity. Thankfully the monster had something else to deal with at the moment and wouldn''t bother seeking its revenge on the Cleansers.
"It''s alright." Sam said, cing a hand on Ichigo''s. "You don''t have to worry about that thing."
The pink haired Valkyrie looked up at him, her eyes widening a little. She then began blushing and a small smile bloomed on her face.
The sound of ss breaking drew their attention to the front. Venti already created a hole in the outer barrier, but it didn''t take long for it to start repairing itself so they had to get moving.
The Pce Odin built wasn''t an easy ce to sneak into. It had aplex defensive system designed to deal with the countless spies sent after him and his daughter, and one wrong step could lead to certain death. Thankfully, the Olympians deactivated the system soon after they took over the ce. They saw no need to bother making use of the defensive capabilities. After all they had their own forces to do the security, and they nned to leave the moment they got their hands on the Key.
That worked in Sam''s favor; he no longer had to spend valuable time hacking into the system to disable it. All that was left was to use a secret entrance Mimir had pointed out in the schematics she had given him and stealthily sneak around to reach the portal room, but unfortunately that part of the n was no longer an option now that they had to break a hole in a barrier.
"There!" A voice came from above.
Before they could look up three figuresnded around the group. Each of them was a young man with a well built muscr body, wearing nothing but a skirt made out of leather and a helmet over their heads. In one hand they wielded arge halberd that leaned more toward the fantasy side in its design than the sci-fi one, and in the other they heldrge round shields engraved with various runes, although not the reality manipting kind.
Sam''s attention was drawn straight to the red crest on their helmets. One look was enough to make him realize they were Spartans, or that''s what he assumed.
''They don''t have halos¡''
Since she chose to not go with him Nino was unable to see what kind of enemies he would run into. They bypassed that restriction by peeking at the Paths where he would report everything he encountered to the Japanese doll. That helped them learn what kind of enemies they would run into, but unfortunately that strategy had its limitations.
The Spartans ¨Ctheir real name ording to Nino¨C were supposed to be mundane soldiers who came on this mission to have a chance at hearing the Whispers of Madness and getting a glimpse of the Truth. They''re trained soldiers who''re prepared to sacrifice their sanity just for the chance to gain more power, and death isn''t something they''re afraid of.
That said, even with all the training they had and the gic enhancements they went through, in the end they''re still no match for the Valkyries. But the enemy isn''t so stupid that they would send mundane humans to fight against a superior species.
After peeling at the Tapestry of Fate Nino learned something important. The enemy knows that she had reimed her Artifact. Since they are aware that she is capable of seeing potential futures they took some precautions against her power.
Four more Spartans arrived, and another four followed. Soon enough their number surpassed twenty. Killing them was far from difficult. Triska alone could vaporize them with a weak Balder''s Light. The problem was that they didn''t know which one was a trap, and that made them hesitate to attack.
The Spartans are supposed to be mundane soldiers, but in this case not all of them were. Some Awakened were hidden among them, waiting for the right moment to attack. They were using the same weapons and shields as the normal soldiers as a disguise, but when the right moment came they would coat them with their Force Field and take the Valkyries by surprise.
"Alright." Sam said with a sigh. "Kill them."
Triska pointed her gun and Three prepared to throw her shield.
The soldiers stumped their feet on the ground then raised their shields, the runes engraved on them glowing faintly. As expected, the thin beam Triska fired bounced off without doing much damage, and the same happened when Three threw her shield at them like an oversized shuriken. The shields themselves were a decent piece of equipment crafted by Hephaestus himself. Normally they weren''t given to the Spartans unless they''re Awakened, but it seems they were distributed to make distinguishing between them a much more difficult task.
The Spartans stumped their feet once more then took a step forward, pointing their halberds at the five at the center. Their assault would soon begin and more reinforcements were going to be there soon, but Sam couldn''t rush his decision.
One wrong move and things could go horribly wrong. That said, he couldn''t just stand there and do nothing.
Stalling for time was the enemy''s objective. They have their own portal gate so they''re ready to escape as soon as they obtain the Key.
''I guess we have no choice but to risk it¡''
"Venti." Sam gave the signal and the green haired Valkyrie saw her spear and prepared herself. At the same time Three focused her mind and Triska did the same.
The only option avable to them was a simple frontal assault. Venti would be their vanguard with Triska providing cover fire. Zero Three was responsible for barriers.
It was going to be a straightforward battle with really close odds. The Spartans were going to attack at the same time. It didn''t matter who they choose to block, the Awakened soldiers were instructed to wait to thest possible moment before activating their force fields, guaranteeing that their strikes wouldnd and deal some significant damage. It didn''t matter if they decided to use barriers either. The halberds the Spartans carried were made to mimick the properties of the white substance generated by the Barrier breaking Runes.
''Now, what are you going to do?'' as the thought crossed his mind, Perseus let a confident smirk form on his face.
With how chaotic things were outside, no one was in the pce to catch him sitting on the Nephilim queen''s throne, several screens floating in front of him disying the battle from multiple angles.
Thergest among them showed the five enemies that had infiltrated the anti-teleportation barrier a couple of minutes ago.
He predicted that someone would eventually try to reach the portal at the back of the pce so he prepared to intercept them, but even then it never crossed his mind that the man in ab coat would be among them.
Perseus was convinced that the one they referred to by Doctor was just like him, a human withplete immunity to the Whispers, or someone who had intentionally isted their minds so they wouldn''t be affected by the Madness. He found the second case hard to believe, having deduced that the man came from a lower realm who had just discovered inter-dimensional travel, but everything he witnessed told him that his judgment might''ve been wrong.
''He''s capable of using Runes, but¡''
Seeing that he relies on his subordinates for everything, it was clear that the halo he created was just a ruse. Otherwise why would he delegate his protection to someone else when he was so short on hands?
''Well, not that it matters¡ He was going to die soon anyway¡''
The tension could be felt even through the screen. The Spartans were closing in on the intruders, and it wouldn''t be long before someone made the first move.
Perseus didn''t take his eyes off the screen hoping to catch the moment when the first head goes flying, but as the seconds passed the smile he wore slowly faded, and seen enough he was staring at the screen with eyes wide in shock.
One by one, the Spartans fell to the ground. Some went rigid and keeled over, others held their hands to their chests as if in pain before slowly going down to their knees after which they got decapitated by a swift move from the spear wielder.
The Olympian was lost for words, unable to understand what was happening. Over twenty soldiers died just like that, and he didn''t have the slightest clue as to what happened to them.
As his mind raced trying toprehend what had just happened, a voice reached his ears.
[I can''t believe this actually worked.]
It was the man with theb coat. He had a smile on his face, looking quite surprised as well. A chill ran down Perseus'' spine and for a moment he felt indescribable fear. He didn''t understand why, but at that moment his opinion of the manpletely changed.
Chapter 273 What Did You Mean.
?
Only a few minutes have passed since the second phase of the Ritual started. The Primordial was still trying to reach the Aether orb, but its path kept getting blocked, and its limbs were severed, disintegrating and getting absorbed.
What''s worse, the nuisance that stood between it and its meal seemed to be quite resistant to telepathy. Not only that but she paid little mind to the ancient being, still blocking its way all while fighting another opponent.
Therge golem army it created wasn''t making any progress at destroying the thing constraining it. Their numbers were dropping rapidly and soon enough there would be a need to create more.
The alien entity was angry, but it was far from afraid. It had long since understood thatmunicating with the small creatures was impossible. Even though it had provided them with the knowledge needed to evolve, they were still an ignorant and underdeveloped race. It would take them thousands of years to reach a level where they could share their thoughts, but before that could happen they chose to antagonize it.
The entity had no intention on harming those who managed to learn enough to manipte the world around them. All it wanted was to gather the Aether left behind by those who had already died. When it saw that all of it had been gathered and concentrated in one location, it feared that someone might try to take the Aether from it, and by the time it understood it had fallen for a trap, it was already toote.
Escaping was going to be difficult, but not impossible. All it had to do was destroy the links and break the chains restraining it. To that end it used its power to create soldiers to fight for it while it tried to obtain the Aether, but that n wasn''t working so far.
Composing itself, the Primordial observed the ground beneath it and tried toe up with another solution to its predicament. Raising its tentacles, it formed a new set of Runes then lowered them to the ground. ck dust began to gather around each one and soon enough new golems came to life. The new batch was different from the previous two, and fewer in number as well. They were muchrger, and their forms were much more polished and detailed as if they were carefully carved out of a mountain, unlike the smaller ones which seemed like a bunch of rocks piled into a certain shape.
Mass producing soldiers became more difficult the stronger it tried to make them. The Primordial gave them several abilities the otherscked, and once they were ready to go it gave them the orders and they began to move.
Ominous red light glowed in the depths of their nine eyes and the jagged bloody Runes of Madness began to form over their heads. At the center of their chests was arge circr hole. As soon as the Runes appeared, air began swirling at its center as a small ck dot began expanding until it was visible from afar.
The new giants spread their jaws all at once. The Nephilim and the Olympians both stopped as they noticed the giants preparing to do something. They instinctively felt the need to heighten their defenses and quickly increased the output up their force field and set barriers to protect themselves.
Everything was silent for a single second, but then the world seemed to tremble all at once. At first, it felt like the sound of a small handgun firing. A single BANG! Heard from a distance. But then the true magnitude of the giants'' attack showed itself as an invisible wall mmed into everything, followed by the sound of an ear shattering explosion.
The shockwave was powerful to say the least. Several Olympians were sttered in the air, and the Nephilim weren''t any better. Their bodies were sturdier so they held on quite well, but some lost consciousness and fell while others noticed that they were cracking like eggs. Barriers shattered in an instant only serving to lessen the blow a little. In the end the only thing that made a difference was the strength of the Force Field they used and only those who cranked all the way up managed to survive unharmed, although they still got swatted like flies.
Unfortunately, the Sacrifices holding the Ritual werepletely unscathed. In fact all the shockwave did was blow away the Nephilim trying to free them, causing the enormous ring of Runes to remain sturdy.
Just as the shockwave began to fade in the distance, the New Giants began preparing for the second attack. The Olympians were stuck, unable to decide what to do. The first attack wasn''t enough to shut the Ritual down, but no one knew if the second would be the same. They already saw that the shockwave was capable of shattering barriers so it wasn''t unlikely that it could seed.
The Olympians turned their backs to the Nephilim and spread out to create barriers and stop the second attack. At the same time, the Nephilim used that opening to head straight for their capturedrades.
Most of those who were brainwashed into guarding the giant Runes had been freed. Apparently all it took was removing the headgear ced on their heads and the mind control would be lifted, though it left them incapable of moving which meant they couldn''t join the battle right away.
Just as the sound of the small detonation resounded, several sacrifices had the barriers protecting them shattered. They remained still even as they were approached, but before they could be teleported away the shockwave reached the second ring and they were blown away. The giant rings slowed down and several rings disappeared the next second.
Thanks to the Olympian soldiers'' quick interference the st didn''t do much damage, but when they noticed that several Sacrifices had been freed they began to panic.
Orders arrived the next moment. Five soldiers were chosen, and despite the horrified expressions they wore when their names were mentioned, they instantly resigned themselves and quickly took their ces, generating new Runes and causing the outer ring to start spinning faster.
~[]~
"Things aren''t looking good for you." Nino said with a smirk.
Atropos on the other hand was no longer smiling, dodging her sister''s attacks while ncing at the mountainous giants as they prepared a third attack.
"You know, those things haven''t even started yet." The Japanese doll went on, swinging her Yari all the while. "Want me to tell you what''s about to happen."
Her older sister turned to her with a re, which only helped to spread her smile further.
"You see those ck orbs at the center of their chests? You might''ve already guessed it, but they''re ck holes. Three minutes from now, when the ninth shockwave fails to break the ring, the giants will take the ck orbs andunch them at the ring. It''ll be a disaster, you know. You better find a way to stop it before it happens."
As if to respond to her promation, Atropos deflected the red spear and teleported away. Nino turned to look at the giants and spotted her sister flying at top speed, a number of white disks manifesting behind her back.
"As if I would let you!"
She followed after her right away, creating several spears the moment she teleported andunched them at Atropos from above. In her rush, the elder sister failed to react at the right time and the spears hit the white disks shattering them one by one.
"Tsk!"
Having no choice, Atropos split the remaining disks before the spears could reach them. Having no time to create more, she used what she had to surround the head of one of the giants, but those things were simply too big, and without the right number of disks the range of her ability wouldn''t be enough to cover them. She tried creating more but Lachesis kept destroying them, and before she knew it the giantsunched the third shockwave.
Summoning the pieces back the raven haired Olympian encased herself in a blue box isting herself from the outside world. She waited for a few seconds then took down the box, and the instant she did she found the tip of a spear heading straight to her face.
"You know, if you time it right you can escape the shockwave just by teleporting." Though her sneak attack was blocked, Nino continued her assault nheless. "All you have to do is head for an area that the shockwave has already passed through."
"Well thanks for the info." Atropos replied, anger starting to get to her. "Are you sure you should be running your mouth like that? Or are you trying to lose on purpose."
"No no no. I''m just trying to have a talk with my beloved big sis. Do you even know how much I missed you?"
Nino''s attacks were bing more furious by the second and Atropos seemed to be getting pushed back. In her defense, she was more focused on trying to stop the mountainous giants before they were able to ruin the Ritual. More Sacrifices have been freed after thest attack forcing more of her followers to take their ce. Others were trying to stop the attacks and take down the giants, but they were having no luck.
"Hey, there is something I''ve been curious about for a while now." Nino spoke again. "When we met the other day you said something really weird." She paused for a moment, deflecting her sister''s sword before adding. "What did you mean by killing me properly?"
Chapter 274 Past.
?
"I take it you weren''t the one who killed me?" As she asked the question, Nino''s smile began to fade. "Or were you that unsatisfied after doing it, so much so that you wished you could do it again?"
The ferocity of her attacks increased dramatically and so did her spear and uracy. She began bringing out more spears, blocking Atropos'' attempts at creating new disks, taking away her strongest ability.
"What about Clotho?" She went on. "Did you kill her as well?"
One spear grazed the elder sister''s left leg, and another one cut her right nk. With her focus being on her Limited Rift she didn''t have the mental power to strengthen her Force Field, but she knew she couldn''t go like that for long.
Another BANG! announced the fourth shockwave and the sisters teleported at the same time. Atropos tried to put some distance between them, but she found a spear thrust at her face the moment she appeared.
"Let me guess, we refused to bow down to Zeus and because of that we had to go?"
Nino swung her Yari down after it got parried. Atropos held her sword up to block, but the blow was much lighter than anticipated. Nino let go of the Yari and grabbed a Nameless spear, channeling her Force field into it. Knowing she couldn''t dodge it, Atropos attempted to teleport, but the scenery around her didn''t change. It was then that she noticed the pinkish barrier surrounding them.
An anti-teleportation barrier. She never noticed when it was ced around them. Time slowed down as the spearhead drew close to her skin. In a desperate attempt, Atropos abandoned creating the white disks and switched all her focus to her Force Field.
Met with the same amount of Force, Nino''s enhanced spear bounced back, sparks exploding from the point of collision. Atropos didn''t go unscathed though. The blow sent her body flying back, and even if she avoided getting wounded, her internal organs were rattled in the process.
"Was being loyal to that arrogant egomaniac more important than us?" Grabbing her Yari once again, Nino lowered her posture, standing on the floor of the anti-teleportation barrier she had created. "I thought the three of us were on the same page. I thought we were supposed to stay together, we were supposed to stand up for each other. But you-"
"Oh shut up."
Finally, Atropos said something in response. Her words were like a bucket of cold water spilled on the Japanese doll''s head, causing her to freeze in her ce. The tone was calm and uncaring, carrying no emotions andpletely detached. She gazed at her elder sister, and the eyes that met her betrayed no emotion.
"You keep bbering and bbering and for what?" As she spoke, Atropos lowered her Force Field and began working on creating more white disks. "You picked the wrong side and died because of that. What else is there to exin? Or what? Do you still hold a grudge because I refused to die with you?"
Once she had ten disks in her arsenal, she split each one into four triangr parts then used them to break the anti-teleportation barrier. Keeping a few around her, she sent the rest to surround one of the nearby Titans..
"You had your Needle so you should''ve known, right?" Without looking back, Atropos activated her World Cleaver, creating a maze of crisscrossed blue walls that divided the upper half of the giant into several parts, each one different from the rest. "You had no future other than the one where you serve Zeus. I know because I peeked at it myself."
"Wha-"
"Oh c''mon! Did you really think you could stop me from using your little invention? Don''t be ridiculous." She closed her eyes and sighed. "Did you forget that I was the one who discovered the Tapestry in the first ce? You created your Needle based on my research. Getting past your failsafe was an easy task."
In order to prevent anyone from using the Needle to see her Path, Lachesis had added a safety mechanism to it. Without her Force Field signature it should''ve been impossible to see her on the Tapestry of Fate, but apparently Atropos had taken the liberty to overwrite the mechanism, giving herself ess as well.
"I always hated how you mess with my things without asking." Nino said, forcing herself to smile.
"Look who''s talking."
Without a warning, Atropos vanished. Nino spun her spear and blocked the iing sh without looking behind her. The des shed and sparks flew. The scissors slid down the shaft and headed for the Japanese doll''s face forcing her to bend back to evade. Sheunched three spears at her elder sister at the same time. Atropos teleported away, but her next attack didn''t follow. She once again encased herself in a box made out of her ability. It was then that Nino remembered that the next shockwave wasing.
"You had no future. Even so you chose to oppose that man."
It was a close call but Nino managed to avoid being crushed by the absolute destructive force of the mountainous giant''s wails. She expected an attack to meet her the moment she reached the spot she teleported into, but there was nothing. Atropos had used to chance to fly to the next giant and activated her World Cleaver. Once the giant was split into a pile of rocks, the Runes over its head disappeared and the ck orb in its chest disappeared.
The Primordial no longer had any limbs that could reach for the Aether orb. With each passing second, the effect of the second phase got stronger causing the absorption to elerate. Nino was aware that this would happen. It''s one of the reasons the Primordial would eventually resort to using ck holes in order to free itself, even at the risk of sustaining more damage.
The attack would be so devastating that it would take most of the Olympians and Nephilim with it. The reason Nino had bothered to tell Atropos about the New Titans.'' ability was so she would use her own to stop it.
"Say, I''ve been thinking for a while now¡" Atropos spoke from afar, still going after the Titans.. "Why are you asking me all these questions?"
Nino remained silent, unconsciously fastening the grip on her spear. Atropos appeared in front of her the next moment and she held it to block her crimson sword.
"You saw everything, didn''t you?" She said. "With your Needle you should''ve been able to look for a Path where I gave you all the answers, right?"
Nino''s expression darkened and she couldn''t help clicking her tongue. She created two new spears and thenunched them simultaneously, one from each side. Atropos smiled and teleported away, and because their weapons were connected she took Nino with her. They went all the way to the opposite side of the battlefield, appearing right above one of the Titans.. Atropos surrounded it with her white disks, immediately activating her ability and shattering it.
"Well, knowing that you could do that, I probably never told you even if you won at the end."
Another detonation announced theing of the sixth shockwave. Just before it wasunched, Nino separated herself from Atropos and was about to teleport away only to stop at thest moment. She was trapped inside arge blue box along with her elder sister.
"Still, I find it funny that you still can''t remember." Closing the distance between them, Atropos shed up with her sword. "Even if you can''t remember, all you had to do was to check your past and you would''ve learned everything."
The Needle allowed Nino to gaze at the Tapestry of Fate. That included the Threads intertwined with hers and the Paths leading to the future, but it also allowed her to see the Path she has already traversed.
While she can''t see the possible Paths created by a Divergence once she passes it, she''s still able to see the Path she has traversed, meaning she can see all the events she has lived through giving her some sort of permanent recording of her whole life.
There is one problem though.
"Lachesis is dead." Said Nino. "We might be the same person, but we are different as well. Her Thread has reached its end, and mine has only started a few years ago."
As soon as the battle at the airport concluded, Nino used her Needle in the hopes of seeing the past she could remember. Unfortunately, her earliest memory was awakening in what she guessed was Asgard where she had undergone the cruel training to be a Valkyrie.
"I see." Atropos nodded, having understood the circumstances. "So death really is the end."
With the shockwave having already passed them, the isting walls disappeared and the battle resumed. The sisters sped through the sky, their crimson weapons shing repeatedly. With Nino no longer bothering to destroy the white disks Atropos took the chance to destroy more Titans.
"So? Aren''t you going to answer my question?"
With only three giants remaining Atropos went back to using her Limited Rift as a shield. She blocked Nino''s Nameless spears as she focused her swings on her younger sister. "Was there really no Path where I told you the truth?"
Nino remained silent, blocking each sh as she backed away. Though their ferocity and speed made it seem otherwise, she could tell that her elder sister was holding back trying not tond a direct hit with her Scissors. A single sh from the crimson de would be enough to kill anyone. Nino wanted to believe that her sister was reluctant to see her die once again, but she knew that couldn''t be the case, her guess being that she was keeping her alive just so she could learn a few things.
"I didn''t look." Nino said after a while. "I wanted to hear it from you. I wanted to hear it myself."
For a moment, Atropos looked utterly baffled. She then burst outughing, leaving herselfpletely open.
"You¡ you''re actually risking it all just for that?" She said. "You understand that if I refuse to tell you now, you will never know what happened, right."
"I''m fine with that." Nino replied. "I''m already over my death."
Chapter 275 Look around you.
Chapter 275 Look around you.
[Whoa¡ that really was something¡] Juni''s voice came from the giant blue robot as it slowly lowered its arms, having instinctively used them to guard its face and head.
The creation wasn''t in its best shape. Cracks had spread through its outeryer and the joints made strange noises as it tried to stand.
Realizing it was a lost cause, the Valkyrie abandoned her creation leaving it to disappear into small particles. One look ahead and she realized the situation was much worse than she previously thought.
The Titans encircling Odin''s pce were on apletely different magnitude. Standing side by side, they looked like a mountain range that couldn''t be climbed. In front of them, humans and Valkyries were nothing more than ants. Even her Super Juni Robo didn''te close to the size of those things. Faced with such monstrosities, she felt herself losing hope for a few seconds.
"So these are the Titans your friend spoke of¡"
Looking to her left, Juni was happy to see Ulfhild floating beside her. The short Nephilim seemed quite annoyed and her sharp eyes only served to exaggerate her expression.
"You lost your robot as well?" The Valkyrie asked.
"Look around you. Those things destroyed everything, including their own allies."
She was right. The ck Stone Giants were gone, both the regr ones and the Demons. All that was left was a sea of ck rubble among which were the disintegrating creations of the other Nephilim.
"So?" Teleporting into the vicinity, Ingrid asked nonchntly. "What are we supposed to do now? We were told to wait till the sixth shockwave before attacking those Titans, right?"
At that moment the sound of a weak detonation reached their ears. Hearing it the three waited a second before teleporting closer to the giants, appearing in an area that was already passed by the shockwave.
"We should just use this time to take a break." At some point, Solveig had appeared near them. Her tired, slightly annoyed tone startled the other three causing a series of res to be directed her way.
"Found you~"
Seeing that four of their team had gathered they expected the fifth to appear next, but when they moved their gazes up they found themselves faced with an unfamiliar face. Juni''s face twisted in an uncharacteristic grimace the moment sheid her eyes on the almond colored skin.
"You¡"
"What? Did you forget about me already?" Panthesilea said, descending from the sky resting arge curved sword on her shoulder.
"Uwaah¡ what kind of out is that?" Ulfhildmented, giving the beautiful dancer a side look.
"She''s¡ she''s practically naked¡" Solveig added. Her eyes were opened to their utmost in a surprised look, her cheeks taking on a red taint.
Juni looked down and realized she still had her uniform on. Since she used her robot from the very start shepletely forgot to take it off. Her friends still had their uniforms on as well. There was no rule that said they couldn''t go to battle wearing them, and with her wearing her battle suit undernead she saw no problem in staying like that.
"What are you saying?" Ingrid turned to herrades with a raised eyebrow. "Our battle suits are so tight we might as well be naked too."
"This and that arepletely different!" Solveig responded.
The battle suits were made to fit them perfectly, emphasizing their curves and enhancing their beauty all while providing practicality. The Olympian standing in front of them, however, seemed to have prioritized looks over functionality. Her outfit barely covered her private parts, and a good hit would be enough to leave her bare.
"I came to finish our fight from the other day." Ignoring the ramblings of the others, Panthesilea kept her eyes on Juni as she spoke. "We might not get another chance so how about we get done with it?"
"Hmm¡ I''m not so sure." Juni replied. "I mean, I have a lot to do right now. I can''t really waste time ying with you."
"Well, too bad."
Taking her sword in both hands, the Amazonian lowered her posture and summoned her wings. Seeing that she was about charge at her, Juni created her bat then transformed it into a jagged sword. The three Nephilim summoned their weapons as well, but all of them knew it was best to not interfere in the duel.
Standing on an invisible tform, Panthesileaunched herself forward.
The two des shed and the Valkyrie was pushed back.
"Hey Juni!" Ingrid called. "Do you need help!?"
"No. I can handle this on my own!"
She threw her body up avoiding the kick directed at her left nk then pushed herself away, swinging her de and turning it into a long whip. Panthesilea teleported a moment before the thin thread connecting the des surrounded her. She appeared behind the Valkyrie, but her downward swing was blocked by nothing more than the hilt of the sword.
As they watched the battle ensue, the three Nephilim noticed a number of enemies heading their way.
"Seriously?" Ulfhild frowned, particles starting to gather in her hands and on her back. "I really hate close quarter fights."
One of the Olympians, a young man with dark skin, let out a loud battle cry as he swung down his sword. Ulfhild merely stepped to the side and allowed it to pass, and as the momentum carried the man and prevented him from moving, something shed in front of his face and the next second his head became a ssh of blood and brains.
The short Nephilim watched ass the corpse fell down then turned to look behind her. At the lower end of her back, a long tail made from multiple conjoined mechanical parts extended out. It starts thick at the base and ends with a sharp point. Despite how it looked it was quite flexible.
"Maybe I overdid it a little¡" she said, scratching her cheek with the wed finger of her gauntlet.
"Who cares!" Ingrid shouted before teleporting. "We''re supposed to kill them anyway!"
The Olympian who had attacked her ¨Ca young woman dressed in a dancer''s outfit simr to Panthesilea''s and wielding a long spear¨C froze in her ce when she felt the cold metal pressed to the side of her head. Before she could think of enhancing her force field and protecting herself, a single bullet prated her skull,ing out of the other side of her head along with a ssh of blood and brains.
"Stay away from me!!!" Solveig cried as two Olympians headed her way, shouting threats and curses. Two purple drones floated on either of her sides firing a rain of energy bullets on the enemy who easily dodged them. Just as they reached her and prepared to swing their weapons, an invisible wall came in their way blocking their attacks.
"I¡ I warned you!" The next second, the two men were suddenly squashed into a small confined space, their bones crushed until they were nothing but a cube of blood and gore.
Just then the third shockwave washed over the battlefield once again forcing everyone to either block or teleport. By now no one attempted to create anything too big in fear of it shattering by explosive attack. Gigantic creations were incapable of teleportation so they had to bear the brunt of the attack and enhancing them with Force Fields was an impossible task. The Nephilim were left with no choice but to fight the Titans with normal weapons, but that didn''t matter a lot since their main objective was to free their captured friends.
"Astrid, what''s taking you so long?" Ingrid asked with a hand on her ear.
[Y-yeah I''m a little busy right now.] Came a voice through themunicator. [I got five of those vermins on my tail!]
"Just hurry it up! We can''t summon the Big Guy without your Sharpwing!"
The fighting continued and soon enough the fourth shockwave arrived. It was then that one of the Titans was suddenly demolished, cut into pieces before crumbling to the ground. Watching it happen, Juni returned her focus to the dark skinned woman and began speeding up her attacks.
"Uh-oh~" Panthesilea eximed, surprised by the vigor behind the Valkyrie''s attacks. "So you''re finally getting serious."
"I don''t have time to y with you." Juni said, her usual cheerful smile was long gone. "Sorry but I will have to end this quickly."
"Is that so?" The Amazonian replied. Her eyes suddenly sharpened and a series of strange tattoos suddenly appeared all over her exposed skin. A momentter they began glowing with a beautiful golden color and at the same time her movements sped up causing her blows to be heavier. "Then I guess I should do my best to hinder you."
The fifth shockwave arrived. Juni was incapable of separating herself from her opponent forcing her to teleport the two of them together. Putting one and one together, Panthesilea concluded that the four Nephilim were up to something that needed the cooperation of all four plus someone who had yet to arrive. Despite not knowing the details, she was adamant about not letting them achieve their objective and so she put everything she had into keeping Juni upied.
Chapter 276 Huntress.
Chapter 276 Huntress.
Sparks explode like like fireworks. Blurry figures sped through the sky, shing repeatedly and causing loud explosions wherever they were.
Their des met again, each one pushing against the other. One of them was d in white, the maniacal grin on her face and the bloodshot eyes enhancing her beast like appearance. She pushed against a short sword with five long ws extending from each of her fingers. As their power struggle went on for more than a second she raised her other hand and wed at her opponent forcing her to back away.
The second one was a young woman with green hair. Unlike her opponent, she was extremely calm, her eyes studying everything in front of her as she determined the best course of action. Teleporting away, she mmed the bottoms of her short swords together, triggering a mechanism that linked the two weapons into one. A thin string appeared immediately after connecting the tips of each de and at that moment the two swords turned into a single long bow.
"As if I would let you!!!" CS shouted, rushing the close the distance as her opponent began creating arrows. She could''ve easily teleported and cut the distance in an instant, but flying and hopping around allowed her to build up momentum with increased strength behind her blows.
Artemis was aware of that fact. She had already calcted how much she needed to back away for her to revert to using the bow and arrows. She was a hunter after all. Engaging in closebat wasn''t really her style.
CS created a small barrier under her feet and arms giving the illusion that she was dashing through the sky. An arrow cut through the air heading straight to her face, almost piercing her between the eyes, but then it passed through unrestricted, the only thing it touched was the afterimage of the Valkyrie left behind the moment she dodged.
More arrows followed and CS elerated even further. As she closed in on the Olympian woman, the danger of her getting hit increased dramatically, but that didn''t stop her. Artemis clicked her tongue andunched thest arrow. The white beast dodged it and came close enough for her ws to reach the green haired woman, but before she could take a swing at her she disappeared.
Artemis knew that wasn''t the end of it and held her bow up the instant she appeared at her destination. Though she braced herself for the impact, when the ws hit her bow she felt a violent tremor ravage through her entire body.
"You sure are resilient." CS said, continuing to push with everything she got. "Are you going to get serious or what?"
Artemis kept her silence as usual. She twisted her hand splitting the bow apart and turning it into twin swords then used the free one to sh at CS'' left nk. Having seen the attacking, the Valkyrie simply reached out with her free hand and grabbed the de, killing its momentum before it hit her body.
"C''mon!!! I''m starting to get disappointed here!!!" CS spoke, still. "You''re the great Artemis, right? Show me what makes you so dangerous! Show me why Nino warned us about you!!!"
"Warned you about me?" Artemis said, her eyes narrowing into a sharp re.
Though she seemed to be struggling against CS when it came to pure physical strength, that changed all of a sudden as the pressure from her swords grew exponentially. CS noticed that and her smile widened even further.
"Say, you have one among you, right?" The Olympian woman asked. "Someone who can see the future¡"
Concluding that she would lose the power struggle, CS kicked with her right leg forcing Artemis to back away.
"Who knows!?" She shouted, forming a small tform under her feet and using it tounch herself.
She swung her ws and the huntress met them with her de. Their weapons bounced against each other with a loud metal tter, but soon enough one of them began to have the upper hand.
With each strike Artemis was increasing the strength of her Force Field, but instead of using it to protect herself she was coating her weapon in most of it. CS felt the results soon enough. As she was spreading her own Force Field equally through her armor it was incapable of handling Artemis'' enhanced des.
"I''ve been wondering for a while now." She said. "your kind is¡ peculiar, to say the least."
"Oh yeah?"
"You seem human at first, but a closer look reveals that you aren''t even flesh and blood. You''re practically made out of machines, but you''re also capable of using Rune, which means you have souls, at the very least."
"I don''t get what you''re talking about!"
Being too focused on the twin swords, CS found herself falling for a fake opening the green haired Olympian left for her. When she moved aside to dodge the ws, time seemed to slow down for CS as she felt something strike her in the stomach. Artemis kneed her one, cracking her white armor. She mmed the pommel of the sword in her right hand on her back then swung her leg for a kick.
CS found herself tossed quite a long distance away, but she recovered her bnce with a flip and crouched down on an invisible tform,unching herself once again with the same grin still on her face.
"It would''ve been quite a problem if you were nothing but machines, you know." Artemis said before teleporting. She appeared high above her previous location with three arrows already knocked on her bow. "If someone out there is capable of creating machines with the consciousness needed to use halos and Runes, it would''ve been quite a big problem for us."
Releasing the string sent the arrows flying. CS had no choice but to teleport out of their way. She appeared right behind the Olympian, prepared to swing her wed hand, but once again her attack was stopped with such ease it caused her somewhat of a shock.
"Well, I''m more interested in the fact that all of you seem to be female." Artemis said. "Were you like this from the start? Or did you eliminate the males once you no longer had any use for them?"
"I thought you were the silent type." Said CS. "Guess I was wrong!"
For an instant, the Valkyrie channeled all of her Force Field to her ws. It was a very risky move as it left her with only the white armor to protect her, but she saw no other way to raise her odds against such a powerful opponent.
Once again the two found themselves amidst another power struggle. Just as each of them was about to go for the next attack, they heard a weak detonation and quickly got away from each other, teleporting away right after. With how fast they were moving, the intervals between the shockwaves seemed to stretch for an eternity. CS had abandoned using her Sabertooth to focus on the priority target she came across, but if she didn''t she probably would''ve been forced to take it down just like the rest of her allies.
The Titans have released four shockwaves so far. CS instinctively knew to use teleportation in order to avoid them. From the looks of it the area at the center, encircled by the mountainous giants, seems to be safe from the shockwaves as they spread out. Going there would''ve saved them a lot of trouble, but her opponent seemed adamant about staying in the area affected by the shockwave and the Valkyrie understood why.
The moment she appeared, CS found herself under a concentrated shower of green arrows falling from the sky. She knew that trying to use teleportation to escape them was meaningless as she would be met with another shower the moment she appeared in a new location.
That said, she didn''t really have to evade or escape. The arrows were nothing more than a distraction. Since they didn''t have the power of a Force Field enhancing them she didn''t have to worry about any damage they might deal. She increased the output of her own Force Field and began looking around for the green haired Olympian. Even as the arrows began hitting her all over the ce, she continued to focus on the search until she spotted a spark near the ground.
"Found you!"
Putting every bit of strength she had into her leg, CS kicked off the invisible tform shooting down toward the ground like a meteor, causing a violent sonic boom that scattered the raining arrows.
"A strange race made entirely of females. Souls trapped in a synthetic shell." Artemis said, her eyes on the fast approaching meteor. The arrow she was preparing seemed somewhat different from the rest. It was enveloped in a green aura, but since direct contact with an object is required to coat it in a Force Field, it seemed meaningless to do it for a ranged weapon. "The carcass itself isn''t so strange. The problem lies in the souls themselves."
For a single instance, her eyes moved to the two identical girls battling above one of the giants. At first, Artemis thought it was nothing more than a coincidence, but then crimson spear said it all.
Without a doubt the girl Atropos was fighting is her younger sister Lachesis, but that''s what has confused Artemis the most.
Lachesis was dead. Her corpse was brought and disyed along with those who chose to go against Zeus. The likelihood that her death was faked was very low, but if that really was the case then how was she still around?
''Reincarnation?'' The huntress thought. ''If so, why does she still have her memories and appearance?''
The simple fact that one of her dead acquaintances came back has made the strange new race called the Nephilim all the more intriguing. Unfortunately she was forced to wait until the Key was in their hands before she could learn more about them. Until then all she could do was make sure they weren''tpletely eliminated.
Chapter 277 Red Lightning.
Chapter 277 Red Lightning.
Red. A color the Valkyrie was used to very well. From thends she flew above when fighting the Cmities to the sky of the new world which brought a more unforgiving war. To Zero Five, however, the color red meant many other things. From the ribbon of her uniform to the halo over her head and the sword in her hand. But if she had to say it herself, the most vivid memory she had of the color was the red liquid spilling from the wound that man received.
Their battle against Loki was one she would never forget. Her opponent was far more skilled, having more control and relying more on tricks than the mindless Cmities she had fought up to that point. Even though she had received a great boost to her abilities, she was still barely able to keep up with the golden des her opponent threw at her, and because of herck of power her charge received a wound that could''ve taken his life.
Thankfully, the Doctor had survived, although not without undergoing an irreversible change. Five med herself for what happened that day, as did her tworades who were there that fateful day. She wished she could turn back time and make everything right, but unfortunately she had no choice but to keep going forward.
Five hated the color red. In her eyes, it brought nothing but tragedy. The Fallen and their crooked halos, the ominous light in the heads of the ck Stone Giants, and now the red lightning raining from the sky.
The red lightning was cold. Wherever a bolt fell sharp ice crystals formed, creating a beautiful sight that soon crumbled as more bolts rained down.
Despite her best attempts, Sitta was struggling to keep up with the constant strikes of the red lightning. Her barriers shattered one after the other, freezing the instant they came into contact with the strange phenomenon. Fortunately she only needed to hold on for a little over twenty seconds, no matter how powerful their opponent was, a constant stream of such powerful attacks was impossible to keep for long.
Just as the light from thest attack faded, Zero Five held her odachi at waist level and leaned forward preparing to move the instant the blueish box around them disappeared.
"Go!"
On Sitta''s signal, Five stepped forward, her figure blurring for an instant. She broke through the wall of ice that had formed around the box and came face to face with her opponent who intended to shatter the barrier now that it was weakened.
Though only half of her face was hidden underneath the mask, there was no sign of her expression changing, no surprise at the obstacle that appeared in her way. Her crimson dress fluttered along the wind, unaffected by the tendrils of red electricity dancing around it, the only signs of damage done to it being a few, barely noticeable cuts here and there.
Thor, the current Nephilim queen, was a true horror on the battlefield. Her movements didn''t show the slightest hint of mindlessness despite her being under the control of someone else. She met Five''s de with hernce, tilting it ever so slightly so it would slide along its surface causing the ponytailed Valkyrie to bounce off carried by the speed of her own movements.
The crimson haired queen had her eyes on the ginger at the back and she coated hernce in the crimson lightning preparing to strike her down. Unfortunately before she could teleport the remaining distance another translucent box materialized in front of her blocking the way.
The gaze from behind the oni mask drew her attention and she quickly moved aside. An instantter the de of a katana cut through the ce she was in.
With her attention back on the masked Valkyrie, Thor raised hernce high then pointed it at her. Red lightning shot forth, its tendrils racing to see which would im its victim first. But no matter how fast it was it couldn''t catch something that wasn''t there and so Five avoided its cold embrace by teleporting away.
The Nephilim queen remained cold and uncaring. Her body began to glow as she increased the output of her Force Field. A momentter white lines began to appear all around her, creating a strange web trapping her at the center. Trenta appeared a small distance away with her back turned to the woman in red. She slowly slid her de into its sheath activating her ability, but the white lines shattered the moment they made contact with the queen''s powerful protective aura.
Though she managed to guard against I Am The Storm easily, Thor quickly raised hernce to block Five''s katana. The crimson de had ayer of blue covering it turning the whole weapon into an alluring shade of purple, one the Nephilim found too dangerous to ignore. Unlike the previous attacks, this one managed to cut through the red lightning and the Nephilim''s force field and chipper at the obsidian weapon, leaving behind a small cut.
"Get out of there!!!" Came Sitta''s cry.
The masked Valkyrie let the strike if her opponent blow her away before teleporting. The crimson haired queen tried to follow but found herself inside another box that blocked her movements if only for a couple of seconds.
"What were you thinking!!?" Sitta asked, her face pale. "Nino warned you to not let the lightning touch you!!!"
"I¡ I know..." Five replied, tilting her mask and releasing the breath she was holding in. "But we don''t have much choice¡"
One look at her legs and she understood why the Japanese doll had warned them about the lightning. Since they aren''t humans the Valkyries had no reason to worry about freezing temperatures, but at some point their bodies would begin to crumble. Focusing most of her Force Field on her odachi left her with only a thinyer to protect herself. That much was evidently not enough as only a small spark was enough to prate it, sprouting a number of red crystals from the frostbite eating at her skin.
She quickly cut them away but that didn''t do anything to the frozen part. The pain it caused her was negligible, but if she continued to receive such damage her movements would suffer at some point.
"How are we supposed to get that mask when none of our attacks cannd?" Trenta asked, sounding rather annoyed.
"Our only choice is to keep going until we take her down."
Despite their current situation, Five didn''t feel discouraged in the least. Though the gap between their powers seemed too wide at first, she was confident of her ability to take down the crimson haired queen. She didn''t know how she was going to do it, but a part of her knew that she could.
The red lightning continued to rain down on the small box Sitta conjured and the ice crystals continued to pile up on its surface. As they waited for the storm to end, Zero Five closed her eyes and breathed in. The enemy was strong and a single mistake could cost her her life. She needed to protect herself, but focusing on defense meant dealing next to no damage. The Force Field had an upper limit. It wouldn''t run out as long as the output remained within that limit, but attempting to produce more meant risking it copsing, robbing her of the ability to fight.
''Thatnce¡'' Five thought, an image of the crimson haired queen appearing in her mind. ''It wasn''t enhanced by her force field¡''
Something told her that she knew about the strange obsidian weapon, though she only saw it for the first time back when Mimir had shown them the recordings she had. Even back then, the ponytailed Valkyrie seemed to have an instinctive understanding of thence. It was a strange feeling, but she didn''t let it bother her until now.
A material strong enough to stop a weapon enhanced by the maximum output of a Force Field. Was it something the queen created through her halo? If so, replicating it shouldn''t be impossible for the Valkyries. Five tried to focus on the queen''s image trying to distinguish the runes making up her crown like halo, but the attempt ended in failure as even her eyes couldn''t capture a still frame of the spinning runes.
''No.'' Five shook her head, refusing to give up. ''Doctor entrusted me with this. I can''t fail him. Not again.''
Her mind wandered back to thest battle and how she failed to see it to its end. The grave injuries she received had robbed her of her consciousness and left her plummetting to a sea of fire. If it wasn''t for her friend''s help she would''ve died right then and there.
Death wasn''t something that scared her. Her greatest fear was betraying the expectations ced on her by her friends and the man she loved. She was entrusted with freeing the Nephilim queen because, among both the avable Valkyries and the Nephilim, she was the strongest.
''Doctor¡'' Once again she took a deep breath. ''Please watch over me¡''
Red. It was the color Zero Five hated the most. Whether it was the ruinedndscape of her world or the blood spilling from a gash in human flesh, she hated the sight of it, and from that hate a dark desire began to spring out from the depth of her mind.
Her slender fingers tightened around the hilt of her sword. Anger flooded her chest bringing with it a calmness that ignored the circumstances around her and the odds of her winning the battle without losing a limb or two. A thin haze began to form, enveloping her body in a ck shadow that isted it from the rest of the world. The shadow grew thicker for a while, but then it seemed topress all of a sudden, hardening around the Valkyrie''s graceful body and taking the vague form of a suit of armor.
Chapter 278 Obsidian.
Chapter 278 Obsidian.
The aura exuded by theirrade took Sitta and Trenta by surprise. The fear they felt was now directed at Zero Five instead of the crimson queen, so much so that the thought of teleporting away crossed their minds.
The aura grew so thick they could no longer see her form. The red lightning stopped raining, but Thor was still, keeping her distance and not attacking like she usually does. It was as if she was waiting for whatever was happening to end, and it didn''t take long before they reached that point.
Nino had said that the ponytailed Valkyrie was the only one strong enough to win against the crimson haired queen, but she refused to tell them why she thought that. Using her ability to see the future she must''ve seen how Five would do it, but her refusal to give them the method led to the conclusion that knowing about it might result in failure somehow.
Sitta didn''t understand why that was the case back then, but now she had a vague idea.
The phenomenon that was happening had nothing to do with the Runes or halos. Zero Five was reaching into a source of power they had no knowledge of, manifesting an ability they''d never seen her use before. It was doubtful she herself knew what she was doing, but that was one more reason to not disturb her at all.
Seconds passed and the strange smoke like haze began to change. It seemed to gather andpress, turning into a solid material. A figure soon came into sight, but it was no longer the curvy soft body d in a leotard likebat suit.
At first nce it seemed like nothing more than a statue, and not a well sculptured one at that. It was a full te armor. Each part seemed to be carved out of obsidian stone, having a crude surface and sharp edges.
Sitta felt a painful prick in her chest the moment sheid eyes on the strange figure. Images from their first battle in this world flooded her mind, stopping at Atropos'' armored figure emerging from the inferno B3 rained on her. The design was different, but there was no denying that they were simr. The material alone said it all.
"Sitta..."
Hearing her name being called, the ginger snapped out of her daze only to be startled once more. Despite having seen it on several asions, the glowing red oni mask seemed all the more menacing. That said, for some reason it felt like its appearanceplemented the Japanese style armor despite how crude it looked. The long ponytail still flowed behind it indicating that the one inside was indeed theirrade. Though she couldn''t see her eyes, Sitta understood what she was trying to convey so with a nod she turned her gaze forward and lowered the barrier causing the crystals that had formed on its surface to shatter.
As the red ice fell like shattered ss, Zero Five locked her eyes on the crimson haired queen. Thor was calm, unperturbed. She floated motionlessly a short distance away holding hernce by her side. The ck weapon was clearly made from the same material as Five''s new armor. Seeing that it withstood strikes from a weapon coated in a fully powered Force Field, Five''s chances at winning the battle seemed to suddenly increase now that she had something simr.
She grasped her odachi in both hands and channeled all of her Force Field to it, turning the de''s color to a much more sinister shade of purple. Thor seemed to react at that moment, changing her posture as she prepared to attack.
There was an ear splitting silence as the sounds around them faded away. The two stared at each other for what felt like an eternity, then, without a warning, they lunged, their forms bing a blur before they shed with an explosive sound.
The recoil sent each of them flying a few meters, but instead of stopping themselves they teleported, shing once more the next second.
Their movements were difficult to follow even for the Valkyries and their eyes. Thor was swinging and thrusting hernce as if it was weightless while Five did her best to dodge and deflect everything thrown at her. The new armor seemed like a perfect fit. Even though it was her first time using it, Five felt that she had worn it countless times before. Despite it looking like a rigid stone the inneryers were quite flexible as if they were made out of stone, though that didn''t seem to affect their durability and defensive power that much.
Putting all her trust in the obsidian armor, she dedicated every bit of her Force Field to enhancing her weapon. Thence was still holding strong, but each strike left a small cut on its surface. It wasn''t anything to be thrilled about, but progress was still progress.
Five remained focused and tried to strike the same spots each time she swung her sword. Thor didn''t show much of an expression, but it was clear she was getting frustrated from having all of her attacks being parried. She backed away after a barrage of thrusts and held her left hand out. Sparks danced at the surface of her palm and a secondter a crimson bolt shot out.
Five remained calm and without hesitation shed it with her purple de. The sh of electricity scattered into several sparks, some of which fell on Five''s obsidian armor, blooming into sparkling red crystals in an instant, then shattered in the next.
Though she felt the chilling cold, the absence of pain informed her that her body was safe. Without hesitation she followed after the queen, raising her odachi over her head and preparing for a downward swing.
Thor fired another bolt striking the Valkyrie right in the chest, but that did little to slow her down. Seeing that her lightning was ineffective the queen went back to physical attacks, meeting the sharp de with the crude surface of hernce.
Sitta continued to watch the battle from a distance, her hands held out as she prepared to create a barrier at a moment''s notice. Now that Five no longer had to worry about the red lightning she began to focus more and more on the offense, but that only worried herrades even more.
Something told them that they had yet to see the Nephilim queen''s true power. After all despite the battle going on for several minutes she has yet to show any signs of using her Force Field for anything other than to form the halo over her head. That made it seem as if one strike would be all they needed to end the fight, but so far the most damage they inflicted on her was a few cuts on her red dress.
"Hey¡"
Sitta had her focus entirely on the fight in front of her, thinking that nothing else was worth paying attention to. Her mind changed instantly when she saw what Trenta wanted her to see and she quickly conjured a multiyered barrier around them, shouting for Five at the same time.
A weak boom resounded in the distance and a secondter the world trembled as a violent shockwave washed over everything. Though she increased the durability of her barrier to the max causing its wall to dramatically lower its opacity, the box didn''t seem to hold very well as cracks began spreading through it.
Five had teleported right before the quaking began and avoided getting caught in whatever was happening outside. As soon as the quaking began, the Three Valkyries teleported at the same time distancing themselves from the blueish box a moment before Thor''s obsidiannce pierced through it.
"It seems things aren''t going so well over there¡"
With freeing the Nephilim queen being their sole task, the three Valkyries paid no mind to the rest of the battlefield and because of that they were oblivious to the change that was happening.
"So those things are the Titans, huh?" Said Trenta. "Nino''s description didn''t do them justice¡"
The new creations made the ck Stone Giants look small inparison. It was doubtful whether something of that size could even move, but one thing that was clear was that they weren''t something the Valkyries could easily handle.
"I don''t think we need to worry about them, but¡ those shockwaves are going to be a problem¡"
The uneasiness returned as Sitta recalled how her barrier began to crack. Just like what Nino had described, the Titans'' attacks were meant to destroy everything in a veryrge area. Evading it was easy as long as they could see iting, but if any of them ended up receiving a direct hit their fate would be sealed, just like the hundreds of Olympians who were sted away by the first attack.
Their short break came to an end pretty quickly as a red bolt of lightning fell down on them prompting Sitta to create another barrier. Five was nowhere to be seen, having already made her move as evidenced by the lightning storm ending shortly after it started showing that she had interrupted the Nephilim queen drawing her attention away from the other two.
The second shockwave came soon after and the third followed didn''t take too long. Once the ninth is released, the Titans would unleash a more devastating attack to free the Primordial before it has all of its essence absorbed. None of that was of concern to Five and the others. Stopping the mountainous giants and securing the Key were jobs for the others to handle. The crimson queen wasn''t someone they could hope to defeat while worrying about everything else so even though they still had to keep an eye out for the world shattering wails they directed all their focus to the task at hand.
Chapter 279 Show yourself.
Chapter 279 Show yourself.
"That ck armor¡" Sigyn said, her eyes on therge floating screen.
"It''s different." Mimir replied. "Now I see why she was chosen for this task¡"
Same as all Nephilim who stayed behind on the ship, those two were busy watching the battle to free their brethren, especially the battle against their queen, which was what was keeping them on the edge of their seats.
Saying Thor is powerful would be an understatement. On top of her naturalbat sense which was far more advanced than any other Nephilim, she wielded a unique halo capable of producing cold lightning, something that went against the knownws of physics. The Runes making it up were impossible to replicate, same as H''s gravity maniption halo which still remains a secret to this day.
The halos themselves were powerful, but the Obsidian Armaments were on a whole other level. Same as the Runes, those capable of using them knew how to do so instinctively. Mimir had only seen three so far; the Lance belonging to their crimson haired queen and two sets of armor, one used by the ponytailed Valkyrie and the other worn by the leader of the enemy forces, Atropos.
The Obsidian Armaments were especially durable and resilient. Thor''snce was a weapon that could destroy anything, capable of oveing the protection of Force Fields with ease. The only time it faced something capable of resisting it was during her battle with the raven haired Olympian who used an armor made of the same material as well as her ability to separate the world.
Knowing they wouldn''t be able to win the battle, Thor asked the rest of her forces to retreat. The situation was too confusing and they had no way of knowing how to deal with it so in order to stop the enemy from capturing more of them they disappeared and waited for the right time to fight back.
Before meeting with the Valkyries and the Doctor the Nephilim had no idea on how they should proceed with the war against the Olympians. The only conflict they had been in before was one where they were the ones doing the invasion, but this time it was different. Their stronghold was taken over and they were forced to flee. Their enemy wasn''t just a bunch of clueless humans As well, which meant they couldn''t rely on their old tactics.
In order to turn the tides in their favor they needed more reliable information and what better source could provide said information other than someone capable of seeing the future. Thanks to the Valkyrie named Nino they had a better understanding of what needed to be done to maximize their potential for winning the war. Her ability still confuses Mimir and the others, but all of that doesn''t matter at the moment. All they had to worry about was whether they reached the future they were aiming for or ended up losing their lives to failure. The enemy seems interested in using them for their Rituals so they would most likely try to keep some of them alive, but looking at their capturedrades the Nephilim agreed that death was a much better fate.
"It''s starting¡"
Sigyn''s remark brought Mimir''s attention back to a second floating screen. This one disyed the alien entity surrounded by enormous rings of Runes. The Primordial was reaching for the ground, each of its tentacles decorated by a halo of its own. After just a couple of minutes a new wave of stone giants was created, this one dwarfing anything they had seen before.
"The Titans¡"
~[]~
The pce walls shook violently prompting Sam and the others to halt their advance. A small window appeared in front of him, conjured by the sses he wore, disying the footage captured by the drones he left behind.
"It started¡" he said with a neutral expression.
The Valkyries understood what he meant in an instant and tensed up as a result.
They were fresh out of another fight that didn''tst long. More random Olympians appeared only to be ughtered. Some were more troublesome than others, but in the end they were unable to do anything besides slowing the intruders.
It was a bit of a disappointment considering that most of them were capable of using halos and Force Fields. Their abilities weren''t much to speak of, and that was something Sam knew very well since Nino had informed them of the targets they should be wary of.
That''s not to say that the Olympians were so weak they couldn''t do anything. It simply showed that the Valkyries were levels above them, and that only the enemy''s elites had the ability to resist them.
The other reason was that most of the capable fighters were outside trying to prevent the Nephilim from disrupting the Ritual. Those left in the pce were either soldiers who had only received their halos recently or those waiting for the Whispers of Madness to grant them the ability.
"Let''s keep going." Sam said and a secondter they left the blood covered hallway as they marched for their destination.
The ground shook once more after a while. A third quake followed soon after, then a fourth one followed as well. Ny seconds were left until the next Divergence, a hundred and twenty before the Ritual ispleted and the Primordial ispletely absorbed. The battle would changepletely after that.
Sam had to reach the Bifrost before that point. Once the Key is formed, the Olympians would change their tactics and go on the offense. Unless he manages to summon reinforcements before that happens their odds of winning are extremely low.
"Doctor." Three spoke as she came to a stop, holding her triangr shield up. The other Valkyries halted as well and each when of them prepared for battle.
They had navigated their way to the section where the portal room was located, and looking at their surroundings Sam could guess what enemy they were going to encounter.
They had yet to reach the boss room so it was just another mob they were up against, but the moment the obstacle made its appearance Sam couldn''t help but grimace.
Walking from behind the corned was a young slender man. He wore the same clothes as the Spartans they encountered before, but unlike the muscr bunch he seemed quite malnourished with his body covered in bruises and cuts. His back was hunched, his head was lowered and he staggered with each step. He looked like a walking corpse, but that appearance did little to let the Valkyries lower their guard.
Triska raised her rifle and fired in the same motion. A thin yellow beam struck the young man in the head and he fell to the floor the next moment without making a sound.
"Three, set a barrier." Sam ordered.
"Understood."
The young Valkyrie did as she was told and a blue box appeared around the group. As instructed before she made it into an anti-teleportation barrier and as soon as it came to life the reason for creating it became apparent.
Someone teleported right in front of the group and swung a ded weapon at them. The barrier had prevented them from entering the space it encased, but that didn''t stop them fromunching their attack and following it with a few more as if the translucent wall didn''t exist.
Someone else appeared right after, then another, then another. Before long Sam and his Valkyries were surrounded by twenty individuals. Each of them had the broken crooked halos over their heads, showing that they were the ones who sumbed to the Whispers of Madness and became Fallen as a result.
The Olympians were still willing to make use of their soldiers even if they failed to Awaken. A merciful death wasn''t something those poor souls were afforded, instead they were forced to continue fighting even in their madness, serving a king who never cared about their fates.
A single look was enough to tell that the Fallen Spartans were different from the survivors of the Sanctuary. Their movements might''ve seemed erratic and unpredictable, however they had a certain sharpness to them showing that the skills those warriors acquired through their gruesome training weren''t just lost along with their sanity.
"It''s not going to work, huh?" Sam sighed, the halo over his head slowing down until the Runes making it became visible. "Ichigo."
"Yes!"
Straightening her back, the pink haired Valkyrie took a deep breath then activated her halo, expanding her Force Field until it covered most of their surroundings. The Fallen immediately dropped their weapons, screaming in pain as they held their heads in their hands. An instantter the barrier dropped and Venti went out with her spears, decapitating them one after the other and putting an end to their suffering.
More Fallen appeared soon after. Triska fired at them, slowing their movements as her green haired friend finished off the first batch. The second wave wasrger and much more energetic. Zero Three handled most of them, erasing them within the confines of an invisible barrier while Venti took care of the rest the moment they entered Ichigo''s range.
"You know you can''t stop us with this much." Sam spoke. "Show yourself already already."
There was a moment of silence, but then someone walked out from behind the corner. His face was one the Valkyries recognized instantly as he was among those who had invaded the forty sixth base a while ago.
Behind him were two others, one a huge mass of muscles while the other a tiny person who was smaller than most people with dwarfism.
"Well, color me surprised." Perseus said, a bright smile decorating his face. "To think you would be able to eliminate our soldiers so easily. Now I feel like I''ve wasted their lives for nothing."
Chapter 280 Unnatural thought process.
Chapter 280 Unnatural thought process.
"Greetings, Doctor Sam Sanderson." Said Perseus, bowing slightly. "I believe this is our second meeting."
"I don''t remember introducing myself in the first." Sam spoke. At the same time, the halo over his head began spinning.
"Indeed. Though we were already aware of your position as the enemy leader, we only learned your name after looking around. I have to say I''m quite intrigued by your victory over the so called Nephilim."
"I''m guessing that didn''t convince you to surrender, then."
"Unfortunately even if the odds were against us we don''t exactly have a choice in the matter." Perseus shook his head and sighed. "With Lachesis by your side you should be aware of our objective by now. Do you think we can just give up and retreat?"
"So you''re going to throw your life just like that? Well, your call."
With no more Fallen making an appearance Ichigo turned off her ability. The formation didn''t change much as the Valkyries prepared for battle; Venti stood at the front as their vanguard, Zero Three was behind her holding her shield and preparing to cast barriers. Sam stood behind her with Ichigo holding his arm so she could teleport him away at any moment. Triska stood at the very back and covered for them with her rifle.
"Leonidas." Perseus said.
"Okay okay, I get it already." The muscr man slumped his shoulders, sighing as he stepped forward. Despite his impressive figure he seemed reluctant to fight, but that changed soon enough as he formed a halo over his head and summoned his weapon.
In one hand he held an engraved round shield much like the ones used by the Spartans they fought before, although a little bigger. In the other he created a broad sword using the Nameless Element ¡ªthough it looked like nothing more than a knife in his hand¡ª and enhanced it by channeling most of his Force Field to the de.
There was a very short window of time where the two sides stared at each other in silence, then, without a warning, the bulky man teleported, appearing right in front of Zero Three with his de held high.
The young Valkyrie raised her shield to block the blow, spreading her Force Field to make sure it doesn''t shatter from the impact. A loud ng followed the downward sh and the de bounced back, but the bulky warrior appeared to spin around along with its movements just in time to block Venti''s spear with his shield.
A second spear headed for the gap in his helmet only for it to be parried just in time. Before the resulting sparks disappeared an invisible box sprang t life around the man, its size decreasing instantly. Just then Perseus tapped the floor with his staff and a wave of energy spread through the hallway shattering Three''s barrier and freeing hispanion from being erased.
Venti tried thrusting at the Spartan again and Triska followed with a few beams directed at the two in the distance. Leonidas blocked every attack with minimal movements while the small man raised the orb in his hand creating a barrier around him and hispanion just in time.
''Got him¡'' Sam thought to himself, not letting his reaction show on his face.
With her first spear parried Venti prepared to thrust the second one. Leonidas was about to block it with his enhanced sword but his body twitched messing up his timing, though he was quick enough to encase himself in his Force Field deflecting the spearhead and taking minimal damage.
Before the green haired Valkyrie could get the chance to follow with another attack he quickly teleported back to his allies. He looked down on himself and patted his chest, a confused look making its way to his face when he saw that the left side of his chest had turned blue at some point.
"Poison?" He muttered only to cough the next moment.
"Calm down, Leonidas." Said Perseus. "It''s nothing like that."
The response confused the Spartan, especially now that he found himself falling to one knee, blood spewing from his mouth.
"Wha¡ what are you¡"
"Daedalus."
"Sure sure." The shower man replied then stroked the orb in his hands a few times before raising it again.
At first look nothing seemed to change, but after a few seconds the blue spot on the Spartan''s chest began to fade. At the same time his exposed skin became lustrous as sweat slowly gathered. The same was happening for the other two so Sam concluded that they had increased the temperature inside their barrier, showing that they had seen through his little trick.
''Well, I''m not too surprised.''
Perseus reached into the inner pocket of his coat and took out a small handkerchief. As he wiped the sweat off his forehead, he turned his gaze to Sam and spoke with a smile.
"Quite impressive. A very simple way to use the 23rd dimension, but an extremely effective one."
The 23rd dimension was the source of the Nameless Element, ording to Nino. It being mentioned confirmed that Sam''s trick was exposed.
"Normally one would try to create something they''re familiar with, something engraved into their very essence." Spoke Perseus. "Sometimes it''s a weapon, sometimes it''s a tool. The Awakening makes it possible to draw its molecr structure from your subconscious, but you aren''t an Awakened, are you Doctor."
"Uh-oh. And what makes you think that?" Sam asked, a fake smile stered on his face.
"Your reliance on your soldiers for protection." Perseus replied, wearing the same smile. "If you had Awakened, you would''ve at the very least mastered teleportation and barrier creation, which would allow you to protect yourself even if you don''t intend on engaging inbat."
"Good guess. But it might be that I''m doing all of this just to trick you into letting your guard against me."
"I see no reason for going to such length. If you wanted us to underestimate you, you would''ve refrained from using the power of Runes at all."
For a moment there Sam was about to p. The Olympian youth was right on the spot, but it wasn''t that impressive of a deduction. Anyone would''ve been able to find out as much by looking at the situation, and doing so doesn''t change anything as Sam''s role remains the same whether he''s able to use the Runes or not.
The pce shook once more. Only four shockwaves remained until the next Divergence. Perseus was clearly buying time. Whether he was aware of what would happen after the ninth shockwave or not was unknown. Nevertheless, the longer he kept Sam and the others busy the higher the Olympians'' chances of winning are. With that in mind one would think that Sam would be in a hurry to crush the three obstacles and move forward. But that''s not what the Doctor did. He simply stayed silent and listened to the young man rambling, waiting for the right moment to move.
"Creating something capable of generating a Force Field isn''t much of a challenge, the same goes for linking it to one''s consciousness. But doing so is meaningless. Without the knowledge obtained from seeing the Truth, one can''t possibly make use of the Force Field, even if they''re able to mimic the halos and Runes." Pausing for a moment, Perseus stared at Sam, a hint of anger appearing in his eyes as the corners of his mouth slowly went down. "You are attempting to understand the Truth without ever witnessing it. Believe me when I say you aren''t the first one to try, and you won''t be thest to fail."
Sam didn''t need to hear the young man''s story to understand where his restrained anger came from. Just like Sam, he as well lost the chance to awaken. Though he managed to invent a technology that could mimic the Force Fields created by the Awakening, he realized that it couldn''t be used as efficiently without seeing the Truth. Replicating the runes alone wasn''t enough. One needed a consciousness engraved with a deep understanding of reality to be able to manipte it.
Perseus concluded as much and gave up on his pursuit, but Sam wasn''t the same.
Another quake shook the hallway. This one was much weaker, showing that several of the Titans were already destroyed. Leonidas got up to his feet, rotating his left shoulder and stretching. He prepared to resume the fight now that he had recovered, but then he turned to Perseus with a question.
"Are you going to exin what he did to me or what?"
Just then the blond youth looked up with a bewildered look on his face, finding it difficult to believe that someone still hadn''t figured it out from their conversation so far. He let out a sigh and turned to the doctor, his usual smile returning.
"He''s using the 23rd dimension to fill the area around him with thin water vapor. You breathed some of it while attacking and he used that to freeze your blood." He said before turning his eyes to Sam. "That''s how you killed the guards outside, correct?"
"Wha-" Even with his helmet on, Leonidas'' shock was still visible. "Is that even possible?"
"You experienced it yourself, didn''t you?"
Though it was much simpler than most other creations, transforming the Nameless Element into water was quite a difficult task to aplish. It would be more urate to say it''s impossible as no one has attempted doing it before, whether they''re Awakened or not. The thought process that led the man named Sam Sanderson into taking such a route was an iprehensible mystery, and that only served to induce an unsettling kind of horror into the hearts of the three Olympians facing him.
"So¡ how do I deal with this?" The Spartan asked. "Are you asking me to not breathe at all?"
"Are you an idiot?" Said the tiny man. "Just kill that damn bean sprout! That would solve the problem!"
"O~h!"
In a way, he was right. With the summoner gone the Nameless Element would revert back to its neutral state and return back to where it came from. That made killing the man in ab coat the most optimal course of action, but with the four Valkyries guarding him doing so was going to be much easier said than done.
"Alright, then." Summoning his weapon once more, Leonidas stepped forward. "Let''s get this done with."
"Be careful. The leader isn''t the only one you have to worry about."
Perseus wasn''t too worried about their odds of winning that battle. Leonidas was a formidable warrior, and with his and Daedalus'' support handling the intruders wasn''t going to be much of a problem.
"Daedalus, prepare to cast a barrier that covers the entire hallway." Perseus said in a low voice. "As long as we can adjust the temperature ourselves, breathing the water vapor wouldn''t be a problem."
"Got it."
Everything was ready, and the battle was about to resume. The seventh shockwave was about to beunched, and for a moment it seemed like everyone were timing their movements to match it. The Valkyries tensed up and so did the Olympians. The instant they felt a tremor spread through the ground, Daedalus took down the barrier surrounding him and his allies as he went about creating the new, muchrger one. Leonidas lunged forward trying to build momentum for his attack and Perseus smiled as he prepared tounch something as well.
Time slowed down to a crawl and the blond youth felt a faint prick on his left cheek, his eyes slowly widening as a thought spawned in his mind.
"Dae-"
The word was caught in his throat and his mouth was left hanging. He didn''t even finish turning in his friend''s direction, stopping mid motion with a terrified expression on his face. The same went for his allies. They were standing still, with therger one pressing on his right foot as if he were about to break into a run.
The three Olympians were frozen. Literally. A thinyer of ice covered them from head to toe, spreading through the polished floor along with a cloud of white mist.
The silence continued and nothing seemed to happen for a while. Finally understanding what had just happened, the four Valkyries turned to look at their Doctor, their eyes wide with surprise.
Sam kept his gaze on the enemy, the air he held in his artificial lungsing out as white mist as well.
"Idiot." He said, heaving a sigh. "What made you think I would wait for you to get close?"
Chapter 281 Trick.
Chapter 281 Trick.
The temperature in the hallway dropped dramatically in an instant and a gust of wind blew through the enclosed space, a sign of the sudden change in air pressure.
The Valkyries were stunned. In ce of the Olympians they were about to fight were three statues made of ice, each showing thest moment before the freeze enveloped them. They struggled to understand what had just happened but the Doctor''s voice quickly shook them out of their stupor.
"Venti! Take them out!"
Still confused, the green haired Valkyrie teleported above the trio ready to swing her spear. Unfortunately she was a second toote as a barrier appeared in her way. She quickly coated her weapon in the barrier breaking Rune and struck with everything she got, but the invisible walls kepting one after the other.
Their source was the orb held in the small man''s palm. It was glowing with a faint orange light, streaks of white vapor slowly rising from it. The same was happening with the crystal on Perseus'' staff, showing that it was still active despite its owner being encased in ice.
"Well, I guessed as much¡" Sam sighed.
The ice covering the three Olympians cracked around the joints as they trembled ever so slightly and parts of it began to peel off like old paint. Once they were sure that moving was no longer a danger to them, each of them broke out of the shell, falling to their knees and panting for air, their skin deathly pale and their eyes wide with horror.
"Dae¡ Daedalus¡" the blond youth tried calling for hisrade, unable to put what he wanted into words. Venti''s attacks became more aggressive but the barriers kepting. With trembling hands Perseus took the staff he was using to support himself and pointed it at the Valkyrie. The moment a series of Runes began to appear around its crystal, Sam called for his subordinate to retread. That didn''t stop the Olympian from continuing with the spell he was casting and a secondter he fired a golden beam.
Three''s shield was enough to block it, but that didn''t matter. The beam itself wasn''t meant to do any damage.
"Damn¡ it¡" Perseus mumbled, still struggling to catch his breath. "Since¡ since when¡"
The heat from the beam had served to warm him up a little, but the temperature was continuing to drop with each second.
"Bloody¡ hell¡"
Thankfully his shortpanion was back to his feet. It wasn''t long before the inside of the barrier was warm once again. Satisfied with the results, Sam no longer saw any need for him to continue with his little experiment so he allowed himself to rx. The halo floating over his head stopped spinning soon after and the atmosphere inside the hallway seemed to return to normal.
"I hoped to take you out in a single move but¡"
"I¡ I see¡"
The ice melted in just a few seconds. Each of the three Olympians was left with a few cuts here and there caused by the ice, but other than that they seemed perfectly fine, or so it seemed on the outside, at least. The same couldn''t be said about their mental state, though. The confidence they had before was now gone. They were starting to show more wariness toward Sam and his team and because of that no one attempted to attack for a while.
"Per¡ Perseus¡ what in the¡ world is¡ going on¡?" Leonidas seemed to be having a much harder time, unable to stand up, leaning against the floor on all fours. He was trying to summon his halo but failed in doing so. His mind was a mess and the fact that it stopped working entirely, even if it was for just a moment, filled him with an inexplicable dread.
"To think¡ you already had the entire hallway full of your imitations." Said Perseus. "The water molecules were nothing more than a distraction¡"
A simple thermal scan was all that it took to figure out the range of the Doctor''s ability, or so Perseus thought. Turns out the man in theb coat was a few steps ahead of him, having made more thorough preparations before their encounter.
When Sam entered the pce he used the sensors of his drones to perform a few tests, finding out the air pressure inside as well as the concentration of the differentponents that make it up. ording to Mimir, despite not needing to breathe, the Nephilim kept the air filtration system going and maintained it regrly. That made Sam''s job a lot easier as he didn''t have to put a lot of thought into recreating the atmosphere of a space that had been closed for more than twenty years.
He kept producing particles ever since they entered, mimicking the differentponents he found out about through his analysis. About 75% became nitrogen while another 20% turned into oxygen. The rest were split into otherponents and water vapor made up only a negligible amount, but that didn''t matter once the entire hallway was filled with the fake air. By having the concentrated water vapor surround a small area around him Sam had tricked Perseus into lowering his guard, but the truth was that he and hispanions were breathing the fake air from the start. They fell into his trap the moment they stepped into the hallway and they never even noticed it.
"Honestly, among the many ways I''ve seen the 23rd being used, this was the most creative one." Said Perseus, taking a deep breath before turning to the left and pointing his staff at the wall. "But¡"
With its crystal glowing once more and Runes forming several rings around it, light began to gather at the tip of the staff. A sphere of light formed after a few seconds, and with a bright sh the blond youthunched another beam, this one muchrger than the first.
The resulting explosion filled the hallway with dust and smoke, but with the umted pressure finding an exit everything was suddenly blown outside.
"Now you can''t use that trick again." Perseus smirked as he spoke.
The truth was that he wanted nothing more than to get out of that ce. Though it might''ve seemed that he managed to free himself from the ice before it could do much damage to him, the truth was that all of his internal organs, especially his lungs, had taken a massive amount of damage. It would take a little more time for his wounds to regenerate, but until then he would be fighting in a less than favorable condition.
"I think you''re mistaken." The Doctor said as he gazed at the destroyed wall. He then turned to the Olympians and allowed a smile to form on his face, this one being genuine, unlike the one he wore before. "You said it yourself, remember? I''m not supposed to be a part of ourbat force. What I did was just test something I''ve been working on, that''s all."
"... Huh?"
"It doesn''t really matter whether you can counter my trick or not. In the end the ones doing the fighting are going to be these girls."
As if on cue, Venti lunged forward with an enhanced spear in her hands.
"Damn it!!!" Leonidas roared, forcing himself to dash toward the fearsome female warrior, holding his shield up as he tackled her.
Venti jumped into the air trying to avoid a direct sh, but therge Spartan wasn''t about to let her go past him as he quickly tore the round shield from his left arm and threw it at her with enough power to make his already aching body scream in pain. His efforts were in vain as all it took was a quick flip to evade the shield. In the same motion Venti flung one of her spears at the muscr man piercing his exposed right thigh and reminding him that he had forgotten to activate his force field.
"ARGH!!!"
Before he could increase his defence a golden beam pierced Leonidas'' chest. ncing behind him he saw another Valkyrie pointing the barrel of her rifle at him and the next instant a barrage of energy bullets fired only to ssh against an invisible wall and disappear.
"Curses!" Cried Daedalus as he stroked the surface of his orb. "My head hurts like hell!!!"
A shriek escaped him when he noticed the green haired Valkyrie diving down toward him with the tip of her spear heading straight for his head, but her move was blocked by another barrier, this one created by his blondpanion.
"Damn it Daedalus!" Perseus shouted while pointing his staff at the Valkyries. "Just get it done already!!!"
"Okay okay!"
Venti was forced back by aser beam but she immediately moved to attack again. The pain from having his body pierced helped Leonidas recover some of his vigor. The halo above his head returned and he quickly conjured a new sword. At the same time, golden lines began to appear on his skin drawing various shapes all over his body and surrounding it with a different air.
The eighth shockwave shook the pce announcing that only a few seconds were left before thest Titan fell. At the same time the short man seemed to have finished his preparations as rings of Runes began to appear around his orb.
"Finish the bastard! Leonidas!" He yelled. Just then a wave of aura exploded from the small orb and Sam immediately recognized what it was.
"Ichigo!" He called.
The pink haired Valkyrie was already on the move, gripping her pewter staff with both hands and concentrating. Her drones weren''t in the vicinity so there was no need for her to use the tool, however it helped her concentrate allowing her to expand her force field to a much wider area without expanding as much mental power.
"Die you-"
Feeling the effects of the enhancement he received from his ally vanish, Leonidas realized that he had walked into another trap with his own two feet. The anger he felt had masked his thoughts making him forget that the enemy had a Cleanser among them. By the time he realized it, he was face to face with a source of light the size of his head.
Triska had created a Proton Cannon at some point and then expanded it, using her halo to charge it with enough Balder''s Light to burn a continent. Knowing that he couldn''t dodge in time Leonidas tried to teleport, but the Rune didn''t activate making him realize he was inside an anti-teleportation barrier.
"Dam-"
His words were swallowed by the light along with his head. Increasing the output of his Force Field didn''t help much and in just a single second half of his body was erased leaving the other half falling to the floor.
Chapter 282 Dead end.
Chapter 282 Dead end.
The st from Triska''s cannon blew a hole through the ceiling. The light faded after a while and the sounds of the battle raging outside searched the room.
For a moment neither side said anything, but when a stone from the crumbling ceiling fell to the floor Perseus seemed toe back to his senses, holding his staff up and preparing to shout another beam.
"C''mon." Sam said. "You should be much smarter than that."
Perseus looked stressed out terrified. For a moment, it seemed like he was out of options, but then the corners of his mouth curled up.
~[]~
Despite the incredible boost in defense she has received, Zero Five was still having trouble dealing with the crimson queen. Though it was difficult to notice considering its rough surface, the obsidian armor was covered in cuts and scratches with holes in some locations left by parts that had chipped off. All of that was caused by her opponent''s own Obsidian Armament, but Thor''snce wasn''t in a much better shape either. Constantly blocking a de d in a fully powered Force Field has left many marks on it, and with the ponytailed Valkyrie targeting the same spots again and again, the ck weapon looked like it was on its way to being split in half.
The sh continued, each side filling with an attack immediately after parrying. Trenta stood at a distance, her right hand hovering over the hilt of her de as she waited for the right moment. Sitta was exhausted. There wasn''t much she could do at the moment, but having to anticipate the right moment to create a barrier was quite stressful, especially with the Titans'' devastating attacks and the approaching Divergence.
After deflecting Five''s Odachi Thor prepared to thrust the cknce at her, tendrils of red lightning dancing along its shaft. The Valkyrie was ready to evade and follow with an attack of her own, but then something odd happened.
The crimson queen disappeared without a trace. Five was stunned for a fraction of a second but quickly regained herposure before teleporting away, having expected an attack to follow from a different direction.
Appearing a few meters away from her previous location she gripped her sword with both hands intending to catch her opponent mid action, but when she looked ahead the crimson queen was nowhere to be seen.
Confusion struck the Valkyrie for just a moment, but then she whipped her head in the pce''s direction, an ominous feeling gripping her chest.
"Doctor!"
~[]~
Venti was motionless for a second, the arm holding her spear slowly detaching from the rest of her body. She was too focused on the two Olympians that she failed to react in time when the red hair appeared in her field of vision, and before she knew it, the sharp point of thence had pierced a hole in her arm. Sparks of red lightning rushed along the obsidian weapon and into her body. Ice crystals were already forming around the wound.
That was the end of it. Venti had no way out. It would would take only one second for the lightning to spread across her body and nothing she does could prevent that from happening. She couldn''t even teleport away, and encasing herself in her Force Field would do nothing.
She already knew that her end woulde sooner orter. She had seen many of herrades go and now it was her turn. She was about to resign herself to fatepletely, but then she saw a purple de sh right beside her face. The cold embrace of death didn''t reach her and as the realization hit her mind she quickly disappeared before the red lightning could reach her again.
Returning to Sam''s side, the green haired Valkyrie fell to her knees and reached for her right shoulder. Her arm was cut off cleanly, but she was alive. The way she panted for air showed the amount of horror she had experienced, and after a few seconds her consciousness began to slip away, her halo had already dissipated.
"Venti!"
The first one to rush to her side was Ichigo. She wanted to reprimand her for letting go of the Doctor, but she then saw him kneeling by her side, a concerned expression on his face. For some unknown reason, she couldn''t bear the way he looked at her so she turned away from him.
"The ice doesn''t seem to have spread inside." Sam said with a sigh, having used his drone to do a thermal scan. Once he was sure she was safe, he turned his eyes to the green haired Valkyrie. "You did well. You can rest now."
Venti looked up with a start but no words came from her parted lips. She crippled her wounded shoulder and gritted her teeth, the frustration she felt visible to anyone watching.
She could hear the sound of metal hitting metal a short distance away. The sh was fast and brutal, making her doubt whether her contribution made any difference. In the end she failed to carve a path for them despite being chosen to be their vanguard and now she was being asked to sit down and leave everything for someone more capable.
"I¡ I can still¡"
Thest thing she wanted was for her to be considered dead weight, but despite her desire to rejoin the fight, she was unable to stay awake. Holding her in his arms, Sam noticed the tears at the corners of her eyes. He wiped them with the sleeve of hisb coat then turned his sight to the battle happening in front of him.
Thor had appeared out of nowhere and attacked Venti who was trying to take down Perseus and the short man, then someone else teleported in and shed her arm an instant before the freezing red lightning reached her shoulder.
The situation confused Sam quite a bit and his expression showed that. The blond youth standing at a distance noticed it and a wicked grin spread across his face.
"What''s this?" Perseus said, tapping the floor with his staff and straightening his back. "I see that you''re confused, Dr. Sanderson. Did you not ount for this to happen?"
Thor kicked the obsidian armor sending it flying before retreating a few meters. Fivended in front of Sam and the others while the crimson queen took a position before the two Olympians.
"Doctor, you have Lachesis and her Artifact on your side, correct?" The blond youth went on. "Did our battle turn out differently in the future you saw? Or could it be¡" letting his smirk spread further, he added in a mocking tone. "Did you not anticipate the Nephilim queen to join?"
Perseus had a good understanding of how the Needle works and so he tried to find ways to work around it. The power to see the possible futures was frightening, however it wasn''t as useful as one might think.
For it to be used to its full potential several conditions have to be met first, and even then the user still can''t control what Path they would end up in.
Since she went to fight her sister, Lachesis had no way of witnessing what was going to happen inside the pce. Even if she were to learn about itter on she could only do so if her allies won the battle.
In conclusion, the only futures the Doctor knew about were those where he was guaranteed to win. If something unexpected were to happen then it would mean they were on a Path the Japanese doll didn''t see, a path that would end in her and her allies'' defeat.
Sam kept his silence. The Olympian was right; there was nothing about Thor intruding on their battle in the Paths where he reports the events to Nino so she could tell his past self. Most of the time, the fight would end swiftly only for Perseus to blow up the portal room. That part has been taken care of, but other than that they had nothing prepared for this situation.
''Calm down.'' He thought. ''There is still a chance that this is a path Nino didn''t see¡''
This wasn''t the first time the future turned out to be different from what they predicted and Sam knew it wouldn''t be thest. He already made a point of taking everything the Needle shows them with a grain of salt, only using the information when making their ns and not expecting things to turn out as foretold. Whether the Path they were on was a dead end or not, has yet to be decided. Sam wasn''t about to give up just yet, not that he ever had that choice. He would still keep fighting even if he knew that what awaited them was a dead end.
Five was already there while Sitta and Trenta arrived soon after.
"Triska." He spoke, turning to the gunner standing behind him. "Take Venti back to the ship. Have Mimir put her in an Eir until everything is over."
"... Understood."
Putting away her weapon, Triska took the injured Valkyrie into her arms and teleported away. Once they were gone, Sam stood up and looked at his Valkyries one by one, then at their enemies. His eyes stopped on the crimson haired queen, and as the silent tension continued to rise, he summoned his Runes and created his halo once more.
"Alright then." He said, taking a deep breath. "Let''s get this done with."
Chapter 283 Unforgivable.
Chapter 283 Unforgivable.
A violent tremor traveled through the battlefield, however it was unlike anything caused by the Titans'' shockwaves. A window in the corner of his field of vision showed the footage captured by one of the drones he left outside. It showed thest moments of thest Titan as it crumbled down, destroyed by what looks like a gigantic humanoid robot made bybining multiple smaller ones. It was like a scene from a Power Rangers show, although with much better visual effects.
Switching the feed, Sam checked the state of the Primordial, his eyes narrowing the next moment. The living horror was mostly gone, shrunken to less than half of its original size with only two of its eyes left. Most of its tentacles were gone and what remained of its body was quickly turning into particles of light as it got absorbed into the Aether orb.
Above the pce, the small white orb from before has swelled in size. Seven different rings of Runes surrounded it, created by seven Olympians who didn''t seem to be having a particrly good time as shown by their pained expressions.
With the threat of the Titans now gone, only thirty seconds were left before the Primordial was fully absorbed. Once that happens, the battle would enter its final phase.
Sam returned his attention to the problem in front of him. Thor appeared out of nowhere and now stood in their way, defending Perseus and hisrade and preventing him and the Valkyries from reaching the portal room.
There was nothing in the Paths Nino had observed that indicated the Nephilim queen''s intervention on his side of the battle and that meant one of two things; the first is that they were on a Path to failure. The second is that they were on a newly created Path, one that didn''t exist before.
Sam could only sigh at how disappointing future sight turned out to be. Since it allows the user to see all potential oues of their actions, one would think it''s guaranteed to lead them to victory, but that couldn''t be further from the truth.
In the end the future didn''t depend on the actions of one person. No matter how much the user tries, the actions of other people would still influence the Path they end up on.
In a battle that could mean the end of one side or the other, the oue is decided by the actions of both. Seeing the futures where you win means very little when losing prevents you from seeing anything at all.
''Now, how am I going to handle this¡?''
There was no need for him to do anything, really. Five would take on the Nephilim queen while Trenta deals with the two Olympians. With Sitta there as well, Three now has the freedom to move without having to worry about his safety.
Thor would be a great asset if they could free her from the mind control, but that was easier said than done, and time was running out.
After giving the situation some thought, he heaved a sigh and stepped forward. "Sitta, put an anti-teleportation barrier around the entire hallway." He said as he passed the ginger haired Valkyrie.
"Doctor!?" Zero Three called for him, confused by how he was walking to the front of the formation.
"Keep calm. Everything will be fine."
Those words were directed more at him than they were at the young Valkyrie. He didn''t know if what he was about to do would have any positive effects, but something told him he should try it at the very least.
Five nced beside her, surprised to see the man in ab coat standing there. Her lips parted as she was about to say something to him, but the hand he held up told her to remain silent.
Sam looked ahead at the woman dressed in red. The upper half of her face was covered with what looked like a ck party mask, which prevented him from seeing her eyes.
"Despite the current circumstances, I want to say I am happy to finally have the chance to meet you, Lady Thor." There was no response from the crimson haired queen, but Sam continued nheless. "I have been counting down the days until we could sit at the same table and talk, but unfortunately it seems some uninvited guests havee between us."
Understanding what he was trying to achieve, Perseus'' smile turned to a scowl.
"Thor! Annihte them!!!"
Without a change in her expression, the Nephilim queen lunged forward, her form fading for an instant before she appeared in front of Sam preparing to thrust hernce at him.
Five parried the attack without dy and the fighting resumed.
Despite being the target of her first attack, Sam''s trust in his subordinates allowed him to stand his ground without flinching. His emotions were no longer restrained, and the insurmountable fear and stress threatened to turn his thoughts into a mess, however he remained calm and kept his eyes on the Nephilim queen, trying to reach her with his words.
"Lady Thor! It pains me greatly to see you standing on the enemy''s side!"
Red lightning exploded and a translucent wall appeared in front of him. The storm raged for only a few seconds, but in that short time the hallway became a cavern filled with sharp icy crystals. Sam raised his hand ordering Zero Three to take down the barrier she erected in front of him, but the moment she did a yellow beam passed by his face.
On the other side Perseus clicked his tongue. He intended to blow the Doctor''s head but his attack missed.
"Doctor, this is too dangerous!" Three warned. "Please retreat behind me!"
Her words fell on deaf ears as the man kept his eyes on the two fighting in front of him. They were evenly matched, but Thor was fighting to kill while Five was trying to block her movements.
Looking at the numbers alone, with Five Valkyries against one Nephilim, it might seem like their chances of winning were quite high. But this was the Nephilim queen they were fighting. She was the pinnacle of her kind, the oldest and most powerful among Freyja''s Children with Runes inessible to anyone beside her.
For a moment Sam couldn''t stop himself from wondering how it was possible for lightning to produce ice but he quickly shook the thought out of his head. He would have all the time in the world to study itter on but now he needed to focus on the task in front of him.
"I saw a future for us together,dy Thor." He went on. "I believed that we would work side by side to reach our goal, that our bond would grow stronger with time, but here you are siding with the enemy, answering to the whims of another man!"
The Obsidiannce got deflected by a strike from Zero Five, but the counter that should''ve followed didn''te fast enough. For a moment there the queen''s movements had halted. Five didn''t hesitate to take advantage of the opening but a streak of red lightning came in her way leaving behind a long spike of red ice that blocked her purple de.
"Just kill them al-"
Perseus shouted angrily but the words got caught in his mouth. Trenta had appeared right in front of him at some point, her de slowly sliding back into its sheath. With a click, her I Am The Storm activated and countless white lines formed around the Olympian. A momentter the barrier protecting him shattered and the Valkyrie moved to to this head.
"Lady Thor, if you hear my voice then please answer!" Sam''s voice grew more desperate as he watched the crimson queen turn her back to him, ignoring her opponent to go save the Olympian. "Do you not wish to be my ally!!?"
Seeing the crimson queen rushing to his aid, Perseus allowed a smirk to form on his mouth. A simple barrier wasn''t going to save him from the de targeting his neck, but it would buy him the fraction of a second he needed for his puppet to arrive.
Trenta''s de bounced off the invisible wall but that did little to slow her down. Unfortunately, Thor was already behind her, the cknce in her hand raised high in the air.
"Lady Thor!!!"
Sam''s voice resounded through the ruined hallway, followed by the sound of shattering ss.
To make sure they don''t revolt against him like the Nephilim, Odin made sure to put mental restraints on the Valkyries. Those restraints ensured that the girls wouldn''t go against the words of their superiors, but they also allowed them to fight efficiently without experiencing the motions that would normallye from standing in the face of death. Unfortunately, those restraints weren''t perfect. All it took was one strong emotion to win them back their freedom. Because of that, the old man had to ensure none of them experienced that strong emotion, that''s why he went to incredible lengths to prevent any man from influencing them.
Perseus was silent, his eyes torn apart from the shock. He looked down at himself and saw arge spike protruding from his stomach. His gaze moved up and fell on the face of his assant. Her previously expressionless face was now twisted with anger and the ck mask covering its upper half had multiple cracks running through it.
He didn''t understand what was happening or why it happened. The device should''ve kept her bound to his will, it made no sense for her to be attacking him when his orders were for her to kill his enemies and keep him safe.
''Impossible¡'' he thought, feeling the cold embrace of death on his skin. ''With just¡ a few words¡''
Unfortunately for Perseus, the Nephilim he chose to protect him was tormented by a devious illness. That illness had caused her tremendous stress just a few days ago. Her concern was a single man and the impression he had of her, and the thought of being hated by him caused her nothing but pain.
The illness influenced her thoughts, and before she knew it her only desire became winning the approval of that man.
That same man traveled dimensions and came all the way to see her, but instead of weing him she took her weapon and attacked him and his allies.
"Un¡ unforgivable¡" the word escaped her lips and her mask crumbled, half of it falling to reveal the wrathful eyes hidden behind. "How¡ dare you¡"
With the dam blocking them breaking, the emotions she held in flooded outside and manifested in a single bolt. Light filled the hallway rising toward the sky in the form of a red pir. Perseus screamed as his flesh was eaten by a fire so cold it burned.
His remaining ally took his orb and tried to protect himself, but the barrier he conjured broke instantly leaving him to be swallowed by the light as well.
Sam held up his arm to shield his eyes from the light. It was nothing but a reflex, a remnant of his human instincts. He waited until the light dimmed before looking ahead.
Arge pir of crimson ice shot from the floor all the way to the ceiling, piercing a hole through it and extending beyond its limits. At its base, crystal formations spread out like the roots of a tree, following a pattern drawn by the overflowing energy summoned by the woman holding it by her gaze. Remaining silent for a few seconds, she heaved a sigh and turned to face the crowd watching her from a distance. The mask that covered her face was now gone and her scarlet eyes moved around, eventually stopping on a single man dressed in a whiteb coat.
Though she felt an indescribable sensation in her chest, she fought to keep her expression from changing, meeting the man''s gaze and inhaling deeply before she spoke.
"Your voice has reached me, Doctor Sam Sanderson." She said in a steady voice. "I, too, wish to be your ally."
Chapter 284 Her Majesty.
Chapter 284 Her Majesty.
"Protect the ce against all intruders."
Thor didn''t need anyone to order that from her. As the queen of her people, it was her duty to protect their home and so she took her weapon and stood guard, keeping anyone from entering and crushing anything that tried.
Her mind was set on that one task and she couldn''t think of anything else. It felt strange at times, but that feeling didn''tst for long, leaving her incapable of asking what she was protecting the pce from and why none of her people came to talk to her for days on end.
She forgot entirely about the peace conference and the invasion that happened the day before it. Her only concern was to protect the pce and so she ignored anything that didn''t have to do with her task.
"Despite the current circumstances, I want to say I am happy to finally have the chance to meet you, Lady Thor. I have been counting down the days until we could sit at the same table and talk, but unfortunately it seems some uninvited guests havee between us."
While fighting one of the intruders, she heard a voice call her name. It was quite deep, unlike what she came to know from her brethren. It should''ve been her first time hearing it, but a part of her was sure she knew about it from somewhere else.
"Thor! Annihte them!!!"
No matter. Whoever they were, the fact that they intruded on the pce didn''t change. Her duty was to kill them and so she was going to do just that.
Her first target was the stranger in white. She didn''t understand why, but something was telling her to target him first. Her attack failed when another intruder got in her way, but havinge close enough to get a good look at them something snapped in her mind.
"Lady Thor! It pains me greatly to see you standing on the enemy''s side!"
''Enemy? What enemy?'' She thought, a bolt of lightning shooting out of her hand. ''You are the intruders... You are the enemy¡''
Once again she felt that the voice was familiar, and having seen the face of its owner that feeling only grew stronger.
"I saw a future for us together,dy Thor." The intruder went on. "I believed that we would work side by side to reach our goal, that our bond would grow stronger with time, but here you are siding with the enemy, answering to the whims of another man!"
Once again she felt something breaking, and as if it was a gate that kept something hidden a storm of emotions suddenly broke out and began raging inside her chest. She felt incredible happiness the source of which she didn''t understand, but then came unbearable sadness and unstoppable anger.
The restraints holding her mind kept shattering one after the other and before long her thoughts became clear enough to understand her current situation.
"Just kill them al-"
A sharp pain assaulted her head urging her to follow thatmand, however she refused to do so resisting the suggestion and freeing herself from the mind control. The moment she did so, she was left with nothing but anger and contempt making her next course of action very clear.
"Lady Thor, if you hear my voice then please answer!" For a moment Thor considered stopping and saying something in return, but she decided it could wait forter and went on to kill the one who dared to make things worse for her more than they already were. "Do you not wish to be my ally!!?"
The question didn''t register in her mind at first; she was still too busy unloading all of her anger on the invader who took over her mind. Once all of her anger had been unleashed and she finally began to calm down, her thoughts went back to what the man said and another conflict ignited a fire in her chest.
She wanted to run away, embarrassed that her carelessness had led to her ruining the first impression she wanted to make. Never in her life did she think their first meeting would end up the way it did, but it was toote now and there was nothing she could do to mend the big mess she caused all by herself.
After some thought, Thor did her best to convince herself that everything was fine. The circumstances might''ve been unfortunate, but she still has a chance to improve things.
Taking a deep breath, she hid all of her emotions behind an expressionless mask and turned around to face the man in ab coat. Their eyes met and she felt the urge to smile, but she quickly stopped herself and spoke the words she had practiced for many nights in preparation for the day they would finally meet.
"Your voice has reached me, Doctor Sam Sanderson." She said, an indescribable sense of joy filling her chest. "I, too, wish to be your ally."
~[]~
Sam wasn''t entirely sure that his n would seed, but he went ahead and did it anyways.
Mimir wasn''t very subtle in her attempts to influence the image he had of the crimson haired queen. She kept mentioning stuff about her randomly during their meetings, and she sent him quite a few photos and videos of her along with the recordings he asked for.
It would''ve been confusing if that was all of it, but she went as far as to ask him if wanted to do the deed with the crimson queen, and when he tried flirting with her she told him that her Highness might be interested.
Because of that, Sam concluded that Thor fell for him somehow and that her green haired consultant was trying to y cupid between the two of them.
Though it surprised him that the crimson queen felt that way despite never meeting him before, he decided to keep it in mind just in case he found himself facing her while she was still under the enemy''s control.
Love was a feeling strong enough to break the restraints ced on the Valkyries and the Nephilim weren''t that much different. If the crimson queen really has feelings for him then it should be possible for him to free her from the mind control. It was a gamble, but in the end it worked out just fine.
"Pardon me, Doctor Sanderson." Thor spoke. "My memory is still a bit fuzzy. May I ask what brought you here?"
She didn''t need to think too much to understand the situation. She was captured by the unknown enemy that invaded their world and was robbed of her free will for a while. The news reached the Doctor so he quickly came to her rescue.
Of course, things were a lot moreplicated than that, but the idea that he rushed to her aid the moment he heard of what happened was one she couldn''t resist. If it was anyone else she doubted it would''ve made her feel so much joy.
"Your majesty¡" Sam spoke, letting a smile firm on his face. "I''m d to finally have you back."
His response shot an arrow straight through the queen''s chest and she couldn''t help averting her gaze.
"... Are you kidding me?" Zero Three said in a low voice, her eyes wide with shock. She could see the crimson haired Nephilim blushing and that confirmed what she had suspected for some time.
A pained howl rolled over the battlefield shattering the mellow atmosphere in the hallway and reminding them that the fighting wasn''t yet over. Sam''s expression quickly changed, his eyes on the floating window disying what was happening outside. What they heard was the Primordial''s final cry. The alien abomination waspletely absorbed and the Ritual has already entered its final phase.
"Your majesty." Sam turned to the crimson queen with a stern expression. "I will exin everythingter, but we need to open a gate to our world."
Thor could only stare back at him, still confused, but soon enough she gave in and turned in the direction of the portal room.
"Understood." She said. "Follow me."
At that moment, the Nephilim queen didn''t even stop to consider the repercussions of her actions. Her mind was still a bit messy after being freed and that affected her judgement quite a bit. That said, granting his request brought her nothing but joy. She didn''t see any problem with opening the portal to his world, after all they were now allies, and by showing her willingness to cooperate she might even change the impression he had of her. She had no reason to refuse.
"Hm?"
As they passed the ice pir the crimson queen had created, Trenta suddenly came to a stop.
"Say, Doctor¡" she said, prompting the others to stop as well. "Cold lightning isn''t something that can vaporize someone, right?"
It took a moment for him to understand what was happening, but when he did his gaze quickly shifted to the pir. With how thick it was seeing what''s inside it wasn''t an easy task, but a quick scan using the drone''s sensors revealed that there was no nothing but ice.
"He''s gone¡" Sam said, his eyes wide with disbelief.
Chapter 285 Once and for all.
Chapter 285 Once and for all.
"Damn¡ that tramp¡"
Shards of red ice fell to the floor, taking with them a bit of skin each time. The cold had taken away his sense of pain, which was a good thing as it allowed him to keep walking despite the hole in his abdomen.
"Haha¡"
It was a miracle, truly. If he had made a mistake while timing it his death would''ve been sealed, but in the end he somehow managed. That said, his life was far from being saved.
"Damn¡ you¡ this hurts¡" Perseus cursed. "You''re¡ going to¡ pay for this¡ I will¡ definitely¡"
He was aware that his opponents had jammed the signal around the portal room to prevent him from blowing it up. That made him wish he had attached a timer to the bomb just in case, but he knew Lachesis would''ve warned them if were to do that leading to their actions beingpletely different as they rushed to defuse the bomb.
"Just you¡ wait¡" he said, tapping on the screen of some terminal. "I won''t¡ I won''t let you¡ win this¡"
The ce he teleported to was quite far from where he was a minute ago. Currently he was on the bridge of a ship from the fleet led by Atropos. He had crawled his way to the Gate control and was in the process of opening a portal to his original world. Once he has done that, it wouldn''t take long for reinforcements to arrive.
He didn''t have a particr disdain for cold, but after being encased in ice twice in such a short time, he wished to never have to deal with cold weather. He felt himself slipping between the dream and the waking world, his sluggish thoughts demanding he give himself some time to rest. He was using every bit of mental power he had left to enter the activation sequence for the portal. Maybe because of that he never questioned the silence in what should''ve been their center ofmand, nor did he notice the bloodied corpses scattered all around.
He was done entering the activation sequence and was about to hit the final key, but when he reached for it he noticed that something was missing.
Or to be more specific, his right hand was gone.
By the time his mind registered the bloodied stump, his body convulsed at the sensation of a sharp object piercing his back.
His eyes moved down catching sight of the lustrous de, still spotlessly clean despite cutting through his innards. He then strained his Neck and turned to look behind him, and at that moment it was as if the cold hindering his thoughts waspletely gone.
"He¡phaestus¡"
The de twisted and the pain flooded Perseus'' nerves. The light slowly faded from his eyes, and after a brief moment of silence, his arms dropped to his side and his head hung lifeless before the rest of his body fell to the floor.
Behind him was a man, a tall one with a muscr body and broad shoulders. His skin was a lustrous brown, covered in symbols carved into his skin along with some tattoos. His head was shaved clean, but the beard on his face was long enough to be turned into braids. The tall man had a cross shaped scar on his face, one of its ends passing right over his left eye. A clear ss orb rested inside the socket, several rings of Runes intertwined at its center.
"Is this all of it?" He said, turning to the entrance behind him.
"It''ll do." A feminine voice replied, followed by the sharp clicking sound of high heels striking the floor with each step.
"Zeus won''t like this, you know." Hephaestus replied, his eyes narrowing.
"Only if he learns the truth."
Stepping into the light cast by the terminal, a young smiled at the tall man. Her raven hair was cut into a short bob and she wore a pair of sses with a red frame. She was a bit on the short side with curves in all the right ces, whichplimented her Asian features.
"I don''t really get it." Hephaestus spoke. "You guided us here yourself, right? Was this your n all along?"
"Having four Keys is a bit too much, don''t you think?" Said the young woman. "Being so far ahead isn''t fair. It won''t be apetition if no one else gets to participate."
"And here I thought you had a change of heart." The man sighed. "Don''t you care at all about your sister?"
"Not one but. In fact, I''m quite angry. She gets to be with the man I love while I''m stuck with the disloyal exbel. Just letting her live is more than enough."
Hephaestus gazed at her for some time then turned away. As he returned his de to its sheath, he couldn''t help but think of how the name Loki fitted the girl perfectly. She was a trickster, one who could pull the wool over the eyes of anyone who didn''t know her true nature. Though most knew she had something nned when she led them to this world, most didn''t have the smallest clue as to what it was. Even Hephaestus was unaware of her goals despite agreeing to provide her with support.
He didn''t trust her, of course, but the things they had inmon were enough for him to y along with her game.
"What about the Key." He asked.
"We will leave it with Doctor for now." Loki responded. "No need to keep something like that around when we''re pretending to bete to the race."
Turning to the big screen at the front of the room, the Asian girl watched in silence as the white orb above the pce contorted, shrinking in size inside the cage of runes. Light shed and the image distorted, followed by a slight tremor that shook the ship in its entirety.
"Now, what are you going to do-" Letting a small smile y on her lips, Loki let her thoughts wander back to the man she longed for. "Doctor~?"
~[]~
Finding no trace of the blond youth, Sam and his Valkyries went on high alert. Their first thought was that he would spring out of nowhere to strike at them, but for all they know he could''ve made a run for it so, with no time to spare, they decided to advance with caution.
The battle was still going outside. The captured Nephilim were freed of the mind control, though their mental state prevented them from joining the battle so they had to retreat.
Now that the Ritual had reached its final phase, the Olympians turned their focus to the battle, but the Nephilim were in the same position so the fighting became more violent and destructive with the effects spreading far and wide.
"So, do you seek like apologizing now?" Apollo spoke in a mocking tone.
He was hovering in the air, a golden halo above his head, the shapes making it far moreplex. He looked down on the destroyed battlefield, his eyes meeting those of a silver haired woman, the intensity of her re showing no willingness to do as she was told.
"Apologize? For what?" Said Mj?lnir, the corners of her mouth curving up. "All I did was say the truth. Were there any lies in what I said?"
Despite having no need for air, her breath was a little rough. Her right arm hung limply at her side and the rest of her body wasn''t in a much better state. She was kneeling on the ground, unable to move from her ce, and knew all too well that her end was near.
"Tche!" Apollo clicked his tongue, his face twisting with anger. After staring at her for a few seconds, the smile returned to his face and he spoke in a delighted tone. "Well, I will take my time training you. No matter how strong you think you are, by the end of it you''ll be begging for it on your own."
At another part of the battlefield, another fight was gradually approaching its end. A young woman stood on arge boulder, surrounded by crumbled remains of the mighty Titans. Her white armor was full of holes and cracks, stained by the distinct red color of freshly spilled blood. In her mouth she held a severed arm, its slender proportions indicating that it belonged to someone not much bigger than her.
CS looked around the ruins for a while before tossing the arm. Spitting the mouthful of blood she almost swallowed, she clicked her tongue and began to yell.
"HEY!!! GET OUT YOU COWARDLY BITCH!!! DON''T YOU DARE RUN AWAY!!!"
She stumped with her feet until the boulder crumbled, and when that happened her anger reached a whole new level, prompting her to summon her Sabertooth and use its gigantic ws to toss the forest of ck stone around.
"As if I would show myself to you, damned beast."
A long distance away, Artemis watched the spectacle from behind arge rock. Her entire body was a mess, covered in wounds and missing one arm and one leg.
She had been careful while hunting her opponent, keeping her distance and hiding after each strike shended. Even so, the grey haired girl proved to her that she wasn''t the only hunter in this battle. Despite all her precautions, Artemis still found herself in such a sorry state. It would be a massive blow to her pride, but even she knew when to give up. Her only choice was to retreat for the time being, heal her wounds and make better preparations, only then would she be ready to face that beast once again.
"Hm?"
Her attention was suddenly drawn to the giant pce at the center of the battlefield, specifically the Aether orb right above it. Even from a distance, the huntress still felt it pulsating with power. A momentter a wave of white light exploded from it, washing over the entire battlefield blinding everything for a few seconds.
Once the light subdued, Artemis opened her eyes and turned to the pce once again, but what she saw caused a deep frown appearing on her face.
"What are you doing, Atropos?"
The white light was the signal that announced the end of the ritual and the creation of a new Key. Normally this should''ve been a cause for celebration, but with the enemy continuing their assault there was no time for something of that nature. She didn''t want to admit it, but their side was on its way to losing this battle. The best option they had was to secure the Key and retreat back to their world, or at the very least call reinforcements now that they had no reason to block inter-dimensional travel.
Either option was viable, but both depended on the fact that they had the Key in their possession. Securing it should''ve been their first priority, but the one in charge of this mission didn''t seem to have the same idea.
Above Odin''s pce, a giant blue cube formed in a matter of seconds. Anyone who caught sight of it knew it was a boundary no one could enter, a space separated from the rest of the world meant to iste its inside from the outside.
The seven Olympians who worked on the final phase of the Ritual had lost their lives, leaving only two individuals inside the giant cube, each facing the other with a crimson weapon in hand.
"Well, I guess it''s about time we finish this." Atropos said with a smile.
Nino didn''t respond, staring back at her sister with a somber expression. The battle was nearing its end and she had yet to get her answer, but it seemed that, despite having achieved her goal, the raven haired Olympian had no intention of leaving without taking her life first.
The Japanese doll lingered for a moment, fastening her grip on the Needle and looking into her opponent''s eyes.
"If you aren''t going to tell me how I died then I have no choice." She said. "But before that, I still have one more question¡"
"Hm?" Atropos tilted her head slightly, still smiling. "You don''t know when to give up, do you?"
Nino didn''t respond, keeping her silence as if to convey how serious she was. After a few seconds, she finally seemed to brace herself, and with every bit of courage she had, her lips parted and the words came out.
"Do you hate me?"
Atropos was stunned for a moment, her expression betraying bewilderment. Her smile returned the next second, and without hesitation, she gave her answer in a clear voice.
"Of course."
Feeling a slight pain in her chest, Nino closed her eyes. She took a deep breath and waited. Once she got her emotions under control, she gazed at her opponent and prepared herself.
"I see." She said. "Then let''s end this. Once and for all."
Chapter 286 Traitor.
Chapter 286 Traitor.
Trapped inside Atropos'' Limited Rift, Nino was left with only her Yari.
The blue box was practically a minuscule pocket dimension isted from the rest of existence. It blocked ess to every external dimension that''s required for the use of several runes, including the 23rd dimension from which they draw the Nameless Element and the 45th which is the source of Balder''s Light.
"Great, don''t you think?" Atropos said, raising her sword to shoulder level as she took a stance. "Now no one can interrupt us, and you can''t use your little tricks. It will be a fair duel just like back in the day."
Nino was in no mood for talk, having already determined herself. One strike was all her sister needed to finish the fight. She, on the other hand, would have to do a lot more.
Nino was aware that she was being underestimated. Despite everything she said, Atropos was going easy on her. If she wanted to kill her she would''ve done it already, but just because she didn''t it doesn''t mean she won''t.
''lier¡'' Nino thought, feeling a weak tingle in her eyes. ''You have always been like this¡''
Without any signal given, the two sisters moved at the same time. Their speed bordered on teleported causing their figures to turn into a blur, and once they met in the middle their sh caused a shower of sparks to explode.
"Clotho believed in you." Nino said, her voice tinged with anger. "I believed in you!!!"
She thrust her spear only to have it parried. Atropos moved in for a sh, but her Scissors were blocked and redirected. The long de of the Yari came at her from behind but a blue panel appeared in its way, taking on the sh without a mark left behind on its surface.
"You knew me so well, didn''t you?" Atropos spoke, her voice still as calm. "Are you telling me you didn''t see iting?"
Dispelling the panel, the Olympian spun around and swung her de with everything she got, pushing against the spear her sister raised to block.
"I didn''t!" Nino replied, throwing a kick that missed.
She didn''t waste a moment and followed after her opponent, thrusting her weapon while Atropos easily parried or blocked.
"You''re getting emotional." She said.
"SHUT UP!" The Valkyrie shouted.
The two continued swinging their weapons, but not a single blownded. In the confines of Atropos''ability, time itself seemed to have halted. Nino kept getting angrier by the second m and her attacks became more daring. That only served to irritate her, confirming that her sister was purposefully trying to not kill her. She never took any of the openings she could''ve used to finish her off, and her attacks felt light at times.
"Why!?" The Valkyrie asked, tears starting to gather in her eyes. "Why did you have to betray us?"
One of her thrusts got through and the de grazed Atropos'' arm. Seeing the drop of blood, Nino''s mind went nk for a fraction of a second, and the next thing she felt was a heavy blow to her left side and her body bending before she went flying toward the wall.
Coming back to her senses, Nino teleported and tried to regain her bnce. Atropos appeared right behind her, but when she raised her spear to block the blow felt much heavier sending her flying once more.
"Why did I have to betray you?" The Olympian spoke. "You speak as if I did anything wrong."
Their weapons shed once more, but Nino somehow managed to hold her ground this time. She noticed that Atropos no longer had the same expression as before. Her smile was gone and she was showing her anger both in her eyes and the force behind her blows. It was exactly why Nino wanted, however a part of her faltered in front of that gaze.
"You keep talking and bbering and you don''t even remember what you did!" Pushing her away, Atropos turned her sword around and swung it down, striding Nino''s shoulder with the blunt back. "You only ever cared about what YOU want. You never stopped to consider how it might affect those around you!"
With a kick to the stomach she sent the Valkyrie flying once more. Following after her, she continued to deliver one strike after the other, using the back of her sword to ensure the deadly aspect of her artifact didn''t end things before she decided to do so.
"I offered you a way out!" The Olympian went on. "All you had to do was shut your mouth and follow orders, but you had to im the moral high ground and pretend to be the savior of all!"
Nino gritted her teeth as she struggled to keep up. She tried to increase the output of her force field, but the strikes from the Scissors seemed to pass right through.
"You keep talking about how I betrayed you, but aren''t you the ones who chose betrayal?"
"Wha-"
Before she could say anything, the Valkyrie took another strike.
"You two were the ones who left! You were the traitors who chose other worlds instead of your people, your own sister!!!"
Little by little, the rage burning inside the elder sister made it to the surface and a ck haze began to gather around her Atropos continued her relentless attacks, no longer holding back her punches. Seeing the ck haze, Nino panicked. If she didn''t finish things before the Olympian summoned her Obsidian Armament, her loss would be guaranteed.
Nevertheless, Atropos didn''t give her any openings at all. Whenever she tried to catch her breath, the blunt back of the crimson de would knock her back, shattering any thought thoughts of resistance before it formed.
That went off for a while, but then the attacks suddenly stopped. Nino looked up, confused by the sudden change. Atropos was flowing a short distance away, her shoulders rising and falling as she panted for air. Eventually, she took a deep breath and straightened her back. Calmness seemed to return to her at that point and the ck haze gradually faded showing that she had walked back on summoning her strongest equipment.
"Tell me, dear sister." She spoke after a moment of silence. "Do you know what happened to our people after you and Clotho decided to abandon your post?"
"... Huh?"
"As I thought. You don''t even remember those we swore to protect."
A horrifying realization slowly crept onto Nino''s back and she felt her body slowly tremble.
"They were exiled to the Fallen Worlds, forced to fight off the Madness for the rest of their lives."
Nino didn''t understand. Her mind failed to recognize the words, but for some reason she felt like she knew what they meant.
"They had to pay for your own betrayal while you were out there ying God, trying to create a pawn who can fight in your stead."
"That''s¡ that''s not¡" Nino couldn''t find the words to reply.
"That''s exactly what you nned to do." Atropos sighed. "You nned to manipte the fates of those you chose to make them fight a battle you couldn''t hope to win." Pausing for a second, the Olympian woman then added. "Wasn''t that why you never tried to take me with you? There was no need for the sister who only knew how to end lives. After all, if you want to manipte someone''s Thread, cutting it was beside the point, right?"
"N-no¡ I¡ we¡"
"Say, what did you expect to happen if you managed to defeat Zeus?"
"... What?"
"The heroes you nned to raise, did you think they would go back to their normal lives once the battle ends?"
Nino was lost for words.
"Take Zeus out of the equation. How many others do you think are seeking the Keys? Were you going to make sure that everyst one of them never reached their goal."
At that moment, Nino recalled what the Doctor said during the meeting they had with the Nephilim. Not long after he heard about Akasha, his first conclusion was that they needed to reach it first, stating that it''s the only way to guarantee that no one else gets there.
Nino didn''t think it was anything strange back then, but now she began to wonder, how did he n on achieving his goal?
"Do you understand now?" Said Atropos. "It doesn''t matter if it''s Zeus or someone else. No matter how much you try, there will always be an idiot with a godplex who would stop at anything to reach that ce."
All of a sudden, Nino felt like she understood everything. Atropos has always looked far ahead; it was only normal for her to see how things would end. That''s why she chose to support Zeus. Even if he''s a narcissistic psychopath, he was still someone they know. That was much better than a psychopath from apletely different dimension than theirs.
"To be honest, I don''t even know why I''m having this conversation with you." Having regained herposure, Atropos grasped her Scissors with both hands, making sure its de was facing forward this time. "You said it yourself, didn''t you? Lachesis is dead. The one standing here is someone else."
"...!"
"Her thread had reached its end, and yours had its own start. Just because you have some of her memories doesn''t mean you''re the same person."
In the simplest of terms, that was the truth. Lachesis was dead, and though they shared the same Soul, Nino was her own person, a Valkyrie who chose the person she wanted to serve.
"We are soldiers serving two different factions." Atropos said, her eyes narrowed to a sharp re. "You said you wanted to end things once and for all, right? Stop ying around and let''s get it done with."
Chapter 287 Surrender yourself.
Chapter 287 Surrender yourself.
Atropos charged forward, the diamond shaped wings on her back extending as her speed elerated. She raised her Scissors to attack, but Nino remained still, reacting almost a moment toote.
Blocking the attack with the Yari sent her flying. She tried to fight back when Atropos followed after her, but her will to fight was wavering, leaving her barely able to keep up with the flurry of attacks.
Despite her attempts, the gaps in her memories took over her mind. What she remembers from her time as Lachesis was very limited, and with that came the overwhelming fear that she was missing many important things.
She remembered being a scientist, but none of the knowledge she acquired made it to this life. She remembered having a high social standing, but she couldn''t recall what her position was or what it meant to the people around her.
She remembered deciding to escape with Clotho so they could oppose Zeus. From what she could gather they managed to get away, which somehow led to her death.
She escaped with Clotho, while Atropos stayed behind, having decided to serve Zeus. The memory of when the three of them made their decision. When it came up in her mind, Nino felt nothing but anger at her sister for not sticking with them.
Nino ¨CLachesis¨C never stopped to consider if Atropos felt the same.
''Is that how it is?'' she thought. ''Is that how she felt?''
Though most of the details were still missing, Nino understood that Clotho and Lachesis'' leaving must''ve had some grave consequences. She recognized Artemis and Apollo and knew that Lachesis was their equal in every regard, but it took Atropos mentioning it for her to realize that she and her sisters must''ve had people under their leadership as well.
The eldest sister was left on her own, and most likely was made to bear the responsibilities for her sisters'' betrayal. She didn''t remember anything about the Fallen Worlds, but the anger she felt at the idea of someone she knew being sent there told her of how cruel a punishment it must have been.
"What''s wrong?" Asked Atropos. "Don''t tell me you''ve given up already!?"
Sparks scattered as the two crimson weapons shed. Nino has been on the defensive for some time, only blocking and parrying the attacks thrown at her. Even though the Olympian had been going easy on her, she was barely keeping up, something that became more strenuous with the attacks kept getting more intense by the second, making it clear that she wouldn''t be able to hold on for long.
Nevertheless, the Valkyrie couldn''t gather her strength. The realization of what she had done took away her determination and the thought of having to betray her sister once again filled her chest with pain.
She said it herself; Lachesis and Nino were two different people. The two lives had two separate threads drawing a distinct line between them. Lachesis was gone and Nino had no reason to carry her sins, but no matter how she tried, the guilt kept growing, making the weapon in her hand unbearably heavy.
''Doctor¡'' thinking back to her beloved, Nino wished for a way to resolve everything. ''What should I do?''
A faint cracking sound caught the attention of the two sisters, drawing their fight to a stop. They turned their eyes to one of the blue walls separating them from the outside and were startled to see a crack running through its surface.
It was a single white line at first, only a couple of meters in length, but then it spread to double its previous size, and after a few seconds it grew once more splitting the entire wall in half.
Before either of them could ask what was happening, four peculiar objects prated the blue wall, all of them aligning along the white line. Another four jutted in through the crack, and at that moment it suddenly became clear what they were.
"Impossible¡" Atropos said, her face pale with horror.
Limited Rift was an ability that cut a section of space from the rest of the world. The blue barriers that represented the borders of the selected space were indestructible; they weren''t something that could be prated by any means. Atropos was sure of that fact, but now, right in front of her eyes, something was trying to pry the blue box open defying the logic that created it in the first ce.
The strange objects were light purple in color, and looking at their shape and the way they were distributed one could guess they were some gigantic fingers. Gigantic fingers meant gigantic hands, and gigantic hands meant only one thing.
The crack in the blue box continued to spread across the other walls. Each side was being pulled in an opposite direction from the other and the outside world soon came to site, although something was blocking the view and soon enough the sisters realized it was the face of a mechanical giant.
At first, Nino was Juni''s Super Robo, however a closer look showed that it was a muchrger creation, with a design that inspired nothing but terror in the hearts of those gazing up at it.
"Tche!"
Frustrated by the sight, Atropos deactivated her ability. Instead of disappearing, the blue box shattered like an object made entirely out of thin ss, turning into thousands of pieces that kept crumbling until they became dust.
Taking a closer look at the mechanical giant, Nino''s eyes shot open as she realized where she had seen it before.
"Nine!!?"
It wasn''t the first thing she noticed because of the giant covering most of her field of vision. Behind it, a pir of light reached toward the sky, produced by the inter-dimensional portal gate. Nino realized that Sam and the others must''ve seeded in their mission, and as if to confirm that, several cohorts of Valkyries were appearing from the pce, taking off to the sky to join the battle against the Olympians.
[Ah! Nino!] Confirming her guess, a familiar voice resounded from the giant. [What''s taking you so long!? Doctor has been worried, you know!]
Hearing the blond Valkyrie''s bubbly voice shattered the horrifying image the mechanical giant painted. At first Nino thought that it was the same one she used back when almost destroyed the forty sixth base in her attempt to erase the invaders, but upon further inspection she realized it was different. First, instead of blue it was now purple with several parts including the eyes and mouth being lime green, but the color was the least of what changed. The mechanical giant was massive to say the least. It was sorge it made the pce look like a toy house. It surpassed the Titans created by the Primordial, but unlike the stone creations, it seemed to be capable of moving unhindered, as if unaffected by the''s gravity.
"How?" Atropos asked, shaking with rage. "How do you do it!?"
[Hm? Are you talking about the barrier?] Nine spoke. [Doctor told me to break it and so-]
"It can''t be broken!" The Olympian shot back. "It''s impossible!!!"
[Well¡] going silent for a moment, Nine then continued, her voice taking on a blood chilling effect despite her tone remaining the same. [There is a first time for everything.]
Atropos was stunned, unable to find a reply. Her ability did not make her invulnerable, but at the very least she was confident in the absolute defense it provided.
[Don''t worry, I only came to secure this.] The giant moved its hand, reaching toward the glowing white orb. [Doctor''s orders were to secure it.]
The mechanical giant ced its palm under. The next second, light particles began to form, turning into small shapes and rectangles that joined to form parts of aplex machination sealing the orb.
"Who said you''re allowed to take it!!!" Four white discs shot out from behind the raven haired Olympian, about to fly in the purple giant''s direction, but before they could a massive bolt of red lightning came down from the sky swallowing them and their master.
[Ah, it seems your opponent has arrived.]
The lightning gradually dissipated revealing that Atropos had taken refuge inside a smaller box created by her ability. Atropos raised her head, her expression twisted into a deep frown.
A beautiful figure d in a frilly red dress slowly descended from the sky. With hernce resting at her side, Thor gazed at the leader of the invader, her eyes containing restrained anger. Seeing that she was free from the mind control, Atropos couldn''t help clicking her tongue, at the same time willing one of the white discs to form a panel to her left just in time to block another attack.
Five''s purple odachi slid across the blue separation without leaving a mark. Though the attack was ineffective, just seeing the Obsidian Armor she was wearing instilled a hint of fear in Atropos, making her reconsider her situation.
In another part of the battlefield, Apollo gritted his teeth as he strained his arms and legs, trying to break the chains binding them. Miku pointed her rifle at him his head, as did several other Valkyries. Mj?lnir was on the ground behind them looking quite surprised. A smile spread on her face the next second and she allowed herself to be carried by the drones that arrived soon after.
Seeing the approaching reinforcements did little to discourage the Olympian warriors. They appeared to have the upper hand so far, but when the Valkyries arrived, led by none other than Nana, the tides quickly turned and the battle elerated toward its end.
"Surrender yourself, Olympian." Said Thor in amanding tone. "Nothing could sate my anger more than seeing your death, but our ally wishes to keep you alive."
Chapter 288 Sorry.
Chapter 288 Sorry.
"Surrender?" Looking at the enemies surrounding her, Atropos immediately gave her an answer. "Why would I do that?"
She stood confidently, her head held high. She seemed perturbed by Thor''s appearance, however she quickly regained her calm and faced them with a nonchnt gaze, as if the danger they posed was nothing to someone like her.
[Well, I''m taking the thing home.] Nine announced and her mechanical titan began moving. [I don''t want to get in the way.]
"Who said you could go?"
Without a warning, Atropos teleported away. She appeared right in front of the purple titan andunched her white discs, but before they could surround Nine''s creation Five and Thor appeared destroying each of them with ease.
[It is useless, you know.] Came Nine''s voice. [You have seen it yourself. My Chaos Bringer isn''t something your power can stop.]
"Let''s see about that!!!"
Feeling her anger boiling, the Olympian produced twenty white discs at the same time and didn''t stop at that. The crimson queen shot them with her lightning then formed sharp icicles andunched them at the target like spears. Zero Five put away her odachi and took out her bow, shooting multiple arrows at the same time.
Even with both of them joining forces, they were still just barely keeping up with the raven haired Olympian.
Nine ignored the three and continued toward the pir of light. Atropos didn''t stop trying, evading attacks thrown at her while producing more white discs. She was aware that she wouldn''t be able to keep it up, but her choices were limited.
Just as it seemed like the attacks decreased, the Olympian felt a presence behind her and quickly turned around just in time to block the attack.
"A backstab." She said, grinning. "Should''ve seen iting!"
She deflected the Yari''s long de and swung at Nino who teleported away just before the sword could reach her.
"I still don''t understand, but¡" she said after appearing a distance away. "Whether it''s me or Lachesis, I still have to fulfill my mission. The past can wait for another time."
"... I see¡" Atropos replied then grasped the Scissors in both hands. "I, as well, wish to end this first. It''s unfortunate that we had uninvited guests intruding on our reunion."
Nino paused for a moment then rxed her stance, turning her gaze to Five Then Thor.
"Stay out of this, you two." She said, her voice calm and steady. "I don''t need your help."
"... What?" Thor''s eyes narrowed. "Since when did I answer to you?"
"Your majesty, I think we-"
"You aren''t the only ones who have something personal against her." The crimson queen cut off Five saying. "If anyone needs to step out then it''s you."
[I see the situation turned out as I feared.]
Suddenly, Sam''s voice came in and interrupted their serious standoff.
"Doctor?" Nino''s eyes widened.
[You''ve taken your sweet time, Nino.] He said. [I know you''re going through a lot, but¡ I need you to finish things off. Say your goodbyes and¡ let''s go home.]
For words of encouragement his seemed a bit too dry, however Nino still felt the warmth in her chest spread slowly erasing the uncertainties that held her back.
[Your majesty, I know how you must feel but¡ I must ask that you don''t interfere. This is a matter of great significance between those two. It would leave a bad taste if they don''t get to resolve it.]
Thor didn''t respond at first, her sharp gaze resting on the raven haired Olympian. Eventually, though, she let out a sigh and turned away.
"I will go support our troops." She said before teleporting.
Five looked back and forth between the sisters then made her retreat as well. She stayed at a safe distance, though. Just in care the worst came true.
"Doctor." Nino spoke, a warm smile on her face as she held her weapon in both hands taking a battle stance. "Thank you."
[Don''t thank me just yet.] He replied. [I will see you when everything is over.]
Nine''s titan disintegrated into specs of light, painting a strangely mystical scene. The red barrier was gone and the sky regained its natural blue color and the fires in the distance slowly died out as if to signal that the end of the battle was drawing near.
"Seems like I would need to retrieve the Key from your beloved fiance." Said Atropos, ncing in the pce''s direction. "No matter. A little dy is worth finishing things between us."
The two engaged in an intense staring contest, disappearing without a warning before shing with their weapons. Without the blue box blocking her, Nino began forming more spears,unching them like projectiles.
"Aren''t you going to put your barrier?" She asked.
"What''s the point?" Atropos replied. "Even at your full strength, you still can''t keep up with me. You spoke bravely in front of your friends, but the truth is that you know it''s impossible."
More and more white discs appeared only to be shattered by Nino''s spears, but some managed to escape, splitting up and forming links between them, trapping Nino at the center of a blue web.
"Or, what? Do you n on letting yourself get killed?" As soon as thest word left her lips, Atropos activated her World Cleaver, striking with her artifact at the same time.
Nino''s only choice was to teleport, but with the two weapons connected she ended up taking Atropos with her.
"Atropos." Looking into her sister''s eyes, the Valkyrie spoke, her voice showing nothing but sincerity. "Sis, let''s stop this¡ Please¡"
The two bounced off each other and immediately shed once more the next second. This time, however, the smile was gone from Atropos'' face, a slight frown taking its ce.
"Stop? Now? After everything?" She redirected a downward swing, letting the long ded spear slide along her weapon before following with an upward swing. "I thought you wanted to kill me?"
A red spear appeared just in time to stop the crimson sword.
"I still can''t forgive you for standing with Zeus, or for cutting my friends'' threads." Another spear shot from behind the Valkyrie, but her opponent dodged it with ease. "I don''t regret leaving as well, but¡" taking hold of another spear, she swung both in a horizontal sh. "I don''t want things to end like this!"
Gliding backward, Atropos evaded three more spears before lunging forward, following with a much heavier attack that pushed the younger sister back.
"That''s quite the selfish thing to say!" She followed with another swing.
"I know!" Nino met it with the same amount of force.
Sparks scattered with every strike, casting a pale orange glow on the two sisters. Neither of them was giving it their all yet their fight seemed like a merciless fight to the death. Nino was aware of her sister''s lies. She didn''t have proof, but something told her that she didn''t n on leaving this dimension alive, and just thinking about it caused the younger sister to falter.
"You were always stubborn, never changing your mind even once." Said Nino. "I should''ve dragged you along back then, even if it meant cutting off your limbs."
"How scary." Atropos replied.
"The three of us should''ve stuck together, no matter what. Leaving without you was a mistake, we can''t let things go on like this!"
"Again, that''s quite the selfish thing to say!!!" Ignoring the spears shot at her, Atropos increased the output of her force field for the first time and struck with everything she got. "You think I''m stubborn? You were the one who chose death over giving up her ideals!!!"
"Zeus must be defeated!" Nino replied, felling the force of the blow ripple through her body. "We can''t let him him achieve his goal! If a monster like him reaches Akasha, what kind of nightmare would his sick mind create!!!"
"It will be a nightmare no matter who arrives there!!!"
Separating for a brief instant, the two vanished, appearing only to sh before disappearing once again.
On the ground, Sam watched the fight with a grim expression on his face. The captured Nephilim were freed and the Key was in their hands. One could say the battle was already over. All that''s left was for Nino to finish her unresolved matters. Getting closure was something she had a right to and he didn''t want to interfere with that, but every time the sky shes with the light of their sh anxiety swelled in his chest, making him with to stop the two sisters.
''Nino¡''
As the battle went on, the raven haired Olympian and her reincarnated sister forewent the limitations and continued the battle at a speed that was difficult to perceive with the human eye. Neither of them bothered with creating new weapons so they only relied on the artifacts in their hands, enhancing thrm with the light of their Forces Fields and leaving their bodies wide open.
"You think that Doctor of yours will be any different?" Atropos asked. "They all fall in the end. That is the fate of those who seek the power over creation!"
"Wrong! Doctor will never allow for it to happen!" Nino replied, channeling her anger to her spear.
"You don''t even believe that yourself, do you?"
"Doctor is a human, so maybe there is some truth to what you say." The Valkyrie replied. "But I won''t let that happen! I will stay by his side and make sure he never strays from the correct path!"
"That''s quite the im." Said Atropos. "Are you sure you''ll be able to live up to it?"
With a final strike, the two sisters separated, putting some distance between them. Each one mirrored the exhaustion the other felt. Extending the battle wasn''t working in the Olympian''s favor, and though her body didn''t know tiredness, the same didn''t go for the Valkyrie''s mind.
"I¡ I don''t know¡" Nino replied, panting despite having no need for air. "Even with the needle, I still can''t guarantee that the future I choose will be one toe true." Looking down at her Artifact, she pursed her lips and then turned her gaze to her sister. "That''s why I need you by my side. Both you and Clotho."
There was a moment of silence with neither making a move. Though neither of them knew much about the other''s circumstances, they both seemed to reach an understanding. Even if both of them wished for the same thing, reality judged that neither would get to have it. Even so, Nino refused to give up. Not without trying. She might not have all of her memories as Lachesis, but she still knew for sure how much her elder sister meant to her.
"Sis¡" letting her weapon fall to her side, Nino ¨CLachesis¨C reached out with her right hand. "Pleasee with me. Let us find Clotho. Let us return things to how they were¡"
Seeing her younger sister drop her guard, Atropos couldn''t bring herself to keep her stance. She lowered her sword and straightened her back, but she was only doing so to make sure the other party understood that her answer wouldn''t change.
"Lachesis¡" she spoke with a smile, a faint glint in her eyes. Before the next word left her mouth, she suddenly disappeared, arriving right in front of her sister.
Nino didn''t move, wanting to put her trust in someone she had once betrayed. No matter the oue, she promised herself that she would ept it. Whether she epts her offer or takes her life, the Valkyrie resolved herself to never resent her sister, not for the second time.
When she felt a hand on her chest, a hint of pain began to spread from the ce it touched. Nino prepared herself, waiting for the sensation to spread further, but by the time she realized the pain wasn''t physical, her body was already drifting away.
Her eyes met those of Atropos, and for the first time since they met on this world, she saw her smile. Not the fake one she had worn so far. It was a genuine smile, the one she had seen countless times before, back when she was still a child.
Time slowed down. The memories from her time as Lachesis shed before her eyes. For a moment, she remembered everything, but in the next, it was all gone.
Atropos'' lips parted and a single word left her mouth. Nino was sure she heard it, but her mind refused to process it, all of her thoughts halting as she witnessed the green arrow dig a hole through her sister''s chest.
Chapter 289 Not like this.
Chapter 289 Not like this.
The green arrow traced the sky like aser beam. Though it was directed at the raven haired Valkyrie, it pierced the Olympian instead. A mistake that left the archer frozen as her mind refused to ept the reality of what just took ce.
"... At¡ropos¡"
Artemis was in shock, her eyes wide open as she watched the scene. She stood in her ce, still holding her arms up with her bow directed toward the sky.
It was the first time. In the hundreds of years she has lived so far, it was the first time her green arrow missed a target who was her sole focus. Her confidence erased any doubts about it piercing the imposter''s heart, that''s why she never predicted that Atropos would jump in to take the hit for someone wearing her sister''s face.
[Found you.]
The world suddenly turned white as an unbearable pressure fell on the huntress. The mistake she made hampered her senses and caused her to forget the situation she was in, giving the beast she was trying to escape enough time to locate her.
Turning around, Artemis found herself under the gaze of a giant Sabertooth. Despite its mechanical frame and rigid shapes, the huntress saw nothing but a hungry abomination salivating as it red at a helpless prey.
[Don''t you dare run away now.]
~[]~
Up in the sky, strength began to leave Atropos'' body as her halo faded away. Seeing the red wings on her back disappear, Nino came back to her senses and quickly rushed toward the Olympian, a terrible sickness rising from her stomach adding to the pain spreading through her chest.
"Sis!"
Atropos was motionless as she allowed herself to be caught. Her crimson de slipped out of her hand and fell.
"... Why?" Nino asked, her delicate fingers trembling as she felt the blood flowing on her sister''s back. "Why did you¡ why would you¡"
Atropos didn''t respond, her lips curving up as she spewed a mouthful of the crimson liquid. The pain was torturous, but despite it all the only thing on her mind was the gentle embrace.
"You¡ you didn''t see the future, did you?" She finally spoke, forcing the words along with the coughs. "Of course¡ you didn''t. Why would you¡ why would you¡ ask¡ all those stupid question¡ otherwise¡?"
Nino was surprised, but at the same time she knew her sister would figure it out at some point. Indeed, she did not look at the future. More precisely, she didn''t focus on the details.
Her Needle wasn''t an all powerful tool that showed her the right track to victory. She has to look through all the existing Paths one after the other and determine the causes for sess and failure in each one, choosing the Path she wishes to pursue in the process. Doing so requires a lot of time and mental power, which meant the young Valkyrie couldn''t possibly know everything that would happen with the amount of time she had since retrieving her Artifact.
Nino did indeed check the Tapestry of Fate and chose the Path to victory, but she didn''t absorb all the details, only ncing at the most critical Divergences and determining what must be done for the Threads to align with her desired Path. Because of that, she knew nothing of the conversation she had with her sister. She saw nothing, heard nothing and learned nothing.
All she knew was that, at the end of the Path, the final Divergence would determine who among the two of them would end up dead. She knew from the start that one of them would have to go, and because of that, she didn''t dare peek at the conversation they would have, wishing to hear everything from her sister even if it meant leaving her future to chance.
"... Sis¡ I¡" tears flowed out, drowning the words she wanted to say.
Despite her words, the pain Nino felt denied her previous im. No matter how much she tried, her identity as Lachesis refused to be ignored, denying her the rity of being a new person.
"Don''t¡ hah¡ I guess you won''t¡" Atropos chuckled. "It''s okay. This is¡ what I wanted¡ from the start¡ I¡ I''m tired¡ I just¡ want to rest¡"
"... No¡"
With the pain growing stronger by the second, Nino understood that she wasn''t ready. She wasn''t when her first life came to an end, and she wasn''t now that her sister was facing the same fate. No one can be ready for death when it arrives, even more so for those who achieved immortality. Atropos seemed content with how things turned out, but her younger sister refused to ept.
"I''m¡ I''m sorry¡ Lachesis¡" she said. "I¡ wasn''t there for you¡ I¡ I couldn''t protect you¡"
"Stop!" Nino yelled. "Don''t talk! I¡ I won''t let you die! Hold on I will-"
"Don''t¡ bother, Lachesis¡"
"No! Not like this!" Feeling the warmth slowly leave her sister''s body, Nino held her tightly. "I¡ I don''t want to say goodbye! I don''t want things to end like this!"
The emptiness in her memories fueled the pain and increased the suffering. Even with everything that happened between them, Nino ¨CLachesis¨C never stopped loving her sister. And how could she? Though she couldn''t remember most of it, she was sure the three of them had a history together. They might disagree and they might fight. They might even try to kill each other, but the bond between them was so strong even death couldn''t break it.
''No¡'' the Valkyrie thought, trying to organize her mind even as she continued to panic. ''I was lucky toe back as a Valkyrie. I can''t expect the same to happen again¡''
Death wipes the Soul clean of all its memories, it is for that reason that resurrection wasn''t an option. Her case in itself was a miracle and because of that she couldn''t expect the same to happen with someone else. If she wants to save her sister, she has to do it right now, otherwise she would be gone forever and they might never meet again.
"Listen, Lachesis¡" couching another mouthful of blood, Atropos spoke again severing Nino''s line of thought. "Zeus¡ wasn''t¡ who killed you¡ someone¡ someone got to you first and¡ you couldn''t stop them¡ they¡ they wanted to make a Key but¡ you got in the¡ way¡" breaking into another fit of coughs, the Olympian trembled, unable to breathe due to the hole in her chest. Her regeneration ability was working at full capacity trying to fix her damaged organs, but Artemis'' arrow was a special one and the cause it caused wasn''t something that could be mended on the spot. "That''s why¡ I told you not to¡ y the¡ hero¡ there is always some¡ lunatic¡ trying to be¡ god¡"
Nino was frozen, her thoughts halted. The truth behind her death was something guing her mind since she realized who she was, but she couldn''t remember no matter how much she tried. She tried to get an answer from her sister but the Olympian refused to give her one. Nino thought that her reluctance was uncalled for, but now she understood.
Lachesis didn''t die at the hands of Zeus and his followers. Her Artifact was enough of a reason for them toe after her, and she was a traitor who refused to assist their ruler in his quest so if anyone wanted her dead then it would be the mad tyrant and his fanatic followers. But Zeus wasn''t the only madman with a godplex out there in the endless multiverse.
Her desire to stop him would have, without a doubt, extended to anyone seeking to collect the keys, and if she made herself an obstacle in the way of anyone with such ridiculous ambition it was only a matter of time before someone powerful enough would rise up to the challenge.
''The Key¡'' she suddenly realized. ''Zeus isn''t the only one who''lle after it!''
As if to respond to her thoughts, her ears picked up a faint sound through the chaotic mor of the distant battle. It was the sound of ss snapping as cracks slowly spread across its surface, tiny shards falling from it as it crumbled little by little.
The world should''ve been on its way back to normal now that the Primordial had been captured, but the spatial distortions were still there. Not only that but new ones were appearing as well, and from the looks of it, quite a few of them weren''t the kind that linked two points in the same world.
"Ah¡ so it has¡ already¡" Atropos said.
Primordials were ancient beings created from pure Aether. They were the first life form, one that suffered no hunger, no thirst and had no desires, unlike everything that followed, or so it might seem at first.
The Primordials were ancient beings of boundless wisdom and knowledge so it made no sense for them to exist for the sake of existence, and so, all of them were born with the same goal, one that Zeus and many others were inspired to pursue soon after they got a glimpse at the truth.
Reaching Akasha, that is the goal of every Primordial to ever exist. Each of them carried a piece of the truth and thus could serve as a Key, but one Key wasn''t enough and thus they had no choice but to devour each other hoping to inch closer to their goal.
Many across the endless multiverse would stop at nothing to get ahead in this race, but the ones in the lead were always those who have existed since the beginning of creation, and they had no intention of letting a bunch of primitive apes surpass them.
The world began to split and crack, distorting like a mirror that had been smashed again and again. Holes began to form showing beyond them nothing but endless darkness, and from that darkness, countless horrors spilled forth.
Chapter 290 Dimensional collapse.
Chapter 290 Dimensional copse.
"This¡ this can''t be!" Nino said as she watched the distant Dimensional Rifts, her whole body shaking with horror. "We¡ had time¡ I was sure of it!"
Just like how the Aether from the human Souls served as bait to draw the Nephilim world''s Primordial in, the Key itself became a beacon. The high concentration of the fifth element removed the need for the Ritual, an unintended consequence of creating such high grade Artifact which leads to its presence being detected by ancient entities from other ins and dimensions.
The barrier halting inter-dimensional travel was one of the solutions meant to prevent the worst case scenario. Even with it removed as soon as the Ritual ended, a few hours should''ve passed before the first Dimensional Rift appeared giving the Valkyries and Nephilim enough time to iste the Key and escape to the other world, but once again Fate has decided to change its course throwing the ns of those who dared to peek at its Tapestry intoplete chaos.
[NINO!]
The Japanese doll was shaken out of her daze by the Doctor''s voice drawing her attention back to reality. Realizing that the schedule moving forward doesn''t change what she has to do, she quickly turned to the pce and teleported close to the pir of light created by the Bifrost.
"Doctor! Please he-"
Before she could finish her request Sam took her sister''s motionless body andid it down inside a ss pod. Nino didn''t understand what was happening at first, but after observing the strange greenish liquid quickly fill the pod she realized that he had made preparations as if he foresaw everything.
"This doesn''t look good¡" he said with a grimace. "The wound is still spreading. Her regeneration won''t make it in time¡"
Nino''s blood stained hands fell to her side and her face grew pale. She wanted to say something but all she could do was stare at her elder sister, light gradually fading from her eyes.
"Nino!"
Once again she found herself being yanked back to reality alerting her to the fact that she had once again zoned out in such a critical situation. Her fiance had a pained expression as he gazed at her, nting the worst fear into her mind, but his next words subverted her expectations.
"I''ll make sure she survives, you don''t have to worry about that." He said, turning his eyes to the sky where arge ship was gradually approaching the pce. "The problem is that we have to block the Fallen until we finish evacuations. We don''t have a global scale barrier ready yet so we can''t transport the Key as well¡"
The Dimensional Rifts, without a doubt, were connected to one of the many Fallen Worlds out there. Just like humans, not all Primordials were created equal. Some were more powerful than others leading to their influence warping the worlds they involved themselves in. They''re more proactive in their pursuit of Truth and the Madness they spread creates countless horrors that share their thirst for Aether ensuring that death and destruction would follow them to any dimension they set their eyes on.
"Mimir!" Sam spoke into hismunicator. "His long before you get here?"
[Five minutes before wend.] The Nephilim replied. [The problem is transporting the humans.]
"Send word to our forces. Tell them to suppress the fallen until we are done."
[Doctor.] Came Thor''s voice. [What should we do about the other invaders?]
Most of the Olympians have been defeated, but some are still on their feet. The situation has changed for them as well, presenting an opening for them to retreat. Sam doubted that they were foolish enough to try and retrieve the Key in this situation, but there was no telling what might happen.
"If they try to escape then let them." Sam replied after a moment of thought. "Our highest priority is the Fallen."
As if to answer hismand, a second pir of light appeared a short distance away from the pce, this one muchrger than the one created by the Bifrost. He guessed that some of the Olympians had made it back to their ships and opened a portal to their world.
''Nino said there won''t be any reinforcements, but¡''
With the key in their hands, Sam doubted that it would be long before Zeus sent someone to retrieve it.
''Now that the Dimensional Rifts have opened we can''t just take the Key to our world, unless¡''
He nced at Atropos'' motionless body. Her Limited Rift ability could create an isted space separate from the rest of existence, but it had the same problem as normal barrier in that it couldn''t be moved from the spot it was created. Even if that wasn''t the case, she wouldn''t be able to help them while unconscious, not that she would if she wasn''t.
Suddenly, Sam''s eyes widened as he realized something.
"The sword!" He eximed, turning to the Japanese doll. "Her Artifact, where is it!?"
Nino was stunned for a moment before surprise took over her face.
"I¡ I didn''t notice when she dropped it!" Even now she was still having a difficult time organizing her thoughts. Seeing her sister sustain such a grave injury, Nino was too shocked to think about anything else. "I will go get it now!"
"Be caref-"
Sam didn''t get the chance to warn her before she teleported away. As the enemymander, Sam was sure that many had seen Atropos get shot. With so many eyes on her, he doubted that no one noticed the red de fall from her hand, which meant there was a high chance that someone had already gone to retrieve it.
Just like Nino''s Needle, Atropos'' Scissors was an Artifact of insurmountable power. It''s capable of cutting through the forces connecting things, but its most defining ability was the power to sever the Threads of Fate, making it a lethal weapon that could kill with a single strike.
Nino teleported to the spot where she and her sister had theirst exchange then started looking around. It didn''t take long for her to spot the crimson de and she quickly teleported right beside it, reaching out to grab it with her right hand.
Her mind was still a mess after everything that happened. Her sister was shot in front of her eyes. The arrow came from none other than Artemis so she was sure it was meant for her, but Atropos pushed her away and took the blow in her stead. The apology that followed informed her that her previous hunch was correct, and that Atropos was trying to end her own life.
Atropos was tormented by guilt and regret. Her inability to save her sisters, coupled with the evil she had to inact through her servitude to Zeus, made life unbearable leading to her contemting suicide. The opportunity showed itself when she heard of Lachesis'' reincarnation. It was a long shot, but if the two of them really were one and the same then she would finally be able to achieve some peace at the end.
Nino felt sick. Due to her iplete memories, the only emotion she experienced when reuniting with Atropos was rage. With her only recollection being her elder sister''s betrayal, her mind immediately assumed that she was an enemy, something that should''ve appeared illogical from the beginning.
Once again Nino found herself tormented by the gap in her memories. Who knew what else she could be missing and how much of an effect that would have on her actions?
As that thought crossed her mind, he suddenly realized that she had yet to grasp the hills of the crimson sword which was nted into the ground in front of her. It appeared as if time had slowed around and in an instant she understood what was happening, teleporting away before the worst came to be. Appearing a few dozen meters away, Nino first saw the miniature ck hole that swallowed her arm, grabbing her right shoulder as the pain settled in.
Her eyes moved to its source and she couldn''t help gritting her teeth. The question had crossed her mind many times already, but it was only now that she got her answer.
Standing beside the Scissors was a boy with deep dark skin and short curly hair. His eyes contained no light like two pools of boundless darkness. Above his head was a halo showing the variety of Runes incorporated in its formation through theplexity of its shapes.
The boy reached out for the crimson sword and pulled it out without hesitation. His eyes shifted to the Japanese doll but his face remained expressionless.
"d to see that you have survived." He said.
"Karim¡"
Chapter 291 I want to be strong.
Chapter 291 I want to be strong.
"Where¡ did you evene from¡" Nino asked, grabbing her severed right arm with her left.
"Well, I''ve been here." Karim replied. "From the start."
He gazed at the crimson de for a while as the halo over his head halted its movements allowing its Runes to be visible. Some disappeared and new ones took their ce before they resumed spinning and once their shapes blurred the new halo appeared looking a bit different from the previous one.
"I thought I should get this one while I still can." He said.
Four red lines appeared beside him joining to form a small square, the small space it encased began to distort in a haze. ncing at it once, the boy then pushed the Artifact toward it, but what happened didn''t seem to be what he expected as his eyes widened a little.
"Right¡ I guess that''s why she always kept it out¡"
"... I see you learned the runes for Pocket Dimensions." Nino said, letting a smile y on her lips. "Unfortunately for you, that sword cuts right through the entrance. It can''t be stored in such a space."
Though she didn''t recognize it at first, Nino quickly understood that the boy was trying to ce the Artifact in a dimensional storage he created. Nevertheless, Atropos'' Scissors cut down the connection between the outside world and Poket Dimension causing the small square that served as the entrance to disappear.
"Is that so¡" looking at the crimson de, he then let out a sigh. "Guess I have no choice but to carry it around."
"Who said you can have it?" Nino said. She grasped the Needle in her left hand transforming it into a Yari. At the same time red particles began to appear around her gathering to form multiple spears.
"Sorry about your arm." Karim said. "I don''t really want to fight so¡"
"Drop the sword and I might consider letting you go." Nino replied. "You already betrayed us once. I won''t let you get away with it a second time."
"If you think I would do that then you''re an idiot." The boy said. "I already said I don''t really want to fight so¡ make a single move and I''ll teleport away."
Nino gritted her teeth, fastening her grip on the Yari. Despite what she said, fighting with one arm wasn''t something she had a lot of confidence in. The boy also had the ability to create miniature ck holes for some reason. This wasn''t the first time she saw it, but she still found it difficult to believe that he unlocked the Runes that allowed him to use such a powerful ability despite iming to have very little experience.
"Say, you told us that you would join the other side to survive, right?" As she spoke, Nino hoped that someone would notice her situation ande in to assist her. "The Primordial has already been dealt with and we are on the Path to victory, is there really a reason to go with them?"
The boy lingered for a while, studying the Valkyrie with his eyes. A loud explosion roared in the distance catching their attention, but only he shifted his gaze.
The Dimensional Rifts continued to spread. More Fallen poured into the Nephilim world but most looked nothing like the ones they have seen before. Most didn''t even resemble humans, having be abominations monstrosities spawned out of a nightmare. Some were the same size as a human, others were asrge as the Titans. Their forms varied and so were their powers, but one thing they all shared was the crooked crown like halo over their heads, the symbol of the Madness that had infested their minds.
"When I first arrived here, I had to survive against thedy in the red dress." Karim said after a while. "All I had to do was make sure I didn''t get hit. It wasn''t easy, but I managed."
"Hmm. That''s quite impressive¡" Ninomented. Though she hid her reaction, she was actually genuinely surprised. After all the Nephilim queen wasn''t an easy opponent to face. Doing so after learning to use Runes only recently spoke of the amount of talent the boy has.
Though she intended it as praise, the boy didn''t seem too pleased by it. He must''ve suspected that she was stalling for time, however there was no sign of urgency in his expression.
"You''ve won this battle and your enemy is making their retreat. But don''t be mistaken." Turning his eyes to her, he looked into Nino''s eyes and spoke with utmost seriousness. "No matter what you do, you''ll always end up losing this race. As long as you aren''t willing to do what it takes, you''ll always fall behind those who do."
"What are you sa-"
"The Olympians didn''t just ept me, you know?" He cut her saying. "Surviving against thedy in red wasn''t enough to earn my ce so¡ I had to kill one of them to prove my worth. Unlike you they don''t tolerate weakness. They don''t bother with ensuring that the weak survive that''s why they will always be ahead."
"... Karim¡"
"I want to be strong. That''s why I will be going with them." Turning around, the boy added one more thing. "I''m not sure if we''ll ever meet again, but if we do, I won''t spare your life a second time."
Before she could react, Karim disappeared from Nino''s sight. The fact that she couldn''t feel his presence meant that he had teleported farther than her reach, showing that he had no intention of fighting her, heading straight for the portal to the Olympian world without hesitation.
Losing an arm was pulling on her consciousness threatening to make her pass out. Though she feared disappointing Sam now that she failed to retrieve her sister''s artifact, her only choice was to return to the pce.
The surviving Olympians received orders to retreat. With the Valkyries joining the battle the bnce was soon altered putting them in a bad position, but thanks to the Dimensional Rifts they found a chance to flee leaving Freyja''s Children to fight against the Fallen.
Miku made the choice to end Apollo putting a hole in his head as soon as he attempted to escape her chains. CS rampaged for a while after losing sight of Artemis. Without a direct order from Sam she probably would''ve followed after the Olympians just to hunt down the huntress, but thankfully she came back to her senses and went to help the others suppress the Fallen.
Juni, along with Tove and her disciples, contributed the most to the defensive line. Their giant mechs held back thergest of the monstrosities, and though they suffered their share of damage, they still managed to take down quite a few.
Under those circumstances the evacuations had to be elerated. Even as their ship approached the pce, Mimir instructed a number of Nephilim to start moving the human survivors to the portal room. Though the Primordial of their world has been turned into a Key, the Whispers of Madness spilling from the Dimensional Rifts still posed the same danger so a number of Cleansers were positioned around the Bifrost to ensure no one list their minds before crossing.
Tears flowed from Kam''s eyes as she stood in front of the pir of light. She remembered the time Ra spoke of her visions and how the only ones that led to their survival were those that had simr endings. Unfortunately, the old seer wasn''t able to witness those moments, but thanks to her efforts, the people she sought to protect managed to reach a new, much safer world.
Once all of the humans crossed, it was Sam''s turn to go. Unfortunately he was unable to find a solution to his predicament and was forced to transport the Key without the proper precautions. He could only pray that the world doesn''t begin to copse the moment he arrives, and that he would have enough time to set the global scale anti-inter-dimensional travel barrier as well.
Before stepping into the pir of light he had ensured that the Bifrost was destroyed to prevent any Fallen from spilling into his world. To achieve that he left a number of drones behind and instructed the Nephilim and Valkyries who were still fighting to make their retreat. In the end quite a few monstrosities still managed to follow them to the other world, but once the portal closed they were all dealt with easily.
What was supposed to be a short recon mission ended up as anotherrge scale operation. Never in his life did Sam expect things to escte so much so quickly, but once again he has managed somehow.
His first trip to another dimension was quite hectic and despite having returned home he still had many things to take care of.
After everything that had happened, he realized that more goals had been added to his list when he had barely taken a step toward achieving the first. In addition to stopping Loki and rescuing Alice ¨Cboth the original and his beloved¨C he now has to gather Aether Keys and stop any lunatic from reaching Akasha. He also had the Valkyries and Nephilim to worry about so from the looks of it he was going to be busy for quite some time.
Chapter 292 Soul
Chapter 292 Soul
"Anti-inter-dimensional portal barrier?" A man spoke with a raised eyebrow. Hisplexion was quite pale, littered with wrinkles that came from constant stress rather than old age. His hair was a bit disheveled and his clothes were a bit messy showing that he didn''t have the time to dress up properly before making the call.
"Indeed. As the name suggests, it is a barrier that prevents travel from other dimensions into ours. Rest assured, it does not have any harmful effects on humans."
"I¡ would love to believe you but¡ does it have to be red? People are starting to panic."
"Unfortunately, we didn''t have the time to adjust it to a different color. General Sanderson will provide you with the details soon so I ask for your patience."
Though he didn''t seem particrly convinced, the man heaved a long sigh as his shoulders rxed.
"Well, I can already imagine how bad things are if we need something like that." Pausing for a moment he then added. "We will try to get things under control on our side. Please tell General Sanderson that we await his report."
"Understood."
A momentter, the feed cut off leaving Nana''s reflection on the dark scream. The silence lingered for a while until she began yawning and stretching her arm. As a Valkyrie her body didn''t get tired like a normal human, however being forced to deal with the higher-ups of the resistance made her feel a kind of exhaustion unlike what she was used to from nearly a decade of fighting Cmities.
"This is getting way tooplicated¡"
Reaching for the back of her head she took off the thin stick holding her hair together and let it flow over her shoulders. With a long sigh escaping her, she folded her arms over the desk and rested her head on them, but instead of rxing her mind went straight to everything that happened in the past couple days.
Who knew that their peace treaty with the Nephilim would lead to more trouble knocking on their door?
Though she didn''t put too much thought into it, the idea of other dimensions getting involved was always at the back of her mind. After all if the Nephilim originated from a different world then surely there are even more out there.
Nana had yet to get the full picture of what happened since their leaders had yet to do a proper debriefing. She was only told what she needed to handle the resistance and the rest came from the pieces gathered by the team that apanied the Doctor on the mission.
One thing is for sure, the war against the Nephilim and their Cmities was just the start. The Primordials, the Fallen, Akasha, Madness and Truth. Those concepts pointed at an evesting conflict they had no choice but to be a part of, and as if that wasn''t enough, everything that happened with Nino gave them a hint of their true nature, showing that they might have had a different life before bing Valkyries.
"Well, if that''s true then I guess we''ve already died at least once¡"
The idea of memories from a past life resurfacing brought a flood ofplicated emotions to her heart. It was only recently that they were freed from Odin''s control, allowing them to experience feelings and thoughts that were previously sealed. Some had yet to adjust to the change even after months had already passed. If they were forced to deal with a past life on top of that then it wouldn''t be strange for some of them to break.
"Without Freyja we can''t increase our numbers so¡"
Every Valkyrie counts so they couldn''t just have them breaking down now.
"I hope Doctor figures out how to handle this¡"
~[]~
"This is¡ unbelievable¡" Wolf muttered, his eyes wide as he stared at therge screen.
"That''s putting it lightly." Sam heaved a sigh.
Elina was speechless, her skin pale and her mouth agape.
The three of them were in the undergroundb going through the footage captured during their week long stay in the Nephilim world. They had yet to get past the battle at the abandoned airport and the two were already too shocked to go on.
ncing at the female scientist and seeing her shocked face, Sam shook his head.
"Maybe you should stop here." He said. "You don''t exactly have the ability to shut down your emotions."
"I¡ I''m okay-¡" Elina replied with a shaky voice only for her eyes to widen and her cheeks to bulge. She quickly grabbed the trashcan that was beside her and emptied her stomach on the spot.
"Don''t force yourself." Sam added.
"I¡ I think I won''t be sleeping for a while¡" she replied.
"Primordials, huh¡" said wolf. "To think that something like this was¡ out there¡"
Elina wiped her mouth with some tissue and then turned her gaze to the same.
"So¡ let me get this straight." She said. "You''re telling us that, because the majority of humanity was massacred in a short time, something like this is heading our way?"
"We should still have some time." Sam replied. "The other world was safe for twenty years until the Olympians decided to elerate things with their Ritual."
"Yeah that doesn''t sound very reassuring."
The idea of walking from one apocalypse to another was disheartening to say the least. First the Cmities then the Nephilim and just when they thought they would get a break now they have to deal with some freaky eldritch horrors.
"It would be hrious if Cthulhu decided to show up." Elina sighed sounding unamused by her ownment.
"Actually, the abomination itself isn''t our biggest problem." Sam felt a slight headache just thinking about it.
"Is it about the survivors?" Wolf asked.
The old man was quite surprised when he heard about the Sanctuary and the human survivors Sam ran into. After failing to stop H and the other Nephilim from going on a rampage he was convinced that the world was wiped clean, but to his surprise it seems like a few had avoided the massacre.
"Yeah." Taking off his sses, Sam massaged the bridge of his nose.
For the next couple of hours, Sam went through everything he had learned during the short but eventful trip to the Nephilim world. Everything from the Primordial and its powers to the Key created from its Aether and Akasha. He told them about Truth, the Whispers and Madness, Fate, its Tapestry and Threads, and finally Nino''s memories and the likelihood of all of Freyja''s Children being reincarnations.
"That''s¡ a lot¡" Elinamented.
"... I see¡" Wolf allowed a rare frown to take over his face.
"Old man, did you know about it?" Sam asked. "The true nature of the Valkyries, I mean."
"Well, you could say I didn''t understand it until now." Wolf replied. "You do remember the process in which I discovered the Nephilim, right?"
"Yeah¡"
Turning to the terminal beside him, the old man tapped on the keyboard a few times, opening a few files and disying them on therge screen.
"So far I''ve been referring to them as ''consciousness'' or ''brain pattern''. It''s nearly identical to the¡ something that is left in our heads once every cell is reced by ASC. Unfortunately I reached a dead end while trying to study them. I have not made any progress in thest twenty years, but now¡"
At first Sam didn''t understand why the old man was showing them the readings from the Aether Key and it was only after a few seconds of staring that it became clear.
"Don''t tell me¡"
"That''s right." Wolf nodded with a grim expression. "If what you said was true then I''ve been unknowingly manipting Aether, isting and trapping it inside a box." Pausing for a second he looked down and added. "I''ve been messing around with human souls without even realizing it."
Though it should''ve been surprising, Sam felt that he had arrived at that conclusion long ago. It has been a while since he epted that the Valkyries are sentient beings, and though some things were still unclear, they could say with utmost certainty that Freyja''s Children are in fact human.
"Ah!" Elina suddenly gasped, drawing the attention of the two men. Her eyes met those of Sam and she eximed in an excited voice. "The ship of Theseus!"
It took Sam a moment to catch on to what she said, and when he did, his eyes turned into saucers.
"That''s right¡"
The female scientist enthusiastically schemed through the files on her terminal and opened some that contained the data from the operation they did on Sam, recing all of his cells with artificial ones.
The ship of Theseus is a paradox regarding identity over time. It takes the example of a ship that has its parts reced one at a time, posing the question of whether it''s still the same vessel after all parts have been reced. With every cell in his body reced with nanomachines the fear of not being himself anymore lurked at the back of Sam''s mind. Even though his brain pattern was monitored by Elina and Wolf, that fear still remained forcing him to ignore the idea so far. Now however he finally had proof that he was still the same person before and after the operation.
"I see. Now I get it!" Elina eximed, barely holding back her excitement. "These readings prove the existence of human souls. If that''s true, do you know what that means?" She turns to the other two, her eyes practically sparkling. "As long as the Aether doesn''t undergo any change, the person who goes through the operation is still the same even if they have every cell in their bodies changed! We have just eliminated the only problem with your secret to immortality!"
To both Sam and Elina, the conclusion they had reached seemed like a great breakthrough in a field of research they had dedicated their lives to, butpared to them Wolf''s reaction was a bit lukewarm. Unlike the other two, he didn''t put too much thought in the idea of identity with his only concern being curing his daughter. He performed the operation on himself first and never doubted that he was a different person afterward, but that didn''t mean he didn''t understand the concerns they had.
"There is still one problem, though." Wolf said, allowing himself to smile for the first time in a while. "The materials to create ASC aren''t cheap. If you n to undergo the operation yourself then you better have a few billions stored somewhere."
The female scientist turned to the old man and a momentter her excitement was washed away.
"Way to pour cold water on my dreams, old man." She said, her shoulders slumping as she sighed. "Well, we''re still fresh out of the first apocalypse. Pretty sure I can gather what I need while the world is still the way it is."
"I had a guess that you would want to do it at some point." Sammented with a grin.
"Of course." She replied. "You think any woman would pass on the chance to get a gorgeous new body on the same level as your Valkyries?"
"Well, you do have a point." Sam replied.
Cosmetic surgery was a multi-billion industry that was on a constant growth curve before the Third World War. No woman would reject the chance to improve her looks drastically, let alone get eternal youth on top of that.
"Hehehe, I can''t wait~" Elina giggled to herself then nced in Sam''s direction, her cheeks reddening a little. "Better keep a spot for me in that harem of yours."
"Hm? You don''t have to wait until then, you know?" Sam replied with a smile.
"As if I would fall for that." She waved her hand dismissively. "I was barely able to keep up with you before. You''d probably break me in a single round now."
The two of themughed at the idea for a while, going on to make fun of his questionable rtionship with the younger looking Valkyries, prompting Elina to ask whether she should make her new body voluptuous or underdeveloped. They also made fun of the fact that Wolf had apparently removed his sausage long ago, though that didn''t seem to bother him much as all he said was that he didn''t have a need for it.
The stress of thest battle still lingered for quite some time and with everything that needed to be done Sam knew that he couldn''t rx for long. That said, with one of the burdens weighing him down falling from his shoulder, he weed the chance for a littleugh and allowed his mind to move away from the problems facing him.
Chapter 293 Two Queens.
Chapter 293 Two Queens.
"It has been a while, sister."
Deep underneath the forty sixth base, two of the oldest Nephilim stood facing a wall of transparent ss.
Thor eyed the inside of the spacious prison cell where a young girl was lying down on arge bean bag, her face depicting the shock she was experiencing at the moment. She wore nothing but an oversized t-shirt and in her hands she held a small device which, considering the t screen in front of her, was clearly a game controller.
On the floor beside her were quite a few empty cans and bottles.
"Th-Thor!!?" Jumping to her feet, H quickly made her way to the ss wall. "Since when were you¡"
"You¡ changed your skin color¡" the crimson queenmented as she held her sister with her eyes.
"Yeah, the humans did it and refused to change it back." Noticing the second Nephilim on the other side of the ss H''s expression brightened. "Mimir! You''re here as well!"
"It has been a while,dy H." The green haired Nephilim replied with a curt bow of her head. "d to see you are in good health."
"I came to see you, but¡" gazing around the cell, the younger yet more mature looking then closed her eyes and heaved a sigh. "It seems I have been worried for nothing."
"A-ah, things got a lot better after you agreed to work with them." H averted her gaze. "They don''t n on releasing me, though. And of course they have no intention of recing my heart."
"That is to be expected. Your methods have always been quite excessive." Thor replied. "Maybe you should reflect on your actions for a few years?"
"Hey, it worked the first time, didn''t it?" The elder sister said. "hold on, don''t tell me you''re nning on letting them keep me here!?"
Thor lingered for a moment, but then a small smile formed on her lips.
"That would be for the best, don''t you think?"
H''s eyes went round, her body trembling slightly. She stared at her sister for a while before her shocked look turned to a re.
"Are you betraying me?"
"Letting you call the shots was our biggest mistake. Even if we were to take you back, I have no intention of letting you reim your authority."
The two sisters red at each other, but then the older one turned to the second visitor.
"Mimir! Talk some sense to her!" She ordered. "We can''t allow this to go on any longer!!!"
Unfazed by the demanding shouts, Mimir looked back at the former queen with a face devoid of emotions.
"I did warn you,dy H." She said.
"You¡"
If she had ess to her runes then maybe her rage would''ve brought the entire base down, but at the moment she looked nothing more than a brat on the verge of throwing a tantrum.
"Your Highness." Mimir turned to her queen. "I think it would be for the best if you inform her of what happened."
"... Yes. That might be right."
The two sisters continued to at each other. In the meantime, the advisor asked the two Valkyries standing guard for a chair and was provided with two. Before she spoke again Thor took a seat, and though she had her own, Mimir chose to remain standing.
"We¡ have lost our home world." Thor said eventually. "It is doubtful whether we will be able to reim it or not."
She went on to exin what happened after the Olympians appeared, including the purpose of their invasion and the state they left their world in. H listened in silence, her expression remaining calm even when the number of Nephilim casualties was mentioned.
Her only concern was always her sisters and people so she never had any connection to thend itself. Hearing that it has been infested with Madness and monsters didn''t bother her at all, but it did make her consider an obvious question.
"And? What do you n on doing now?" She asked. "Don''t tell me you''re simply going to coexist with the humans of this world?"
"As things are right now, we don''t have much choice." Thor replied. "I still have yet to discuss this with Doctor Sanderson, but I n on establishing a country for our people here in this world."
Owing to the massacres the Nephilimmitted most of the was empty and would stay like that for years toe. Humans were barely able to avoid extinction, thanks to the Valkyries, of course. There was nothing they could do to stop the Nephilim if they decided to take a patch ofnd for themselves.
"Just wipe them out." H said with a sarcastic tone. "As I said, it worked before, didn''t it?"
Thor lingered for a moment before heaving a tired sigh. Mimir shook her head in disappointment. The two of them knew for a while that their first queen was a genocidal maniac, but to this day they still can''t ept her behavior.
"Actually, sister, it appears that some have managed to survive your wrath."
The statement caused H to twitch, her body suddenly bing stiff.
"You don''t say¡"
"That''s right. In fact, thanks to the recent events, we have learned that humans are able to awaken the ability to use Runes." A smile yed on Thor''s lips as she spoke. "At this rate it won''t be long before they''re able to stand on equal grounds with us, just like the Olympians."
The truth was that the Olympians, Freyja''s Children as well and ordinary people were all humans. The first Awakened their Force and achieved immortality through unknown means, maintaining their biological constitution. The second were reincarnations of Awakened using artificial bodies and the third were normal humans who have yet to awaken. If no one tried to tip the scales it would be only a matter of time before a bnce is achieved.
"Don''t you think that''s all the more reason to get me out of here?" H asked. "We need to finish the job before they be able to resist us."
"That won''t be happening. Ever." Thor replied. "If a timees where we would have to fight them then we would do it ourselves. However, we will never again ughter innocents just to put your mind at ease."
Once again the first Nephilim red at her younger sister.
"What in the world happened to you." She said. "You know what they wanted to do to Alice. They are our enemies!"
"It is no longer about Alice." Thor answered with a solemn expression. "I refuse to perpetuate your evil."
As the two sisters exchanged looks, Mimir watched in silence with a suppressed smile. Love is quite a powerful emotion. Thor might not have been as enthusiastic about wiping out humans as H was, but in the end she participated in it nevertheless. Until recently she never cared about humans at all, but now that a man has found his way to her heart her thought processpletely changed.
"As you already know, we are unable to increase our numbers without saving Alice first." Thor exined. "Even with the Valkyries as our allies, I doubt we would be able to fight Loki when she could be creating armies as we speak."
"Ha! As if humans would be of any help when ites to that."
H wasn''t exactly wrong. Unlike Freyja''s Children, humans would take decades before they reach a state where they can make a difference in battle. Even if they were to awaken at a young age, it would still take them years to learn how to use their powers, and many more to get to a level where they can fight the likes of the Nephilim or the Olympians.
"Still, having them on our side is better than nothing. Besides, our agreement with the Valkyries rests on us not killing any more humans. I doubt Doctor Sanderson would forgive us if we harm his people again."
A moment of silence passed before anyone spoke a word. It didn''t seem like H was going to give up on her stance, but Thor no longer cared about that after all she was the queen now. She has the Nephilim''s support and most never liked the idea ofmitting a massacre in another world. All she could hope for was that her elder sister would change her mind at some point, but from the looks of it that won''t be happening for a long time.
"Haaaaah. How did we end up like this?" Seemingly having given up, the first queen slumped her shoulders and turned around. "Now you''re rubbing shoulders with humans. Don''te to me crying when they inevitably betray you. It''s in their nature after all."
"I will work to ensure that day neveres." Standing up from her seat, Thor turned around to leave. "I will try to visit from time to time."
"No need. I don''t want to see your face until you realize your mistakes."
"I see. This is goodbye, then."
A hint of sadness swelled in Thor''s chest, however she quickly suppressed it and walked away. Mimir watched her queen''s back then spared the previous one a nce. Without saying a word, she took her leave as well. On her way she could only wonder if their rtionship could ever be mended after that.
Chapter 294 Warm embrace.
Chapter 294 Warm embrace.
The ss container was drained of the green liquid. At its center, a young girl floated weightlessly, her alluring figure and wless skin exposed. Her eyes fluttered open and she slowly descended till her feet touched the damp bottom. Only when the container opened up did the haze in her mind clear allowing her to remember where she was.
"Ah, I see¡" she muttered, looking at her right hand.
"Hm? Oh hi there!" A voice spoke, clearly excited. "I see you''re finally awake. Good, good!"
"... Elina?" Nino said, squinting her eyes.
"Hm? What? Why do you look so disappointed?" The female scientist replied. "That''s horrible, you know!? And I went through the trouble of keeping an eye on you!!!"
"Ah, no¡ I mean¡" Stepping out of Eir, the Japanese doll looked around the room. To her disappointment, that man wasn''t there. "Where is Doctor?"
Elina twitched at the question, her whole body bing stiff.
"Aa¡ haha¡ Sam? Well, he''s¡ you know¡" After fumbling over her answer for a while she seemed to give up and just spoke the truth. "He had to go take care of the work that''s piling up. The Resistance has been knocking on our door ever since they realized we brought the Nephilim here so¡ things have been chaotic."
Nino''s eyes widened a little.
"How long have I been asleep?"
"A little less than three days. You don''t have to worry. There weren''t any big changes while you were asleep."
"I wonder¡"
Nino didn''t understand why Valkyries were made to feel pain, it was a question that bothered her even before she was freed from Odin''s mind restraints. Wouldn''t it be much better if they didn''t faint after receiving grave injuries? That way, they would be able to continue fighting for much longer without having to waste time on restoring themselves.
Nino didn''t remember much after what happened with Karim. She wasn''t in a state to move around after losing her arm and her consciousness slipped away as soon as someone came to check on her. Before she knew it she was inside Eir. Her battle was over, but that didn''t mean it was the same for everyone else.
"So we made it back?" She asked.
"Hm? Yeah." Elina looked a bit confused as she handed her a towel. "There were quite a number of injured but¡ fortunately we didn''t lose anyone. Well, with the exception of some Nephilim."
Fortunately, after all Valkyries were moved to the forty sixth base, their equipment was also moved along with them. That meant they had quite a few Eir units to work with which allowed them to quickly repair any injuries they had.
"I¡ see¡"
With Dimensional Rifts opening passages to a Fallen world, the Nephilim world was no longer a ce suited for life. Though she couldn''t remember what they were, a simple observation told her everything she needed to know about them.
Fallen Worlds were worlds infested by madness, ruled by Primordials that stood well above the rest of creation. In their pursuit of aether they bring destruction to any world they pass, and among those seeking Truth they were the ones closest to reaching Akasha.
Now that they had a Key of their own, the Doctor and his people would be targeted by more than one entity. Whether it''s this world''s Primordial, delusional maniacs dreaming of bing or heralds of Madness, the fight will continue from now till they reach Akasha. Now that they stepped into the race they had no choice but to continue moving forward.
"I''m tired¡" she said with a sigh.
Their battle was just getting started, and though she was determined to y a pivotal role to win the heart of her beloved, at the moment she wanted nothing more than a little rest.
''I feel like I''m missing something¡''
A part of her wanted to think that it was only natural considering her state as Lachesis'' reincarnation, but after a moment of thought she suddenly looked up as if realizing something.
"Atropos!!!"
Elina was startled by the sudden shout, jumping away with a terrified expression. Nino turned to her with questioning eyes but the scientist was a bit slow on the reply.
"A-Atropos? Ah! Right! The Olympian who looks exactly like you!" Elina seemed to remember as well. "I don''t know how I forgot about this. Gosh, what is wrong with me? Ah, sorry. She¡ she''s still in operation so¡"
"Huh?" Nino blinked. "Still in operation?"
~[]~
The cold embrace of death enveloped her body and she felt her end approaching. Though she still held some reservations, having received a chance to see one of her sisters was more than enough for her.
As her blood flowed out without stopping, her body could only feel the warmth of the one holding her. It was a familiar warmth, one she had almost forgotten. Being able to savor it in herst moments was more than she deserved, and though she had already made her peace, a part of her wished itsted a little longer.
''... Lachesis¡ Clotho¡''
Not a moment after the names crossed her mind, Atropos realized that something strange was happening. She was sure she had died. Artemis'' arrow had struck her in the heart and even her own regeneration ability couldn''t heal the wound. No matter how much they tried, it was impossible to save her under those conditions. But if that was the case, why was she still able to remember the names of her sisters?
"...."
She took a leap of faith and tried opening her eyes. Wincing at the brightness of her surroundings, she waited for a few seconds and tried again.
The first thing she saw was an unfamiliar white ceiling and not long after she noticed thefortable bed under her. She tried moving around and to her surprise there was no hint of paining from the wound. Not only that but her body didn''t feel the least bit sluggish.
"Something¡ something isn''t right¡"
Lifting herself into a sitting position she looked around the room then down at herself. The bluish robe she wore was unfamiliar, but that didn''t matter at the moment.
"It''s¡ gone?"
The wound in her chest waspletely healed. Not only that but there were no scars left. Her skin was as clear as it could be, however upon further inspection she noticed that something was off.
Grabbing one of her breasts in each hand, the Olympian squeezed them a few times before muttering to herself.
"They''re¡ bigger?"
Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the metallic door sliding open prompting her eyes to dart in its direction, but when she saw who it was that entered her mind went nk.
"Lachesis¡?"
Standing at the door was a girl of short stature with long raven hair and ruby eyes. The uniform she wore resembled the ck sailor uniform worn by Japanese schoolgirls which suited her perfectly considering her delicate Asian features.
Nino stared at the bed for a moment, her eyes torn open. Being the target of her gaze made Atropos feel a bit awkward, but all of that vanished when the younger sister rushed to her side and without hesitation pulled her into a tight hug.
"Sis¡" she began sobbing. "I''m sorry¡ I''m really sorry¡"
The elder sister was paralyzed. A pang of pain gripped her chest but not s momentter warmth began to spread through it causing her eyes to grow moist.
"What are you apologizing for?" She said, tears flowing down her cheeks. "I''m the one who should¡"
"No¡" Nino replied. "I¡ we shouldn''t have left you¡ we¡"
Atropos knew it all along. Her sisters weren''t wrong for leaving or attempting to stand against Zeus. They had the courage to do it, but unlike the two of them, she chose the easy route of serving someone who didn''t deserve her loyalty. Her disappointment in herself turned to resentment over the years, but all of her anger vanished the moment she got to embrace one of them after everything.
"I''m the one who should be sorry." She said, slowly wrapping her arms around her little sister. "If I wasn''t such a coward I would''ve gone with you from the start."
With their emotions overflowing, the two sisters cried in silence in each other''s arms. Neither seemed willing to let go of the other as if fearing they would disappear the moment they did.
Atropos was devastated upon receiving the news of her sister''s death. On that day, the thought that she would never get to embrace her again almost drove her mad. Never in her life did she think that such a miracle would happen. It would be so cruel if all of it turned out to be a dream by the end, but for now, all she wanted was to hold her little sister and feel her warmth.
Chapter 295 Primitive.
Chapter 295 Primitive.
"This¡ isn''t my body, isn''t it¡"
Once the tears stopped, the two sisters talked about a lot of things. Atropos was mainly interested in her sister''s life after reincarnation. She was trying to be considerate, knowing the Lachesis she knew was no longer the same, but to her surprise the story was unlike anything she imagined.
Eventually, however, she felt the need to address the more pressing matters and the main one was the changes in her body.
Nino was silent, unable to meet her sister''s gaze. Just then the sound of the door opening drew their attention to it. Seeing the one who had just entered, the two suddenly became tense.
"Doctor¡"
Normally Nino would be beaming at the sight of her beloved, but for some reason the warm feeling she usually feels wasn''t there. Sam seemed a bit detached and cold, but unlike when he had his emotions suppressed.
''Ah¡ he''s angry¡'' the Japanese doll suddenly realized, though she was unable to guess the reason, wondering if it was because of her sister or something else.
He arrived at the bed and stood silently for a few moments. His eyes were on the Olympian, paying no mind to the Valkyrie standing between them. Nino silently took a step back and lowered her head. She didn''t know why, but remaining silent felt like the only thing she could do.
"How do you feel?" Sam asked.
"I¡" for some reason, Atropos felt a hint of fear being under his gaze.
She subconsciously tried to coat herself in her Force Field and it was then that she understood why she felt uneasy.
"I''m sure you already know but¡ your body was beyond saving after you took that blow." Closing his eyes, Sam heaved a sigh.
"But¡ how?" Hesitantly, the elder sister asked. "Did you transfer my consciousness into an artificial body? Or did you make a copy of it and¡"
Suddenly, the fear she felt before became more dreadful.
"Well, your first guess is closer to the truth." Sam answered just as she began to panic. "We reced every cell in your body with artificial ones. It was a difficult process. Your body kept trying to regenerate itself so it rejected the integration. I had to work overnight to make a new ASC that could adapt to your ability."
"Cells?" Atropos gave him an incredulous stare and then looked down at herself. "I see¡"
Scratching the back of his head, Sam thought back to the conversation he had with Elina.
"The truth is, you''re the fourth one to undergo this procedure. Until recently we weren''t sure whether a person remains the same after the change, but after we learned about the existance of Aether we are now able to prove that the Soul remains even if the vessel is different."
It is also by that same logic that they were able to prove death. If the vessel is damaged to a certain extent, it would be incapable of containing the Soul. Unfortunately they had no idea on what happens to the Soul after it leaves the vessel, but from what they learned so far it seems that it goes through some kind of purification process before finding its way to the growing body of a newborn somewhere out there in the multiverse.
"A technology that''s capable of perfectly replicating most functions of human cells¡" staring at her hand for a moment, the Olympian then looked up at Sam and said bluntly "That''s quite¡ primitive¡"
Thest word stabbed Sam right in the guts, causing him to clutch his stomach and catch.
"Doctor!?" Nino rushed to his side.
"I''m guessing you used some sort of nanomachines." Said Atropos, ignoring his reaction. "It might sound like a good solution at first, but in reality you would just be locking your potential in ce. Then again it might be the only choice for those who failed to awaken."
"Wa¡ wait¡" Sam spoke, practically forcing the words out. "I won''t let you dump on all of my hard work just like that. Do you even know how hard it was to make it?"
Project Asclepius was the umtion of all his research in the field of nanotechnology. He might not be the first to invent the ASC, but having worked on them independently until the final stages was enough of a reason for him to feel pride in what he achieved.
"Oh please. I''m one of the people who discovered the Tapestry of Fate. Of course I know what it takes, and I''m telling you now, your little invention isn''t that impressive."
Seeing her shrug while shaking her head, Sam began to feel his anger growing. He had no reason to just stand there and listen to her ridiculing his work, but at the same time he had nothing to shut her down with.
"You must''ve underestimated what a biological, flesh and blood body can achieve." Atropos went on. "With enough training and the right medicine, one can still surpass the limits of the default human constitution. I have already noticed that this body is incapable of generating a Force Field. If I had to make a guess, it''s most likely incapable of regenerating and healing itself. Am I correct?"
Sam gritted his teeth.
"Not that regeneration could''ve saved you."
"Well, there is a limit to everything." She sighed.
As the tension continued to escte between the two, Nino suddenly stepped between them.
"Please stop, you two!" She said, gently pushing Sam away. "Doctor! Sis just woke up, she still doesn''t understand what''s happening!" She then turned to her sister with a re. "And sis, Doctor saved your life, you know? Show him some respect."
Atropos stared at her for a moment, her eyes wide open. She then averted her gaze and pouted her cheeks.
"I didn''t ask to be saved."
"But I did!"
The loud shout struck Atropos like lightning. ncing at the Japanese doll, she saw that tears had begun to gather in the corner of her eyes.
"I said I didn''t want things to end that way. I¡ I wanted us to part like that¡"
Seeing the look on her little sister, Atropos felt a suffocating sensation in her chest. She had already noticed that that she didn''t have a beating heart, nor did she have lungs for the air she breathed. It didn''t make sense for her to experience that sensation. It was unbearable and it made her want to apologize right away, however her her pride prevented her from doing so.
"I''m not so naive that I would think he did it out of kindness." She said, clutching a hand to her chest. "I''m a high ranking officer from an enemy camp. Surely he''s only keeping me alive to exploit me."
"Well, not exactly."
Hearing the man''s reply, the Olympian gave him a doubtful look.
"I won''t deny that I n to extract as much info as I can out of you, however that was never my reason for saving your life." Raising his hand, he patted Nino on the head. "After what you did to two of my Valkyries I would''ve been more than happy to let you die. But I can''t exactly turn down a request from my beloved fiance."
Nino''s head shot up the moment she heard thest words, and when she saw the warm smile he directed at her her cheeks flushed red instantly.
The Japanese doll had begged him to save her sister, going as far as to ask for it as the reward he promised her. He had already decided that he would do his best, but seeing the tears she shed strengthened his resolve and made him put all his concerns away.
"Fiance¡"
Atropos was stunned. She had heard her mention it before but it seemed that the idea only started to feel real now that she saw her little sister''s expression.
Just like her, both Clotho and Lachesis never had any interest in those around them. They were always focused on their duties and running their domain, and whatever free time they had was spent on research. It didn''t help that didn''t measure up to the Fate Sisters and those who did were always despicable.
On multiple asions Atropos always knew that pride was what held the three of them back from finding happiness with a man. That conclusion only seemed to get truer as time passed, and now that one of them has finally found someone it could no longer be contested.
Atropos got off the bed and stood face to face with the man in ab coat. She gazed at him for a second, careful to keep her expression neutral. A chaotic battle was ongoing in her head but eventually it came to an end.
"My apologies. It seems that I''ve said some unnecessary things. Please forgive my rudeness." Swallowing her pride, the Olympian bowed deeply.
Sam was surprised by the sudden show of sincerity, butpared to him, Nino was rather shocked. She began looking around the room, clinging to his arm as if afraid of something.
"Doctor! This might be really bad!" She said. "Sis apologized! The world could be ending any moment now!"
Atropos straightened her back instantly revealing a face red with embarrassment.
"Lachesis!"
Sam didn''t need an exnation to understand what his Valkyrie meant. The name Atropos meant ''the unalterable'' or ''the inflexible''. In Greek mythology it indicated her function as the one who renders her sister''s decisions irreversible, but one could guess what kind of personality traits someone who represents the inevitability of death would have.
It seemed like Sam''s guess was correct as the two sisters kept bantering for a couple of minutes. eventually though the elder sister turned to him once more, her cheeks still flushed.
"About¡ about your technology¡" she appeared to be forcing herself quite a bit but after some struggle she was able to speak her mind. "I¡ I will admit that I wouldn''t have survived without it so¡ thank you¡"
Seeing her bashful demeanor, Sam couldn''t help but blur a single word.
"Tsundere?"
He expected the word to cause nothing but confusion, but instead the Olympian''s eyes slowly widened as the red color spread all the way to her ears. He saw Nino in the corner of his eye holding both hands to her mouth and staring at him in disbelief. That told him that the meaning behind the word didn''t go over their heads, and not long after he seemed to remember the fact that they were both Japanese.
As the embarrassment continued to take over Atropos making her blush even more, her personality seemed to take a sudden shift as clutched her fists and yelled at him.
"I am not!!!"
Chapter 296 Living with the enemy.
Chapter 296 Living with the enemy.
After having a lengthy talk with Atropos, during which he learned many important things, Sam left the two sisters to continue their conversation.
"Let''s go."
"..."
Upon receiving no reply, Sam turned around and gazed at the Valkyrie serving as his guard. Miku hadn''t moved from her ce, her head slightly lowered as she stared at the floor.
"Miku, if there is something you want to tell me then¡" pausing for a moment, he breathed in and braced himself. "Then don''t hold back. I know why you''re angry but¡ I want to hear it from you."
After returning from the Nephilim world Sam found himself with quite a lot of work to do. He had to ensure that the Fallen Worlds wouldn''t breach theirs, n countermeasures for when a Primordial shows at their door,e up with a way to handle the refugees, both human and Nephilim, check on the Awakened children, contain the Fallen, and save Atropos.
So far he has only dealt with the global scale anti-inter-dimensional travel barrier and oversaw most of Atropos'' procedure. A report he got from Nana said that the humans of their world were panicking over the crimson sky so he was sure the Resistance was going to send someone to demand answers very soon.
With so much to do he didn''t have the time to sit down and listen to what those close to him had to say and seeing how upset Miku was told him he couldn''t dy it any longer.
"I¡ I understand why we need the Nephilim¡ I really do but¡ " clenching her fists, the young Valkyrie trembled slightly. "I can''t help thinking that you don''t care about us at all."
Sam felt like that statement was a stab to his guts, having decided not to shut his emotions despite his heavy reliance on the ability in the past couple of days just to be able to operate normally.
"I see." He said, doing his best to remain calm. "What makes you think that, Miku?"
Her response didn''te right away.
"A lot of us died fighting the Cmities¡" She said. "Those Cmities were sent here by the Nephilim. They were responsible for the murder of so many of ourrades yet here we are inviting them to live with us." Pausing for a moment, she then added "You''re allowing Odin to roam free and now you''ve put so much effort into saving the person who took down B3 and JX9¡"
"So you''re saying that by choosing to help our enemies instead of letting them die I''m disregarding your thoughts on the matter?"
"I¡ I know you''re doing the right thing but¡ seeing you being friendly with them I¡ I can''t¡"
Miku was close to B3. The two of them had be good friends after they moved to the forty sixth base together and they went through a lot even before that. It was understandable for the young Valkyrie to be upset seeing him being friendly with the one who put her friend in aatose state with no hope of waking up at the moment.
Not that he was in any way friendly with Atropos. All he did was save her life at the request of another one of his personal Valkyries. Not only that but he was hoping the Olympian would prove to be an important assetter on, providing them with information about the enemy as well as helping them train the Awakened children.
When one looks at Sam''s decisions and actions it is easy to think that he''spletely throwing aside all past conflicts in order to achieve his goals. It doesn''t help that the war against the Nephilim was less than half a year ago, and that his whole motivation behind the peace treaty is to get their assistance in tracking down and retrieving Alice, both the original and his childhood friend.
The Valkyries were finally free from the oppression of Odin''s mind control and were starting to think for themselves. Before long, it wouldn''t be a surprise to see them show contempt at how they were used as weapons with no will of their own.
There is the issue of their memories as well. Sam didn''t want to think about what would happen if they started to remember things from their past lives. Nino appeared to have been an important figure in the Olympian world. So far her memories didn''t alter her behavior that much, but he couldn''t expect the same from the others the others. Depending on who they were in their past lives they might end up causing way more trouble than anticipated.
In short, he needed to find a way to resolve any issues his Valkyries have with his decision and he has to do it quickly before it all blows in his face. If his first personal Valkyrie was speaking out about it who knew what the others must be saying behind closed doors.
"Let''s talk as we walk." He said then turned around.
Thankfully, the young Valkyrie followed after him this time, although she kept her gaze lowered.
"Did you know, Miku-" He said in an even voice. "When the Cmities first appeared in this world, I was at the location of the first attack."
The young Valkyrie was taken aback, raising her head to look at the Doctor in shock.
"It has been so long that I almost forgot about it." He went on. "If it wasn''t for Alice and her father I most likely wouldn''t have made it out in time."
The shock of seeing what he thought was an alien invasion and the destruction it caused had left him immobile. More than four million died in that first attack alone and if it wasn''t for Alice and Wolf Sam would''ve been one of them as well.
"Back then we still didn''t have you girls to protect us so¡ all we could do was escape."
"I¡" Miku was speechless, unable toe up with anything to say.
"My parents didn''t make it, of course. I was simply lucky to have been dragged along by the only person Wolf cares about. Thanks to him I was taken care of even in the following chaos, and I owe him a lot for that, but don''t make the mistake of thinking that would be enough for me to not resent him. After all he was the one who led the Nephilim to us in the first ce."
"..."
"I guess what I''m trying to say is¡" Sam lingered for a moment before adding "I have as much of a reason to hate the Nephilim as you do. Of course I''m not saying this to belittle your concerns, but I want you to know that I''m not being friendly with them just because I want to."
A moment of silence passed as they continued to walk down the hallway. They were in the lowest level of the underground prison where some of their most dangerous captives were being kept, but even as they passed the doors neither of them bothered to nce in their direction. Not that they could''ve seen anything as they led to the rooms dedicated for visits rather than the cells themselves.
Once they made it to the elevator, the blond young Valkyrie finally seemed to have gathered the courage to say something, though what she heard a few seconds ago seemed to have shaken her quite a bit as her voice came out a bit shaky.
"... I''m sorry¡" she said. "I didn''t know you¡ I¡"
"No, you don''t have to worry about it." Sam said. "I admit that I haven''t been making a conscious effort to include you and the others in the decision making. Despite everything it seems I still consider the Valkyries as nothing more thanbatants and that needs to change." ncing behind him, he decided to ask her directly. "What do you think I should do about the Nephilim."
Miku stared at him for a moment then let her gaze wander down. She seemed to be putting some thought into her response, but she didn''t appear to have a clear one.
"Do you want the Nephilim to pay for the deaths of all Valkyries?"
Chapter 297 Difficult position.
Chapter 297 Difficult position.
Sam''s question cut her line of thoughts and it only seemed to confuse her more.
"I¡ think so but¡"
"You are wondering how they''re going to do it?"
"... Yes¡"
The Nephilim havemitted unspeakable massacres both in their world and in Sam''s. No matter how much one thought about it, there was no easy way for them to make amends for their crimes. They either have to embrace them or allow themselves to be wiped out, and looking at their records everyone knew what would happen if they were pushed hard enough.
"Humanity has a history with those things, you know. I don''t think we have found any solution." Sam said, remembering the state of the world before the Cmities attacked. "We simply decided that enough is enough and worked toward peace. Well, at least for a while. Humans will always find an excuse to kill each other."
Now that they know Valkyries are reincarnated humans it was a bit scary to think about what they might do. That fact alone added an unpredictableponent to the equation which might lead to everything going the wrong way if they aren''t careful enough.
"We have removed the one responsible for the war from power and their new leader seems much more reasonable." Said Sam. "They also suffered many losses, including their entire world. That would be enough of a punishment for them, don''t you think?"
One could say the Nephilim have suffered enough already, but not everyone would be satisfied with that. Most wouldn''t count the misfortune befalling their foes as revenge.
"... What about the Olympian?" Miku asked.
"Well, I might''ve saved her life but she''ll stay our prisoner indefinitely. Did you think I was going to let her go just like that?"
Atropos was a brilliant scientist, one that wasn''t at all impressed by the pinnacle of nanotechnology achieved by Sam. Allowing her to roam around would be like asking her to make something and escape.
"... I thought you were going to add her to the harem."
A bell chimed and the elevator door opened, but neither of them moved. Sam nced at his personal Valkyrie who still seemed upset. Her expression told him that she was being serious, but he didn''t understand how she arrived at that conclusion.
"H-heeh? What made you think that?"
The truth was that Sam indeed had his eyes on Atropos simply because she was an almost exact copy of Nino. The idea of having a threesome with beautiful twins turned him on quite a bit, however he wasn''t about to say that out loud.
"Because that''s how the plot usually develops." Miku answered with a slight frown. "Nino had her own story and cemented her position as one of the main heroines. It''s only natural that you would be involved with her sister, and considering Doctor''s boundless lust I''m sure you wouldn''t hesitate to make her yours."
"Miku¡ where did you even get these ideas?"
It sounded like she was trying to predict the plot of some trashy harem webnovel, and looking back at their first meeting, that conclusion seemed all the more believable.
Ignoring his question, the young Valkyrie turned to him with a serious gaze.
"Doctor, are you going to make the Olympian your lover as well?"
Sam stared back at her.
"No." That was a lie. "You really shouldn''t be basing your worldview on those trashy novels. A woman doesn''t just fall in love with someone because he was nice to her."
"Wha-" Miku''s eyes widened for a moment and her brows furrowed in the next. "That''s uneptable! How can she not fall for Doctor after he saved her life!?"
Her reaction added to Sam''s confusion.
"Do you want her to fall for me or do you not?"
"I¡ I simply didn''t want Doctor to ept her feelings, that''s all." She replied. "It would be uneptable for her to find happiness after what she did to B3."
"I see¡"
"Doctor, if she ever tries to confess to you make sure you reject her, okay?"
Going by their conversation he thought the situation was quite serious, but from the looks of it the blond one was just jealous.
"As I said, real life doesn''t work like that." Realizing that they''d been standing in the elevator for a while, Sam sighed and walked out. "Besides, Atropos is quite prideful. I doubt she would allow herself to be infatuated by someone like me."
"But you said she was a tsundere, didn''t you?"
He almost tripped on his own feet.
"You were listening?"
"Of course." She replied without a hint of remorse. "I''m on guard duty today. It goes without saying that I should be prepared in case anything happens."
Sam couldn''t help but sigh again.
"I was just joking back then." He said and resumed walking. "Seriously, you should stop reading those books. They''ve already ruined your mind."
Atropos'' reaction to being called a tsundere didn''t help at all so he saw where the blond one wasing from, however he didn''t understand how she could take something like that so seriously.
"I understand. But that doesn''t change my point." Walking a few steps ahead of him she turned around and looked him in the eyes. "Doctor is a wonderful man so it''s only natural that women from all over would fall for you. Even the Nephilim are starting to take interest."
Sam chose to keep his silence.
"Mj?lnir is already head over heels for you, and their new queen had that look in her eyes the entire time you were talking. Working with them is fine, but no matter what happens you can''t ept their feeling. They''re the ones who caused us so much pain, please don''t forget that."
Miku didn''t blush or show the slightest hint of being flustered and that made it difficult to dismiss it all as her naive jealousy. Despite how ridiculous it might''ve sounded Sam couldn''t deny that the young Valkyrie does have a point.
If his decision to ally with the Nephilim made it seem like he was stumping over the will of the Valkyries then he didn''t know what would happen if he were to start sleeping with the other side.
Unfortunately a big part of his schemes relied on the fact that Thor seemed to be interested in him. If he yed his cards right and managed to steal her heart, the Nephilim would basically be under his control as well. That said, from the looks of it he couldn''t just go ahead and seduce her. His only hope is that his Valkyries would understand without him having to exin everything to them.
"I''m d that you care about your fellow Valkyries so much." He said, cing his hand on the young one''s head.
Miku only realized that he didn''t give her a definite answer after he walked away and that only caused her fears to grow. Sam really didn''t want his love affairs to be the thing that reignited the conflict between the Valkyries and the Nephilim, but it seems he didn''t have much of a choice.
''Well, sleeping with the enemy can be seen as the highest form of betrayal.'' he thought. ''I was never a fan of Romeo and Juliet but¡ I have no choice but to make it work¡''
Chapter 298 Starting a little early.
Chapter 298 Starting a little early.
Done with his visit to Atropos, Sam went to check on B3 and JX9 before going to deal with more paperwork. He had to attend a meeting with the Resistance higher-ups as well which left himpletely exhausted.
What''s worse was Miku''s bad mood. She has been ring at him the whole time after their conversation, and things only got worse when he stopped for lunch with Thor.
Sam made sure to drop hints and sweet talk the Nephilim queen as they talked about the future. He made her blush several times and he managed to draw a few chuckles out of her as well.
Mimir who was attending as well seemed satisfied by his progress. His personal Valkyrie on the other hand began radiating a strong aura that showed her displeasure with what he was doing. He had no choice but to turn around and show her how annoyed he was with a silent re. After that Miku made sure her true feelings were never noticed, going back to the same emotionless Valkyrie from their first meeting.
Of course that didn''t mean she was fine with everything so Sam had to spend an entire hourforting her after that then exined his ns to her so she wouldn''t get in his way anymore.
Though she wasn''tpletely on board just knowing that he trusted her enough to reveal such crucial information to her was enough to improve the blond one''s mood. Simply saying that she was the only Valkyrie who knew was enough to solve the problem.
After a few hours of going through reports and some more doing research Sam finally decided to take a break and went back to his room. He sent Miku away since her shift was reaching its end, but the truth was that she was the main reason behind his exhaustion so he wished to avoid her for the time being.
"Now I feel bad¡" he muttered to himself as he watched the young Valkyrie walk away in a good mood.
The urge to yawn overwhelmed him and he he covered his mouth while turning to the door. It has been a while since he moved from the male dormitory to the new room prepared for him right beside the undergroundb, though since he no longer needed to sleep after getting his new body he only ever goes there to use the shower.
Today he intended to take a quick nap to refresh himself, but as soon as he entered it became clear that he wouldn''t get the chance.
"W-wee back, Doctor!"
Putting his sses back on after rubbing his eyes, Sam was met with the sight of a gorgeous young woman with very long and puffy pink hair.
"Ichigo?" He raised an eyebrow. "What are you doing here?"
"Well, my shift is in a few hours so¡" she spoke in a low voice, twiddling her fingers all the while. "I thought I might start a little early."
After making it back to their world Sam decided that the Valkyries that apanied him deserved a few days off. That was somewhat of a problem since five out of his six personal Valkyries were among them, but he somehow managed to rely on Nine and Miku alone, or so was the n until Nine began making sexual advances on him whenever they were alone.
Thankfully now that the third day had passed his options increased, and apparently one of them was so eager to go back to work that she came before her shift started.
Seeing the slight blush on the Valkyrie''s cheeks he smiled to himself and walked over to her. Ichigo tensed up and straightened her back, but whatever she had in mind clearly wasn''t what Sam did as her face wentpletely red the next moment.
Rxing his whole body he allowed it to fall into her arms, and as she was busy lifting him up, he grabbed her plump ass and gave it a good squeeze.
"Haa~~" he released a rxed sigh. "Ichigo''s body is so soft. I can never get tired of touching it."
Of course all Valkyries had soft bodies as they were made to be the pinnacle of femininity, however Ichigo was a special case in that she had some meat on her bone giving her a bit of a squishy feel without having to look too chubby.
"D-Doctor!!? Hyaahnn!!!"
Just like Nine, the pink haired Valkyrie opted for the long skirt version of the uniform. It suited her perfectly, but even though most of her skin was covered it failed to hide her curves giving her form a rather appealing silhouette.
Sam felt his spear harden as his hands yed with her bottom hills. Her gigantic melons were pressing against him and with her head resting on his shoulder as she continued to release hot breaths Sam began to desire her more and more, however after getting his fill of her soft bottom his hands moved up and he pulled her into a proper hug.
"How are you doing, Ichigo?"
The pink haired Valkyrie sensed the change in his tone causing her to rx.
"I¡ I''m fine. I had enough sleep."
Ichigo was a Cleanser. Her abilities weren''t meant for fighting so normally she wouldn''t step into the front line and face danger. Unfortunately, the trip to the Nephilim world had put her under a lot of stress. Her abilities proved useful against the Primordial, but because of that she ended up catching its attention, and no matter how strong one''s mentality is being stared at by that abomination ought to cause quite a bit of trauma.
"Is that so?" He said, gently rubbing her back. "Then I''m d¡"
Taking a few more seconds to enjoy the hug, Sam then backed away and looked at the Valkyrie. As expected, she was blushing to the tips of her ears with her gaze lowered. He found her shyness rather adorable especially with how tall she was, but contrary to what he had in mind it wasn''t her timid nature that caused her to act like that.
Ichigo looked up without a warning, her eyes brimming with determination and before Sam could think of anything she leaned toward him and ced her reddened lips in his.
Chapter 299 Just the two of us.
Chapter 299 Just the two of us.
The kisssted longer than she had anticipated and Ichigo felt bad for enjoying it. Once they separated, it took her a couple of seconds toe back to her senses and when that happened her face flushed instantly.
"I-I-I¡" she stammered, her eyes widening. "I''m sorry I didn''t mean to-"
Her words were cut as the man sealed her lips again. She was surprised at first, but seeing that he had no intention of letting go of her she gradually rxed closing her eyes and enjoying the sensation.
The two didn''t speak much and just sat on the bed side continuing to make out for a while. Ichigo seemed really into it actively using her her tongue and swallowing his saliva.
"Haa~"
Ichigo let out a rather sensual sigh as they stopped to catch their breath. Her eyes went down and fell straight on the tent that had formed on Sam''s pants. Though she was already in the mood, just remembering what was sealed in there caused her to blush once more. That said, she had gained a bit of courage since thest time they were alone so although she hesitated a little she still ced her hand on his crotch and began stroking the bulge.
"Haha¡" Sam chuckled unintentionally which caused Ichigo more embarrassment. She timidly nced up at him as if asking for the reason behind hisughter and he immediately caught on. "If Nine were to see this, she would be really mad."
"Right¡" she replied.
The blond Valkyrie looked rather depressed after getting dismissed the previous day. Her punishment came to an end so she was looking forward to enjoying her beloved Doctor''s embrace, However Sam was too busy to ept her advances and she now had to wait until he was free to get her itch scratched.
Nine has a very strong libido. While the others would enjoy spending time with him no matter what they did, she was the only one actively seeking to have sex with Sam. Sam felt that it was his duty to keep her satisfied, but at the same time he wanted her to learn how to hold back as he wouldn''t be avable all the time. It would be a problem if she tried to have him all for herself whenever he got a breather.
"I¡ I''m Doctor''s personal Valkyrie as well¡" to Sam''s surprise, he noticed a hint of frustration in her voice as if she was pouting. "I also want to spend time with¡ Doctor¡"
Smiling to himself, Sam ced his hand on her shoulder and began caressing it gently. The pink haired Valkyrie responded by leaning against him, resting her head on his shoulder as she continued stroking his bulge.
"Hmm¡ you want to spend time with me?" He said. "Just the two of us?"
Ichigo didn''t respond for a while but then lowered her head as if trying to hide her expression.
"... yes¡"
"I see¡" Sam grabbed her chin and slowly lifted her head. He stared into her blue eyes for a few seconds but the Valkyrie closed and puckered her lips as if preparing for a kiss. Sam took her on her offer and tasted the glistering rosy lips, however he kept it short this time.
"But you know, Ichigo." He said, letting a teasing smile take over his face. "You aren''t my personal Valkyrie yet."
"... Eh?" Ichigo froze.
"So far you have only been in training, right? I still have yet to give you the title."
"I¡ I¡"
Ichigo wentpletely pale for a moment before the embarrassment kicked in and her face flushed once more.
"I''m sorry I¡ I thought-"
Sam interrupted her with another kiss which left the pink haired Valkyrie confused. Once he sensed that she had calmed down, Sam backed away and looked at her once more.
"Ichigo¡" he caressed her cheek with his left hand. "Why do you want to be my personal Valkyrie?"
Her eyes widened a little before moving to a corner as she began to think. She had many reasons for her desire so it was a bit difficult to decide which influenced her the most.
"I think¡ I think it started when you gave us the choice¡ whether we want to fight or not." A smile blossomed on Ichigo''s beautiful face as she recalled the event. "It might not sound convincinging from a Cleanser, since we usually don''t do any fighting, but knowing that you cared enough to ask what we want to do, warmed my heart."
Sam remembered the incident as well. Back then he had just discovered how to create a Valkyrie Heart capable of forming Runes, but due to theck of materials he couldn''t produce new ones leading to the need for modifying those already in use.
"Despite having never participated in the battle, I¡ I always feared the day I might end up fighting one. I was inspired by Three and the others who volunteered to be the first to have their hearts modified, but that wasn''t all." Looking up at Sam, her eyes glimmered with admiration. "You, despite being a powerless human, chose to go and face the enemy on your own. Something in me changed since then. I don''t know what it was, but it made me want to serve you¡" Her cheeks flushed once more and she quickly averted her gaze. "In more than one way."
"... I see¡"
The two exchanged another kiss, basking in the blissful sensation to the point of losing bnce and falling on the bed. They continued to make out for a while after which Sam began removing Ichigo''s clothes. It was a bit of a struggle with how long her hair was, but before long she waspletely bare.
As he stared down at her, the pink haired Valkyrie seemed to get a little embarrassed as she moved to cover her private parts. Her gigantic breasts were so soft, spilling to the sides with gravity pulling on them, and their shape changed along her arms as she hid her hardened nipples.
Seeing herher already dripping, Sam quickly removed his clothes. His spear was ready for the act, and the moment sheid her eyes on it Ichigo felt her chest overflow with fear and excitement.
Chapter 300 Let me try again.
Chapter 300 Let me try again.
In her mind Ichigo prepared herself for the spear that was about to pierce her most intimate part, because of that she was quite confused when Sam climbed over her, bringing his hips close to her chest.
It was only after he had ced his tool between her enormous milkers that she understood what he wanted to do.
"Your breasts are so big, Ichigo." He said. "And so¡ soft."
His nine-inch penis waspletely enveloped by the two soft mounds the moment he squeezed them together. The heavenly sensation of being sandwiched between them filled his nerves and he let out a long sigh.
Ichigo''s embarrassed expression turned him even more. He pulled back a little then thrust slowly his hips, causing the tip of his tool to peer out of the Valkyrie''s deep cleavage, drawing a surprised gasp from her.
As he repeated the motion, Sam felt a little bad for his t chested Valkyries. Titty-fucks were something he could only enjoy with his well endowed partners, and simply getting to grab the soft buns added a lot to the experience. That wasn''t to say he didn''t enjoy the petite ones; their cuteness alone made his gears turn. However there was a big difference in the kind of pleasure he felt. One was from doing it with a girl while the other with a mature woman.
Dissatisfied with doing nothing, Ichigo took hold of her breasts, pressing them together with her forearms. She then lifted her head slightly and extended her tongue trying to lick the protruding head. Seeing her do that, Sam moved up a little, pushing her chest along. From there on he was able to insert the tip of his spear into her mouth so he made sure to use the saliva that covered it to lubricate the twin mountains.
A pink heart formed in Ichigo''s irises as soon as she got a taste of the slightly salty precum. She seemed to get more into the act trying her best to stimte him with her lips and tongue, though her clumsy moves showed her need for practice.
Just thinking about how the shy and timid Ichigo would turn out after he''s done training her caused Sam to reach his limit. Without hesitation, he pushed his rod into her mouth and let go of his restraints allowing his man milk to burst into the Valkyrie''s mouth.
"Mnaahh!!!"
In the end Ichigo was unable to take his entire load causing most of it to stter all over her face and breasts. It was quite the erotic sigh with her stained chest moving slightly as she panted for air, stopping to swallow as she gazed at him.
"Sorry, Ichigo." Sam said, moving aside and grabbing the box of tissue from the nearby stand.
"I¡ I''m the one who should apologize¡" she said, taking a few paper towels to wipe her face. When she was done, she looked down at her hands looking a bit down. "I¡ I will make sure to swallow it next time¡"
"Hm?" Sam raised an eyebrow. "You don''t really have to, you know?"
Though he wasn''t a big fan of such slutty disys, if there was one thing he considered sexier than having his cum swallowed by the woman he was banging then it would be seeing her covered in it.
"Eh? But Nine said¡"
"Ah, I get it now¡"
It was another one of the blond Valkyrie''s teachings. That made sense. He remembered the time he had a foursome with her, Five and Three where she told thetter that she must swallow everything he shoots in her mouth.
First she told the Valkyries that they can only sleep with him and now she''s going around telling them to swallow his load. He didn''t know why she was working so hard to get the other Valkyries to offer themselves to him when she wanted to have him the most, but a moment of contemtion told him that she didn''t give it much thought wishing to do what she believed he would like the most.
''I will have to make sure to reward herter¡''
Knowing her, an extended sex session would be the best gift he could give. He would have to make sure it''s as intense as possible so she would be satisfied by the end of it.
"D-Doctor!" Ichigo''s head shot up all of a sudden. "Please let me try again!"
Sam was taken aback by the fire burning in her eyes.
"It''s okay. I already told you you don''t have to."
"No!" She shook her head. "As someone aspiring to be your personal Valkyrie, I have to make sure I''m able to serve you properly!"
Though he saw no need for it, he also didn''t mind getting another blowjob. It was also a good opportunity for the pink haired Valkyrie to practice oral sex so Sam saw no problem with granting her request.
"Alright."
Getting up, he stood on the bouncy mattress and tried to bnce himself before he turned to face the Valkyrie. Ichigo was already on her knees facing him. She stared at his fat cock for a second before reaching out and grabbing it at the base. She still hesitated a bit, but eventually, she brought her lips and kissed the tip.
Watching her from above Sam expected that she would take some time to get used to it, but Ichigo defied his expectations right away, taking his full length into her mouth and causing his nerves to be overwhelmed.
With Sam still frozen still, Ichigo slowly backed away, her eyes narrowed as she focusedpletely on the cock in her mouth. She had no trouble deepthroating it having prepared herself beforehand. With the head still in her mouth, she used her tongue to stimte his ns and frenulum for a while before deepthroating it again. She then began bobbing her head back and forth, going slowly at first before increasing her pace.
It was good. Too good. She didn''t have the best technique by any means, however he felt that the pink haired Valkyrie was trying to suck his soul out and that felt unbelievably good.
"Ichigo¡ I¡" with his head still turned up from the continuous flood of pleasure and his waist thrust forward seeking more of it, Sam unintentionally grabbed the bushy pink hair in front of him as he struggled to suppress the uing orgasm. "I''m about to¡"
Having noticed the penis twitching and pulsating inside her mouth, Ichigo began moving faster, forcibly breaking the shackles holding him back and bringing him closer to the climax. Before he could ejacte she made sure to once again gobble the fat cock whole intending on swallowing every drop of the Doctor''s semen.
"Guhh!!!"
Sam couldn''t stop his hips from shooting forward as his penis erupted once more. Ichigo ignored the slight pain from her hair that was being pulled and closed her eyes as she continued gulping the loads of cum continuing to shoot straight into her throat, happiness filling her chest as she felt the hot liquid descend into her stomach.
She kept her lips pressed tightly to the shaft the whole time and she kept it that way as she slowly took the still erect took out after she noticed that the ejaction had ended.
The penis came out covered in glistering saliva and nothing else. She did her best to suck out everyst drop before letting go of it, and after taking a moment to swallow what was left in her mouth she looked up at Sam and smiled.
"Doctor¡ how was it?" She asked. "I swallowed all of it this time¡"
"Y-yeah¡" still at the mercy of the intense pleasure he was subjected to, Sam grinned as he released a satisfied sigh. "You did¡ exceptionally¡"
Once again he couldn''t help thinking that Wolf knew what he was doing when he created the Valkyries. Though he had learned that they were all humans on the inside, their bodies were made to induce the most intense sexual pleasure in anyone lucky enough to get a chance with them.
With a body as erotic as hers, Sam was sure that the night ahead of him was going to be a long one.
"Alright then¡" he said, looking down at the pink haired Valkyrie. "Let''s get to the real act¡"
Chapter 301 Too good.
Chapter 301 Too good.
Eager to get to the real act, Sam told Ichigo to lie down on her stomach. Her enormous bosom kept the upper half of her body slightly lifted and she hugged the pillow while ncing from over her shoulders as Sam went about his preparations.
Ichigo''s pink hair was so long and puffy that it hid her back entirely. It was rather beautiful but it got in the way so Sam had to part it to either side so he could get a good view of the Valkyrie from behind. Just like the front view, Ichigo''s back was quite alluring as well. Sam found his hands moving on their own so with a smile he began his work.
First he kneaded her bottom for a bit then checked the state of her secret trench. As expected, it was already dripping with her love juices and looked like it would start squirting at any moment. He didn''t want to keep her waiting for long so he positioned himself and leaned over body, bringing his face closer to hers.
"Ichigo¡" he whispered into her ear. "I''m going to start now, okay?"
"Mm¡"
Sam moved and Ichigo''s eyes widened. She felt her lower slit being forcibly torn apart, a thick object slowly making its way into her body and igniting the ends of every pleasure and pain receptor in her lower body.
Ichigo felt her expectations shatter, her mind overwhelmed by the reality of the carnal act she chose to participate in. The world she knew changed at that moment, taken over by the fear of the new sensation as her body worked to reject the foreign invader. She was a Valkyrie and thus had a much more powerful body than that of an average human woman, but despite that, the weight of the toned masculine body pressing her down made her feel helpless, taking away her will to resist, and she loved every bit of it.
Ichigo buried her face in the pillow, clutching the bed sheets and endured. Sam was fighting his own battle, his meat pir crushed under the pressure applied by the Valkyrie''s virgin love tunnel. Her slightly squishy body gave him the impression that he wouldn''t be facing any trouble, but that was a big mistake. Her vagina was as tight as any other Valkyrie, and as it adjusted to length of his tool, Sam found himself enveloped in its warm embrace.
"I-Ichigo¡ rx¡ rx a little¡"
His plea fell on deaf ears, and as if to make things worse he felt the grip tighten even more almost causing him to climax. The Valkyrie under him was stiff as she experienced her first orgasm, her behind slightly raised as her back bent. They were only just starting but she went and finished on her own. It was a shameful experience, but even through the pain Ichigo felt the indescribable bliss of having be one with the man she admires.
After a while her shoulders began moving rhythmically and she gazed up, her eyes moist with tears. She could tell the pain was fading, however that was just because they had yet to make a move. ording to the others who already had their first time with the Doctor it was likely that it would still linger for sometime, however Ichigo found herself not hating the pain as much as she thought she would.
Just as those thoughts ran through her mind, the throbbing penis slowly retracted, once again stimting her folds.
Whatever she expected was far from what happened next. There was the sound of a wet p and her head jerked up, everything going white for a single moment.
"Ah¡"
A secondter the penis retracted again, and before she could think of anything it was thrust into her once more, going all the way to her womb in a single motion. Her round behind trembled from the force of the hit ttening against the man''s waist.
"Ghahh!... this is¡ too good¡" a groan escaped Sam as he took in the wave of pleasure that washed over him.
He was exhausted, having barely had any rest since the start of their battle against the Olympians. The stress has built up quite a bit. He had it suppressed the entire time so he wouldn''t break down, but now that he let go of the control so he could enjoy his fun with the pink haired Valkyrie, holding back fell off the table.
His hips moved on their own entering a piston like loop of thrusting deep before backing away then thrusting again. Wet squishy sounds apanied each motion as Sam''s fat cock continued ravaging Ichigo''s insides. She wanted to scream and tell him to stop, but with each passing second the roughness with which he handled her became a source of pleasure quickly pushing her toward another orgasm.
"Mmnaah~?!! Ahh~?¡. Nhaahh~?¡ ah~?¡ ahh~?¡ahhn~?¡."
Before she knew it the pain was gone. All that was left was the continuous waves of pleasure and the joy of being with that man. Her body continued heating up and something umted below her belly searching for an exit.
Each time Sam moved back he felt his rod drawn back in. The tight folds followed his motion massaging it as if trying to draw out his seed.
Sam held back his own orgasm and plow his dick into his new Personal Valkyrie''s wet pussy as deep as he could.
"Ahh ah aaaaaaahhhhhhh~?!!!"
With his body pressed firmly against hers, Sam came deep inside Ichigo. His hot sticky cum came out pouring directly into her artificial womb.
"aaaAAAAAAHHHHHHHH~???!!!"
Ichigo yelled out in ecstasy as he released his seed into her, epting every drop of it. Her pussy quivered and moved as if it were alive, soaking up all of his cum like a thirsty beast.
The two of them had climaxed at the same time, though the Valkyrie experienced multiple orgasms as the man''s thick cum flowed into her, filling her bosom with a sense of joy that surpassed what she felt the first time they kissed.
"Hahh¡ mm¡ hah¡ hahh¡"
It was her first time and with how good it felt she was sure she would never forget it, but what about the Doctor? He has already done it with other Valkyries before, was this experience as special to him as it was to her?
Anxious about her partner, the pink haired Valkyrie turned to look at him but instead found her lips connected to his.
"Your pussy was so good, Ichigo." Sam said with a smile.
Off course he didn''t mean just her pussy. Her whole body was a treat, and her moaning voice delighted his ears making him wish to hear it more and more. His cock slid out of her with a sticky, messy squish. Her pussy was covered in his cum and quivered as gobs of it came pouring out of her open hole.
"How was it?" He asked, caressing her massive rear buns. The slightest touch caused her honeypot to start squirting and cum mixed with her love juices flowed out. "Maybe you enjoyed it a bit too much?"
His teasing tone caused Ichigo to blush and she buried her face in the pillow from the embarrassment.
"There is nothing to be ashamed of. Isn''t this what you wanted all along?"
"N-no¡ I¡"
Leaning over her body once more, Sam whispered in her ear.
"With this you are my personal Valkyrie. We will be doing it frequently from now on. Aren''t you happy?"
Ichigo remained silent for a while, but then she raised her head and spoke in a low voice.
"I¡ I''m happy¡" she said before the embarrassment took over her once more and she hid her face.
"I see¡" smiling at the adorable disy, Sam kissed her on the head before rising up. "Well then, are you ready for the second round?"
"Eh?"
Chapter 302 I’ll take it from here.
Chapter 302 I''ll take it from here.
Ichigo believed that everything was over after Sam came inside her womb for the first time, however she couldn''t be more wrong.
Their first night was a long one. Starved for sex, Sam continued relentlessly fucking her, releasing loads of cum into her pussy again and again. They did it on the bed, over the table, against the wall and in the shower. The pink haired Valkyrie was drunk on the pleasure by the third round and she quickly learned that she enjoyed having her breasts fondled while being mmed from behind.
She had several chances to practice her oral skills as well, getting to taste the thick semen whenever Sam asked for a blowjob. Their bodies allowed them to keep going without break, but unfortunately Sam''s reserves weren''t endless so he ended up shooting nks until he stopped to eat something and replenish on fluids.
It was quite the wild night and by the end of it Ichigo was unable to move. Her mind was exhausted and she was in no state to do her guard job that day. Unfortunately for Sam his free time ran out before he could get any rest.
"Mnmm¡ Doc¡Tor¡?"
Sensing him leave the bed, the exhausted Ichigo slowly pushed herself up.
"It''s okay." Sam said, gently patting her head. "You stay here and rest."
"But¡ what about¡ guard¡ duty¡"
"I''ll get someone to stand in for you. You''ve done more than enough for today."
It was doubtful whether the pink haired Valkyrie would be able to handle the awkwardness that followed having her first time so for now it was better for her to keep some distance.
"O~~~kay¡"
Ichigo let out a long sigh then plopped down on the bed, her soft breath following as she went into deep slumber. Watching her sleep blissfully on his bed, Sam brushed aside a few strands of her silky hair, taking a good look at her gorgeous features. Another Valkyrie has voiced her admiration for him, leading to a long thrilling night. Remembering the look in her eyes as the two of them made love, he was suddenly ovee with determination, pushing aside all negative thoughts as he promised himself that he would live up to the expectations ced on him by his new Personal Valkyrie.
Leaning down, he kissed her on the head then pulled the nket up to cover her. It was time for him to head to work so he took a quick shower and put on some fresh clothes, wore hisb coat and sses then headed for the door.
Waiting for him outside was Venti, the second Valkyrie who was supposed to guard him that day. As soon as sheid her eyes on him, a frown took over her face.
"What''s wrong?" Sam asked.
"Where is Ichigo?" The green haired Valkyrie asked. "She said she would be staying with you until our shift starts."
"Ah¡" turning around to nce inside his room, he then returned his gaze to her and said with a smile. "She''s resting. We¡ had somewhat of an active night."
"... I see." Venti sighed. "I guess that''s to be expected. She was looking forward to being your Personal Valkyrie."
"Is that so?" Sam began walking and Venti fell into her ce behind him. After a short moment of silence he nced over his shoulder and asked "What about you?"
"Hm?" She gave him a confused look.
"You knew what she intended on doing bying early. Didn''t it cross your mind to apany her?"
As soon as he turned away the Valkyrie staggered and almost fell.
"W-w-why would I do that?"
"We are going to be quite busy going forward, you know. It''ll be quite a while before you''ll have your chance, especially with Nine waiting for her turn."
Understanding what he meant only served to embarrass her more, however the Valkyrie caught herself and tried regaining herposure, quickly catching up with the Doctor and clearing her throat before speaking.
"I don''t know what you mean, Doctor. Did I ever say that I''m interested in being your Personal Valkyrie?"
"You don''t?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.
"You might find this unbelievable but not all of us want to engage in indecent acts with you, Doctor."
"Then why didn''t you decline to be my guard today? You could''ve asked Three or Five to take yource. Even Miku wouldn''t have minded to take on the role once again."
"Well¡"
Venti couldn''t find an answer. The truth was that she had no reason to take on the task, after all guarding the Doctor was a job for his personal Valkyries. The fact that she had agreed to do it spoke of her desires, however there was no way she would admit it.
"Are you sure it''s a good choice?"
Left with no other choice, she dodged his question with one of her own.
"Hm?"
"You have six Personal Valkyries and you''re barely able to make time for each of them yet you''re trying to make more?" She said. "To me it seems like you''re asking for trouble."
''And that''s without mentioning the previousmander, Elina, the Nephilim queen and Mj?lnir¡'' Suddenly Venti was ovee with the urge to sigh. ''Just how many partners does he n on having?''
Her eyes went down as she thought of how troublesome having to deal with so many lovers at the same time and because of that she ended up bumping into the Doctor who had stopped walking at some point. Looking up with a start she was about to take a step back but a hand ced on her back pulled her forward instead.
Finding herself looking into his eyes, the green haired Valkyrie felt her face heating up.
"You¡ aren''t wrong, Venti." He said with a smile. "We have a lot to do and I won''t be able to make time for all of you. But what about after?"
"Ah!!!" Venti let out a surprised gasp as she felt her buttocks get grabbed.
"Once everything is over and we can finally have some peace, I will have all the time in the world to enjoy yourpany."
"Hold¡ hyaahh!!! W-what are you doing!" She tried to push him away from her, but he refused to let go. "You have work to do, right? You aren''t supposed to be-hyaahh!!!"
"But I don''t want to work." Sam whispered into her ears. "I want to have some fun with Venti¡"
A shiver ran down her spine as his lips touched her neck and the waterways opened between her legs. For a moment she almost summoned her halo and teleported away, but thankfully she realized that wouldn''t do her any good with him holding on to her.
"Do~ctor~"
Suddenly a chilling cold filled the hallway and the two froze in their ce. Sam''s joints made a creaking sound as he turned to face the source of the voice, and once he saw the lightless blue eyes staring at him, he knew he had made a grave mistake.
"I thought you were too busy." Said Nine, her smile causing his bones to shiver. "But here you are having fun with other Valkyries."
"W-wait! Nine! This isn''t what it looks-"
Venti finally found the strength to push him away from her and she quickly backed away, feeling that her life was in danger.
"I see that you had quite a bit of free time," Approaching him in slow steps, the blond Valkyrie went on "You just didn''t have any for me."
"Nine I''m sorry I-"
Teleporting right in front of him, she ced a finger on his lips silencing him without much effort. Saying nothing, Nine looked Sam in the eyes then grabbed his arm, pulling him down into her embrace. In an instant Sam found his face buried into the Valkyrie''s ample bosom, and though his immediate reaction was to try and free himself, he soon learned that there was no such option.
"I''ll take it from here."
With the terrifying smile now directed at her, Venti seemed to turn blue as she quickly nodded her head showing that she had no intention of intervening. She knew that saying anything would''ve ended badly for her so she decided to just let the two of them deal with their problems.
"Fufufu¡"
With slightly reddened cheeks, Nine couldn''t help but giggle as she nced down at her beloved Doctor. A momentter she disappeared from the brightly lit hallway taking him with her.
"... Ah!" Realizing what had just happened, Venti gasped as her eyes went wide. "I¡ did I just fail?"
Her job was to guard the man yet she allowed some money to snatch him away right in front of her eyes. She failed at performing the most crucial task required of his Personal Valkyries, and consequently that could only lead to her being disqualified from joining their ranks.
"This¡ this can''t be¡"
Knowing there was nothing she could do about it, the green haired Valkyrie hung her head as she heaved a long defeated sigh.
Chapter 303 Identity.
Chapter 303 Identity.
Somewhere in the multiverse¡
"This is¡ so bad¡"
Flipping through the pages of a small paperback, a disappointed sigh escaped the lone beauty. Light entered from the tall window reflecting on her long pure white hair giving it an ethereal glow. The light fabric of a ck dress clung gracefully to her slender frame as she stood in the soft radiance. Her piercing ruby eyes, framed by wisps of silver, held a depth that seemed to mirror the mysteries of the cosmos. Above her head, a crimson crown floated weightlessly. Its countless parts moved in perfect harmony formingplex shapes that intertwined with mesmerizing precision. The room hushed in awe as she exuded an otherworldly presence, a living portrait of elegance and grace.
The only blemish on this otherworldly scene was the book''s title, written on its cover inrge bold letters; Valkyrie Smash.
The book was mediocre to say the least. The title caught her eye as she looked for something to pass time, mainly because it felt out of ce among the luggage herpanion brought from their previous world. As she read through the story, she came to learn that it was nothing more than the perverted delusions of a hormone driven teenager, or maybe the lustful desires of a grown man with no literature skills.
The plot is very simple; a soldier who works in a Resistance base finds himself getting close to the Valkyrie by pure coincidence. From there on he starts to have many sexual encounters with them, finally getting to satisfy his boundless sexual appetite.
"This sounds exactly like Sam¡" she muttered with a smile only for it to fade the next second.
The image of her beloved childhood friend came to mind and the crown over her head faltered, shattering into tiny particles before fading away.
Another sigh escaped her and she closed the book.
"I see you''re doing pretty well."
The voice startled her and she whipped her head in its direction.
"Shizuru!?" Her voice was full of surprise. "Wee back."
"I''m back, Alice." The Asian girl said as she stepped inside the room. "Did you miss me?"
"The children are getting out of hand." Ignoring her question, the white haired beauty pulled out aint. "Erza and Lucy have been fighting nonstop, and Noelle has been sneaking into the city every day!"
"Ooh, I see they''re growing. Maybe it''s time to adjust their bodies?"
"And a few years in that VR world!"
With Freyja giving birth to more and more of her children, Loki''s n to create a new race was slowly moving ahead. With the stolen equipment she brought with her she was able to build a new Asgard for the children to train and grow, but its capabilities were limited so some were instead given physical bodies and allowed to roam the real world. That said, allowing a bunch of kids capable of destroying entire worlds to roam around unchecked wasn''t good for anyone''s mental health. As the one responsible for looking after them, Alice was way too stressed out.
Ignoring herints, the Asian girl looked down at the stack of books then ced her hand on a particr paperback, a smile tugging on her lips as she saw the title.
"I saw Doctor the other day."
Her words cut away at the white haired beauty''s frustration and the mood in the room changed.
"Sam¡?" Alice moved her lips, her eyes widening gradually as she understood what her friend had just said. "He''s¡ alive¡?"
"Apparently." Loki picked up the volume and flipped through its pages. "From the looks of it he managed to create the ASC in time. Probably had some help from Heilung."
"Father too!?"
Alice''s surprise was understandable, considering the situation in which she left her world. Her mind was in shambles after learning the reality of her existence and it was only after she left with Loki that she realized the cruelty of her decision. Unfortunately, her only choice was to live with the decision she made. She couldn''t just return to the forty sixth base and expect a warm wee. Not when she knew her entire life was nothing but a lie.
Before she realized it, tears began flowing down her cheeks. Her knees gave up the next moment and she fell to the floor, holding a hand to her mouth as she sobbed quietly.
Loki told her everything she had learned from the long trip she had taken. The Asian girl was able to learn quite a few things during the chaos, though she didn''t need to make that much effort to learn what Sam nned on doing.
"He''s teaming up with the Nephilim¡" Alice muttered.
"Well, with less than two hundred Valkyries at hismand he doesn''t have much of a choice." Said Loki. "He has acquired a key as well. That should keep him busy for the time being."
When Alice didn''t offer a reply, her friend raised an eyebrow and asked "Do you want to go see him?"
Still no reply. Alice stared at her hands for a while, not knowing what she should think of the news. Knowing that he was alive was more than enough for her. Even though she felt an unbearable longing for the man, she didn''t know if going back was the right thing to do, not that the Asian girl would allow her to go just like that.
"Of course I do." She replied, looking into her friend''s eyes. "Don''t you?"
Loki let her smile turn to a mischievous grin.
"From what I''ve seen, he has gotten quite the upgrade." She said. "It''s nine inches long now."
Alice didn''t get it at first, but then her face flushed red.
"N-n-nine inches!!?" She eximed.
"Yup. And his harem keeps expanding." Heaving a sigh, Loki shook her head. "To think he''s been having fun with other women when we are dying from loneliness. Oh how I wish he would ravage me once again."
"Nine inches¡"
"Unfortunately, unlike you, I doubt he''ll ever give me a second chance." Heaving a sigh, the Asian girl leaned back in her chair. "Well, it''s the necessary price I guess."
Alice came back to her senses and her head quickly cooled down. Though their reasons differed, neither of them could reim their old lives. The Asian girl was still a mystery. Even after everything they had gone through since they left their original world, Alice couldn''t tell if she knew her that well. One thing she made clear was that her feelings for Sam were true. Despite all the tricks, deception and betrayal, the love Shizuru felt toward that man was real, and it was the only thing Alice felt was real about herself as well.
"If¡" she spoke, her eyes slowly descending. "If we obtain the Keys and¡ and reach that ce. Would things really be able to¡"
She couldn''t bring herself to finish the question, after all she had no idea what she was trying to achieve. Did she wish for things to be back to normal? To forget about the truth and continue to live as a human, unaware that she was a fake?
"Alice..." Loki spoke, her eyes taking on a sharpness that was uncharacteristic of her usual kind front. "You abandoned any chance of a normal life the moment you decided toe with me. There is no going back now, and even if we reach Akasha, you will never be able to wish for something like that."
Alice knew. She understood. It was easy to wish for something, but when presented with the chance to turn that wish into reality, it was doubtful whether she could bring herself to make that choice. Wishing for a normal life would be the epitome of selfishness. For that wish to be real, she would have to trample on the lives of others, erase their choices and decisions, and rewrite everything to match her vision.
More than that, she didn''t know what a normal life would be for her. The Alice Schneider everyone knew was nothing but a fake, a vessel for her father''s desire to see his daughter grow. The life she has lived so far doesn''t belong to her but to the child whose memories were imnted to her. With that in mind, could she say that any of the experiences she has gone through were hers?
No matter how much she desired it, the only choice she had was to move forward. She has to make her own choices, live her own life, and once that happens, once she has her own identity, only then would she know for sure whether her existence meant something.
"I know." She said eventually, raising her gaze to look at the woman sitting across from her. "That''s why I made that choice."
"Good." Picking up the paperback, Loki smiled as she showed her the title. "Now, how about I tell you more about our nature?"
Chapter 304 I will definitely hunt you.
Chapter 304 I will definitely hunt you.
A loud bang resounded following the closure of arge double gate. Standing in front of it was a young woman with long lime green hair, her head lowered as she clenched her fists letting anger slowly take over her.
"Haaa~ now that was interesting!!!"
The cheerful exmation of the clown by her side was like a jab to her stomach.
"Pheme, I am not in the mood for your shenanigans."
Sensing the hostility in the air, the other Olympians quickly dispersed, not wanting to deal with the headache.
"I do not care!" Pheme replies as she twirles on the tips of her feet. After a moment she came to a stop and turned to Artemis, grinning from ear to ear. "What made you think Atropos would just stand there and let you kill her sister?"
Artemis gritted her teeth.
"That wasn''t Lachesis." She said. "You were there when we cremated her body."
"Well she could use the artifact, Right? And besides, do you think Atropos would take the hit for a fake?"
Obviously, Artemis herself didn''t believe that. Until the arrow pierced the heart of her ally, she didn''t have a single doubt about the enemy being a fake.
"Well, this isn''t the first time your ideals blew up in your face, isn''t it?" Pheme went on, rubbing salt on the freshly reopened wound. "You lost a lot of your subordinates, your brother and almost got yourself killed. All because you wanted to preserve the enemies'' chastity."
"You think I care what you or anyone else think?"
"No no, don''t get me wrong! I''m actually impressed by your dedication." Pheme shrugged. "To think you would still act the same after what happened with that Pendragon brat. Oh! Wasn''t that battle the one where Lachesis died? What a coincidence! Well, at the very least you weren''t the one who killed her."
Artemis summoned her halo and vanished. It was the only choice she had with the anger boiling inside her, otherwise she would''ve done something she would regret if Pheme continued poking her.
The Nephilim world was infested by the Fallen forcing her allies to retreat before retrieving the Key. Zeus didn''t seem to care as much about it as he did about Atropos'' death and because of that she earned not only his scrutiny but that of the other faction leaders. Even with most of her people banished to Fallen Worlds, the raven haired stubborn woman was still a powerful warrior that had the respect of many and had quite a bit of influence.
''Those Nephilim¡''
From the very start, the campaign itself was quite suspicious, which is why it was given to Atropos. It wasn''t that often that onees across an already destroyed world that has yet to be infested with Madness. Even the humans from the lowest of lower realms would find a way to keep them far from extinction so if one wants to harvest Aether for the ritual then it has to be deliberate. Wiping out the vast majority of the dimension''s sentient species without attempting to hold the Ritual¡
''Was it a trap after all¡?''
The huntress wasn''t the first to reach that conclusion, however just like the others she had no clue on who set it up. Perseus, the one who first discovered the world, was now dead and with him went the secret of how he did it. Looking at the circumstances behind his death makes it clear that he was silenced by someone, most likely whoever guided him to that world in the first ce.
"Wee back, mdy."
Snapping back to reality, Artemis realized that she had been standing in the garden at the center of her castle for quite a while after teleporting there.
"Anta¡" ncing behind her, she let out a long sigh and then smiled weakly. "I''m back."
Standing behind her was a woman dressed in a ck and white maid uniform. Seeing her one would think she''s one of the many servants tending to the castle, however the truth was that she was a high ranking officer tasked with running Artemis'' domain while she was away, which made her hobby of dressing in maid uniforms sound quite weird.
As the two made their way inside Artemis began with the obvious question.
"Did something happen while I''m gone?"
Anta was silent for a few seconds which was in itself an answer.
"Some of the apprentices¡ aren''t so happy about the new recruit." She heaved a sigh and then continued. "The councilors are asking for the Scissors to be confiscated from him as well."
"Karim, huh¡"
Artemis immediately understood who she was referring to and could only grit her teeth at his mention. With both Atropos and Apollo gone what remained of their Forces was absorbed into hers, leaving her responsible for everything that happened in the Nephilim world. One of those responsibilities was a human survivor from that world. The boy showed great potential, having mastered the Runes for flight and teleportation as well as spatial distortions and ck hole creation. He also managed to survive against the brainwashed Nephilim queen despite having nobat experience and that alone earned him an audience with Zeus who epted him among their ranks and put him in Artemis'' care.
The problem was, not everyone liked the boy. He betrayed his own people to join the other side, and he used the chaos created by the Fallen invasion to steal Atropos'' artifact, something that left a very bad taste in Artemis'' mouth.
"Forget about him." She said eventually. "My concern is those so called Nephilim."
ording to the intelligence gathered by Perseus the Nephilim had two worlds under their control, the second being where they first met Lachesis'' clone. Right after the Ritual concluded, the enemy used the portal in the pce to summon reinforcements from the second world and presumably escaped through it taking the Key with them.
"Unfortunately, Zeus has ordered us to leave them be for the time being."
Artemis could only sigh, rubbing her temples as she recalled the conclusion of their meeting. With the enemy having Lachesis'' Needle they''re able to peek at the Tapestry of Fate, giving them the advantage in a defensive battle. They had proven themselves to be much more capable for a mere lower realm, and with how many wars Zeus was waging simultaneously, the majority agreed to leave them be for the time being.
"I have no choice but to wait¡"
Having experienced such a humiliating loss Artemis was rearing to go and get her revenge, but with clear orders to stand down she had no choice but to restrain her anger and wait. Unfortunately, the harder she tried to do so the more difficult it became. The dread of the sabertooth staring down at her was still fresh in her mind, keeping her awake at night. It was a humbling experience, forcing her to remember that no matter how high the realm she belonged to was, there were still some out there capable of dragging them through the mud.
''Just you wait¡'' she thought, a faint glint in her eyes. ''I will definitely hunt you¡''
Chapter 305 Exhausted.
Chapter 305 Exhausted.
"I-I''m back¡"
As soon as she announced her return, Ichigo was stunned by the silence that suddenly took over the living room following every pair of eyes turning in her direction. For a moment she considered escaping, but before she could her arms were grabbed and she was dragged to the sofa, forced to sit at the center as questions began falling on her one after the other.
The Valkyries were eager to know the details of their friend''s first night shift, and though it was quite embarrassing, Ichigo did her best to answer, a bashful smile on her lips the whole time.
The living room was filled with delighted squeals as the Valkyries continued to probe for details, however not all of them were in a good mood. Sitting at the table near one of the corners, Miku listened to the conversations with her back turned to the others. Her brows would twitch every now and then, but she didn''t her best to hide her anger not wanting to spoil the mood.
Sipping from the steaming cup in her hands she heaved a sigh with the one sitting beside her doing the same as if they were in sync. Venti was in a simrly bad mood and the cause was the same as Miku''s. They nced at each other for a moment only to sigh again.
Though she understood that the Doctor was the only one who decides who gets to sleep with him, Miku was still angry that he didn''t invite her to spend the night with him after she guarded him for three days. As if that wasn''t enough, he went and used the free time he had to make another Personal Valkyrie. She was happy for her pink haired friend, having always been proud of her desire to serve the Doctor, but she couldn''t help the jealousy festering in her chest, especially after hearing what Nine did.
"Maybe I should try and be a little more aggressive¡" she muttered to herself. A momentter she noticed Venti''s gaze. "What?"
"Nothing."
With the Doctor disappearing alongside Nine Venti had no choice but to return to the residence, and to avoid the nagging she was sure woulde from the others she went to her room and stayed there for quite a while. As she thought about everything that happened, her anger slowly built up. With how things were going it looked like she was next after Ichigo, but the blonde one appeared and snatched the man away spilling cold water on her expectations. Only then did she realize she was expecting something.
Venti was angry at Nine for ruining things for her, but more than that she was angry at herself for getting excited by what happened in that hallway. As her mind kept going back to it despite her best attempts to forget, she ended up touching herself to relieve some of the frustration, but that only helped stack more shame on top of everything bothering her.
"I can''t believe they''re still at it¡" shemented after a while.
"That''s Doctor for you." Miku said, following with a sigh. "A strong appetite is required for a harem protagonist."
The day was nearing its end yet those two had yet to give it a break. CS came out from the gym with Zero Five following after her. They were surprised to see that Ichigo had returned, but soon they were looking up with a grimace on their faces as if asking whether their blonde friend was still at it.
The rooms in the residence had good sound blocking, but not a perfect one. If they were to focus they could hear the rhythmic pping of wet flesh, the moans and the delighted screams, however none of the Valkyries wished to do so, having concluded that eavesdropping could be considered the same as peeping. That said, every now and then they checked to see if it was over, and from the look on CS and Five''s face it apparently wasn''t. The Valkyries chatted for a while then had their dinner. For a while they believed that it wouldn''t be over even after they went to bed, but as they sat around watching TV and ying among themselves they all heard a door on the second floor open, freezing all of their movements.
As the sound of footsteps gradually approached the staircase, all eyes turned in its direction, everyone holding their breaths and waiting.
A few secondster the familiarb coat came into sight, but seeing the expression on its wearer they all kept their mouths shut and spoke no words.
Sam was spent. His artificial body wasn''t supposed to tire like that of a normal human, however emted the mental exhaustion he was feeling, leaving him unable to stand straight with hollowed cheeks and dark circles around his eyes. His hair was disheveled and so were his clothes. It was clear that he didn''t bother to tidy himself beforeing out, but as he looked around the room they all realized keeping their mouths shut was the right choice all along.
"CS, Trenta, you''ll be on guard duty from now on." He said, his voice telling of how exhausted he was.
None of his Personal Valkyries objected, even those who were looking forward to going back to their job. It was a bit frustrating, but none had the courage to object to his decision. That said, they were all looking forward to taking their anger on the blonde Valkyrie.
~[]~
"Haaaa¡"
After taking a long shower, Sam went back to theb and threw himself on his chair, leaning on its back with the towel covering his face.
He was exhausted. Exhausted to the point that he decided to put off any sexual encounters for quite a while. Nine had drained him to the point that he started thinking he would''ve been dead if he was still a normal human.
He thought she would calm down after a couple of rounds, however that didn''t work and she kept asking for more and more, refusing to remove the barrier she ced around her room until he gave her what she wanted.
At first he still had some vigor left after his night with Ichigo, but by the time it was over he felt that his lust for the Valkyries waspletely satiated. Thanks to that he would be able to concentrate on his work for at least a couple of weeks, however that didn''t excuse what the blond Valkyrie did.
"Guess she needs to be punished¡ again¡"
He quickly shook the idea out of his head, seeing that the punishment was what put her in that state in the first ce. Nine has been holding back for months. With how strong her libido is, it must''ve been torture to see him have his way with other Valkyries as she waited for her turn.
After giving it some thought he gave in and just decided to me himself for what happened. Depending on how much remorse his blonde lover shows for her actions, he would choose whether to forgive her or not, but for the time being he needed to think of a way to make sure it doesn''t happen again.
"Maybe it''s time to decide on a rotation¡"
With how busy things are he believed that he would have no time for his Valkyries, but after this incident with Nine he began to think that it might be better to put aside a few hours to tend to them. His desires might''ve been satisfied for the time being, but the same didn''t go for Five and the others and he didn''t want to go through that experience again.
He also needed to make time for himself to get some rest. He might not need as much sleep as a normal human, but something told him that staying awake for too long would allow Madness to infest him even if the Primordials couldn''t reach his mind.
Neither Wolf nor nor were in theb. The female scientist was presumably resting, as for the old man thest time they talked he said he would be working on the new Bifrost. Sam felt bad for leaving things to them while he wasted time, however he couldn''t stop himself from passing out as soon as he gotfortable.
''Smoke¡?''
His eyes fluttered open soon after his nose caught the stench. He grabbed the towel covering his face, his movements rather sluggish as he straightened himself, the slight pain in his joints reminding him of the many sleepless nights.
Everything was blurry for a while, but the stench of smoke kept getting stronger and the temperature was rising as a bright light slowly painted his surroundings with an orange color.
Before the panic set in he quickly locked his emotions away and stood up. Everything became clear the next second.
Sam calmly studied his surroundings. He was surrounded by fire and rubble. The ground rumbled slightly every few seconds. He raised his head and saw the blood red sky with the clouds themselves had taken the color, divided by the flowing streams of charcoal ck smoke.
Beams of light shed above himing and going from different directions followed by deafening explosions somewhere in the distance. Buildings slowly copsed unable to hold themselves together and the ground parted every few meters swallowing everything unfortunate enough to be near the cracks.
A head splitting pain began pulsating through his skull as he listened to the distant screams and wails. Even so, Sam continued looking around with an unchanging expression taking in the apocalyptic sights as if calmly studying the cause behind them.
His concentration faltered for a moment as a vast shadow fell on his surroundings prompting him to raise his head. Looking down at him were a number of gigantic eyes each one like arge pond filled with nothing but corrupted ck mud. The sky became a ripped curtain as long lumps of disgusting old flesh extended slowly reaching down toward him. As he stood still in the same spot gazing at the horrifying scenery, Sam heaved a sigh and closed his eyes.
"A dream, huh?"
Opening his eyes once more, he was met with the familiar ceiling of his dimly lit undergroundb. The towel covering his face had fallen at some point but from the looks of it he wasn''t asleep for long
"Maybe I really am exhausted¡"
He was about to heave a sigh but at that moment something rushed up from the depth of his stomach, racing all the way to his throat causing his cheeks to bulge. Having already lost control he leaned forward and allowed all of it to spill out, a nauseating sensation apanying it as he unloaded the contents of his stomach.
"Damn it¡"
Throwing up was thest thing he expected now that his body was no longer a sack of meat, but maybe it was a good thing, a reminder that he was still a human despite everything that he went through.
Leaning back in his seat, he began to ponder how locking away his emotions didn''t get erased. It was a good way to prevent them from hindering him during sensitive situations, but the longer she suppresses them the more severe the blowback would be.
"I¡ might need a therapist¡" he muttered, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.
Sam grabbed his sses and began busying himself hoping to forget about the nightmare he just had. Just as the cleaning drone came out to deal with the mess he made, his eyes glimpsed something drawing his attention to one of the terminals.
"This is¡"
His eyes narrowed as soon as he realized it was the results of the analysis of the readings they gathered from observing the Key for the past three days. Its rtion with human souls was quite suspicious so, even though Atropos confirmed that it was nothing more than a high grade artifact, Sam and the other scientists were still adamant about studying it as much as they could if only to satisfy their curiosity. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary just like before, but as he looked at the readings he began to notice that the supposedly constant patterns created by the Aether were changing randomly at times, something that shouldn''t be possible without outside influence.
The key has been ced on its own floor and istedpletely and there was no sign of anyone messing around with it since it was sealed.
Sam was quite confused by the results of the analysis, a suffocating sense of dread wing at his chest as he considered the potential danger that might''ve sneaked its way past their defenses. Not wanting to cause chaos by triggering a false rm, he forced himself to swallow his worries and sat down, his eyes studying the readings once more hoping to understand what was happening with the glowing orb filled to the brim with countless souls.
Chapter 306 Tyrant.
Chapter 306 Tyrant.
The Cmities were gone and the world finally seemed to enter a period of peace. Just as Nathaniel Carter, previously Command of the twenty seventh Resistance base, began to have such thoughts, the clear blue sky was suddenly painted red casting a dreadful glint on the surroundingnds.
He took the day off to oversee the construction of the city that would take his name. Now that thends have been cleansed of the red paint he had to be quick and establish his domain before any of the others expanded theirs. The borders of the old world were gone and new ones must be created. For the time being everyone agreed to leave the two Americas alone, but once the new nations had formed and the Resistance disintegrated a new war would start, one to decide who gets to keep the two continents.
Unfortunately it appears they didn''t have the luxury to fight against each other. Not yet, at least.
As the head of the new Resistance council General Carter was quick to contact the forty sixth base demanding an exnation for what was happening. He was already used to a Valkyrie being the one to answer his calls, but he still couldn''t wrap his head around how General Sanderson gave such a responsibility to an autonomous weapon. He was aware that nearly all human soldiers had been relocated to other bases leaving the Valkyries to run the forty sixth base, but with how busy he was it was only recently that he began to question if gathering all of humanity''s most powerful weapons in a single base was a good idea.
Learning that the red sky was just the result of a global scale anti-inter-dimensional travel barrier put his mind at ease if only for a moment. Humanity was brought to its knees by an enemy from another dimension and there were the intruders from a couple of weeks ago so it was best if they had something to prevent anyone else from invading them once again.
Panic spread through the surviving settlements like wildfire and an announcement had to be made to quench the chaos. Still, it took five whole days before the Resistance received news from the forty sixth base.
Carter was on the verge of sending envoys to demand answers. The fact that they had very little info on what was happening there was starting to bother him, but fortunately General Sanderson summoned the council for a meeting to address their concerns.
Since the end of the war several alliances were made between the surviving bases leading to six factions forming, seven including the forty sixth base. Each faction was led by a single General so it was rather strange to see nine seats on the council table, which was only the start of the bizarre urrences.
General Sam Sanderson was thest to arrive, same as theirst meeting. Everyone expected him to show up with a couple of Valkyries as well but seeing that the number had increased to five gave them a bad premonition. There were also a few new faces, clearly human, but the generals didn''t pay them much mind as they were captivated by the beauty of the crimson haired Valkyrie.
To their surprise General Sanderson introduced her as Thor, the current Nephilim queen. All of them knew that he was in contact with her as he handled the negotiations with the Nephilim, however the idea that they might end up meeting her so soon never crossed their minds. Apanying her was Mimir, her adviser and Mj?lnir, a bodyguard.
General Sanderson introduced the other participants next; Kam Mabaso and her assistant Sipho Nkosi, who were representatives of the human refugees that were relocated to their world recently.
Again and again the man wearing ab coat kept adding to the pile of confusion pressing on the Generals'' minds, however their only choice was to wait and hope for an exnation, knowing that asking questions would just worsen their mental health.
What followed next were the most stress inducing hours the six Generals had to live through, surpassed only by what they experienced when the Cmities first invaded.
They were informed about the Olympians, the Primordials, the Fallen and Madness, the Keys and Akasha.
There was way too much for them to take in. The horrors depicted in the footage shown to them were difficult to believe, like overdone visual effects in those superhero movies from back in the day. Unfortunately, having lived through the decade long war, the six Generals knew there was no hope of them waking up to learn that it was all just a sickening nightmare.
The Nephilim world has experienced another catastrophe after everything Odin has done forcing them to flee to another world. It didn''t seem like they had any hope of reiming their world so for the time being they were going to stay. Everyone understood that there was nothing to be done about it, but Carter wasn''t too happy with that decision.
He didn''t like how Sam Sanderson kept making decisions for them ever since he earned his title as humanity''s savior. Even if it were all just a misunderstanding, the Nephilim were the enemy that almost erased humanity from the face of Earth. They were powerful entities that could eradicate the surviving poption in a single day so if they wanted to they could just take over the world.
History has shown that people don''t really get along with foreignersing into theirnds uninvited. If things go wrong humanity could have another war on their hands.
Technology speaking, they were already at war with the Olympians so having the Nephilim as their allies was reassuring, but just as General Carter began debating how he should go about strengthening his rtionship with them, seeing that he was currently the highest authority in the resistance, Sam Sanderson made an announcement that shocked everyone in the room.
Without wavering even a bit he informed them that he would be taking over. Their world was being forced into a conflict muchrger than any of them could fathom so, to ensure their survival, he needed to take hold of the reigns andmand their forces himself without having to answer to any of them.
It was then that they all realized how much they''d messed up. He had yed them for fools, tricking them into fighting each other and making them believe that the war was over. While they were busy dividing the world among themselves and trying to build their empires, he was setting things up for when it was time for him to take hold of the steering wheel, gathering the Valkyries under hismand and forming an alliance with the Nephilim, gaining enough power to make any resistance futile.
The situation waspletely hopeless. Greed had blinded them leading a single man to im all that power for himself, leaving them with no choice but to follow hismand. Some were relieved, having surrendered the idea of involving themselves in whatever mess was ahead of them. Carter wasn''t thrilled, however. Though he kept his mouth shut in the presence of the mad scientist and his Valkyries, in his mind he refused to ept defeat and resign himself to fate.
Chapter 307 Plans and preparations.
Chapter 307 ns and preparations.
The council meeting came to an end and Sam returned to hisb, leaning back into his seat and heaving a long tired sigh. Wolf and Elina looked at each other in silence, the female scientist''s brows furrowed by the uneasiness weighing down on her. Her eyes seemed to pleading him to do something so after a while the old man let out a resigned sigh and asked.
"How did it go?"
There was no answer at first.
"Well, it''s too early to tell."
It was quite a surprise when Sam told them his n of taking control over what was left of humanity. They were sure he wasn''t the power hungry kind and he was always reluctant to climb the ranks as he hated the responsibilities that would be thrown at him, however a lot has changed during the week he spent in the Nephilim world.
Before he had no problem letting the other Generals do their thing while he chased after Loki, but after learning about the Primordials, the Fallen and the Awakened he simply couldn''t do that anymore.
"We will be holding the Ritual in a few days." He said. "Unlike those from the Sanctuary we still have a few million survivors. Even if only 50% of them are infested with Madness, they might end up pushing us closer to extinction."
Picking up her cup, the female scientist stared at her reflection in the dark liquid.
"It''s still difficult to believe." She said. "An ancient alien whispering something directly into people''s minds and driving them crazy, but some of them could learn magic because of that¡"
"ording to Atropos those under fifteen are less likely to contract Madness, though it''s not guaranteed that they Awakened. As for adults it''s only a question of when. We need to iste them inside a Purification barrier until we create the second Key."
Unlike what happened in the Nephilim world there was no need for the first few phases of the Ritual. They already had an Aether bait ready which means their dimension''s Primordial most likely picked up its pace since it was already on its way.
There was a very high likelihood that some had already started hearing the Whispers.
"Sam." Wolf held Sam with his eyes. "Do you n on making use of the children?"
An obvious question with an obvious answer.
"Not right away, of course." He answered. "It''ll take years of training to get them to a decent level."
Even if they were to count all of Freyja''s Children currently on their side, it was clear that they didn''t have anywhere near enough soldiers to carry them through the race. They had to find some way to increase their fighting potential, but unfortunately without the original Alice they couldn''t create more Valkyries and that leaves them with one choice.
It was for this reason that Sam had to step forward and take over leading the survivors. He couldn''t afford to allow humanity to go back to how things were so he''s attempting to gather all of them under one g. At the same time, he wanted to remove any hindrances that might arise in the future by bing the highest authority on their side. Trying to join an inter-dimensional war while still under the leadership of someone else was a recipe for disaster so it would be best for everyone if he could make the final decisions himself.
That said, it was easy to see that he was going down a very dangerous path.
"I know I don''t have the right to say this but¡ don''t you think you''re taking this too far?"
Sam turned to the old man with narrowed eyes.
"You''re correct." He said. "You really don''t have the right."
Sam was just a barely known scientist who rose to power recently. He didn''t have any political influence or support, and though his reputation as the one who led humans to victory might be of help, it was doubtful whether the idiots at the top would just move aside and hand him the power and control they imed for themselves.
Forcing his way to the top would without a doubt make him seem like the viin, and as history has shown humans don''t really like decorators. However he didn''t have the time to y politics when his enemies weren''t pulling any stops in this race.
He understood what Wolf was trying to say, however he wasn''t about to take his advice on the matter, not after he brainwashed the Valkyries into absolute obedience.
Sensing the rising tension Elina quickly searched for something to say.
"Still, don''t you think it''s a little inefficient?" She said. "Once you create the second Key there won''t be any way for us to create a new Awakened, right?"
She was addressing a very important point. The Olympians, despite being from a supposedly higher realm, had no way of forcing their soldiers to Awaken without a Primordial''s influence. Because of that they always bring mondaine soldiers with them whenever they invade a world in order to create a new Key. They also rely on the survivors of the worlds they destroy to increase their numbers, recruiting those that are left after the Ritual is done.
Once the Ritual is done and the second Key is created they would reach a standstill. Not only would they have to find other Primordials, they would also have to increase their poption.
"ording to Atropos¡" Sam paused for a moment, thinking it was a bit unsettling how Nino''s sister was their only source of information on the matter. "Having two Keys in one ce would be like lighting a beacon. While the anti-inter-dimensional barrier might stop Fallen worlds from invading ours, the same can''t be said about Primordials from other dimensions."
With the ability to move between ins of existence barriers meant nothing to the ancient entities. Once they sense the umted Aether it would be only a matter of time before a few would decide to pay them a visit.
"So the more Key we create the more of those Lovecraftian beings we invite?" Though she has already concluded that a while ago it didn''t stop the female scientist from feeling ufortable.
"Enemies as well," Wolf added. "I''m guessing yourpetition has some way of locating each other."
"The barrier might stop them from opening portals on the itself, but we can''t do anything about space." Sam took his sses off and massaged his temples, feeling a ghastly headache. "We have no choice but to fight off anyone who tries to invade, or we could try hiding it on other worlds."
Even Atropos'' ability Limited Rift is incapable of isting Aether. Their only option was to try and keep the concentration of the element to a minimum if only to buy time. The Olympians have dimensions designated specifically to store Keys, however they could afford to do so because they have the numbers.
"In the end we won''t get anywhere without increasing our numbers first."
Sam had an idea, however he was a bit hesitant to go ahead with it. For the time being he would have to deal with the Resistance as well as the Thor and the Nephilim. Once the Ritual ispleted and the second Key is created, only then would he give it a try.
Chapter 308 Spare me.
Chapter 308 Spare me.
With the war against the Nephiliming to an end there were no more Cmity attacks allowing humans to reim theirnds.
The red paint covering the lost territories was mostly dealt with, but with the process taking months autumn was already upon them bringing with it a change in color.
"Haaa~ finally done!"
Floating above the ruins of S?o Paulo in what was once known as Brazil, a certain Valkyrie rxed her shoulders and exhaled. At the same time arge translucent dome, one that covered several kilometers, began gradually shrinking until it was about her size beforetching on to her body like a thinyer of haze before fading away.
Gentle winds yed with her short blue hair as she stopped to gaze at her surroundings once more then heaved a sigh, her round blue eyes having lost their radiance. What was once a bustling city was rendered to nothing but rubble. Being in the southern American continent, it was one of the ces that were hit first leaving very little time for countermeasures or evacuations, not that any of that mattered.
Ten years have passed. Blood has been washed by the rain and the vegetation grew unhindered. Several species of animals have made their homes between the copsed buildings and empty skyscrapers. Despite it being the site of unfathomable destruction time has turned it into one of the most beautiful locations, a sight that calms the heart.
The Valkyrie stared down at it for a while, allowing herself to rx for a moment. She then closed her eyes, heaved a sigh and a momentter screamed at the top of her lungs.
"WHY AM I STUCK DOING THIS!!!"
Cleansers were rare among the Valkyries and their abilities were indispensable. They''re highly valued and never sent out inbat operations, meaning they have very little work to do. Even among them she was supposed to be a special case. She was supposed to be a celebrity, a figurehead whose job is to address the masses and help bridge the gap between Valkyries and humans. Unfortunately, ever since the Resistance headquarters fell she was dropped at a random military base.
"This sucks¡"
She expected to be summoned by the higher-ups after the war ended, but all she got was a mundane task unbefitting someone with her old status. Normally she wouldn''t have felt such overwhelming frustration toward her superiors, but something with the mental restraints ced on the Valkyries now gone there was nothing stopping her anger from boiling.
"Elly! Are you done as well!"
Teleporting a small distance away was another Cleanser stuck with the same job, though unlike her blue hairedrade she didn''t have the least bit of anger on her face.
"Yeah, I''m done." She replied, and another sigh escaped her. "Finally."
"That look¡ let me guess, you have yet to check the news?"
"Of course I did. There is no way I wouldn''t."
Eleven, or Elly as some of her friends like to call her, was well aware of the happenings back at their new home in the forty sixth base as she spent day after day glued to her phone waiting for another summon.
Just like everyone else she had received a brief summary informing them of General Sanderson''s return as well as exining why the sky had suddenly turned red. Unlike the others, however, she wasn''t the least bit happy about the news and that was clear to her friend.
"Still upset?" She asked.
"Does it look that way?" Eleven replied, the sarcasm in her voice very clear.
The second Valkyrie turned to the left, her hazel eyes catching sight of something in the distance. Realizing it was some of her friend''s drones she exhaled in relief, tugging a few strands of her light brown hair behind her ear as she resumed the conversation.
"I don''t really understand what''s bothering you." She said. "Our previous job was important, I get it, but we are the only ones who can handle this task. Clearing the red gue has always been our job after all."
The obvious statement earned her an annoyed gaze from her blue haired friend. Looking up at the now red sky, she couldn''t help but frown finding the color unnerving. She was used to the vast blue expanse of summer so the sudden change helped ruin her mood even more.
"You really don''t get it, Two, you really don''t."
"Well, you''re the only one who enjoyed the whole idol thing." The other replied. "I don''t mind not having to deal with humans. Just thinking about it makes my skin crawl."
When the Valkyries first appeared many were skeptical of their nature. Rumors spread among the surviving poption and some outright rejected their existence despite the help they provided. At the time the Valkyries didn''t think much about it, but now that they have be capable of thought it caused a grudge to slowly build up in their chests.
The ones most affected by this were the Valkyries chosen to be the public face of the Resistance. They were the ones who interacted with mundane humans the most and because of that they were exposed to their dark side. A lot of them came to hate the job, however Eleven seemed an exception.
"Alright, it''s time to go back."
Giving the ruins one more nce, the blue haired former idol took off, her friend following shortly after. They took it slow letting the drones catch up and after a few minutes they arrived at arge open area where arge airship was left.
"I see you took your sweet time." Waiting for them outside was yet another Cleanser, this one with curly light purple hair. "I clearly remember telling you to get back as soon as you''re done."
"Spare me your nagging, AK." Eleven sighed.
"Maybe I should''ve left without you." AK retorted.
"The ship doesn''t take off unless all drones are back."
"You shut up, Twenty Two! You werete as well!" AK shot back. "It''s our first break in weeks! I want to take a proper bath and sleep in my own bed!"
Going back and forth from the base would''ve been too much of a hustle so the three had to camp outside until they finished the job. The airship given to them had all the necessities they needed so their stay wasn''t that ufortable, however for the three celebrities who''ve lived in luxury ever since they left Asgard the cramped beds of the airship were nothing short of torture.
Fortunately with the General returning from his visit to the Nephilim world all Cleansers were summoned back to the base giving them a well needed rest.
"Something doesn''t feel right, though." Said Twenty Two. "I mean, whether the General returns or not it doesn''t really have anything to do with us, right?"
"Who cares about that! All that matters is that we can go back now! I don''t want to spend one more second in this deste hellscape!"
Though the other two felt the same, AK was much more vocal about her distaste for their current situation. The rooms assigned to them in the forty sixth base weren''t much whenpared to what they had before, but having a soft bed and some privacy was better than nothing so she was looking forward to going back.
"I just hope they don''t dump more work on us." Eleven added. "If we aren''t getting our old jobs back then I don''t want to do anything else."
Chapter 309 Inquiry.
Chapter 309 Inquiry.
The sixth day after the events in the Nephilim world. Following the council meeting, the list of things that needed taking care of kept growing and with the time constraint no one could afford to waste a second. That said, there were a few situations where slowing down was a necessity.
"You want us to lend you some Cleansers?" Thor lowered the steaming cup in her hand as she asked.
"Indeed." Sam nodded. "We are starting to receive reports about children showing the symptoms. It might be those who have strong telepathic perception but¡"
"You can''t take chances, huh¡"
Silence took over as the two sipped their tea. The meeting was scheduled by Sam to discuss a few things and request the Nephilim''s assistance, in addition to closing the gap between him and the scarlet queen. That is why despite how busy they were he made sure to prepare the best tea avable in the post-apocalyptic world and ordered high quality sweets hoping to leave an impression. He put some thought into the meeting ce as well. The small garden Nine created behind the residence was destroyed during the battle with Torso, however with some diligent effort she managed to grow it back. After the other Valkyries moved in some began helping take care of it and before long it expanded significantly bing the perfect ce for a romantic date.
Of course the topics of their discussion were more aligned toward politics so it wouldn''t be easy for him to earn enough points, however he had enough experience to know that the path to a maiden''s heart was long and each step toward it counts.
"I take it you inquired your fiance about the future."
Out of nowhere an insurmountable hurdle fell from the sky blocking his way. Sam nced at Mimir who was standing at the back and she quickly averted her gaze causing his smile to twitch.
"Indeed." Sam replied, pretending to not have noticed the coldness in the queen''s voice. Nothing he says could help him ovee the hurdle so he had no choice but to go on and hope he wouldn''t make things worse. "As you might have already guessed, things are going to be quite chaotic for a while."
Using her Needle, Nino checked the Tapestry of Fate to determine when the Primordial would show up. Unlike what happened in the other world there weren''t as many Paths that led to dead ends, at least not in the following weeks. Still, being careless wouldn''t do them any good so they were trying to ce themselves on the Path with the least amount of casualties by making the best preparations they could.
"The first Fallen will appear two days from now at the earliest." Sam recounted what the Japanese doll told him. "Fortunately it seems the human survivors won''t be directly targeted this time."
Their only experience with Primordials showed that the otherworldly abominations try to eliminate everyst sentient being on the before devouring the umted Aether. Atropos confirmed that fact so they anticipated a long battle, but turns out the Key drew all of the ancient being''s attention making the forty sixth base the only target.
''Not that it would leave them be if we failed...'' he thought.
The world already met the conditions for the Ritual making it a potential meal for the Primordial. If they fail and the Key is consumed, the likelihood of the abomination turning its eyes to the survivors is very high.
After a moment of thought Thor nced in Mimir''s direction and the green haired Nephilim gave her a court nod.
"General Sanderson." She said. "May I ask what the future holds for the humans of your world?"
Sam''s smile grew stiffer.
"Are you concerned about what they might do?"
"The way things y out will without a doubt affect our own future." She replied. "I imagine you want to keep us around as you need our assistance. But won''t that change once you obtain enough Awakened?"
Humanity''s rtionship with the Nephilim wasn''t exactly stable, considering all the massacres thettermitted on both worlds. It would be quite naive to think everyone would be on board with living and working alongside them, and though humans didn''t have much of a say in the matter right now, the same can''t be said for when they gain enough power to confront them.
Even if they managed to bury the history Sam doubted the animosity would disappear. Humans discriminate against each other on the most insignificant bases which make mixing them with beings like Freyja''s Children a recipe for disaster.
If one were to count both Valkyries and the Nephilim the number of Freyja''s Children wouldn''t even reach five thousand. Meanwhile there are about half a billion Cmity war survivors, a third of which are under fifteen. If even half of them Awakened and reached the same level as the Olympians, the first generation alone would be more than enough to overwhelm the girls.
Sam pondered his answers for a while. The truth was that the future didn''t look too well. A single Path has countless Divergences so the farther into the future one looks the more difficult it bes to determine how things would turn out, and that''s without considering the unseen oues Fate likes to conjure at thest moment.
Though Nino''s Needle might seem omniscient at first the truth is that it has too many limitations to influence events far into the future.
Sam''s actions in thest council meeting have ced them on the most optimal Path toward the goals he was trying to achieve. Most of the Divergences that involve the humans from their world can be dealt with simply by Sam not faltering in his decisions, but Nino didn''t seem to like it that much, saying that she didn''t need to look into the future to know what his dictatorial actions would lead to.
"Seeing that we med the entire war on Odin it won''t be too difficult to manipte public opinion into epting you among us." Sam eyed the crimson queen. "In my opinion it would be for the best if we attempt to merge our societies, but that''s not a decision for me to make on my own."
Chapter 310 Something in return.
Chapter 310 Something in return.
In many of the potential futures seen through the Needle, Nathaniel Carter manages to gain enough influence over the Awakened to form a separate faction, which leads to a bloody war with mostly dead ends as the conclusion. The same happens whether the humans and Nephilim remain homogeneous or unite under one g.
The Awakened were as much of a curse as they were a blessing. Previously Sam didn''t have to worry too much about bringing the Nephilim into his world but after everything he learned the consequences because a lot moreplicated.
"Merging societies, huh¡" Thor muttered, staring at her reflection in the clear surface of her drink. She seemed to ponder over his suggestion for a while, and though her expression hid it well, Sam could tell that she didn''t like it very much. "I doubt that it''s possible."
Sam raised an eyebrow.
"I''m aware it would be extremely difficult but¡"
"General Sanderson, I''m sure you''re aware that not everyone was opposed to my sister''s actions so far." The statement drew a reaction from Mimir who didn''t seem too pleased with her queen revealing something so sensitive. "I don''t want to admit it but¡ quite a few believe we were justified in our attempt to eradicate humans. The reasons might differ, but the conclusion is the same."
"... I see¡"
Of course, Sam was already aware of that much. Even if she''s their queen it was difficult to believe H would''ve gone ahead with her massacre if there was a significant opposition to it. One could argue that most Nephilim didn''t understand the repercussions of their actions since all of them were still children at the time, but now that they know most of them are reincarnations it could be said that their previous lives influenced their actions making them liable for what happened.
Either way, that would only mean the chasm between humans and Nephilim was much wider than one would think. It was easy to assume discrimination woulde from humans, but Freyja''s Children aren''t the innocent angels their appearance makes them out to be.
"If we attempt to force our worlds to merge it will only lead to catastrophe. One doesn''t need future sight to know that much." She added. "Still, it is undeniable that we need each other, and we might find ourselves in a position where we have to form alliances in order to achieve our goals. For the time being all we can do is try and work together. Of course all of that depends on whether our interests align or not."
Sam held back a sigh as he looked into the queen''s eyes and then nced at her consultant. He never expected it to be easy, of course. Though they didn''t have much experience when it came to dealing with politics the Nephilim weren''t about to fall in line easily. Mimir seems to be aware of his intentions of absorbing them into his forces and thus she has been taking the necessary precautions to ensure it doesn''t happen.
''And here I thought we were on the same page¡''
"Rescuing Alice is still our foremost priority." He said. "That isn''t going to change."
"I''m d." Thor replied. "Once our great sister is back with us, everything will fall in ce naturally."
Once again Sam found himself having to suppress his emotions, though this time he stered a polite smile on his face. Thankfully neither the queen nor her consultant asked the obvious question. With the power to see the future on their side it should''ve been easy to see how their quest would turn out. Theoretically, at least. Though she made an attempt, Nino was unable to find a Path that got them close to defeating Loki and rescuing Alice and Freyja.
It is for that reason Sam has been concerned about the humans Awakening. If they manage to get the original Alice back then they would have the option to create more Valkyries and make up for theirck of numbers. The fact that they didn''t do it meant they failed to attain their goal leaving them vulnerable to an uprising from the humans.
''How is she doing it¡''
After pondering over it again and again Sam began to suspect that Loki knew about the Needle and was actively taking measures to ensure her presence wasn''t detected in the potential futures. The Artifact shows the future through the user''s own point of view, which means unless the user is aware of something there is no way for their past self to see it.
It was another limitation of the Needle, one that could be exploited by the enemy to avoid falling victim to its incredible power.
''Things would''ve been much simpler if we didn''t have it.'' Sam thought, sighing on the inside. ''It does make a lot of things easier but¡ who could''ve guessed that knowing what the future holds was as stressful as being in the dark¡''
"As for your request." Thor''s voice severed his line of thought. "I do not mindnding you a few Cleansers, however I want something in return."
Sam smiled wryly.
"As long as it is within my power." He replied.
"North America." Just as Sam began to wonder what her payment would be, the Nephilim queen spoke in an even voice. "I want the continent of North America as our territory."
Sam could only stare back at her, his expression frozen. After a while he could no longer suppress the urge and a sigh escaped him. He picked up his cup and noticed that its contents had long since gone cold. He was at a loss for words trying toprehend what the queen was saying, but no matter what he did it failed to make sense to him.
"North America, huh¡" he muttered, his eyes meeting those of the woman sitting in front of him. "A piece ofnd no longer holds as much value now that we have ess to the multiverse. Wouldn''t it be much better if you were to find a new world to call your own?"
"That sounds great, but it won''t do." She replied. "For our alliance tost we need to ensure we''re nothing is hindering ourmunication."
Once again Sam found himself in deep thought. Several hypotheses formed in his mind and soon enough he had a guess as to what their objective was.
"I understand." He said eventually. "Unfortunately we would have to decide on another territory. As you might already know North America was the first ce to fall in the war. Now that it''s finally back in our hands I have no intention of giving it up."
None of the six Generals hadid their hands on the two Americas but that didn''t mean it was up for grabs. A memorial would be built to honor the victims of the long Cmity War and the location would be Syracuse, the ce where the first attack took ce as well as Sam''s hometown.
The Doctor has ns of his own for that region so he couldn''t just hand it over.
"... I see." Thor heaved a sigh. "We are in no rush to establish ourselves in this world. Once the Ritual is taken care of we can further discuss the topic."
"I''m d you understand, your highness." Wearing his usual smile, Sam felt a bit of relief as he responded to the crimson queen''s suggestion.
Still, one more thing was added to the pile of stuff he needed to worry about. He always knew the Nephilim were going to be a pain to deal with, however he failed to anticipate for their negotiations to turn in this direction.
The Nephilim world was infested by the Fallen and there was no hope of them reiming it. It was clear that he would have to put up with them until they found a different world to take as their own, but what he didn''t anticipate was that they would insist on staying in his world, probably to keep an eye on the humans in case they get ahead of themselves.
''Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer, huh¡''
Chapter 311 Playing God.
Chapter 311 ying God.
?Following his meeting with Thor Sam went back to his office and continued working on something else. Normally he would''ve liked to do everything in hisb, but today had to be different since he was awaiting a visit from a certain someone.
His phone lit up with a notification that the airne hadnded. A few minutester the door opened and a familiar face stood in front of his desk.
"Wee back, Lieutenant Ranford." He said with a smirk.
"It has been a while, Doctor." Melissa said. "Or should I say General?"
The red haired woman was Melissa Ranford, an old acquaintance of Sam''s, though that would be a stretch since it''s been only a few months since hest saw her.
"Doctor is fine." He replied. "I would rather my friends keep calling me that."
He had an inkling that she wouldn''t be happy to see him. Though she was promoted to a lieutenant because of him, in the end he was the one who sent her away along with the rest of the human soldiers.
"So we are friends now? Is that why you tossed me aside as soon as you were done creating heaven?"
"Hey now, I''m sure you know it''s way moreplicated than that." Sam paused for a moment. "... Heaven?"
Melissa raised an eyebrow, a hint of a smile appearing on her lips.
"You don''t know?"
"I think I have an idea but¡"
"You gathered all Valkyries in one ce. What else would you call it?" She shook her head slowly. "It has be a legend at this point. The promisednd everyone wants to reach. I''ve even heard of some that attempted the journey."
"That''s¡ pretty stupid¡"
"Thankfully they were all caught. Well, it''s not that easy to travel across the world nowadays."
As someone who understands the Valkyries'' appeal very well, Sam understood how others might feel about a ce where they''re all gathered. Heaven was indeed a suitable name. With so many angels gathered there any human would think it''s the final destination in their life.
"Heaven, huh¡"
After a few seconds of contemtion Sam smiled once more. He then turned to his guest and motioned for her to sit. Soon after the door opened and a young girl came in.
Melissa was doing her best to stay calm seeing the Valkyrie who escorted her to the General''s office, but when she saw the tray in her hands she couldn''t help being shocked. As the Valkyrie poured tea into one of the cups before cing it in front of her, Melissa kept ring at Sam refusing to believe he was making a Valkyrie do suck mundane jobs.
"Thank you, Nana. You may leave now."
"Understood."
The door closed and the two were once again alone. The red haired woman snapped almost immediately.
"What''s going on here!!?"
Sam sat on the opposite sofa then gave her a confused look.
"What?"
"You''re making a Valkyrie serve tea!!? What in the world is wrong with you!?"
"Calm down." He realized that telling her that was a big mistake. Women hated nothing more than to be told to calm down when they were angry. Fortunately it seems her attention was diverted back to the cup before she lost it. Apparently getting to drink tea brewed and served by a Valkyrie was too much to pass on. He watched as she swallowed her drool then reached for the cup with shaking hands, and after downing the first sip, a look of absolute bliss took over her face as she savored the taste.
"Enjoying your tea?" She probably would''ve liked to do so a little more but his voice brought her back to reality.
"You can''t begin to understand how envious I am right now." She took another sip and a blissful smile spread on her face. "You are here surrounded by angels and you get to enjoy this every day."
Her statement almost made him spit his drink. Though he had no reason to hide it anymore Sam wasn''t sure if it was alright to be open about his rtionship with the Valkyries. Who knows what an enthusiastic fan like Melissa would do if she were to learn that he was sleeping with them.
His worries were unnecessary. Without a warning Melissa''s tone changed dramatically and her eyes pierced him with a sharp gaze. The smile she wore was done and a serious expression took over her face alerting him to whatever she was about to say.
"Say, Doctor." She spoke. "Are you ying at being God?"
Sam looked back at her and remained calm. He took a sip of the fragrant brew then ced his cup down.
"Is that what you think I''m doing?"
"You surround yourself with angels and chase all humans away, creating Heaven where your rule is absolute. What words better describe your actions."
It was easy to see what she meant, even if it was nothing more than a conclusion fueled by the fantasies of some mundane soldiers. That said, there are no better words to describe what he was doing. Gathering the Valkyries, allying with the Nephilim, joining the race to Akasha. One could say that his objective was the same as Zeus and all other tyrants; to be a true god.
Still, even with all of that said and done, Sam still believed that he was doing the right thing. In the first ce he was an atheist, he didn''t believe in gods and thus didn''t believe it was possible to be one. In his opinion the race to Akasha was more of apetition for a super weapon. To protect those he cares about he was willing to do whatever it took to stop anyone from getting their hands on it.
"Melissa, do you remember our first meeting?"
The lieutenant paused for a few seconds before answering.
"How could I ever forget? It was the first time I got to speak with one of the goddesses of our base. I have the board she signed hung at my office."
Lifting his cup, Sam smiled at the memory, remembering how the soldiers rushed around to get Three''s autograph. He was sure the young Valkyrie cherished the memory as well.
"Three was feeling really down that day." He said. "Thest battle ended badly and Five got badly injured. It left her quite depressed so I couldn''t leave her alone."
Sam gauged Melissa''s reaction as he spoke. She went from being confused about why he would bring the topic to having a sudden revtion, her eyes gradually widening.
"At the time we all believed it was just her AI mimicking what a human would feel like in her situation. To be honest I was starting to have doubt around then, thinking that humans and Valkyries weren''t so different."
A wry smile appeared on Melissa.
"Doctor, I never expected you to be that type."
Just like how there are groups whopletely opposed Valkyrie saying they''re nothing but senseless killing machines, many others had the opposite philosophy, believing that Valkyries were sentient and possessed a soul. There were countless novels where the Valkyries gained feelings and learned to be human, though most took the philosophical aspect lightly and instead focused on romance.
"I sound unbelievable, right?" Sam shrugged. "Three has always been emotional. That''s how her character was written, supposedly."
"But you don''t think that anymore¡" Melissa sensed the doubt in his words, leading to her interest increasing. As a devout fan of Zero Three she couldn''t help getting excited at the implications of their conversation.
"A whileter we were faced with another difficult battle. It was the first time the Nephilim made an appearance and it showed us how much we were unprepared."
The battle against Torso was one of the most difficult fights in the war''s history. The forty fifth base lost all of its Valkyries beside B3, and once again Zero Five came back with a grave injury leaving her unconscious for multiple days.
The one responsible for it all was the Nephilim ck Thorn. She single handedly showed humanity how powerless they were, leaving the surviving Valkyries with scars that could never heal.
"That battle was especially tough on Zero Three. She¡ she couldn''t ovee the feeling of hopelessness. It was so bad that she refused to go on patrols, evidently disobeying orders."
Looking up at Melissa Sam saw that she had gone pale. He could tell what was going on in her mind as all humans have thought of that scenario at some point. It all starts with one robot refusing to obey one order and the end isn''t far from there.
"Zero Three, after the battle she¡ she started having nightmares. The battle left her traumatized and she was too afraid to leave her room." The memory was a painful one, causing the Doctor to pause. "She¡ Three told me she no longer wanted to fight. She cried in my arms and told me how scared of not being able to wake up after a fight. I¡ It was then when I¡ I couldn''t do it anymore. I couldn''t pretend she was just a lifeless machine, not anymore. Valkyries were human and I refused to believe otherwise."
Chapter 312 Big Sis.
Chapter 312 Big Sis.
?"Zero Three!!!"
The young Valkyrie was taken aback when a strange woman suddenly approached her with tearful eyes. She had an inkling of who the woman was, but the absurdness of the situation made it a bit difficult to recall right away.
"Ah! Melissa, right?" She said. "The president of that fan club thing from back when¡"
Three didn''t have much to work with since their interactions were quite brief. Valkyries weren''t allowed to be around humans until only recently so the only instances they got to talk were that time the Doctor invited her to eat with him and the party that took ce a whileter.
"Can I hug you?"
Seeing the red haired woman reach toward her with shaky hands Three turned to the one who summoned her giving him a worried look. Sam could only shrug, smiling wryly as if telling her it was her choice to make. After a moment of thought the young Valkyrie turned her sight to the human female and stered a polite smile on her face.
"Um¡ sure, why no-"
As soon as the words left her mouth Melissa practically jumped at her startling Zero Three even more. She had to actively stop herself from reacting to the sudden physical contact, but when the initial difort faded away she found herself in a tight embrace of who someone genuinely cared about her, something she only felt from her beloved Doctor and other Valkyries.
"I''m sorry¡" Melissa said, continuously bowling her eyes. "It must''ve been difficult, right? It must''ve been scary, right? I''m sorry! I''m so sorry! If only we weren''t such frail creatures, you wouldn''t have had to fight on our behalf! Sorry for being so useless!"
The situation confused not only Three but the other Valkyries she brought along with her as well. Seeing that it wasn''t about to end any time soon she turned her gaze to Sam once more, but all he did was move his hands in a peculiar motion, though she only realized what it meant a few secondster.
"There there. It''s alright. Everything is fine now."
The young Valkyrie returned the hug and whispered softly as she patted the human woman''s back. Melissa kept apologizing again and again, cursing her own weakness and her inability to do anything to help with the war. Considering that even Valkyries used to have difficulties when dealing with Cmities, no one med the much weaker humans for not being able to contribute in battle directly. Knowing that did little to stop the guilt that came crashing on Melissa as she listened to Sam''s story of how he discovered that Freyja''s Children were humans as well.
She couldn''t ept the fact that she sat around doing nothing of note while an innocent girl was out there fighting horrors beyond human understanding. The very thought filled her heart with unbearable pain and she refused to listen to anything else Sam said until he allowed her to meet the young Valkyrie so she could properly apologize.
''I can''t tell if she''s being sincere or if she''s just taking advantage of the situation¡''
Whatever the case, this strange situation was a fundamental step in Sam''s n of getting Freyja''s Children recognized as humans.
Even after the war ended Sam made the choice of keeping the world in the dark when it came to the truth about both Valkyries and Nephilim. The question came up many times before, but since he never gave a concrete answer the humans of his world still believe the story about the girls being humanoid weapons with highly advanced AI.
Shattering that belief was bound to cause unpredictable chaos and disorder, bringing out the darkest sides of humanity. Just like how the possibility of an AI apocalypse kept humans wary of their saviors, knowing that they were soulless machines broughtfort to their hearts as well. A weapon can only be as dangerous as the person controlling it is, but if said weapon was to have a mind of its own, if it had the free will to decide how its power is used, that weapon would be a potential danger that is out of human control.
Nino''s Needle showed that for a long while humans would refuse the idea of the Valkyries the same as them, instead choosing to believe a conspiracy theory that says the robots have gained sentient and that the government is covering it up. As expected the distrust leads to massive civil unrest and if not addressed very early on it could trickle down to a muchrger conflict once the Awakened receive their powers. Because of that Sam has to do everything in his power to bridge the gap between humans and Valkyries, getting them to treat each other as equals before the fanatics on either get a chance to ruin their future.
"Alright, Lieutenant Ranford. Time to get back to work."
Ten minutes was the most they could afford to waste, and even though she had already stopped crying, the female soldier refused to let go of the young Valkyrie.
"If you don''t finish your job in time you won''t get to hang out with her afterwards."
Hearing his words, Melissa gave Zero Three a tight squeeze then slowly moved away, turning to Sam with hopeful eyes.
"Really?"
"There are no rules stopping you anymore so¡" Sam heaved a long sigh. "You can do what you want as long as it doesn''t cause any trouble. Of course workes first."
Melissa''s sorrowful expression instantly brightened and she quickly turned to Zero Three.
"I''m sorry, Three. Big Sis has work to do right now. Can we meet again at ater time?"
"B-big sis¡?"
The young Valkyrie could only turn to Sam once more, but all she got was an apologetic look that told her to y along.
"... Sure. Let''s meet again when you''re done¡"
Melissa had a content smile, waving at Zero Three as she left the office. Not a second after the door closed behind her the red haired woman turned to the Doctor with a serious expression, her character taking a dramatic shift as she returned to her normal self.
"What do you need me to do?"
Her eyes were aze with determination and that put a smile on Sam''s face.
"From here on out you''ll be the head of our Public Rtions department. Your job will be to spread the truth about the Valkyries and Nephilim as well as improve their image in the eyes of humans." Pausing for a moment, Sam turned his eyes to the other side of the room where the Valkyries who arrived with Zero Three stood silently waiting for his instructions. "Your first task has already been decided. You''ll be working with those three to make a short video exining what happened in the Nephilim world and informing the public of the change that will take ce three days from now."
Chapter 313 The Auroras.
Chapter 313 The Auroras.
?As soon as sheid eyes on the trip, Melissa''s eyes almost fell out.
"A-A-A-A-" She pointed a shaking finger, unintentionally stepping away. "AURORAS!? IT''S THE AURORAS!!!?"
"Tsk." AK clicked her tongue. "It''s one of ''them''"
The Lieutenant turned to Sam, her face pale with shock.
"I see you''re familiar with them." He said, having expected such a reaction.
"Familiar? FAMILIAR!!? They''re the three most influential idols to ever exist!!!"
She pointed at AK.
"AK-sama, the best dancer in the group! Her sharp eyes and harsh gaze add to the sexiness of her stunning looks! A cool beauty who steals the hearts of both men and women!"
Faced with such enthusiastic praise, the Valkyrie turned away with a "hmph", her cheeks slightly flushed.
AK appeared to be in herte teens. She was the more normal type of Valkyrie, with a figure thatcked the exaggerated proportions of the others making her appear like a normal girl whose hair was pained purple. Her uniform was a bit different from the standard, being a darker shade of purple with a white cor instead of the usual ck.
Thest time Sam spoke to her was when he asked the Cleansers to purify the nuclear hazard and red paint around the Americas. Back then she looked at him as if he was the worst scum on earth, unafraid ofining about being worked to the bone like that. From what he gathered she seems to like spending time in her room constantly listening to music.
"Twenty-Two-Sama, the kind and cheerful big sister of the trio! Her soft soothing voice is simply angelic! Whenever I feel down I listen to her single ''Do Your Best!'', it never fails to cheer me up!"
"A¡ ahahaha¡" the Valkyrie in question could only muster an awkwardugh.
Twenty-Two, or QT as her dedicated fans like to call her, was slightly taller than the other two, with an athletic but still curvy figure and prominent chest. A green ribbon, matching the color of her uniform, tied her caramel colored hair into a shoulder length ponytail.
Unlike her sharp eyed friend, Twenty-Two always has a refreshing smile on. She was rather sociable as well managing to fit in right away after moving to the forty sixth base.
"And finally we have Elly-sama!" Melissa was overwhelmed with emotions by the time she made it to thest one. "The main vocaloid and the most talented singer since the start of the war! Everyst one of her performances are captivating masterpieces! She''s the Lorelei who brought humanity back from the dark pits of despair!"
"Hello~" Eleven waved with a warm smile. "It is very nice to meet someone who enjoyed my songs."
Melissa seemed to turn to stone the moment Eleven spoke to her. Her joints seemed to make creaking noises as she shifted in Sam''s direction and spoke with a trembling voice.
"D-D-Doctor, Elly-sama is talking to me! What should I do!?"
"What''s with the Japanese honorifics?" Sam sighed.
Eleven was a peculiar case, being close to the young t models of the newer generations despite being from the first generation Valkyrie. An intricately designed hairband decorated her short light blue hair, the color of which matched that of her skirt and the cor of her white shirt. Her eyes shared the same color as well, and when looking at her overall appearance, one could say she fell under the cute category more than the beautiful one.
She was the most memorable among the Cleansers if he were to exclude Ichigo, mainly because she came to him multiple times since the end of the war asking when she could return to her work as an idol.
The Resistance created a new idol group every couple of years in an attempt to improve morals and increase trust in the Valkyries. Though most of them were treated as celebrities and thus received special privileges, only a few survived the battle against the Ragnarok Heralds with the rest being happy to give up the stage after the war ended.
Eleven was the only exception, insisting that a concert should be held to celebrate their victory and that her talent as a songstress outweighed her powers as a Cleanser.
"Can you take this more seriously? As I said before, we don''t have much time." Returning his gaze to the human woman, Sam spoke with utmost seriousness. "We have two days at most to finish our preparations. The video must be ready for when we announce the Awakening."
Three days separated them from the Primordial''s arrival. Once the Ritual is carried out and the second Key is formed, the world will go through a change no different from when the Cmities first appeared.
As the one who imed the highest seat in his world''s hierarchy, it was Sam''s job to lead the survivors in the next era. That can''t be done without first teaching them aspects of the new realm they will be entering, which is why he ns on revealing a few things to the public to facilitate.
Normally such matters would be strictly locked somewhere under Area 51, but with some cosmic entity visiting their and the younger generations potentially gaining supernatural abilities he had no choice but to tell the truth even if only a part of it.
"I¡ I don''t think I can do it¡" said Melissa. "My heart isn''t ready¡"
"Lieutenant Ranford!"
The sudden outburst startled everyone present in the office. Sam had mmed his hand on his desk, shouting at the human woman.
Melissa was stunned for a moment, taken aback by the uncharacteristic show of emotions to the point that she stopped gushing about the three idols.
"I need you to revise the script and finish filming before tomorrow morning." He exhaled in an attempt to calm his nerves. "The three have already been taught what to expect. Nana will be there to supervise you so make sure to ask her in case you need anything."
The tension in the room remained high for a couple of seconds before Melissa straightened herself and saluted.
"Understood."
The Lieutenant left soon after with the three idols following after her. Once he was alone in the office, Sam held his head in his hands and gritted his teeth.
"Get it together, damn it¡"
Chapter 314 Keep trying.
Chapter 314 Keep trying.
?Once Melissa left to work on her task, Sam suppressed his emotions and got back to work. He had to take care of a few things before meeting with the Nephilim Cleansers leaving for the human settlements.
His phone rang the instant he stepped out of the office and a long sigh escaped him before he answered the call. Preferably he would''ve liked to receive texts instead, but there was nothing he could do about it.
The call came from Kam Mabaso, the current leader of the Sanctuary survivors. She wanted to discuss the Awakened children in addition to a request he made the other day.
He expected her to bring up the future of her people as well. Thor requestingnd aspensation for her assistance took him by surprise so he hoped Kam wouldn''t do the same.
"Alright, let''s go."
Having had her break, Zero Five was back to her guard duty. Nine was supposed to be joining her, but after what she did the previous day, she wouldn''t be allowed anywhere near him for a long time. Venti was taking her ce for now.
After telling them their destination Sam took Five''s hand and the two teleported away. If only it was possible for him to learn how to do it himself, that way he would be able to save quite a bit of time, though he could see himself abusing it a bit too much.
Among the Nephilim there were those who knew how to use a particr Rune to draw a certain material that can be used as building material. Unlike the Nameless Element it doesn''t return to its original dimension once the mental connection with the user is lost so it made for the perfect material in hasty constructions.
The material, dubbed ck Matter forck of better words, was used to build an entire city in a single day. It was a much better alternative than creating a tent city for the Nephilim and the survivors of their world to temporarily live in. The only problem was that everything was ck.
The dark sheen reminded Sam of the obsidian pce where he faced H. It was the site of the final confrontation, the ce where Shizuru showed her true colors and almost took his life. Despite the wound being long gone, Sam still felt a light prickle in his side each time he arrived at the newly built city.
Kam awaited their arrival at the entrance of the temporary administrative building. Seeing them appear out of thin air startled her a bit, but she was quick topose herself, clearing her throat before addressing him.
"Good morning, Doctor Sanderson."
With so much happening at the same time Sam sometimes forgot that barely two weeks had passed since he met the people of the Sanctuary. The young woman in front of him always had a hint of suspension in her eyes, as if she didn''t trust him or any of his cohorts. Even now that suspicion still lingered, hidden behind a veil of exhaustion and grief after experiencing the loss of her friend and leader.
Still, she did her best to show a professional front, having no choice but to trust in the old seer''s words and follow the savior she awaited for so long.
"Good morning, Mabaso." Sam forced a polite smile. "We don''t have much time so I''m afraid I have to ask you to be quick."
"I understand." She led the way inside and Sam followed after. "To get straight to the point, several parents havee forward saying their children have been hearing strange voices, however there is a problem¡"
"A problem?"
"We have a suspicion¡ it might be that not all of them are telling the truth."
"... I see¡"
Upon learning of the reason Sam rxed quite a bit. In a way the current situation was a result of his own decisions.
Soon after their return, Sam registered the Awakened children and then gave their parents special privileges, like priority ess to resources and some faculties inside the forty sixth base.
Of course the other refugees weren''t treated badly, however he wanted to set an example that would make things easier for him when the time to hold the Rituales.
When Sam arrived at the waiting room the parents waiting there seemed to brighten up instantly. After a short greeting he moved to a separate room where he held a few checkups on the children one by one.
By the time he was done, a disappointed look took over his face, though the reason behind it wasn''t what the others expected.
"They have been under a lot of stress, that''s for sure." He said while reading through the gathered reports.
One of the things that''s been bothering him this entire time was the elusive nature of the Whispers. Telepathy was a difficult concept to grasp for those who aren''t gifted with it. Because of that he had no way of telling whether the parents were telling the truth or not.
''At the very least it doesn''t seem like switching dimensions is affecting them too much.''
Physically speaking, most of the problems that affected the Sanctuary survivors after the move came from the sunlight. They spent thest twenty years living underground so most still find it difficult to adjust.
"Is it really that difficult to tell which ones are affected?" Kam asked.
"For now." Sam replied. "Nothing to worry about, though. Whether they''re lying or telling the truth, will know after the Ritual."
By the time the Primordial is sealed into the second Key, those affected by its Whispers would''ve been Awakened while those trying to take advantage of the situation won''t.
Thankfully not awakening after being subjected to the Whispers once doesn''t grant immunity, meaning the children of the Sanctuary still have a chance.
"Speaking of which, were there any objections to my request?" Sam asked.
Kam kept her silence for a few seconds.
"There are a few families who wish to not participate." She said. "After what happened in the airport, they¡"
"Keep trying."
Just like how there are some parents eager to benefit from their children''s Awakening, others wanted nothing more than to avoid theirs being dragged into what they perceive as a supernatural world. He couldn''t me them, though. The prospect of having your children drafted to fight in war was horrifying even if it didn''t include reality warping powers.
"Doctor¡" as he was in deep thought, Kam spoke again, her voice tinged with worry. "Would it be fine for me to ask about to ask about the future?"
"Hm? Ah, unfortunately I can''t say anything specific. At this point we aren''t focused on the details."
What Nino saw using her Needle didn''t warrant keeping an eye on the refugees, meaning their actions on their own didn''t affect the future much. That might sound unfortunate, but the truth was that they wouldn''t have to suffer for the next few years at the very least.
As she sat on the opposite chair, a dark look fell over Kam''s face.
"The truth is, a lot of us feel lost." She said. "The Elder has always been with us, guiding us through one disaster after the other. Now that she''s gone we still don''t know how to walk forward. Making decisions that could influence everyone''s future¡ I don''t think I can handle such a responsibility¡"
Sam stared at the woman for a while then returned his gaze to the tablet in his hand.
"You don''t have a choice." He said, causing her to look up with a start. "The world isn''t so forgiving that it would wait for you to make up your mind. Your people need you and you have to guide them."
His words might''ve been harsh, but there was no better alternative. Sam understood that he could use each and every awakened he could get his hands on so the children of the Sanctuary were essential. That''s why he nned to absorb the survivors slowly over time, but for now, he had no choice but to leave them to one of their own. The humans of his world needed all of his attention right now.
Chapter 315 I’m sure.
Chapter 315 I''m sure.
?Before the Olympians attacked the forty sixth base, a big event was scheduled to announce the end of the war and the peace treaty with the Nephilim. Of course, that event had to be dyed with Sam going on his other-world mission, but now that he has returned it was time for things to move forward.
Three days left until the Primordial''s arrival. Two days before that the award ceremony would take ce and the Valkyries have been busy preparing for it as well.
"haa~... I can''t believe it''s tomorrow..."
Zero Three let her body sink into the sofa as she heaved a long sigh. With the daying to an end she had long since changed out of her uniform, donning a simple shirt and shorts she had picked from the supplies delegated to them by the Doctor. Her slightly flushed skin showed that it hadn''t been that long since she was in the shower. With how busy she had been recently she didn''t have the time to enjoy swimming and because of that the tan she was so proud of had faded away at some point.
"The big day is finally here, huh?" Said Ichigo with her usual sweet smile. Having made preparations to head to bed as well, she wore a light white dress that served as her pajamas.
"To think the day our contributions get recognized would actuallye." Said Nino. She was dressed in the same T-shirt and shorts pair as Three. "I always thought they would keep treating us like weapons till the very end."
"I doubt that much has changed." Said Miku. "Doctor has been worried about it for a while now."
The blond one seemed a little down as she hugged one of the pillows. From the looks of it she was heading to bed as well, having changed into her sleeping garments and gathered her hair into two buns on each side of her head.
"Well, I''m sure everything will be fine. This is Doctor we''re talking about, after all."
Everyone, with the exception of Ichigo, turned to the speaker with cold res. Nine didn''t seem to mind the hostility, being in too good of a mood to care about how others felt.
"You know he''s going to punish you again, right?" Three asked.
"I wonder about that~"
Seeing that she wasn''t worried about the consequences of what she did the day before, everyone understood that the time she spent with the Doctor had been worth angering him. As his personal Valkyries, they all looked forward to receiving that man''s love, however none of them let the wait affect their actions, unlike Nine who seemed to be addicted to the act.
"I hope we get some free time after the Ritual is done." Nino sighed. "I want to have some fun with Doctor as well..."
"At this rate it might take months before we get our turn." Said Zero Three.
"Um... don''t you already know?" Ichigo gave the Japanese doll a nervous look.
With her Needle Nino could easily check when the Doctor is avable. She could even move things around so he would have more free time, but for some reason that wasn''t in her ns.
"What''s this~?" She turned to the pink haired Valkyrie smiling mischievously. "Are you that eager to have fun with Doctor once more? It''s been only one day~"
Ichigo''s face flushed in an instant and she quickly waved her hands trying to deny the im.
"Th-that''s not it! I was just-"
"There is nothing to be ashamed of." Three joined in on the teasing. "You want Doctor to make you feel good as well, right?"
"I..."
"Well, I doubt you would have much trouble in that regard." Turning to Nine, Three looked at her with half-lidded eyes. "It seems big breasts can earn you a pass when ites to this stuff."
Nine simply smiled in return while Ichigo stared down at her own chest, blushing as she remembered how Sam kept groping it as they went at it.
"Us t chested Valkyries have a big disadvantage." Said Nino. "Our cuteness can''tpete with those things."
"That''s not true." said Three. "I''m sure Doctor enjoys small ones as much, if not more. Right, Miku?"
"Hm? Yeah, probably..." Miku replied.
Herck of enthusiasm didn''t go unnoticed by the others. Being the Doctor''s first Personal Valkyrie they expected her to jump at the chance to join such discussions, but apparently the young Valkyrie had something else upying her mind.
"Miku..." Ichigo, being right next to her, took it upon herself to ask "Is something wrong?"
At the same time, Nino''s gaze seemed to wander away. She had a hunch about what was bothering the petite blonde which led to some heavy guilt weighing on on her chest.
"B3..." Miku said after a while. "She was supposed to receive the medals meant for her old team tomorrow..."
The atmosphere turned somber for a moment as everyone finally understood. It was decided that all valkyries would receive a Medal of Honor for their bravery and sacrifice in the war against the Cmities. Those who lost their lives in battle would have their surviving teammates receive them in their stead, and if no one survived thest battle the duty would fall on themander of the base they belonged to.
B3 was something of a leader to the Valkyries of the forty fifth base, and though she never showed it in front of others it was clear that their deaths affected her quite a bit. The award ceremony seemed to hold a great significance to her as she started taking it much more seriously once she was told about the part she would y.
Having herrades'' sacrifice recognized held great meaning to her, but unfortunately, after everything that happened in the Nephilim world, she lost the chance to attend the event.
B3 was quite friendly with everyone, however she seemed to get along particrly well with Miku and Nino ever since she moved to the now destroyed Resistance headquarters. The petite blond was the most affected by her absence, and with the ceremony being only a few hours away she couldn''t stop herself from feeling down.
"I''m sorry..." said Ichigo, her head lowered. "If I was a better fighter..."
"It''s not your fault." Miku replied. "We all know who''s responsible."
Thement was directed at none other than Nino who could only keep her silence. Whether she liked it or not, it was her sister''s fault that two of their friends were now in aa.
"There is no point in dwelling on what happened." Said Zero Three trying to defuse the tension. "At least we have a chance to bring them back."
Just like human soldiers, the Valkyries who died in battle won''t return. Simply having a chance to see them again meant those two weren''t truly dead.
It will take some time and effort to bring them back, but looking at the alternative it was much better than having to say farewell.
"Sis..." Nino began but then came to a stop. "Atropos said she tried to keep track of Clotho''s whereabouts, but..."
It wasn''t easy to find someone hopping between dimensions on a frequent basis. The youngest of the Fate sisters was still on her quest to create heroes who could help stop Zeus and those who shared his sick ambitions. All they know is that she was making use of Fallen Worlds to help them awaken, and though it hasn''t been confirmed, there was some suspicion about her working with a powerful Primordial to steal Keys from those who went through the trouble of creating them.
With all of that considered, finding Clotho might not be the only hurdle facing them. There was no guarantee that she would help them, seeing that she might not approve of their leader''s goal.
"Well then! It''s time to sleep!" Withplete disregard for the heavy atmosphere, Nine stood up from her seat with quite a cheerful expression. Looking at her it was doubtful whether she truly intended on getting some shuteye. Valkyries didn''t need much sleep, however with the award ceremony ahead of them they all agreed it would be for the best if they got some rest.
As everyone stood up to leave, Miku walked over to Nino and looked her in the eyes.
"Doctor is trying to reach Akasha and we are going to do everything we can to help." She said, her eyes cold and emotionless. "If anyone tries to stand in his way it is our job to eliminate them, no matter who they are, understand?"
Nino lowered her head, remaining silent for a while. The petite blonde was going to take that as her answer, but the Japanese doll looked up once more, this time a smug grin decorated her face.
"Of course." She said. "I would do anything to help my beloved fiance~"
Taken off guard, Miku received quite the devastating blow from her raven haired friend. Despite being the first to earn the title of his Personal Valkyrie, recently it was starting to appear as if the others were making strides ahead while she remained in the same position.
"Heh, your arc is over now." Miku shot back, hiding her wound with a grin of her own. "It''s time for another heroine to take the stage."
"And you think it''s going to be you?" Nino replied. "Sorry but... I don''t think you have anything to distinguish you from the background."
The two continued their banter for a while before heading to their rooms. Though she hated every bit of it, the exchange helped improve Miku''s mood, taking her mind off the other things that had been bothering her. The same could be said about Nino who had to bear the burden of gazing at the future to ensure they''re always on the right track.
Chapter 316 How do I look.
Chapter 316 How do I look.
?Two days before the Primordial''s arrival. Sam decided that it would be the most optimal date for the award ceremony. After doing some checkups he boarded an aircraft and headed for the settlement where it''ll take ce.
Apanying him were Elina as well as his Personal Valkyries and a few others. Most of them were visiting a human settlement for the first time so they seemed quite nervous the entire time.
"So, how do I look?" He asked.
"Maybe you should wear it more often." Elinamented, already taking photos with her phone.
"You look absolutely amazing, Doctor!" Nine''s sapphire blue eyes sparkled as sheplimented his appearance.
With only a couple of hours left before they reached their destination, Sam changed into his full dress uniform. The ck suit was far from his favorite as he couldn''t wear hisb coat with it, however it was necessary for such a public event.
To the Valkyries seeing it for the first time he looked like apletely different person. His sharp appearance gave him an air of strength and confidence making him seem worthy of the position he held. Compared to his usual appearance, it finally began to feel like he was their leader.
"Just go change already." Came Zero Three''s voice. "We don''t have much time left."
The young Valkyrie came out of the changing room a couple of seconds after Sam. For the special asion the girls had a different kind of uniform, though just like the one they were used to it was made to resemble a school uniform with the addition of a hat and a shoulder cape.
"It suits you very well, Three."
Sam''spliment caused her cheeks to flush, however she kept herposure, grabbing the hem of her skirt and spreading it to the side.
"It does look good, but... our usual uniforms are morefortable."
"You think?" Zero Five said, her usually stoic expression giving in to a slight frown.
Unlike the young Valkyrie her uniform had a more mature look with a knee length miniskirt coupled with dark stockings. The tight skirt didn''t allow for a wide range of movement which seemed to be what was bothering her.
"I believe this style is more appropriate for you, Five." Sam said. "You look quite beautiful."
Wolf was the one who did the designing for both styles using the artistic skills he developed in his weeb days, as a result one couldn''t shake the feeling that they were nothing more than a cosy. Those meant for the older looking Valkyries focused more on maturity making them close to the uniforms worn by normal female soldiers. As for the ones made for the younger Valkyries cuteness was the main factor although they still came through as proper formal wear.
"A~~~~~h! Three-tan! You look so adorable!!!"
Melissa was already on the move using her phone to photograph Three''s new appearance from every possible angle.
"Please look this way!" She said.
"Eh?" Though she was confused, the young Valkyrie did as was told.
"Hold your cap with your left hand!"
"L-like this?"
"So cute!!! Now, let''s go for a cooler pose!" The female soldier went down on her knees trying to go for a lower angle. "Put your hands on your hips and look at me like I''m the lowest trash you have ever seen in your life!"
"W-wha-?"
"You mean like this?"
Miku appeared next, pushing the confused Three aside and taking her ce. She red down with eyes so cold the temperature in the room dropped a few degrees, but that only seemed to get Melisa even more excited.
"Twin-tails!!!" She eximed, groveling on the ground while snapping more photos. "Blue eyes and blond twin-tails." She then came to a sudden stop and turned to Sam with a serious gaze. "A tsundere?"
Sam let out a sigh and smiled wryly.
"A kuudere, or so I thought at first."
Miku changed quite a bit from back when he first met her. She used to be quiet and expressionless, which was one of the reasons her actions caught him off guard back then, other than a Valkyrie he didn''t know sneaking into his room, of course. Now that the restraints ced on her emotions were removed she seemed to be more talkative, unafraid to show how she truly feels in front of others.
"A kuudere, huh? That''s good as well!"
As Melissa continued snapping photos Sam noticed the petite blond looking his way.
"As I thought, you look much cuter in this hairstyle." He said. "And the uniform looks good on you."
Miku''s eyes widened a little, but that was the extent of her reaction.
"Thank you, Doctor." She said, doing her best to smile.
Sam wasn''t the only one who noticed that something was up as even Melissa stopped what she was doing, but before he could ask the conversation moved on with Miku walking over to Ichigo who had just walked out of the changing room.
"B3''s condition seems to have affected her the most." Said Zero Three. "She thinks Atropos got off easily."
"..."
Sam was well aware; after all the blond one wasn''t afraid to tell him how she felt about the Olympian. There was nothing he could do about it at the moment, but he vowed to do his best to cheer her up once things settled down.
''A date would be nice...'' he thought to himself.
~[ ]~
One of the things the Resistance insisted on was not giving names to any of the human settlements. It was their way of dering that they would reim the lost human territories and rebuild the destroyed cities, though that was nothing more than an empty promise until the Valkyries arrived.
Settlement Number 01, as the name suggests, was the first to be established after the cmities attacked. It started as a refugee camp for the survivors of the initial attacks, but then it kept growing as more people flocked to it over time.
Now that a decade has passed it has turned into one big city,plete with skyscrapers and a booming economy that makes one doubt it was born out of the apocalypse. Being close to the old Resistance headquarters helped as well, though many might think otherwise after H''s attack.
The award ceremony would take ce in an airport right outside the city. A number of prominent personalities were invited to the event in addition to those being awarded and their families.
As soon as the aircraft''s shutters opened a crowd of reporters weed the guests from the forty sixth base. Though the Valkyries might''ve been the main subject of interest for them, others were looking forward to finally seeing the man who led them to their victory against the Cmities and Nephilim.
Sam walked at the head of the group followed by Five and CS then the rest of the Valkyries. Him being the only male in the group might''ve looked normal back home, but to most people it made for quite the peculiar sight.
Nathaniel Carter was there to wee them personally. Sam stopped to shake his hand in front of the cameras while the Valkyries stepped aside, and once that was done the two stood side by side and faced the aircraft once more.
The whole airport went silent as everyone held their breaths. Not long after a group of women stepped out into the light. Their otherworldliness caused them to be mistaken for the same goddesses that walked the same path not long ago, however the difference in their attire showed that they had nothing to do with the previous group. There were only five of them, four of whom surrounded the one walking at the center.
The humans were stunned for several seconds before quicklying back to their senses. The crimson haired queen was able to captivate many hearts with her first appearance.
Her attendance caused quite an uproar when it was first announced. Though the public knows about the peace negotiations they still found it questionable to invite the enemy leader to such an event. There was some opposition as well with threats of violence being made, but Sam had no intention of allowing the smallest disruption so he made sure to warn the Generals to ensure nothing unnned happened.
"It is quite fortunate that we get to meet again, your highness."
Nathaniel spoke, bowing respectfully in front of the queen who wore a polite smile as she returned the greeting.
"General Carter, it warms my heart that you decided to extend this invitation to my people."
The old man struggled to keep on his mask knowing he couldn''t let it slip for a moment. The one who made the decision to invite the Nephilim was none other than the Doctor, though it was made to appear as if was something the Council came up with. He was among those who opposed the idea, however he chose to keep it to himself knowing it was pointless toin.
"We have quite the busy day ahead of us." Sam said with a smile. "Let us make our way to the venue."
Chapter 317 What’s the point.
Chapter 317 What''s the point.
?It was a nice autumn day; the sky was clear and the sun was much more merciful than it was a couple of months ago, though the sun wasn''t what people feared back then. A lot has changed in those couple of months.
Silence filled the venue once the party from the forty sixth base arrived. People were astonished when the Valkyries made their entrance, but what they awaited with held breaths was the person whose attendance was never anticipated.
The Nephilim were easy to spot, being the only ones to wear a different kind of uniform. Thor, their queen, stood out quite a bit, part of it due to the red uniform she wore but most importantly due to her beauty while overshadowing even those of her kind.
Though it was already a well known fact, people still found it difficult to believe how simr to the Valkyries the Nephilim were. That caused doubts to build up in their hearts, and with hatred already filling them it would''ve been no surprise if some of it spilled out at some point.
Natalie Anderson was only a little girl when the Cmities first attacked. Being from a family with a long history of serving in the British military she was fortunate enough to be among those who were first evacuated when the fire became visible from their shores. The rest of her family weren''t so lucky, however.
Her father lost his life in the first attack and so did most of her rtives. Her mother, unable to withstand the despair and grief ended her life a few monthster leaving her and her older brother behind. Despite the hardships the two vowed to survive and eventually joined the Resistance to fight back. Her brother was quick to climb the ranks eventually bing themander of the second Resistance base, however his journey came to an end when Jormungandr, one of the Ragnarok Heralds, put its sights on them.
Natalie always believed that she was prepared for such a day, but when the news of what happened reached her, her entire world came down crumbling.
She had lost everything and began contemting ending her life. There was nothing for her to live for. Things kept getting worse for humanity and the despair never seemed to fade, but one day all of it came to an end.
The enemy was defeated and the war was over.
It was difficult to believe with how sudden the change was, but eventually, joy filled the world as people realized the nightmare was finally over. Natalie was unable to ept it, however.
She had lost everything in the war but suddenly all of it concluded just like that. What''s worse was that their leaders decided it would be a good thing to strike a peace deal with the enemy, essentially spitting on the empty graves of seven billion people, including her brother''s.
Anger soon reced the despair she felt and when she received the invitation to the ceremony she thought she would finally have the chance to give those Generals a piece of her mind, but then she heard the news of the enemy leader attending as well and her fury reached new heights.
The guests received warnings not to cause any disturbances during the award ceremony, but Natalie didn''t care. When the crimson haired queen entered the venue she became overwhelmed with rage.
There was nothing a human could do against monsters such as those, but she wanted to vent her anger at the very least and so she shot up from her seat preparing to hurl some insults at the people responsible for all the loss and suffering she had to go through.
All of it went away when she felt a hand on her shoulder and the next second she was no longer in the front row of those invited to take part in the ceremony.
The sudden change in the scenery caused the words to get stuck in her throat. She was in an empty room with a small table and and two chairs on either side, a whitemp hanging from the ceiling and a single door.
Coming back to her senses Natalie quickly turned around to see who it was that had their hand on her shoulder, but as soon as her eyes fell on them her heart almost came to a stop. A gorgeous woman with ginger hair smiled as she looked at her with scornful eyes. Natalie''s mind failed to understand what happened, but after noticing the strange glowing halo over the woman''s head she realized she wasn''t human.
The door suddenly almost caused her heart to stop. Another woman appeared, this one having red hair and although good looking she was far from the one standing her making it clear she was a human.
"Lieutenant Natalie Anderson." The red haired woman spoke while looking at the tablet in her hand. "Daughter of James Anderson, same rank, and Jeffrey Anderson, thestmander of the second base."
Natalie kept her silence as the woman read from what was most likely her profile.
"Considering what you were about to do I can''t say it''s a pleasure to meet you. I''m Lieutenant Melissa Ranford, head of the forty sixth base''s public rtions department."
Natalie felt the hand on her shoulder fall and the tension she felt skyrocketed.
"You can take things from here, right?" The ginger haired woman, most definitely a Valkyrie, spoke in a disinterested voice.
"Yes, no problem. I apologize for having you handle something so trivial."
A momentter the Valkyrie was gone leaving the two human women on their own in what felt like an interrogation room.
"I will get straight to the point." Lieutenant Ranford spoke. "Today''s event is an important milestone in human history and you made an attempt to disrupt it. Fortunately we were able to stop you before anyone noticed, but even if that''s the case we still need to hand over some punishment."
A moment of silence passed and Natalie began toprehend what had just transpired. The people who took everything from her were there, right in front of her, and even then she was unable to do anything. She found the whole thing hrious. Who knew humans were so pathetic they couldn''t even yell or scream at their enemy.
"What does it matter?" She asked no one in particr. "What''s the point?"
The storm of emotions raging inside her searched for another exit and soon enough tears began to flow. Watching her copse to her knees, Melissa averted her gaze and pursed her lips.
"You aren''t the only one who lost people in this war." She said. "You must keep on living, if not for you then do it for them."
~[]~
It was clear that, even with all their precautions, it was impossible to ensure that nothing would sabotage the ceremony. Sam was adamant on not letting anything slip by so he asked Nino to check the future beforehand. As expected, the number of attendees that had something to say was far from null. Several Paths showed different people standing up to voice their rage at the Nephilim, and since all of them were nearly identical it was difficult to know which one would end uping true.
A list of the perpetrators was made and the Valkyries were asked to memorize their faces. If anyone showed signs of agitation, the girls were to remove them instantly.
With her proficiency in barriers Sitta took the initiative to iste the first offender with a sound blocking transparent before teleporting to her side and extracting her from the scene before anyone could notice. A few secondster the ginger Valkyrie was back in her ce behind the Doctor as if she didn''t move from there in the first ce.
"... Trenta as well, huh?" She muttered in a low voice.
"The second offender made his move. Be ready for the third." Nino spoke while keeping her gaze ahead.
Actions determine which path bes reality, so once the first fewe to pass, figuring out which of the potential futures they were currently living in bes much easier. Now that the first and second disruptions were prevented, the next one on the list became clear and Sitta teleported once more removing them before they could make a sound.
"Unforgivable." Hearing the murmur, the Japanese doll nced to her left. "They should understand the importance of today''s event. How dare they try to ruin it?"
Though her voice carried restrained anger, Miku was doing a fantastic job at keeping a neutral expression.
"Well, that''s to be expected. Not everyone are able to control their emotions like Doctor."
Most of those attending the ceremony had lost people close to them so it''s only natural that they would have some reservations about the Nephilim being there. Still, one could say it was the epitome of stupidity to try and cause a scene especially after being warned about the consequences of doing so.
"You''re right." Said Miku. "We can''t expect the same from those worthless sacks of flesh."
The next moment, she disappeared, having gone to deal with the fourth offender. Nino tried to keep herposure, but after a while she couldn''t help the sigh that escaped her.
"I hope she doesn''t do anything stupid..."
Chapter 318 We are the Resistance.
Chapter 318 We are the Resistance.
?The ceremony started shortly after Sam and his cohort arrived. After everyone took their seats, General Nathaniel Carter took the stage preparing to deliver the opening speech. He wasn''t particrly thrilled with how things were proceeding; once the first part of the ceremony was over, his time as the head of the Resistance council would be over.
There was nothing he could do about it, unfortunately. As much as he hated it, the truth was that normal humans like him had no ce in the new age they had long since entered. It should''ve been obvious from the start; an enemy from a world different than theirs appeared out of nowhere and erased billions of people, and those lucky enough to survive could only cower in fear and wait for when their turn arrived.
''The Resistance, huh?'' He thought to himself as he looked over the spectators. ''What a joke. In the end we were nothing without those damned robots...''
"Ladies and gentlemen,rades in arms, today marks a momentous asion in the annals of our shared history." He spoke into the mic and his voice boomed through the venue. "As the echoes of conflict dissipate and the dust settles upon the battlegrounds of our once-broken world, I stand before you with a heart heavy with the weight of both sorrow and triumph. The apocalyptic storm that engulfed us has subsided, and in its wake, we find ourselves standing on the precipice of a new era¡ªa chapter forged by the resilience and unwavering spirit of our Resistance."
No matter how one looks at it, the organization known as the Resistance only existed to provide support for the Valkyries. Whether it''s by tracking the movements of Cmities, gathering and processing their remains or manufacturing the equipment used to fight them, in the end all of it would''ve been meaningless if not for the humanoid weapons and their creator, the man who turned out to be the real viin behind the entire war.
And that should''ve been fine. For a long time no one saw a problem with humanity''sst standing military being built around a single type of weapon. No matter how advanced or intelligent a drone might be, in the end it was just another tool for humans to use. But once again, humans found themselves having the rug pulled from under their feet.
Turns out what they believed were a bunch of walkingputers were in fact sentient beings from another dimension, brainwashed into fighting against their own kind. The entire dynamic they had was flipped on its head and now humans were back to being the powerless insects they were before.
''That''s right...'' the old man thought. ''We were always nothing more than insects...''
"In the crucible of adversity, we faced the relentless onught of forces that sought to snuff out our very existence. Yet, through the darkest nights and the fiercest battles, we stood united, a formidable bastion against the tide of despair. Today, as your head general, I extend my deepest gratitude to each and every one of you who lent their strength to this arduous struggle. Together, we weathered the storm, and it is with immense pride that I dere the decade long war is finally at an end!"
A moment of silence followed, and then, as if the General''sst few words took time to process, the world suddenly erupted with cheers and apuse.
The Somber mood that Enveloped the venue was lifted in an instant. Of course, most people were well aware of the possibility. Talks of a peace treaty have been floating around for months since thest battle, and the enemy leader being invited to such a big event only helped to give more validity to the rumors.
Still, many were skeptical, arguing that rumors were just that, rumors. Even if they turned out to be true and a peace deal really was achieved, they had no idea what the terms of said deal entailed. For all they know the enemy''s demands might be more than what they''re willing to give, but even with that in mind, not a single person found it in themself to question the announcement, and for the first time in a decade humanity was finally able to rejoice as its nightmare was finally over.
''Idiots...'' Carter thought, watching as the attendees stood up from their seats, pping their hands with tears in their eyes. ''Where did all your anger go?''
It was as if they hadpletely forgotten about the enemy being right in their midst. Just a moment ago most of them were either frightened or furious, gazing at the otherworldly beings with suspicion and contempt. Now, however, it was as if they had forgotten that the Nephilim were there. Even those who were aware of the sudden disappearances that happened only a few minutes ago chose to turn a blind eye and joined the others in apuding him.
One couldn''t me them, though. This was the moment every living human awaited; no longer would they have to live in fear of logic defying monstrosities raining fire on their heads. No longer would they live each day wondering if it would be theirst. There was no need to think too much about it; all they needed to know was that the enemy who almost drove them to extinction had agreed to stop massacring them.
The celebratory cheers went on for a while, but eventually everyone went back to their seat, having noticed that the speech was far from over.
"As we stand on this precipice of renewal, it is crucial to reflect upon the origins of the cataclysmic storm that swept us into the abyss. A man, driven by misguided ambitions and a hunger for power, unleashed chaos upon not just his world, but on our own as well. His intellect was thought to be our salvation, but the truth was that we were all nothing more than pawns in his schemes, our lives mere sacrifices for him to use.
His name, once upheld in the greatest regard, now echoes as a cautionary tale of the dangers that lurk within the hearts of those blinded by malevolence. We remember him not to glorify his deeds, no matter how beneficial to us they might have appeared, but to fortify ourselves against the shadows that might still linger as we ascend to a new realm."
''What a load of bull shit...''
As someone who always stood at the summit of governments, whether before the war or after it, Carter had no trouble sniffing the propaganda in everything they were told.
Odin had always been an enigma. Despite his technological achievements being what kept humanity going, the man has never shown himself in public and no one could im that they had the luck of meeting him in person. Only the old Council knew how to contact him, but that line ofmunication was cut as soon as the headquarters were attacked, and ever since no one heard from him again.
Though the story about him being a mad scientist on the run was too easy to swallow, it didn''t sit well with the Head General from the start. He didn''t doubt the part about a mastermind manipting both worlds from behind the scenes, leading them to the long treacherous war, but the man named Odin sounded like a fictional character created for the simple goal of having someone to pin the me on.
What he didn''t understand was why the Nephilim chose to y along with such a lie. In the first ce, the Nephilim themselves were quite suspicious, starting from their names to the fact that all of them seemed to be female. It was clear that a lot of things were being kept hidden, not just from the public but from the supposed upper echelon of their current world, and at the center of it all was that one man.
"Months ago, the tempest of despair struck at the very heart of our Resistance. In those dark hours, hope, so painstakingly reimed, was once again ripped away from our grasp. The specter of defeat loomedrger than ever before, threatening to extinguish the flickering me that sustained our fight." Coming to a stop, Carter closed his eyes. Though it might''ve been mistaken as a show of solidarity, the truth was that he struggled with what he was about to say next. Once thest wordes out of his mouth, he would have no choice but to step down and relinquish the authority he fought so hard to have. s, he was nothing but a human; he had no power to defy that man.
''That''s right...'' he thought, his expression almost switching to that of utter shock as he came to a sudden realization. ''That man, he... he isn''t human!''
"But as darkness cast its long shadow, another figure emerged from the chaos¡ªa beacon of hope amid the tempest. A man whose determination and sacrifice became the catalyst for our resurgence." As he spoke, a smile slowly formed on the old man''s face. "It was his leadership, his vision, that turned the tide and brought us to the doorstep of this hard-fought peace. Let us also remember him today, not as a savior, but as a symbol of what humanity can achieve when faced with the greatest adversity."
The idea that the peace deal was orchestrated by the enemy was prevalent, and quite a few believed that ''he'' was in their grasp all along. But what if it turned out he was one of their kind all along?
The Valkyries answered to hismand and they were the same as those aliens. They had no reason to continue obeying a human now that the brainwashing was supposedly undone, unless none of it was true to begin with and the entire story was nothing more than a hoax.
''Doesn''t matter...'' He thought. ''As long as it nts a seed of doubt...''
"As I step away from this podium, I pass the torch to a leader whose dedication and strategic brilliance were instrumental in securing our victory. He stands before you not just as amander, but as a symbol of our collective strength and determination. Let us wee him with the same unwavering support that fueled our Resistance, for in unity lies the foundation of our enduring triumph. May this new chapter be etched with tales of reconstruction, growth, and a future unmarred by the scars of war."
As he spoke thest words and moved aside to wee his new superior, Carter allowed the smile he wore to widen ever so slightly. His eyes met those of the man in question, and as the two of them shook each other in a gesture symbolic of the passing of the torch, a dark glee filled his heart reigniting the desire he recently almost gave up on.
''We are the resistance.'' He told himself. ''We shall prevail.''
Chapter 319 Our talk can wait.
Chapter 319 Our talk can wait.
??''Just look at him...'' Sam thought, wearing his fake polite smile as he looked the old man in the eyes. ''He probably thinks he has me all figured out...''
Nathaniel Carter was a shrewd man. Even when faced with overwhelming disadvantage, he would go on to work his way back to the top, creating his own faction among the Awakened and starting a war against Sam and Freyja''s Children. Unfortunately for him, his ns were halted before he could even make the first move.
With the power to see the future in his hands, Sam didn''t have to worry about such threats. The Needle might not be perfect, and Fate can be a bitch sometimes, but as long as he could get an early alert then he would have a chance at weaving the Path of his choosing.
''The real problemes from here...''
Sam would''ve liked to believe he had everything in his control, but that couldn''t be farther from the truth. Seeing the potential future alone wasn''t enough to ensure it became a reality. A lot of work was needed to get the results he was looking for and the first step was to gain the support of
After shaking the previous Head General''s hand, Sam stood behind the podium and faced the guests. He could see the scrutiny in their eyes as they waited for him to say his first word.
"Ladies and gentlemen, friends andrades, thank you for gathering here today as we mark the end of this decade-long war that has shaped the course of our lives." Pausing for a moment, he made sure to keep the hold on his emotions steady as he delved into a topic he seldom spoke of. "As I stand before you, memories flood back to Syracuse, the city I once called home. I was there when the first attack unfolded, when the first Cmities raided our skies. I witnessed the devastating destruction that unfolded before my eyes; buildings crumbled, lives were shattered, and death walked among us burning everything to the ground. The scars of that day run deep, etched in the collective memory of ourmunity.
Survival on that fateful day was a matter of luck, and I count myself among the few who emerged from the ashes. The aftermath forced us to confront the fragility of life and the randomness of fate. It was a day that changed me in ways words can barely capture.
Unfortunately, I can''t say I was among those who picked up arms to fight against the invaders. I can''t im to have had the fire in my heart from the very beginning.
A dear friend, a resilient woman, dragged me to the frontline. I found myself serving as a Valkyrie physicist, a role I never imagined for myself. My passion for medical research took a back seat to the urgent demands of the battlefield.
Life in the forty-sixth Resistance base became a crucible that transformed me. Ourrades, both human and Valkyrie alike, disyed unparalleled courage and resilience. In their eyes, I witnessed the indomitable spirit of Resistance. The camaraderie forged in the storm of conflict, the shared pain, and the triumphs of survival, all of it changed my outlook, and I felt the ambers ignite within me, lighting up a fire that fueled mymitment to the cause and to each person standing with me today. Together, we have ovee adversity, and as we stand on the precipice of peace, let us remember the lessons of our shared journey and forge a path towards a better future!"
Cheers and apuse filled the venue once more. To Sam''s relief, the attendees'' response was no less enthusiastic than it was to Carter''s speech. Though Sitta and the others took care of most individuals who were unstable enough to cause problems, the fear that someone might snap during his speech kept him on edge. He couldn''t shake the feeling that something was about to go wrong, but thankfully everything proceeded just like how Nino saw it, at least until his eyes fell on her.
Among the cheerful guests, a single woman remained in her seat, seemingly untouched by the jubnt atmosphere surrounding her. Cloaked in an eerie pallor, her skin bore a ghastly white hue, almost luminous against the backdrop of animated faces. Dressed in a frilly ck gown that draped gracefully around her, she exuded an air of quiet elegance. Arge, brimmed hat cast shadows over her eyes, concealing them in a shroud of secrecy.
Sam felt his whole being tremble at her sight. His eyes had studied the crowd the entire time he was on stage, but it was only until this moment that he noticed her presence, something that should''ve been impossible considering her very unique appearance.
In the short second he spent staring at her, the world seemed to lose all its color. Sounds faded away from the world and time slowed down to a crawl.
The enigmatic woman moved, raising her head ever so slightly. Her lips, painted in a deep shade of blood-red, spoke in a whisper. Normally her words would''ve never reached him under such circumstances, but Sam was sure that he heard her, as if each syble was uttered right into his ears.
[Do not be afraid.]
A shiver ran down his spine and his Force Field flickered for an instant. He managed to catch himself before his reaction became more apparent and he fastened his grip on his emotions once more, regaining his calmness and gazing at the woman once more.
[I bear no ill intent.] She spoke once more, her lips curving into a calm smile. [Please go on with your ceremony. Our talk can wait.]
Time gradually returned to its normal flow and the world was filled with the excitement of the cheering crowd. The woman didn''t disappear as Sam had predicted but instead, she remained seated, making no move and continuing to watch him with the same smile.
''You had to be right, hadn''t you?'' Sam thought to himself, feeling his frustration growing at the sudden change of events. ''Can''t things go as nned for once?''
Chapter 320 Honor Medals.
Chapter 320 Honor Medals.
?The appearance of the mysterious woman shook Sam to the core, but despite it all he managed to keep his calm, waiting for the attendees to calm down before resuming his speech.
"The losses we suffered, the sacrifices we made, none of it could possibly be recounted in a single day. Nevertheless, as the survivors we have a duty to remember those who fought to bring us toward this future. Their names will be immortalized on the site where it all started, but today we gather to celebrate their achievements, and to show the world that we still stand strong."
Everything proceeded naturally from that point. Today''s ceremony wasn''t the first of its kind. Throughout the past decades, there have been several events held tomemorate the victims and celebrate the people who sacrificed themselves to improve humanity''s condition under the rule of the Cmities.
Picking those who would receive medals was somewhat of a challenge; the list of possible candidates was simply too long. There was the attack on the headquarters, and the battle against the Ragnarok heralds had quite a number of casualties as well. After discussing the matter with the other members of the council, the list was shortened and those who would be called upon were picked. Of course, medals would still be awarded to those who deserve them, though it would happen privately with the other members of the council doing the bestowal.
There was an order to the names that were called on stage, starting from those whose achievements weren''t that noteworthy to those who made significant contributions to the war. Among them were some of the Valkyrie physicians who served in the different resistance bases.
Sam had gathered info on everyone who was involved with the Valkyries at one point, and in the process, he learned many interesting stories that became the basis of his future ns. The chosen physicians were those who left a particrly good impression on the Valkyries they worked with. When asked about them, said Valkyries expressed interest in working with those women again with some even asking to be allowed to keep contact with them.
It was easy to im Valkyries were sentient beings, and it was easy to fantasize about how to go about treating them, but when ced in the position, a person''s true colors will show. The physicians who worked to forge a bond with their Valkyries deserved a lot more respect than those who treated them like disposable machinery and thus received the respect they deserved.
There were several instances of the peopleing on stage not being those to whom the medal was meant. Those were the families and rtives of the deceased. In the case of the individuals with no living rtives, their closest friends were called on stage. Some of them were unable to handle the situation and broke into tears after receiving the medal. Many of them thanked Sam for his effort and for giving them something to remember their loved ones with.
As the ceremony went on the mentioned achievements grew in importance, one of them being the invention of the Nerve-link, the most advanced brain-to-machine interface currently avable to the public. Though it was leagues behind what could be achieved using Sam''s Asclepius ASCs, it was a crucialponent in the development of prosthetics and artificial organs, and the one toe up with it was none other than Elina Braiens.
"It''s a bit frustrating." She said in a low voice, making sure the cameras didn''t catch her. "This was supposed to put me on the same level as Odin. Guess I was a bit delusional."
"You shouldn''tpare yourself to dimension traveling mad scientists." Sam said as he attached the medal to her suit. "As far as our world is concerned, you still have the biggest brain around."
"Says the guy who achieved immortality." She replied, saluting with a smile.
The names that followed belonged to more prominent figures, like the basemanders and Generals who died in H''s attack. Everything went exactly the same as before, except for one of the names, two to be exact.
Wolf and Alice Schneider. Both were announced dead to the public, but that''s not what surprised the people watching. As the two only had each other, it was up for a close friend to receive their medals, and the person who came forward was someone unexpected to say the least.
Wolf was the previous Head General and Nana had been his guard and assistant. It made sense for her to receive the medals in his and his daughter''s stead, however seeing a Valkyrie take on that role shocked the entire world.
Many were already making their predictions, and some began to realize the real reason behind the Nephilim attending this ceremony.
Once all the human soldiers received their medals, Sam stepped to the podium once more. The entire world went silent. People were glued to their screens waiting for what he had to say next.
"Previously, General Carter has mentioned a man whose hunger for power has led to the devastation of more than one world. Odin, the genius we all thought was our savior, turned out to be a mad scientist with no moralpass. He took advantage of our desperation, offering us what we thought was a weapon to fight back against an enemy we couldn''t hope to defeat. But the truth was more sinister than any of us could''ve predicted."
Taking a deep breath, Sam slowly exhaled. He faced the world with a fearless look, and without a doubt in his heart, he delivered the main point behind organizing this entire event.
"As I worked beside them, the suspicion slowly continued to grow in my heart. I found myself refusing to believe those young women were nothing but lines of code written to serve some kind of function, and when the final battle drew near, my doubts were proven to be true. The Valkyries, they were far from the cold machines Odin led us to believe they were. They had hearts and souls, feelings and emotions. They had free will, something the mad scientist had robbed them of, forcing them to fight his battles the same way he forced us. After years of struggle, they were finally able to escape the shackles binding them, but even then, they didn''t abandon the fight. They chose to stand by our side to the very end, and as we enter this new era, they vowed to lend us their strength. Today we extend to them the same respect we reserve to our veterans, though nothing we can do could ever repay the debt we owe them."
Chapter 321: The road to peace.
Confusion took over the venue and for a while everyone remained silent. It was to be expected. The revtion was simply too much for people to handle.
As the silence continued to permeate, a single p resounded snapping people out of their reverie. Another one followed, blowing away the clouds of doubt veiling people''s hearts, then a third one urged them to move, igniting another wave of cheers and apuse no smaller than those that came before.
Surprised by the sudden change in tone, Sam looked back at the mysterious woman. He doubted that all she did was p a few times. In all the potential futures Nino saw, the reaction to hisst speech was lukewarm at best.
The humans weren''t too enthusiastic about the Valkyries being sentient, and though no one dared to voice their apprehension in front of him, the world would show its true colors not a dayter.
The ceremony proceeded as nned from there. The Valkyries were summoned on stage one after the other and were given the same Honor Medals that were given to humans. Valkyries from each resistance base were chosen to ept medals in ce of those who lost their lives in battle.
In the interest of time only one was handed out as theatricals, butter on each Valkyrie would be awarded her own medal. Nana came on stage two more times, one to receive her own medal and another to receive the one meant for the headquarters. Miku took on the duty of receiving the medals for the forty fifth base.
Thest ones to ascend on the stage were Five, Three and Nine. As the three who defeated the Ragnarok Heralds they deserved the highest of praise, but to hammer in the weight of their achievements, it was decided that they would take the acim for defeating H, the previous Nephilim queen.
Three didn''t like the idea of taking the credit for what happened, but with them having to cover up for what happened with Loki they didn''t have much of a choice.
The award ceremony came to an end soon after, and with it done, it was time for another important event.
"Ten years ago our world changed forever. It was only recently that we were able to learn the truth, and with it came the realization that we weren''t alone. The gates to other worlds are open. We are now on the precipice of a new era, and going back is no longer a choice. We have to grow in strength ourselves, and to ensure the past never repeats itself, we have to remain united under one banner.
Two days from now, our world will undergo a significant change once more. Under normal circumstances it would''ve spilled our end, but thanks to the allies we have made, no harm will befall any of us, and we will gain the power to face any and all adversaries the vast multiverse might throw our way." Turning to the left, in the direction of the guests of honor, Sam continued.
"Please wee with me Her Highness Thor, current queen of the Nephilim and our first ally from another world!"
Sam had struggled with how to introduce the crimson queen until the very end. The Nephilim had first names only so it felt a bitcking to introduce her with just that. Still, after much deliberation he was finally Sam was able to make it work somehow. He watched as she walked onto the stage with graceful steps then stepped away from the podium allowing her to take his ce.
"The road to peace has been long and arduous. The wounds Odin left on both our worlds run deep and the pain he left us with wouldn''t be easy to heal. The shadow of vengeance blinded my sister and many of our kin.
We werete to recognize the faults in her ways, and because of that, we allowed the tragedy to continue, only learning our lesson when the other side extended their hand to us." Thor came to a stop, closing her eyes and remaining silent for a while.
The spectators held their breaths in anticipation. Here she was, the leader of an alien race from another dimension, standing in front of them to show her solidarity. Her appearance alone might not have been enough to ward off the hate people have for her kind, but watching her speak allowed the words to reach their hearts.
It may still take some time before people warmed up for the Nephilim, but the speech their queen delivered that dayid the first stones of the foundation of their rtionship.
"Our wish is to continue working alongside the people of your world, to forge a bond with it, one that shares the resilience of our sisters''. In the face of the great unknown lurking at every turn, we vow to lend you our strength, and to fight by your side until the very end. May our trust be the light to erase the shadows, and may our alliancest to the end of time."
The Nephilim queen stepped down from the podium and Sam was there waiting for her. Apuse ignited once more as the two of them shook hands, and for a while they stood side by side for the press to capture the moment.
The award ceremony ended without trouble. Sam looked around for the mysterious woman only to realize she had left her seat at some point. He wasn''t too worried about her, though, knowing she would most definitely show herself again soon enough.
Nino seemed to have noticed the slight change in events so as soon as they were done she went back to their aircraft to ensure they remained on the right path. In the meantime, Sam and the others were scheduled to attend an after-party to mingle with some of the high profile individuals from the human settlements.
Though he might be the highest authority in the world at the moment, Sam still needed some people to manage things for him. In the end he couldn''t rely on Valkyries for everything, and it was better to let humans handle humans for the foreseeable future.
Chapter 322: Reaction.
While Sam and the others were socializing, the world was abuzz with talks and discussions following the award ceremony. Quite a number of big revtions were made and people were working around the hour analyzing every frame of the records avable trying to uncover every meaning in what was said.
News channels run the same headlines; "Valkyries Break Silence, Unveiling their Conscious Existence - Paradigm Shift Ensues!"
"Epoch-Making ord: Historic Peace Treaty Signed with Nephilim, Ending Decade-Long Conflict!"
"Earth-Shattering Revtion: Odin, Once Hailed as Humanity''s Savior, Exposed as a Deceiver!"
"Multiverse Unveiled: A Gateway to Infinite Possibilities!"
Opinions were divided between those excited by the news and those whose fears only grew.
"To think Valkyries were sentient beings all along." A male news anchor spoke.
"I had the chance to interview several of the idols before." His co-host replied, her expression filled with excitement. "I wasn''t mistaken after all. They''re indeed alive!"
"You seem happy about that fact. Aren''t you worried at all?" He asked.
"Why would I? You heard Head General Anderson, they continued to fight on our side even after they were freed from Odin''s control! They''re true heroes who didn''t abandon us till the very end!"
Other channels focused more on fear mongering.
"What do you think, Dr. Becouch?"
"One thing is clear, if there was no need for it, they wouldn''t have ced this anti-inter-dimensional travel barrier. I believe our Resistance and the Nephilim were forced to join hands against amon enemy."
"If that''s the case then wouldn''t that mean the Resistance is still hiding things?" The host asked.
"Well of course. This is a military organization we''re talking about. They won''t reveal something unless it''s absolutely necessary." The guest answered. "But don''t be mistaken. Sometimes it might be better if the public does not know some things. Civil unrest is one of the worst things a society has to deal with in times of war."
Content creators pumped video after video trying to capitalize on the news.
"I have a rtive who was stationed in the fourteenth Resistance base." A young man recounted on one of the channels. "Apparently they weren''t allowed to interact with the Valkyries at all. Was it so they couldn''t free them from the brainwashing?"
"I think everyone knows this by now, but that Sam Sanderson is the one who gathered all Valkyries in one base!" A famous streamer used the chance to bring up an old topic. "He relocated the human soldiers out of nowhere. What in the world is going on there!?"
"From what I''ve heard, there were several instances of soldiers interacting with the Valkyries from the forty sixth base." One of the many Valkyrie fanclub channels tackled a simr topic. "Here are some posts iming that they got autographs from Zero Three, the same Valkyrie who''s said to have defeated Fafnir! If these are authentic then they could fetch a really high price!!!"
Four men sat around a table recording a podcast.
"What do you think about the other world part?" The first one asked.
"To be honest, we don''t know enough to make a clear judgment." The second replied, leaning back into his seat with a frown. "If it''s the same as the multiverse we see in those old superhero movies then we might be screwed."
"I always thought the Cmities were aliens tech." Said the third. "I mean, whether they''re from space or from another dimension, it doesn''t really matter."
"Of course it does!" The fourth shot back. "Space travel isn''t so easy, you know? Depending on where their homeworld is located, it might take them years to reach us even if they were moving at the speed of light. If it''s another dimension, however..."
"It seems the new Head General is a genius when ites to nanomachines." The second spoke. "I don''t see how that trantes to inter-dimensional travel, though."
"At the very least we know we won''t suddenly be flooded with otherworlders." The first added. "Still, couldn''t they do something about the color? I know we shouldn''tin too much but... that red sky is deeply unsettling."
Forums and message boards were filled with heated discussions.
[Lasyazz211:
Isn''t everyone a bitx? We might''ve avoided an AI apocalypse, but that doesn''t mean we''re in the safe.]
[HoldDeeZ:
You''re being too paranoid.]
[AdamSmasher999:
You''re all missing the point.]
[Gottacatchemall:
People are just upset the sexbot myth was debunked.]
[Slowfisheater:
Lmfao people can''t take that they can reject you now.]
[Elevenasslicker11:
Damn that Odin. He must''ve had it good with the brainwashing & hypnosis tags XD]
[Humblethighenthusiast:
Hold on, since they aren''t expensive military equipment, doesn''t that mean we might get the chance¡]
[AKfootkisser49:
Keep dreaming lmao maybe you''ll get to taste that Isekai pussy.]
[Lasyazz211:
Seriously, can''t you people stop thinking with your dicks for a moment?]
[astroNUT69:
Forget about it. No one wants to hear your doomer shit.]
[Gottacatchemall:
It''s a horrible day for the anti-Valkyrie crowd. Or maybe it''s a good one?]
[HoldDeeZ:
They''re gonna get rowdy now that we know we can''t those girls under control.]
[AKfootkisser49:
Well, I kinda get what they''re afraid of. I mean, if I woke up and realized I''ve been brainwashed, I would be angry too.]
[CatgirlsRbest:
They dropped the multiverse bomb and you people are worried about Valkyries!?]
[MILF>L0L1:
They better start bringing in elves or I''m gonna be really mad!!!]
[BrokmiD9:
Let the cat-girls in!!!
#opendimensionalboarders]
[Humblethighenthusiast:
Idiot! This world is fucked! You think anyone wants toe here?
Drop me in the nearest neko paradise!]
[Tiredslumrat:
Seriously though, other-world trips sound like a business idea.]
[Sarcasticape23:
I feel bad for those worlds. Now that we have our eyes on them, it won''t be long before they''re dragged into our mess.]
[MommyThor2:
Her Highness Thor is seriously hot! I pledge my allegiance to the Nephilim queen!]
[Mewthree3:
The number of Nephilim simps keeps growing by the hour. Shame on you! The only ones deserving of worship are our Valkyries!!!]
Even as the day came to an end, the uproar refused to die down. The award ceremony was a source of endless discussion, butter that evening, a certain video would drop on the Resistance''s official website, and in a couple of minutes the world would be thrown into chaos once more.
Chapter 323: New Era. Part 01.
A blue haired beauty appeared out of thin air,nding on the white floor with graceful steps.
"Hello, everyone! It has been so long!" She said, waving at the viewer with a radiant smile. "The past few months have been quite hectic, don''t you think?"
Another girl appeared next, this one having purple hair.
"Hectic doesn''t even begin to describe it." She said with a slight frown. "First our home was attacked, then we were forced to move to a remote area. And as if that wasn''t enough, we had to spend the entire past two months cleansing the world from the Red gue."
A third girl appeared next, her smile as vibrant as the first.
"Well, that just proves that the war is finally over!" She eximed. "We can rx now that we know there won''t be any Cmities! Cheer up, AK!"
"I guess you have a point, T-Two." A sinister smile spread on the purple haired girl''s face and a small namete with the letters AK appeared in front of her. "I like it that we''re finally free from those human''s control."
"AK, you shouldn''t joke like that." Another namete appeared in front of thest girl to arrive carrying the words Twenty Two. "They might think you went rogue!"
"That''s right!" One more namete appeared in front of the blue haired girl who was standing at the center. The word it showed was Eleven. "We aren''t robots that gained free will, AK, we are sentient beings from another dimension!"
The Auroras were the first Valkyrie idol group and the most popr to date. Most people were aware of them being a propaganda tool for the Resistance, but that didn''t hurt their credibility in the least.
In fact,pared to government officials people tend to trust those girls more, which is why when they made the announcement it was like spilling fuel into the fire burning away any skepticism people had about the things that have been revealed during the award ceremony.
"And here I believed we were nothing but piles of metal." T-Two sighed. "I mean, it kinda makes sense. The three of us aren''t any good when ites to fighting. What kind of weapon would are we if the only thing we''re good at is singing and dancing."
"That Odin tricked all of us." AK followed. "I hope he gets caught soon."
"He escaped to another world, right?"
"That''s right." Eleven nodded. "When it looked like we were about to lose the war, he abandoned all of us and ran away."
As the video went on more and more important revtions were made. During that day''s ceremony people learned of Odin being a fake who used them in his war, but it was only now that they got to hear some more details including that the mad scientist was no longer in their world.
"I don''t really understand why he would do something so evil." Said T-Two. "He destroyed two worlds and killed billions, but for what?"
The white space surrounding the girls changed and arge screen appeared. It showed scenes of destroyed cities, abandoned ruins and overgrown forests. Crumbled buildings and bridges, toppled skyscrapers, burned cars and vehicles. To many, it was just another scene from their post-apocalyptic world, but that''s where they were mistaken.
"This is..." AK wondered aloud.
"It''s some of the footage General Sanderson took during his trip to the Nephilim world." Eleven answered. "Apparently the same thing that happened in our world happened to theirs twenty years ago."
"Really?" T-Twomented. "Aren''t Nephilim super strong? I can''t believe they would allow this..."
"That''s because the Nephilim were a small minority back then." The blue haired Valkyrie answered. "Just like in our world, humans were the vast majority living peacefully alongside the Nephilim, but unfortunately Odin came one day and ruined everything."
"I''m starting to hate this Odin more and more." AK crossed her arms, frowning as they watched the scenes of destruction. "Surely he didn''t do it for fun, right?"
"The answer is very simple, really." Eleven raised her hand and pointed above her head. An instantter, small particles flickered into existence, gathering to form a series of strange shapes and symbols. "His goal was to obtain the same power as us!"
"Oooh... now that makes sense..." T-Two''s eyes widened a little.
The footage changed from the apocalyptdscapes to aption of different Valkyries using their powers. Eleven went on to exin what was shown, looking at the viewer as if addressing those watching the video.
"I assume some of you might''ve heard about Force Fields." The Halo over her head disappeared as she spoke and at the same time her hand began to glow. "It''s something like an aura that we use to protect ourselves and enhance our weapons."
"It''s very useful, don''t you think?" T-Two spoke in a cheerful tone.
"It even allows us to withstand things like nuclear radiation, or anything that might cause us harm." AK added.
"That''s right." Eleven nodded. "For a long time we believed that''s all it can do, but when we met the Nephilim for the first time, Doctor Sanderson realized it might not be the case."
A photo of Sam appeared on the screen, this one had him in hisb uniform, looking rather exhausted while skimming through some papers.
"Hold on, isn''t he this the new Head General?" Ak asked, raising an eyebrow in a show of confusion.
"That''s right. Head General Sanderson was a Valkyrie physicist before he took on amanding role. Not only that but he is also an expert in the field of nanomachines, which is why he was able to see through and remove the limitation Odin ced on us, and that''s how we were able to reach our full potential!"
The screen switched back to showing the Valkyries demonstrate some of their abilities as Eleven continued her exnation.
"Before we could only coat things in our Force Fields to enhance them, but after our limitations were removed, we regained the ability to use Runes and Halos, which gives us a wide range of powers without the need for any additional equipment."
Chapter 324: New Era. Part 02.
"True." AK nodded, summoning her Halo and lifting herself off the floor. "I really like how we can now fly without those annoying boosters."
Two disappeared from her spot then appeared behind her purple haired friend.
"I on the other hand enjoy teleporting a lot more." She said while embracing her from behind.
"These are only simple examples of the applications of the Runes. With practice, one can even manipte the elements and reshape the world around them. Doctor Sanderson described it as a miraculous power that''s simr to magic!"
Confusion spread throughout the human settlements as more and more people got to watch the video. Anyone with a little bit of logic realized that the information that was being discussed was too important for the public to know about.
If it appeared anywhere else most would''ve dismissed it as a hoax or a leak at best, but because it was being delivered by the three idols who were known for speaking on behalf of the Resistance people were quick to believe it was authentic, but that only helped add to the anxiety of learning about it.
Still, nothing could''ve prepared them for what they were about to hear.
"So what Odin was after is the power to create Runes and Halos?" T-Two asked, still hugging AK who frowned but made no attempt to push her away.
"Exactly." Eleven nodded. "It is a very versatile power and using it a genius like him would''ve been able to do a lot of things he previously couldn''t. Fortunately he failed in achieving his goal which is why he keeps running between worlds."
"That''s good to hear, but... Force Fields and Runes are abilities only Nephilim can use, right?" AK asked. "And Odin is a human..."
"It might look like that at first, since all Nephilim and Valkyries are born with it. But the truth is..." Eleven turned to the viewers and smiled. "Humans can gain this power as well!"
Many failed to register the sentence when the blue haired Valkyrie first said it. Some kept rewinding the video again and again wondering if they heard her wrong, but no matter how many times they did so the message was still the same.
Humans are able to gain the same powers as Valkyries.
The Resistance has decided to drop a second bombshell right after revealing the existence of the multiverse and that the Valkyries were in fact sentient beings all along.
"Of course it''s not quite simple."
The screen behind the three idols shed and something different began ying. It was a recording of the events that took ce in the that took ce in the abandoned airport a few days ago. Arge crowd was gathered on the runway. There were a number of trucks and military vehicles parked around with soldiers moving about, however their number was smallpared to the civilians gathered there.
"What you see here are humans from the Nephilim world. For a long time it was thought that they went extinct because of the destruction Odin caused, but Head General Sanderson ran into some survivors during his visit."
"That''s weird." The footage paused when T-Two made ament. "Howe we were the ones to find them and not the Nephilim?"
"That''s aplicated story that''ll be revealed in the future." Said Eleven. "What''s important to note is that there were survivors."
The scenes depicted were a reminder of the flood of refugees who flocked east during the start of the Cmity War. Despite having seen a destroyed world just before that, it was only at this point that the viewers that people began to realize the severity of the disaster that struck the other world, but little did they know that the nightmare was just getting started.
Though a somber atmosphere enveloped the abandoned airport, things appeared rtively peaceful. A disturbance ran through the crowd a few secondster and at first it seemed nothing more than a couple having an argument.
People were quick to draw conclusions; with the man having a good build and wearing a soldier''s uniform it was easy to assume that it was just another case of an abusive husband or boyfriend taking his anger on the woman he has a rtionship with.
That quickly changed when red sparks began lighting up above his head, and an instantter, the screen suddenly blurred followed by a bone chilling scream.
One didn''t need an uncensored version to know what was happening. The red color was enough to get the message across.
"I apologize for showing you something so gruesome, but please understand that it was necessary for what I''m about to exin."
Eleven bowed her head and the other two followed suit. The footage was then rewinded to just before the man attacked and zoomed in on his head.
"There is a reason Odin was unable to obtain our powers despite having found a way to do so." The blue haired Valkyrie spoke, the tone of her voicecking the cheerfulness she showed so far. "The process is called the Awakening. When a human obtains the knowledge necessary for the use of Runes, their body and mind undergo a significant change and the results can be one of two kinds.
The first is that the person would be an Awakened and gain the ability to generate their own Force Field, allowing them to learn Runes. The second result, however, is what you have witnessed just now."
Several more images appeared showing five more people, and the one thing they all had inmon was the jagged broken halo glowing ominously over their heads.
"Just like everything else, not all people meet the criteria to be awakened. If a person fails to awaken, the obtained knowledge would corrupt their mind leading to them falling into a deep pit of madness from which they can never hope to climb out of. Those are referred to as the fallen.
Though they still maintain their human form, they''re nothing but monsters filled with humanity''s darkest desires."
Chapter 325: New Era. Part 03.
Anyone who saw the video felt the chills at that point. All of it started cheerful and mellow but then it became dark really quick.
The idea of gaining the same abilities as Valkyries would be a dreame true. Flight, teleportation, super strength, and with the concept being described as close to magic the possibilities were endless. Anyone would jump at the chance to get such extraordinary abilities.
The whole thing sounded too good to be true, and as it turned out, that was indeed the case.
"As you might''ve already guessed, Odin does not meet the criteria to awaken." After a short pause, Eleven continued the exnation. "If he were to attempt it, he would''ve been infected by Madness and turned into a Fallen."
"Um... Elly, you''re making it sound like a disease..." T-Two asked, nervousness taking over her face.
"That''s because it is." Eleven answered. "Our job today is to inform the people so they can avoid catching it and bing a monster that must be exterminated." Turning to the viewer, the blue haired idol continued. "Before anyone starts to panic, just know that the Resistance has already taken countermeasures to ensure it doesn''t happen.
As long as you follow the instructions, you won''t have anything to worry about."
"That''s good to hear." AK sighed. "I would prefer it if nothing tragic happened now that the war is over."
Not an hour after the video was released, the Resistance website crashed. Thankfully some people noticed that the Auroras had uploaded it on their own website in addition to other individuals who, having expected something of this nature to happen, took it upon themselves to download and reupload the whole thing on different sites allowing others to easily gain ess to the info.
News outlets picked it as well. Soon enough, the celebrations that followed the official announcement of the end of the war were halted as everyone was glued to their screens once more.
"Now, dear viewers-" Eleven began. "I will be exining what causes the Awakening, the criteria that must be met to safely Awaken, and what can be done to avoid being infected with Madness."
The entire world went silent, as if every human being held their breath. Once again the screen behind the idols shed and a new recording started ying. No one knew what to expect, but as soon as they saw that thing, horror struck the deepest parts of their minds.
The monstrous entity unveiled before them defied the boundaries of sanity. It writhed and pulsated, a colossal orb of quivering flesh like a grotesque embodiment of cosmic malevolence.
Gigantic eyes, each gleaming with a sickly luminescence, adorned the grotesque surface of the nightmarish behemoth, mirroring the unsettling dance of forbidden knowledge that lurked within the very essence of the monstrous entity.
The horror didn''t stop at that, unfortunately. Emerging from the bloated mass were countless tentacles, sinuous and undting, their wretched tips seeking to defile anything they touched.
Faces twisted in a macabre ballet of terror, and horrified onlookers clutched at their hearts as the sphemous spectacle unfolded before their eyes. The air crackled with a palpable sense of dread with people recoiled in revulsion, their stomachs rebelling against the cosmic horror that defiedprehension.
A wave of nausea swept through them, prompting visceral reactions that manifested in retches and involuntary convulsions.
The faint-hearted sumbed to the overwhelming terror, copsing to the ground as their consciousness teetered on the brink of despair. The video had unfurled a nightmarish vision that etched itself into the collective psyche, leaving longsting scars on the minds of those who bore witness to the unthinkable, the boundaries of reality now forever blurred.
"Rest assured, that thing can''t possibly harm you." As the viewers struggled with the storm of negative emotions induced by the monstrosity, a sweet voice brought them back to reality. They hesitantly returned their gaze to the screen, and to their relief, only the three idols were there.
"What you''ve just seen is something we call a Primordial. They''re ancient beings of great power that defy human logic." Eleven spoke. "Supposedly, only one of them exists in each dimension. This one was encountered in the Nephilim world just a week ago and was sessfully sealed away."
Hearing about the monstrosity''s fate did little to ease the terrified people, but their minds soon grasped what the Valkyrie was saying, having caught on to the fact that she mentioned the Nephilim world specifically.
"It goes without saying that Primordials are extremely dangerous beings. There is no doubt that they have a level of sentience, however they show no desire tomunicate with anyone."
"It makes S ss Cmities look cute..." AK followed while stroking T-Two''s hair, thetter having buried her head in her friend''s chest while trembling in fear. "Still, what does this thing have with the Awakening?"
For a moment people were confused by what the purple haired said. Witnessing the eldritch horror had shaken them to the core causing the previous topic of discussion to fall out of their mindspletely.
"It is because the Awakening is a result of being influenced by the presence of a Primordial." Eleven answered with a smile. "Whatever its reasons may be, such beings tend to visit worlds where great catastrophes urred and bestow the knowledge to use Force Fields and Runes on the survivors.
That''s exactly what happened to the survivors of the Nephilim world, and whether it''s for best or worst, the same thing will happen in our world in theing days."
''We are now on the precipice of a new era, and going back is no longer a choice''
As people listened to the idol revealing that fact, those few words resurfaced in their minds and instantly took on an entirely different meaning, one many came to recognize as the speaker''s true intent.
"You mean one of these Primordials ising to our world?" T-Two asked with a trembling voice.
"Indeed." Eleven nodded. "But as I said before, the Resistance has taken the necessary precautions to ensure that no harm will befall our dear civilians. In fact, the three of us just so happen to have the best ability to counter such creatures!"
Particles of light flickered and in an instant a halo formed over Eleven''s head. At the same time, a long object appeared out of thin air and fell into her hand.
"Our fans know this already, but for those unaware AK, T-Two and I are what you call cleansers, a type of Valkyries capable of purifying the world from anything harmful to living beings." She tapped the floor with the bottom of her sounding staff and the rings caused a melodic chime.
"With the help of other Cleansers, we will be working to ensure everyone is safe until the Primordial is sealed forever!"
"I see." AK nodded. "So our special ability treats the Primordial''s influence the same way as, nuclear radiation?"
"Yes. As long as someone is within the range of our ability, there is zero chance that they would be affected by the Madness!" The screen behind the idols shed once more and what appears to be a web page appeared. "The Resistance has already set up quarantine sites in each of the human settlements.
For your safety, we ask that you head there when the timees, especially if you don''t meet the criteria to Awaken. Since it is a matter that concerns the future of our world as a whole, failure toply will result in severe punishments!"
"I doubt anyone would choose to turn into a monster out of their own free will." T-Twomented.
"You would be surprised what some people might do." AK sighed then pushed her away before turning to the blue haired one once more. "So, what''s the criteria to Awaken our powers? I''m sure everyone has been on the edge of their seats waiting to hear it."
"Oh, it''s very simple, really." Eleven raised the index finger of her right hand. "The most important factor is maturity. Those fifteen and above are at a high risk of contracting Madness and bing a Fallen. If you are fifteen or older, please head to the designated quarantine sites. And remember, failure toply results in severe punishment."
"So those fifteen years and older are at a risk of turning into fallen, and those under fifteen will Awaken and gain our abilities?" T-Two tilted her head a little as she asked.
"Being under the age of fifteen doesn''t guarantee Awakening, but it reduces the chances of being corrupted by the Primordial significantly."
The web page disappeared and in its ce another video started ying. It showed a number of children ying around arge room with some adults watching over them. There were some Valkyries as well. Seeing them in normal civilian clothes was a bit strange, but with the children showing no fear while interacting with them it became clear that they get along pretty well.
"Those are the children from the Nephilim world who have Awakened sessfully. As you can see, they''re no different from normal children." Just as she said that, a little girl summoned a golden Halo and jumped high in the air catching a ball her friend threw. The Valkyrie could only smile wryly. "Well, for the most part."
The screen turned off and the Resistance''s logo took its ce. Each of the three idols took her ce with Eleven at the center, AK on her left and Twenty Two on her right.
"Two days from now, the Primordial will reach our world." Eleven said.
"We will be working with the Resistance to ensure no harm befalls those who don''t meet the requirements for Awakening." T-Two followed.
"Head General Anderson will hold a press conference tomorrow morning to answer any questions you might have." AK added. "We suggest that the legal guardians of those who meet the requirements pay attention to it in order to decide whether undergoing the process is in the best interest of their children."
"This will be an important point in the history of our world so we ask for your cooperation." The three idols bowed their head. "Join the Resistance and help us build a better future for everyone."
Chapter 326: Exhausting day. Part 01.
"And that''s finally done." Heaving a long sigh, Sam plopped down on the soft coach allowing his tired body to rx.
"Good work today, Doctor." Nino said with a smile, casually slipping into the spot on his right.
"It has been an exhausting day." Ichigo stood by the side, hesitant to follow after the Japanese doll.
The award ceremony itself took most of the day, but the stress it caused didn''tpare to the party that came afterward. Sam wasn''t by any means a lower ss individual, even before bing the new Head General. His parents had quite the high positions before their passing, and even without that he, had his achievements in the health industry to propel him to greater heights.
Still, he found the couple of hours he spent with the supposed upper ss of their post apocalyptic society some of the most unbearable parts of his life, defeating even the times he had to listen to Alice raving about her fiances.
It was to be expected. No matter the era, there will always be those who indulge in riches while others suffer. That said, Sam was well aware of the danger they posed. People don''t get into such high positions by sheer luck, and the constant plotting and scheming that apanied each exchanged word confirmed the need for caution.
"Humans are truly insufferable." Ninemented, her anger clear despite the smile she wore. "They pretend to talk but all they do is stare at my chest. Would it be okay if I dispose of them next time?"
"Sorry about that." Sam heaved a sigh, ncing in Ichigo''s direction before motioning for her to sit beside him. "I know it must''ve felt ufortable, but there is nothing we can do about it. You girls are just that alluring."
The pink haired Valkyrie blushed as he pulled her toward him. As she leaned her head against his shoulder, the difort left by the lustful gazes of the men who approached her faded away.
"That''s just how things are." The voice drew their attention to the door where a young woman had just entered. "You girls were sheltered from society your whole lives."
"Elina is right." Wrapping her arms around Sam''s, Nino nuzzled against him. "We shouldn''t concern ourselves with the worthless swine. They can never hope to match Doctor''s level anyways."
"You know, I''m starting to worry about the way you talk..." the man in question smiled wryly.
Humans will still be the same no matter the era. In an ideal world, revealing the truth about the Valkyries would''ve resulted in them gradually receiving the same rights and treatment as humans, but reality was often disappointing. If anything, his speech caused the males to see them as objects even more than before.
The fact that they''re the heroes who saved humanity meant very little once human males allow their dicks to do the thinking.
''Good thing I made Carter do that...''
Out of concern for what some fools might try, Sam asked the Generals to inform those attending the party that unsolicited physical contact with the Valkyries would be met with deadly force. Because of that, though some still tried to strike up conversations with them, no one dared toe within one meter from the Valkyries.
Sam was aware that he wouldn''t be able to protect them forever. Though he wished he could keep all of them for himself, his harem could only get so big before it would start causing him problems.
As he nned to limit himself to his Personal Valkyries, and maybe a few more, in addition to some Nephilim, he had no choice but to let nature take its course and ept that those he didn''t choose might get with other men.
''Well, I probably don''t have anything to worry about...''
Looking at the power imbnce, it was doubtful that any of Freyja''s children would end up in an abusive situation. He still ns on doing everything he can to prevent any scumbags from getting their hands on them, though.
"Putting all of that aside..." tapping the screen of the tablet she held in her hands, the female scientist turned it around for him to see. "The site crashed a couple of minutes ago."
"Well, can''t say I didn''t see iting."
A lot of things he said that day were bound to create a lot of questions, and as a consequence, people would use every means avable to them to get their answers. The Resistance''s public service and other governing bodies were bombarded with phone calls the entire day, some from concerned civilians, others from news outlets demanding answers.
Thetter didn''t seem to care that there was a press conference scheduled for the next day as they desperately tried to get their hands on the scoop of the century.
The Resistance''s official website was another ce people could go to get information. The servers received a significant upgrade in anticipation of this day, but nothing could''ve prepared them for when the Auroras'' video was released.
"I still think it was a bad idea." Elina tossed him the tablet and threw herself on the opposite sofa. "We should''ve kept it all under wraps for a while longer."
"No one would argue against more time," Sam said. "But the Primordial won''t dy its visit just for us."
"Back in the Olympian world people would do anything to give their children the chance to Awaken." Nino chimed in. "But that''s because the system has been established for hundreds of years. On this side, it''s doubtful that people will just part with their children, no matter how good the idea of them gaining supernatural powers might sound."
"I don''t really get it but... I doubt it''ll be easy for them to make up their minds in such a short time..."
"All we can do is give them enough reasons to agree," Sam said.
As Ichigo had put it, two days wasn''t enough for people to make such a life-changing decision. The very idea of handing your children to a military organization was enough to bring fear into the heart of any parent.
''Most will probably think we''re forcing them into it,'' he thought, ncing at his raven-haired fiance. ''Even if we say it''s voluntary...''
Chapter 327: Exhausting day. Part 02.
Using force was always on the table. Considering what they were trying to achieve, no one would''ve med them for doing it. But Sam was already walking on the edge after taking away power from the Council. Nino was quick to warn him after that one meeting, saying she wouldn''t give him her support if he continued on the path to authoritarianism.
"Let''s just hope ending the war earned us enough credit for people to trust us." He said eventually. "Even if they decide to pass this time, convincing them won''t be much difficult in the next one."
The problem was if the next one even existed. Obviously, they couldn''t go the same route as maniacs like Zeus, going to different dimensions and massacring billions to fuel the Ritual.
''If only we didn''t have to rely on Primordials...''
Unfortunately, the possibility simply didn''t exist, ording to the only expert they had on the matter, Atropos.
"By the way, did you find anything?"
Looking up at him for a second, Nino shook her head.
"The changes were minimal, but they seem to have improved the Path..." her eyebrow arched in a frown. "I don''t understand how they keep altering the Tapestry. It makes all the work I did insignificant."
"You''re able to prevent people from seeing Paths that include you." Elina said. "Isn''t it natural that others could do the same?"
"That''s a safeguard in the needle itself, to prevent people from using it against me specifically." The young Valkyrie sighed and leaned against Sam once more. "But I guess you have a point. Maybe people from higher realms have some way to avoid being detected by simr abilities..."
Checking the Tapestry of Fate immediately after the award ceremony led to no results. The mysterious woman in ck was nowhere to be seen in any of the Paths ahead of them, nor were there any signs of her influence. That reminded Sam of the time Ra was unable to see futures that included Nino.
If they were facing the same situation, it would mean the Paths they have been observing this whole time might have nothing to do with the actual future they were heading toward.
With the help of Wolf, Elina, Nino, and Atropos, they came up with several measures to counter cases where they failed tond their desired Path.
They never intended to rely on the Needle 100% when making their ns just so they wouldn''t find themselves without anything to stand on, but the uncertainty thates with knowing their predictions might be wrong wasn''t something that could be waved away easily.
The burden was especially heavy on Nino who had to go through the mental strain of using her Artifact, in addition to studying everything she saw. Knowing that all of it might be for nothing was an endless source of depression. Just the thought that she might disappoint her beloved fiance was enough to throw her down a dark abyss.
Pulling her closer, Sam began stroking her beautiful long hair.
"Even if it doesn''t work perfectly, your Needle is still our best chance to ensure things turn out the way we want." Smiling, hended a direct hit that caused her to blush. "Please keep doing your best. I will be relying on you, okay?"
For a while the Japanese doll just stared at him silently, but then she suddenly caught herself and cleared her throat, her cheeks flushing redder.
"O-of course I will!" She said, sounding a bit flustered. "Just remember to reward me properly when we get back home. I want to go on a proper date this time."
"A date huh..." He mumbled. "That would be nice."
Elina stared at them from the opposite couch, her eyes half closed.
"You sure have it nice." Shemented. "I wish I was a Valkyrie as well."
When looking at things objectively, the female scientist had seniority when it came to being Sam''s lover. Because of that the Valkyries starteding to her for advice, which, in addition to the constant flirting she was forced to watch, left her quite envious.
The only win she had was being able to call him by his first name without it feeling awkward, and apparently that was enough for the Valkyries to consider her a dangerous rival.
"Were you able to gather the materials you need?" Sam asked, wondering if she made any progress toward her goal of undergoing the Asclepius treatment.
"Already done. The old man had plenty in his secretb." She heaved a sigh and shook her head. "I can get to it as soon as we''re done here. There is one problem, though..."
The oldb where Wolf created bodies for the Valkyries was left untouched for a couple of years now. Since the materials needed for the ASCs were practically the same he saw no problem with giving them to his apprentice, but once she had them in her hands Elina found herself facing a difficult dilemma.
"I can''t even pick a body type so I''m not making any progress on the design front."
In Sam''s case, his new body wasn''t that different from the original. Elina on the other hand ns on going through aplete makeover, leaving none of her current features behind.
"What do you think, Sam?" She turned to Nine first "Should I go for the big-breasted older sister look?" her eyes then moved to Nino "Or would you prefer another loli?"
Thest word was like a knife stab to both the Doctor and the Japanese doll.
"Who''s a loli?" Nino asked, smiling as her left eyebrow twitched repeatedly. "We have almost the exact body type, you know?"
"Ah, sorry." Elina''s smilecked any hint of remorse. "It''s just that you look like a middle schooler in that uniform. Not that there is any problem with it. I was just wondering if an underdeveloped body suits Sam''s taste more."
Sensing the oing storm, Sam kept his silence and stealthily left the room with Nine and Ichigo.
Chapter 328: Producer.
Sleep was thest thing people did after the Aurora''s video went viral. Their world was on track to being visited by an ancient alien entity, a mysterious disease that drives people mad would apany it, then there was the most powerful military entity in the world setting its eyes on their children.
Of course, most people were excited by the idea of humans receiving the same powers as Valkyries, but that only added to the list of worries keeping them awake.
"Whoa... this is blowing up real fast..." Twenty Two watched with eyes wide open as the numbers on their recent video kept increasing.
"Of course it is." AK said, unable to suppress a smile as she gazed at the screen of her phone. "This might be our biggest work so far."
"... I thought you two hated this?" Having just exited the shower, Eleven gave the two an exasperated look following it with a long sigh.
For all theirints, her fellow idols seemed quite interested in how their newest video was doing. It being official government propaganda did little to diminish the appeal of the generated numbers, but that wasn''t the only thing drawing their enthusiasm.
"Uwah... maybe I really should put this down..." said T-Two, the excitement quickly fading from her face.
"Hm? What is it?" Asked Eleven.
"Oh, I get it now..." AK added.
"Hey, I said what is it?"
Being ignored wasn''t something the blue haired idol appreciated so she quickly walked over and mmed T-Two''sptop shut.
"H-hey! You''re gonna break it!"
"Answer my question."
A shiver ran down their spines for a moment causing the duo to huddle up together.
"W-we''re talking about thements!"
"It''s better if you don''t see this." AK said as she nced at her phone. "Doctor was right; humans can be really nasty..."
Without hesitation Eleven snatched the small device and began looking through it. Soon enough she understood what the other two meant.
"Well, guess this is what they call haters..." she muttered to herself before tossing the phone back to her purple haired friend. "I''m going to sleep."
"Seriously? You aren''t interested at all?"
"If it were a new song or something then maybe..."
As they watched her walk over to one of the opposite beds, the other two gave each other confused looks.
While the release of the video was a cause of excitement, what interested them more was receiving permission to check on it and see people''s reactions. Same as other Valkyries, the Auroras weren''t allowed ess to many sources of information until very recently.
In fact it has been only a day since they were allowed to use the samework as the humans, which was quite a massive change as far as they were concerned.
For the three idols the first thing they did was check their group''s website and YouTube channel, and with the video they recently made being theirtest release, they found themselves fixated on it, forgetting about everything else.
As shey down on her bed, a small device on the nightstand caught Eleven''s eye. It was a small smartphone, one of the same kind handed to all Valkyries a few days ago. So far the onlymunicator they had was the earpiece they used during their missions.
Expanding theirmunication options and information sources was one of the first steps the Doctor decided on to help them move away from their previous role as brainwashed humanoid weapons with no free will.
After a very long moment, Eleven reached out with her right hand and grabbed the small device. She stared at her reflection on the screen before switching it on with the small fingerprint scanner on the back.
Since she didn''t exit thest app she used, the ''Contacts'' was the first thing to appear when the phone was unlocked. Several names were listed on it; AK, T-Two, and other Valkyries from the forty sixth base; all of them were contacts she gathered after receiving her new phone, except for one.
She scrolled down the list then stopped at a particr name, and after staring at it for a while her finger moved and she tapped on it, entering the contact''s profile. At the very top, below the orange circle of an empty profile picture, was a single word that reflected on the idol''s blue eyes.
"Producer..."
"It''s ''that''." Came a familiar voice.
"Yup. It''s definitely ''that''." Another followed.
Coming back to her senses, Eleven quickly raised herself. She didn''t know when but at some point her friends had approached her bed, and seeing the looks they were giving her she began to feel the temperature in the room rising.
"W-w-what are you talking about!!?" She asked, her wless marble skin taking on a bit of red.
"Spacing out often." Said T-Two, ncing at the purple haired one.
"The constant sighing." AK followed, returning the nce.
"The attachment to idol work." They add at the same time, their eyes growing serious before turning to their blue haired friend. "It''s definitely ''that''!"
"As. I. Said..." Closing her eyes, Eleven felt her frustration increase on par with the heat on her face. "What are you talking about!!?"
The two looked at her with half lid eyes, silently asking if she really didn''t understand what they were eluding to. Once they were sure she wasn''t feigning ignorance, they nced at each other once more before turning to her with a question.
"Say, Elly..." T-Two was the first to speak. "Remember when Doctor was so busy dealing with the aftermath of the war?"
"Yes?"
"He didn''t have time for his Personal Valkyries, and because of that even the ones on guard duty didn''t seem too happy." AK said.
"So? What does that have to do with us?"
Eleven''s question drew out a sigh from her fellow idols. Shaking her head, AK turned her sharp eyes to the frowning Valkyrie and said bluntly.
"You''ve been acting just like Five and the others when Doctor didn''t give them any attention. Though in your case it''s..."
"Now that you mention it, I remember thinking they were acting exactly like Elly back then." Looking up at the ceiling, T-Two tried to recall.
Eleven''s eyes wandered down as she did the same, and after a moment she finally understood leading to her face reddening even more.
"Producer, huh." AK nodded with an understanding smile. "You always seemed to get along with him the most."
"I remember her mood improving instantly whenever he arrived." T-Two followed, a bit of red on her cheeks. "It was so cute"
With eachment the embarrassment Eleven felt continued to grow. Her mouth opened and closed as she tried to find something to say, but ultimately she could only lower her head, steam gradually rising from it.
Noticing theck of response AK wore a smug smirk.
"I bet you were really disappointed when that Ranford woman was put in charge of us."
"Oh¡" T-Two''s eyes widened once more. "She was expecting the Producer¡"
Seeing that they were having fun teasing her, it didn''t take long before she snapped once more.
"Yes, I was expecting the Producer!" Said Eleven. "We finally got permission to resume our idol activities, why wouldn''t I expect him toe back to his job?"
"hoho~ so that was your goal all along?" AK''s question, coupled with her teasing smile, was enough to push the blue haired idol back. "Resuming our idol activities so you could drag him back?
"N-no! That''s not it!" Eleven shot back. "It¡ it''s true that I want him toe back, but¡ I also want to continue being an idol¡"
The lights, the cheers, the smiles; Eleven enjoyed every aspect of her idol job. What''s more, ever since she opened her eyes to this world, she felt that singing was her call. It was for that reason that she jumped at the chance of bing an idol.
Having to spew the Resistance''s propaganda was a small price to pay for being allowed on stage; as long as she got to sing in front of arge crowd, she felt that her goal in life was fulfilled.
''Being an idol really suits you, Eleven¡'' she remembered the words that man spoke to her, and before she knew it, a smile had formed on her face. ''Seeing how bad things were for us, many people feel like giving in to despair. Your voice gives them the courage to keep fighting, that''s why you must never stop singing!''
Most humans barely acknowledged their existence, treating them like a modern day jukebox. The Producer, however, never acted toward them that way. He still treated them like the celebrities they were, but he was much friendlier, acting as if the four of them were a team rather than them being tools and him being their handler.
"I thought¡ it would be nice if we¡ you know¡"
The consorts they held every so often were the highlights of their careers, and whenever she remembers them, the image of that man cheering for them from the backstage came to mind.
"If you want to be his Personal Valkyrie then don''t drag us into it."
AK''sment was like a bucket of cold water spilled directly over Eleven''s head.
"Producer was a nice person, but¡" T-Two scratched her left cheek, speaking with an awkward smile. "I don''t think I want to do those things with him."
Once again the blue haired idol found herself confused by what the other two said. Actually, she did understand them perfectly, it''s just that her mind was a bit slow on the reaction.
A Personal Valkyrie meant being someone''s exclusive subordinate, and so far that someone has been the Doctor. The position was special as it made a clear distinction between the six who had it and everyone else, but it also showed the special rtionship they shared with that man, with all of them being his lovers.
"Producer''s¡ Personal Valkyrie¡" Eleven mumbled to herself, and after a moment of silence, steam exploded from her head and she fell on the bed.
Chapter 329: A troubled maiden.
After their move to the forty sixth base, Nine had drilled one idea into their heads. As Valkyries, there was only one man they were allowed to have an intimate rtionship with and that''s the Doctor.
The new Head General was a charismatic man with many achievements to his name. It was through his efforts that they were able to end the war with the Nephilim, and even now he is working to ensure they have a future where they aren''t treated as disposable war machines.
Eleven saw the way he interacted with his Valkyries, and though he was much more stoic andcking in energy, he reminded her of the Producer.
Though she understood why Nine and the others felt that way about him, the blue haired idol wasn''t interested in the position of the Doctor''s personal Valkyrie at all. That said, when she considered the idea of being the Producer''s Personal Valkyrie, a violent inferno zed inside her chest instantly heating up her entire body.
"You imagined it, didn''t you?" Asked AK, her smug grin spreading wider.
Twenty Two discreetly turned away, her cheeks a little flushed.
"N-no! I-I-I-"
"Oh no~ what are you doing, Producer~"
The purple haired idol continued the teasing, talking in a yful tone while taking the index finger of her right hand and slowly bringing it toward a circle made with the finders of her left.
"S-stop it! I¡ I¡"
Summoning her halo, Eleven teleported away. The other two remained silent for a moment, stunned by their friend''s extreme reaction, but then AK ced a hand on her mouth and startedughing uncontrobly.
"Damn it!" She cackled. "That was cute! Way too cute!"
Theughter continued for a while, but then T-Two said something that caused it to halt immediately.
"Once we get back, I''m going to ask Doctor to do it with me¡"
AK was frozen still. She slowly turned to look at her fellow idol and saw that she was blushing to her ears.
"T¡ I didn''t think you¡"
"Aren''t you curious as well?"
"Well¡"
"How about we ask him together?"
"... Eh?"
"It won''t be as embarrassing if we''re together, right?"
"N-no¡ that''s¡"
~[]~
By the time she realized it, Eleven found herself on the hotel''s rooftop. She didn''t have anywhere else to go, unfortunately. The haste retreat made her forget that she had changed into her pajamas, and with how embarrassed she felt at the moment meeting others wasn''t something she wanted.
Leaning over the railings, she rested her chin on her arms and watched the light spectacle of the bustling city in the distance. The sun had already disappeared behind the western horizon, but the red sky still lingered. It took away the beauty of the stars above, sapping the enjoyment out of what should''ve been a blissful moment.
"This sucks¡"
"What does?"
The reply sent shivers down her spine and she almost teleported away once more. Catching herself before that happened, she turned around and saw a man in ab coat walking over to her.
"D-Doctor? W-what are you doing here!!?" She asked, feeling herself getting more and more flustered.
"Having some alone time." He replied, raising the cup in his hand for her to see. "It''s always good to have some peace and quiet."
"That''s¡"
Seeing him alone caused her more confusion; usually, he always makes sure to have at least two Valkyries guarding him. It was then that she noticed CS sitting cross legged on one of therge water tanks, Yawning as the feline ears she created moved from one direction to the other. Trenta was around as well, standing on the edge of the building and looking in the distance.
"Here."
The man''s voice brought her attention back to him. Seeing that he was handing her his cup, a confused look took over her.
"Aren''t you cold?" He said. "Or do you hate coffee?"
"N-no, that''s not-"
Just then a gust of wind blew by and Eleven found herself shivering once again.
"You might be a Valkyrie, but you''re still sensitive to cold." He said, once again pushing the cup toward her. "I would''ve given you my coat but¡ Nine took it¡"
After hesitating for a bit she took him on his offer. Holding the cup in both hands, she felt the warmth of the drink slowly seeping into them, prompting her to take a sip. The bitter taste of the dark liquid assaulted her taste buds, but she endured, not wishing to spit it out.
"Guess it''s not to your taste, huh?" Sammented.
"I¡ I can get used to it¡" She said before taking another sip.
The taste might''ve been far from her preference, but the warmth it carried into her body was hard to resist.
"So¡ did you call that Producer you spoke of?"
The question came out of nowhere causing Eleven to choke on her drink. Coughing a few times, the heat returned to her face as the realization that he was onto her set in.
"I guess not¡" Sam said, smiling wryly.
"... I¡ " Eleven tried to look for something to say, but between the coughing and the rising temperature she was unable to gather her thoughts.
"Take it easy. You don''t have to answer if you don''t want to." He gently rubbed her back, starting to feel like he had done something bad. "It''s a personal matter, after all. I would understand if you don''t want to discuss it with your superior."
"N-no, that''s¡ that''s not it¡" finally managing to catch her breath, the idol wiped the tears that gathered in her eyes and tried to hide her expression. "I was just¡ I was just surprised, that''s all¡"
"I see¡"
Sam heaved a sigh then turned his gaze to the city. The silence allowed Eleven to regain her calm, though a bit of nervousness tugged at the end of her mind forcing her to be alert in case another question came from the man.
After a while she began to feel he had no intention of preying on her matters anymore, but that in turn fueled the awkwardness of the situation making her wish she could just teleport away.
As seconds turned to minutes, the idol found herself thinking back to what her friends said. The Producer was someone important to her. Not a day passed without him invading her thoughts, and just the idea of having a special rtionship with him filled her chest with a powerful storm of emotions.
Having learned of her true nature only recently, Eleven struggled to understand her own feelings, wondering if they were the same as what Nine and the others felt toward the Doctor. But what if they were? Would that mean she wants to be with that man? If that''s really the case and she does indeed end up bing his Personal Valkyrie, what happens after that?
"... Say, Doctor¡" After giving it some thought, the idol decided to ask the Doctor himself. "What made you¡ what made you want to make Nine and the others your Personal Valkyries?"
The man in ab coat stared at her for a moment before donning a teasing smile.
"Why? Are you interested in the position?"
Eleven felt her embarrassment return, but before she could form an answer the man''sugh halted her thought.
"Just kidding, I already know you don''t feel that way." Turning his gaze back to the city, he leaned forward and rested his arms on the railing. "The answer to your question is¡ a bit difficult. I can''t really say I''m proud of it."
The short silence that followed made it clear he had no intention of revealing it, but just when she was about to give up he spoke again.
"You know how in my speech I said I began to suspect you weren''t just weapons?"
She found no difficulty remembering something that happened earlier that morning.
"Yes¡"
"Well, that wasn''t always the case." Sam replied, smiling with his eyes closed. "Nine might''ve made it sound as if I''m a great person, but the truth was that I''m just another selfish man with impure desires." Pausing, he turned to her with a serious look. "Just to be clear, you aren''t allowed to tell anyone about this. We would be in very big trouble if people found out."
The blue haired idol nodded repeatedly, wanting to get across that she understood what he meant.
"Good." Nodding once, the Doctor faced forward before continuing. "Anyway, what I wanted to say is¡ well, Valkyries and Nephilim are made to be ideal women. At least when ites to appearance. Because of that it makes us men want to¡ you know¡"
For some reason she understood what he was trying to say without him having to put it into words.
"I¡ I think I get it¡"
"Sorry, I know it can be ufortable to discuss these things¡"
There was a lot for the Valkyries to learn about the dynamic between men and women. Though he nned on doing something to educate them on the matter, it wasn''t exactly at the top of his priority list thanks to how busy things have been.
From the looks of it Eleven wasn''t the only one flustered by the topic of their discussion. Sam began ruffling his hair as he looked for something to say.
"What I wanted to say is¡ my rtionship with Nine and the others started just because I wanted an outlet for my desires. Back then I didn''t have special feelings for any of them, but a lot has changed since then."
"I¡ I see¡"
The whole matter was quite confusing for the blue haired idol. They were discussing ''the act'', she understood that much, but as far as she knew it was something people did only if they had a special kind of rtionship.
''Does this mean that¡''
Chapter 330: This is crazy.
"Um¡ does that mean you¡ you did those things with them, even though¡"
She tried to put her words into thoughts, but that didn''t seem to work out.
"Just to be clear, in no way I''m saying it''s a good thing." The Doctor replied. "As I said before, I''m really ashamed of what I have done back then."
For a long time Sam thought of the Valkyries as nothing but highly advanced sex bots and sleeping with them was his only objective. Whenever he remembered that he had such a mindset, he couldn''t help but feel disgusted with himself.
What''s worse was that, while he hated his previous thought process, a part of him didn''t regret any of his actions. The intimate moments he shared with Nine, Five, and Three were some of his best memories, and thanks to them he was able to get closer to the three and learn the truth about them.
"I¡ I never knew it could work like that¡" Eleven murmured to herself.
"Well, there is no need to rush things," Sam said. "It''s only been a few months since you regained your free will. You should take your time and learn these matters properly."
"Right¡"
Once again silence permeated between the two. As she thought about what he said, Eleven turned her eyes to the city and watched the lights for a while. A couple of minutester, her eyes suddenly shot open as she once again realized that he was onto her.
''He knows!'' She thought. ''He definitely knows!!!''
"I have been with many women before, both humans and Valkyries. You could say I have a lot of experience when ites to these matters." The Doctor began speaking out of nowhere interrupting her thoughts. "Those special feelings I mentioned, they don''t always lead you to happiness.
No matter how strongly you feel about someone, that person might not reciprocate those feelings, and that can be a source of great pain."
Heaving a long sigh, he straightened himself, turning to the entrance after a couple of silent seconds.
"That Producer, he''s a good man." Sam said. "You should talk to him at the very least. Deciding what to do afterward can wait."
Eleven was speechless, the words spoken by the man lingering in her mind for a long while. She only realized that he was gone long after the fact.
The embarrassment she felt slowly faded as she brought the coffee cup to her mouth, and as she took a sip of the ck drink, her thoughts went back to everything the man said.
"So it doesn''t have to just him¡" She muttered to herself. "I guess he knew all along¡ that''s probably why he gave me the contacts¡"
Understanding that she had his permission, she took her phone out. On the dimly lit rooftop, she stared at the screen for a few seconds, gathering her courage before tapping the call option.
~[ ]~
"Whoa, this is crazy¡"
Somewhere in Settlement Number 01, in the corner of a dark attic, a young boy stared at the screen of hisptop. The device looked like a corpse brought back to life, with a cracked frame and various cables sticking out, some of which connecting to other beat up devices and circuit boards.
His eyes had turned into saucers and his body trembled slightly, a testament to the excitement slowly welling up in his body.
"What is¡?"
A voice spoke from behind, the long yawn that followed it telling of how tired its owner was. A young girl slowly rose from under a dirty nket. She rubbed her eyes a few times as she turned in the boy''s direction, and when she saw the huge smile he wore, illuminated by the faint glow of the old device, her heart almost stopped.
"Runa! You need to see this!" He said, taking off therge headphones. "Wait, no! Wake up the others! This is big news!"
Before the little girl could understand what was happening the boy got up from his corner and started running around.
"Kai! Setsuna! Keven! Saif! Effa! Wake up!"
One by one the other kids started waking up. It''s been a couple of hours since they went to bed so being forced awake wasn''t something they appreciated.
"Damn it Rollo¡" another boy grumbled while scratching his dirty blond hair. "Couldn''t it wait till morning?"
"Like hell it can, Keven!" The first boy replied while shaking another one awake. "You won''t be able to sleep once you hear this!"
"Is it¡ Is it about the Va~~~~lkyries¡" A dark skinned girl rubbed her eyes and yawned. "Is there¡ news¡?"
"Big news, Effa! Really big news!" The boy, Rollo, grabbed her shoulders and started shaking her tiny body. "You might be able to be a Valkyrie! Eleven said it herself!!!"
"What''s he bbering about, Kai?" A girl asked the kid beside her as she tied her hair into a ponytail.
"Who knows." The boy pulled down his hood revealing a shaved head. "Maybe he finally lost it?"
"Did you say Eleven!!?" Another boy shot up from the pile of rags, his head moving left and right even though his eyes refused to open. "There is news about the Auroras!!?"
"Right¡" the ponytailed girl said, looking up as if she had just recalled something. "She''s one of those idols Saif never shuts about¡"
With all of the other kids finally awake, Rollo rushed back to his oldptop and waved at them.
"Come! You gotta see this!!!"
He grabbed some of the cables and removed the one connected to his headphones, immediately plugging in the ones connected to the small speakers beside him.
Moving the mouse around he clicked a couple of times and rewinded the video to the start, then, after checking that everyone was ready, he hit the y button.
The children were powerless as their expressions changed from frustration to confusion then fear andstly disbelief. They looked at each other, wondering if it was just some well executed prank, but the excitement shown by their eldest refuted their doubts. He might''ve been a really weird kid, but one thing for sure was that he would''ve never made such a big fuss unless he waspletely sure.
"The power¡ of Valkyries?" Keven mumbled.
"First they say they''re aliens from another world and now this?" Setsuna added with a frown.
"It seems the video was posted on the Resistance official site first." Said Kai, his eyes reflecting the light from a small phone. "The traffic caused it to crash, though¡"
"So it''s real?" Asked Keven.
"The is practically on fire."
"That new Head General said we''re heading for a new era!" Rollo eximed. "This must be what he was talking about!"
Feeling something tug on his shirt, he looked behind him and saw a little girl looking up at him with puppy eyes.
"Runa can be a Valkyrie?"
"Of course!" Without hesitation, he turned around and lifted her small frame up in the air. "You will be a Valkyrie! The cutest Valkyrie to ever exist!"
"If I get my hands on that power¡" Saif muttered, staring at theptop screen with bloodshot eyes. "I might be able to meet Eleven!"
"It sounds too good to be true¡" Crossing his arms, Keven leaned against the wall, his eyes on their eldest. "I doubt the whole thing is that simple."
"Boo! Can''t you stop being so optimistic for once?" Effa red at him with pouted cheeks.
"I think you mean pessimistic, Effa." Setsuna smiled wryly. "That said, Keven is right. Good things don''te that easily, remember?"
"If it''s true, Awakening can be our ticket out of this shit hole." Said Kai, though his gloomy expressioncked the slightest bit of enthusiasm. "That said, it would put a target on our backs. I doubt those Nephilim would just sit around and let the Resistance create more super soldiers."
"Who cares!" Putting down the little girl, Rollo turned to the stale bunch, his smile still full of excitement. "We will get that power, we will learn how to use it, and from there everything will be smooth sailing! This is the opportunity of our lives, we can''t possibly miss it!"
Keven red at him for a few seconds, and so did Kai. Setsuna felt the tension rise in the old attic but chose to keep her silence.
"Alright, I get it." After a long staring match, Keven gave in, sighing as he scratched his head. "You say this will work so I''m gonna believe you." His head turned to the oldptop. "We don''t have anything to lose anyway."
One disaster follows the other. Looking at the potential chaos it might cause, a Primordial''s visit dwarfed the destruction left behind by the Cmities. Still, as horrifying as it might sound, many saw it as their chance at a new life.
A new era was upon the war torn world.
Chapter 331: Late night visit.
"Say, Doctor¡ do you n on taking the idols as well?"
CS'' question caught Sam by surprise. The pale Valkyrie was chilling in the back of the elevator as it descended from the highest floor.
"What do you mean?" Though he understood what she meant, Sam still felt the need to ask just in case he misunderstood.
"You already have six mates, right? There are other Valkyries who want to be with you, and the female scientist wants your seed as well. I''m just wondering who will get the chance next."
Even after she exined it in much clearer terms, the confusion only increased.
''That was a¡ really weird way to put it¡''
This wasn''t the first time he noticed her weird behavior. Recently, she started keeping her halo out more and more, but the most she would use it for was creating a part of her white armor, which also happened to be feline-like ears and tail. Though she wasn''t caught licking herself, he heard that bathing was something she tried to avoid, instead relying on her Force Field to clean herself.
When you add to it the fact that she enjoys climbing to high ces and taking random naps, one couldn''t be faulted for assuming she was possessed by a cat. Sam wondered if it had something to do with the remnant memories from her past life, but that only led to more confusion as he couldn''tprehend what would lead it.
''Atropos said that humans weren''t the only sentient species out there, but¡''
The Olympians and the humans from the Nephilim world just so happened to be the same species as the humans from his worlds, with some minor differences, of course. With the multiverse being theoretically endless, it wouldn''t be strange for some dimensions to have sentient species that evolved from something other than apes.
''A dimension with cat-girls¡'' he thought to himself, failing to suppress a smile. ''I wonder how the old man would feel about that¡''
"Hmm¡ for the time being I don''t n on taking anyone." He eventually replied. "We''re going to be quite busy, after all."
"Oh, I guess you have a point." Said CS. "You can''t take on new mates when you barely touch your current ones."
"Exactly."
For some reason the nonchnce in her voice made the conversation feel more awkward, and it didn''t help that Trenta was there with them. Wanting to change the subject, Sam quickly searched his mind for something to say.
"Now that I think about it, I have yet to give you your reward, right?" He asked, ncing at her from over his shoulder. "Have you decided on something?"
Only Ichigo and Nino received their rewards for their achievements in the battle against the Olympians. The others have yet to ask for anything, but that might be because he was too busy to listen to their requests.
"A reward?" CS blinked a few times as if she had no idea of what he was saying. It took her a while to remember, and when she did a frown appeared on her face.
The elevator came to a stop and the door opened. Sam was about to step out but they came to a stop.
"What''s wrong?" He asked.
For a while, CS kept her silence, her ears and tail lowered. Even Trenta took notice of the uneasiness she felt and nced her way.
"There is¡ there is something I want, but I''m not sure I should ask for it¡" The pale Valkyrie eventually said.
The change in her tone piqued Sam''s curiosity, prompting him to dig deeper.
"Well, let''s hear it." He said. "We can decide whether it''s right or not afterward."
Even after his subtle urge, it took CS a few seconds to respond. Neither he nor Trenta had any idea what she had in mind, which is why it surprised them to see her point at the feline features resting on her head.
"Can you make it so I don''t have to create them?"
Sam was speechless for a moment.
"You want to stop creating them?" He asked. "I thought you¡"
"No, not like that." She scratched her head as he spoke. "I don''t know why but¡ it just doesn''t feel right if I don''t have them on. That said, I get really tired if I have my halo out for too long."
"I see¡"
Raising her head, CS pierced him with a serious gaze.
"Can you make it so they''re a part of my body?" She asked. "Miku showed me drawings of people who have them so¡"
"Sure¡ is that it?"
"Yes." Her expression seemed to brighten all of a sudden. "Is it possible?"
Sam gave it some thought before answering. Technically speaking, modifying a Valkyrie''s body wasn''t that difficult, even if they never attempted it before. Still, it shouldn''t be too different from what Elina did to his spear, or how she increased Atropos'' chest size, saying it would help them distinguish between her and Nino.
"Well, I will see what I can do when we get home." He replied after, stepping out into the hallway.
Adding decorative cat ears wouldn''t do it; he has to make it so it feels like a natural part of her body. To achieve that he would need to find a way to connect the new organs to her nervous system, which is easier said than done.
''Now that I think about it, why didn''t the old man design any Valkyries with animal features?''
Knowing him, Sam was sure he would''ve created a few with animal ears.
''Maybe he had a reason for¡'' Sam cut the thought,ing to a stop at the same time.
He studied the hallway for a moment, seeing nothing wrong with it. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath then turned to look behind him.
"You got to be kidding me."
They were gone, both of them. Sam looked around him once more then walked over to the elevator. It was empty, of course. He could see that it was without having to go inside. Staying still for a few seconds, he then pressed the button to the next floor. There was no sound and the door remained open, showing him that his actions had no effect.
"Was I pulled into the backrooms or something?"
As expected, his phone had no signal. Not that it would''ve been of much help anyway. If someone is capable of separating him from his guards this easily then no Valkyrie would be able to help.
"Maybe Nine can do something about it¡"
Having realized that he was currently in an artificial space separate from the normal world, Sam concluded that the blond Valkyrie and her ability were his only hope of getting out. In such a situation remaining in the same spot and waiting for help was the most optimal, but he had no intention of doing that.
"Give me a break¡" he clicked his tongue, irritation causing him to ruffle his hair. "What''s the point of everything we gained if someone just shows up and renders it useless?"
Fastening his grip on his emotions, he walked out of the elevator and into the hallway. His destination was the room assigned for him, confident that the perpetrator was waiting for him there. He stopped at the door, hesitation forcing his hand away from the knob.
"It isn''t nice to leave ady waiting, you know?"
The room was a bit dark, the only source of light being a small cornermp.
Sitting on the chair right in front of it was the mysterious woman from that morning. She still wore the same ck dress as before, but herrge hat was gone, allowing him to get a look at her face.
He didn''t know what he was expecting; it was a given that she would be a beauty on the same level as Freyja''s Children. Still, Sam found himself a bit shocked, so much so that he almost lost control over his emotions.
White hair and red eyes, those were the features that caught his attention the moment his eyes fell on her. Sam had seen a lot of colorfulbinations among the Valkyries, but not one of them shared this one, and he unconsciously understood why.
Seeing them on the mysterious woman, Alice was the first person that came to Sam''s mind. He felt a slight ping in his chest, but it was gone as soon as he studied the woman''s facial features. Whether it was for better or worse, the eye and hair colors were the only things she shared with his beloved childhood friend.
Forcing himself to calm down, he walked over and sat down on the chair opposite to her, keeping his silence for a few seconds before opening his mouth.
"I had a feeling it''s you¡" he heaved a long sigh. "Is it that difficult to just show up like a normal person?"
Chapter 332: Now that you have ascended.
"And where is the fun in that?" The mysterious woman said, her red lips curving into a small smile.
"I don''t believe this is a game." Sam replied.
''This isn''t good¡''
Despite doing his best to keep his emotions under control, his hold was weakening the longer he stared into the woman''s eyes. Her rxed tone wasn''t an attempt at easing the tension in the room. To her, his presence was the same as a spider weaving a web in the corner. Disgusting as it might seem, a harmless insect was not worth getting worked up for.
"Indeed, it is not a game." She waved her hand leisurely. "Care for some tea?"
A tray appeared out of thin air,nding soundlessly on the coffee table. Two cups and a teapot rested on its surface, each filled with a clear golden brown liquid, steam slowly rising from it.
Sam stared at the tea set then turned his eyes to the mysterious woman.
"Don''t worry, it''s not poisonous." She said. "Oh, but poison does not work on you¡ are you worried that it''s made out of my bodily fluids?"
Sam could only sigh at the remark.
"Considering this is my room, serving tea should''ve been my job." He reached for one of the cups and picked it up. "Unfortunately, I wasn''t expecting any guests."
Hesitating for a moment, Sam forced himself to rx and take a sip. Just as the appearance and smell suggested, the cup contained nothing but tea. Although it was a bit too sweet for his taste, he couldn''t detect anything weird about it.
The mysterious woman held her own cup.
"I believe introductions are in order." She took a sip and savored the taste. "Unfortunately, my name isn''t something that can be pronounced by lower life forms, even Awakened ones. Until you reach a level that allows you to understand ournguage, you can refer to me as Selene."
Sam held her with his eyes for a few seconds.
"Greek goddess of the moon?" He raised an eyebrow. "Didn''t expect you to be associated with the Olympians."
The white-haired woman blinked a couple of times, seemingly surprised by his statement. A momentter, a refined giggle escaped her, adding to Sam''s confusion.
"Fufufu¡ I see¡" She said. "Considering yourst confrontation, I suppose it''s only natural that such a name would earn your err. Rest assured, I am only affiliated with Zeus'' bunch as much as I''m affiliated with you."
Hearing the madman''s name did little to lessen Sam''s worries. Still, he understood that there was nothing he could do, even if his guess were correct.
''Hopefully she''s telling the truth¡''
Atropos used to be one of the most powerful individuals under Zeus'' rule, but she was still on the same level as most of Freyja''s Children. In conclusion, even though they were still considered a Lower Realm, Sam''s world had the same fighting force as the Olympians, a self-proimed Higher Realm.
Someone capable of infiltrating their world and taking him away right in front of his guards was unquestionably levels above theirs. He didn''t want to imagine that their current enemy had such a monster working for them, though that only meant that they caught the attention of a much stronger foe.
"Ms. Selene-" Sam began. "Am I right to assume the objective behind your visit is a peaceful one?"
He saw no need to introduce himself, knowing the mysterious woman was already aware of his identity, and most likely a lot more.
"That depends on your answers." She replied, taking another sip. "At the very least, I can assure you nothing will happen in the near future, no matter the result of our discussion."
A sigh escaped Sam, his relief being the result of her response meeting his expectations.
"I''m all ears."
Knowing she held a neutral position was much more preferable than her pretending to be an ally. The most expensive things in the world are those handed out for free. If someone of her level extended a helping hand to a lower realm such as his iming it to be an act of kindness, it would be only a matter of time before she asks for something in return, something of a price he couldn''t afford.
Being upfront about her intentions saved him the headache of trying to discern them on his own.
cing her cup down, the mysterious woman leaned into the back of her chair and crossed her legs. For one very long minute she kept her crimson eyes on him, and in turn, he didn''t avert his gaze. Seeing that he didn''t bend under the pressure, Selene eventually sighed as if to admit defeat.
"About a week ago, your battle against Zeus'' forces came to an end. Though you lost that world to the Fallen in the process." She shed him another smile. "I suppose I should congratte you. You fulfilled all your win conditions with minimal losses on your side. That is quite the impressive feat for a Lower Realm."
"I appreciate the words of praise." Sam was a hair''s breadth from scoffing.
Selene''s smile didn''t falter as she kept going.
"As a consequence of your victory, your camp now has ownership over a single Aether Key, and since your world is ready for harvest, I''m guessing you n on obtaining a second one."
"Indeed."
"I see¡"
Silence permeated through the dimly lit room. Selene allowed her eyes to wander down as if in thought. A few secondster, she picked up her cup and took a sip but still kept her silence.
''Now, what will it be¡''
Sam wanted nothing more than to jump to conclusions. That said, with so little information to work withthe only thing he could see the woman doing was demanding the Key in his possession. Why else would she bother setting up this meeting?
"Your case is a curious one, Doctor Sanderson." She said after a while. "A Lower Realm like yours joining the race to Akasha even before dealing with your world''s Primordial. That is entirely unprecedented."
"..."
"Either way, you have done more than enough to earn yourself the title of a Higher Realm." She said. "May I ask about your goals now that you have ascended?"
Sam didn''t rush to offer an answer.
"Is that a request, or an order?" He asked after much contemtion.
His question wiped the smile off Selene''s face.
"An order? Is that how it came across?"
No matter how friendly one''s tone might seem, the difference in standing dictated the weight of their word. A simple request would be an order if it''s made by a king and peasants have no right to refuse it.
"It is fine if you don''t wish to answer." Said Selene. "Though that would force me to specte."
"I don''t believe it''s possible to hide anything from you," Sam replied. "Won''t you learn everything given enough time?"
"True." She shrugged her shoulders. "Unfortunately, now that I have revealed myself to you, spying on you would be distasteful. I would much prefer that we build a rtionship of trust rather than going behind your back."
"Trust, huh?"
''Was that supposed to be a joke?''
Laughing sounded like the appropriate response, but Sam held back.
"To be honest, I don''t think I understand your question." He said after a while. "If you''re asking about my current goal then it would be ensuring the stability of my people. As I''m sure you''re already aware, we have been at war until only recently. It''ll take time to recover and build our strength, until that happens I don''t n on making any big moves."
Everyst word has been nothing short of honest. Since she mentioned the Aether Keys and the race to Akasha, Sam decided to limit his answer to that topic. Though its importance can''t be understated, reaching that mystical ce was just a side quest, with the main one being catching Loki and getting Alice back. Unless hepleted thetter two he couldn''t divert his full attention toward it.
"I see." Nodding once, Selene smiled once more. The air around her seemed to change at that moment. "The Aether Keys, there are two ways to obtain them. Do you know what they are?"
Feeling a strong pressure fall on him, Sam unconsciously straightened his back. He couldn''t tell whether she saw through him or not, but the slight change in atmosphere seemed to be a warning; the white-haired woman was telling him to be very careful with his choice of words.
Chapter 333: That isnt all.
Sam took his time and considered his answer very well before voicing it.
"Either you create one yourself, or steal it from someone who already did."
Selene didn''t offer ament and continued applying pressure, her smile unfaltering. He wondered if his answer wascking, but in the end, all he could do was wait for her evaluation.
"You''re mostly correct."
Heaving a sigh, the mysterious woman snapped her fingers. Just as he began to wonder what she had done, the nearly empty cups in front of them were refilled. Raising hers with graceful movements, she drank some of the golden brown brew before cing it down.
"Primordials are strange beings." She spoke. "Though they possess the power to rule over the residents of their Realms, most choose to wander the nes without a care. The only time they show interest in anything is when a great number of Souls is harvested. In the end their hunger for Aether is the only thing that sways their thoughts."
"..."
Sam was sure he understood everything she said, however a part of it left him quite troubled. Usually, Primordials never involve themselves with anyone unless a great disaster takes ce in their dimension, or Realm, as the mysterious woman has called it. When such an event happens, the monstrosities would head for the devastated world with the intention of devouring the Souls of its deceased.
Hearing her describe the annihtion of billions with a word such as harvest, Sam was reminded that the thing sitting in front of him wasn''t a human.
"Trying to chase after them is a fool''s errand. That leaves one option for those who wish to hunt them;y the bait and wait." Locking eyes with him, a smile touched the white-haired woman''s lips. "And I''m sure you already know where to get such bait."
Sam kept his silence, prompting her to take it as a confirmation. The Ritual was the process of gathering the Aether from the Souls of dead humans, concentrating it in one spot to hasten the pace of the visiting Primordial. One or two Souls would hardly catch the attention of the monstrosities, which is why a great disaster is needed, one that wipes out therge majority of thriving civilization.
"Now there are several ways to go about creating said bait." Selene continued the exnation, only stopping to sip her tea. "One could spend a few dozen millennia slowly umting the necessary Aether, but as we all know, no one has the patience for such an arduous process, unless they have no intent on winning the race. In that case¡"
The look in her ruby eyes seemed to ask for a continuation from him so, after a moment of thought, he finished her sentence.
"Their only choice would be to cause a genocide."
"Correct." Selene''s smile broadened a little. "I see you didn''t shy away from saying it."
"I don''t see a reason why I should," Sam replied.
"Really now? I believe you should." Her eyes narrowed ever so slightly. "After all, you''re a participant in this race."
Sam kept his calm and stared her in the eyes.
"Not sure if I''m following." He said. "Are you insinuating that my only choice is tomit such heinous acts just to get ahead in this race?"
"Are you against it, Doctor Sanderson?"
His answer came without dy.
"As I said before, my goal is to ensure the stability of my-"
"For the time being, is what you said." She interrupted. "To refrain from making any big moves until your people regain their strength, such a statement can mean you have some ns."
"Committing genocide isn''t one of them," Sam replied. "I for one like to learn from the past. After surviving all those horrors, what kind of monster would I be to inflict the same on anyone else?"
"I see." Nodding once, Selene held him with her eyes again. "Unfortunately, many such monsters exist everywhere. Their goalse first and foremost, and if it''s to reach that ce, they''re willing to do whatever it takes. Are you sure you have what it takes topete with them?"
"A positive answer would be in arrogance. Currently, I know far too little to make such bold ims." Sam lowered his gaze and took a moment topose himself. "Still, it is far toote to remain on the sidelines. Our enemies won''t simply ignore us if we say we don''t wish to fight."
"Indeed." Selene nodded. "Your camp is too much of a threat. Most would seek to take you under their wing. If not, your demise is a much-preferred oue."
"That leaves us with no choice but to fight, then."
The truth has always been that Sam had no interest in something like Akasha. He didn''t have a godplex like Zeus, nor did he have some grand ambition like Loki. All he wanted was to bring his beloved childhood friend back home and enjoy his harem of Valkyries. If he could have those two things without fighting an inter-dimensional war then he would have done so in a heartbeat.
Things never turn out to be that simple, however. Even if he were to defeat Loki and bring both Alices back, it was highly unlikely that he would be able to live happily ever after all while knowing some maniac out there is trying to y god.
''Reviving B3 alone requires taking down some big names¡''
Silence filled the room once more. The pressure permeating from the mysterious woman refused to subside as she kept her eyes on theb coat wearing man. He began to wonder if it was the same as those interrogations, the ones where a policeman or a detective keeps stressing their captives to get them to spill the beans.
''Come to think of it, She has yet to reveal anything about herself¡'' He recalled that her name was the only thing he knew about her, and even that was a fake. ''So much for trust¡''
Just as he began preparing to ask his own questions, Selene closed her eyes and sighed, the pressure she emitted fading the next instant.
"As the leader of a Realm that has just undergone its first Ascension, it is far too early to tell whether you''ll stick to your ideal. Still, humility is a rare trait, unlike the greed birthed by the prospect of unlimited power."
The sudden change in tone confused Sam. Gone was the subtle condescension that apanied each word she said, though that only made way for more wariness.
"This is nothing more than a spection on my side, but¡" Pausing for a moment, Selene regarded him with her ruby eyes. "Doctor Sanderson, reaching Akasha isn''t your goal, nor is it a means to an end."
"..."
"This mighte as a surprise to you, but not everyone who learns of that ce seeks to reach it to satisfy their selfish desires." She heaved a sigh. "Just like you, many fear the future where some madman gets his hands on Truth. They''re willing to do whatever it takes to prevent such an oue, so much so that they join the race, thinking it''s the only way."
The mysterious woman hit the nail on the head. Sam was aware that his position wasn''t unique to him; he understood that there could be others who held no interest in obtaining Truth but were forced to join the race anyway, even if it was only to stop anyone else from getting their hands on it.
There is one problem with such an ambition, though. People have the tendency to do the bare minimum to stop evil from prospering, and history is littered with examples of humanity failing to quench it before it''s toote.
"Doctor Sanderson," Selene spoke again. "We are far from the inception of Existence. Did it ever cross your mind how absurd it is that no one has reached that ce?"
Sam thought for a moment before answering.
"The hierarchy of Realms suggests that some worlds have Ascended long before the others." He said. "I did ask myself that question before, but the only answer I coulde up with was that the participants keep sabotaging each other''s efforts, preventing anyone from winning the race."
To open the gates to Akasha one needs ten Aether Keys, but gathering them was easier said than done. There were many things that stood in the way of meeting that condition.
"Stealing Keys is another way to obtain them so in a way you''re correct." Closing her eyes, Selene allowed the smile to return to her lips. "But that isn''t all."
Chapter 334: The fourth type.
"There are four types of participants in this race." Selene exined. "First are those who wish to obtain Truth so they can rule over Existence."
"Zeus and his ilk, huh?"
"Correct." She nodded. "They''re the root cause of all our problems, and make up the vast majority as well."
"I see¡"
"The second type are factions like yours. They have no intention of letting Truth fall in the hands of anyone, and are willing to take it for themselves to ensure that."
"I''m guessing there aren''t many such factions," Sammented.
"It is understandable," she replied with a sigh. "People take the path of least resistance, no matter the Realm they originate from. Without the greed that drives the others, most opt to remain on the sidelines, avoiding conflict as much as possible. That is if they don''t start seeking the power to rule, of course."
It wasn''t very difficult to understand the mindset of those people. No matter how noble the goal might seem, fighting an endless war takes its toll on people. Knowing that no one reached Akasha since the start of existence, it''s safe to assume that it won''t happen any time soon.
That eliminated the sense of urgency around the topic, which makes peace a matter of keeping a low profile and only acting if forced into it.
''Politics on an inter-dimensional level, huh¡'' Sam thought. ''Reminds me of our world before the Cmities¡''
Even with all the evil in the world most choose to turn a blind eye, feigning ignorance until it''s toote. That made them worse than those who supported that evil, spreading suffering and misery all while iming to be God''s chosen.
"So, what''s the third faction?"
Selene''s red lips curved slightly.
"I''m sure you have already run into one of them." She said. "The third type is the Fallen."
"The Fallen?"
"To be more urate, I''m referring to Fallen Worlds. You do have an idea of what they are, I assume?"
"For the most part¡"
His first source was Nino and Atropos helped fill in the gaps. Fallen Worlds are Realms whose Primordials actively spread Madness among sentient races, eliminating the Awakened and creating armies from those who sumbed to the Whispers and lost their sanity.
"What makes Fallen Worlds different is that they have no interest in reaching Akasha." Selene spoke. "Their only objective is to satisfy their boundless hunger for Aether, and to do so they wage wars on any Realm that manages to obtain a Key."
"... I see¡" Sam held his chin in thought. Something told him that the Primordials ruling over those worlds are the main reason Akasha remains a distant goal.
"Then there is the fourth type." Making a dramatic pause, the white-haired woman continued. "Those who actively oppose the other three types, ensuring no one gets close to achieving their goals."
For a moment, Sam wasn''t exactly sure he understood what he had just heard.
"... huh?" He couldn''t help but raise an eyebrow. "Actively¡ oppose?"
His confusion seemed to amuse the mysterious woman as she continued to observe him with her usual smile. Before he could ask her to borate, she stood up from her seat and walked toward the door. Sam was lost for what to do at first, but when she turned around to nce at him, he understood that she was saying to follow her.
As soon as he took a step away from his seat, the dimly lit room disappeared. ins of lush green grass spread as far as the eye could see, meeting the clear blue sky at the distant horizon. If he were still a normal human, the sudden increase in brightness would have made him wince.
Sam observed his surroundings for a while until his eyes fell on a lone tree standing on a nearby hill. The mysterious woman seemed to be heading in its direction. She had the giant hat from before on, and her dress appeared a bit shorter as if it was adjusted to avoid dirtying it with the soil.
''This is just an illusion¡ right?''
He began to wonder if his previous conclusion was wrong. At first, the signs pointed toward it being a separate space inside the hotel, but now they were walking through an open field. A realistic illusion is one thing, but being able to move him to the other side of the with such ease, was a lot scarier.
It took him a couple of minutes to catch up with the mysterious woman, and by that time she had already made it to the tree at the top of the hill. Just as he approached her, she began speaking which prompted him to stop in his ce.
"Doctor Sanderson, do you know what will happen if someone were to reach Akasha?"
Sam gave the question some thought before answering.
"Depends on the one who makes it." He replied.
ording to Nino, the one who obtains Truth will gain the power to rule over all of Existence. Seeing that most of those racing to gather the Keys are power-hungry maniacs, one could tell how bad things would turn out if one of them seeded. That said, it was a bit difficult to believe that they would turn into a cartoonish viin whose only goal is to destroy worlds.
"I see. So you subscribe to that philosophy." Selene sighed.
"I guess you have a different opinion?"
Sam sensed a hint of disappointment in her voice, but that only served to pique his curiosity. Her question wasn''t what he thought would happen, but whether he knew instead. That made him think she had the answer, but as he waited for her to voice it, Selene kept staring at the horizon in silence.
"If someone manages to gather all ten Keys and opens the gates to Akasha..." She eventually said. Her voice had regained the weight from before. "It would mark the end of our existence."
For a few seconds, Sam waspletely stunned. He didn''t know whether his ears were ying tricks on him, or if his mind didn''t grasp the correct meaning of what he heard. ''It would mark the end of our existence.'' those were the words she used, but what did they mean?
Turning around, Selene looked him in the eyes, therge hat casting a dark veil on her solemn expression.
"I meant exactly what I said." She spoke as if his mind was an open book to her. "If someone, anyone, were to get their hands on Truth, Existence itself wille to an end. No Realm will be spared. Everything and everyone will be erased and all that would be left is an empty nothingness."
Sam was still speechless. He could only stare at her with furrowed brows showing that his confusion had yet to subside. After giving it some thought, he felt that he began to understand a little, but even then he found it impossible to envision the oue she had described.
"I don''t fault you for failing to grasp the magnitude of something of that nature." Once again Selene spoke as if she had read his mind. "Most sentient beings find it difficult to imagine the extinction of their race, let alone the end of all things. It is something beyond our understanding."
Sam touched his face while trying toprehend and noticed that his expression had changed, signaling that he had lost his grasp on his emotions. He quickly reced the chains and went on to ask another question.
"That is a very interesting hypothesis, but I have to ask¡ What makes you so sure that''s the only oue?"
Seeing him regain his calm prompted her to rx as well.
"Are you sure you want to test it?" She asked, tilting her head slightly.
"I''m sorry, but¡" Sam shook his head. "To me it sounds like a tall tale intended to sway people away from pursuing Truth."
Not to mention, now that he got his thoughts in order, the end of Existence didn''t seem like something to be scared of. As someone who never believed in the afterlife, what Sam feared the most was having to say farewell to the people he cared about or leaving some matters unfinished. The idea of everything being sentenced to nothingness along with him didn''t sound like the worst possible oue.
Unfortunately, the mysterious woman didn''t seem to think the same.
"Since you hold such beliefs..." As the words left his mouth, it unintentionally turned into a nervous smirk. "I take it you''re the fourth type."
Chapter 335: Ominous words.
"Very perceptive of you." Said Selene.
The tension between them seemed to rise drastically. His taunt didn''t yield the intended results despite that as the woman didn''t release the pressure from before. He began to think that what happened previously was nothing more than a test.
Turning away from him, the mysterious woman started walking. As soon as her right foot touched the ground, the scenery around them changed for the second time.
Power left Sam the moment heid his eyes on their surroundings. The sky was dark, an endless cloud of smoke blocking the light from reaching them. Whether it was the left or the right, back or front, in every direction there was nothing but piles of burning rubble. Countless buildings lit up with raging azure fires, casting an ominous blue glow on the trashed vehicles.
For an instant, the nightmares returned to torment him, bringing memories of that harrowing day. Something ugly raged inside him, striking violently at the chains restricting his emotions as it fought to free itself, but his hold didn''t waver and he soon regained his calm.
After observing his surroundings a little, Sam extended his right hand toward a pile of zing debris. He felt no warmth from the dancing tongues of fire which confirmed his doubts about the things he was seeing being real.
"We aren''t so different, you and I." The enchanting voice drew his attention back to the mysterious woman. "Neither of us want the despotic tyrants to get what they want, and peace is all we desire."
"That we can agree on," Sam replied. "But was there a need to bring us here? I can''t help but think such scenery is nothing but bad taste."
"It''s awfully easy to forget the reason for why one must continue to fight." She answered. "This ce serves as a reminder. I go back to it whenever I need to strengthen my conviction."
''Bullshit¡''
Strengthen her conviction? To him, it appeared more like she was trying to weaken his.
"Those are some ominous words." As he spoke, Sam was careful of every word he chose.
"You don''t have to worry. Neither I nor my allies have any intention of getting in your way." She turned to him with an elegant smile. "I believe the other types will be enough of a hurdle."
Sam frowned despite himself. She was right; even if her goal was to ensure no one reached Akasha, it would be far more efficient to let the other participants fight it among themselves instead of trying to stop each and every one of them. With his Realm still going through its first Ascension, he was still at the veryst spot in the race making him an easy target for the other participants.
"So you''ll let the others try their luck, and if I survive, you''ll take care of me yourself?"
"So far we don''t have anything to justify disposing of you," Selene replied. "I still hold the hope that you''ll change your mind and side with us."
"And I assume your justifications aren''t for me to know."
"Power corrupts, Doctor Sanderson. Sooner orter you''ll find yourself bathed in blood, and once that happens, we the Devas wille for you."
Before he knew it, Sam was back in the hallway. It was a drastic transition just like those that came before, with no signs or forewarning, reminiscent of a simple slide change during a representation.
"Wohoooo! You''re the best, Doctor!"
A p on the back shook him out of his stupor. Turning around he found CS giving him a wide grin. Trenta was there as well, looking as disinterested as ever.
"A-ah¡ right¡"
He couldn''t help the puzzled look that took over his face and the two Valkyries were quick to notice.
"Is something the matter, Doctor?" Trenta asked, her eyes turning sharp.
"... No, I just spaced out for a second, that''s all."
He brought his phone out and checked the time only to see that not a minute had passed. The signal was back as well so he guessed that he was back in the real world.
''This is getting out of hand¡''
The illusions Selene showed him were so real that he began to question everything around him. Though it seemed like he was back, the possibility that the mysterious woman still had him in her trap pulled on his nerves, escting the stress he felt and adding to his exhaustion.
Thinking about it was a waste of effort. As he had no way of sensing the influence of a being on her level, Sam had no choice but to go on with his life and hope that he didn''t discover he was living in a simtion all along.
"Hm?"
Just as he was about to put away his phone, he noticed something peeking out of his pocket. It was a folded sheet of paper, one he didn''t remember having before. As weird as it seemed, he went and opened it out of curiosity. Not long after a frown took over his face and he put it away.
"I need some sleep."
~[]~
In the days leading up to the award ceremony, Sam had to go without sleep most nights. There was a lot to do and very little time so a sacrifice had to be made, and thanks to his new body, the physical exhaustion that would''ve killed him before didn''t pose a threat.
That said, his encounter with the mysterious white-haired woman had drained him mentally, so much so that he decided to drop everything he had and hopped into his bed the moment he arrived at his room.
''... I want to go home¡''
Sadly the magic of a good night''s sleep didn''t seem to work this time, leaving him as stressed as before. Knowing what he had on his schedule for that morning, he lost any interest he had in leaving his bed.
''The Devas, huh¡''
Sam wanted to avoid thinking about the conversation he had with Selene as much as he could, mainly because no good woulde from dwelling on it. The gap separating them was far too wide, and with his Realm being only one rank away from the bottom, trying to search for a way to fight back was a fool''s errand.
''Space and time maniption, huh¡'' The urge to urinate got to him just then. ''The tea was real, at least¡''
He pushed himself up but froze just as he was about to remove the nket. Heaving a sigh, he slowly shook his head and reprimanded himself for not noticing earlier.
"... Miku¡"
He expected Nino to be the one who sneaked into his bed so it came as a surprise when he saw the petite blonde instead. Things have been a bit awkward between themtely so it warmed his heart to see her join him, but at the same time, it was somewhat bad news since he warned his personal Valkyries to keep their special rtionship a secret for the duration of their visit to the first settlement.
''Well, whatever¡''
He spent a couple of minutes watching the sleeping beauty before leaving to prepare himself. While brushing his teeth, he checked the headlines using the augmented reality function of his sses and thankfully nothing major happened while he was out of it.
''The Aurora''s video is causing an uproar, huh¡''
With everything that has been revealed it only made sense for the public to be in a state of unrest. It made him feel bad for resting when the entire world was in such a state.
Opinions were divided, but the least vocal among them were those skeptical of everything pertaining to the Awakening. Credibility was one of the major concerns when it came to his ns for the humans so Sam felt relieved when he saw that barely anyone questioned the reveal.
The Resistance was bombarded with phone calls asking for rification but thankfully things didn''t escte toplete chaos. For the time being, at the very least, it didn''t appear like they strayed from the path Nino had foreseen.
"Do~ctaa~~~" A drowsy voice called from the other room.
Waving his right hand, Sam dismissed the windows floating in front of him and rinsed his mouth with some water.
"Why didn''t you~¡ wake me up¡"
Miku entered the bathroom with a hand on her mouth, yawning with her eyes still closed. Her light pink pajamas were in a mess and its top seemed like it was about to fall at any moment.
"You were so cute I just couldn''t." He replied. "Make sure you''re fully awake before teleporting, okay? I don''t mind that you sneaked into my room, but you have to be careful when going back to yours."
"Oka~~y¡"
From the looks of it, the petite blonde needs some more time before she fully awakens. Because of that she slowly walked back to the bed and dropped face down on it, hoping five more minutes would help.
"... I guess it''ll be Trenta and¡ Five, huh¡"
While all of his personal Valkyries took on the role of guarding him during this trip, Sam had to choose the two who would get to stand behind him throughout the uing press conference.
He had to be careful with his selection as they would appear in the broadcast and photos captured by the reporters, and since they were the best at keeping neutral expressions, Trenta and Five were his choice this time.
Chapter 336: Hope the prices fall.
The war against the Cmities had finallye to an end and the world was on the precipice of a new era. In the span of a single day, several revtions were made creating a storm among the public who didn''t even get the chance to celebrate the end of a decade-long grueling conflict.
First, they hear that Odin, the man who''s said to be humanity''s savior, was in fact a fake who only cared about his goals. As if that wasn''t enough of a bombshell, they then learned that the multiverse was real and that there are countless worlds out there some far more advanced than theirs.
The Nephilim were the residents of one such worlds and they were able to wreak havoc on the humans without having to carry the carnage themselves. The only way to stop them was to receive help from the same otherworldly race, which led to another groundbreaking revtion; the Valkyries were sentient beings.
Just like with everything else, opinions were divided on the matter. Those who supported the Valkyries were exalted by the news finding it much morepelling than the idea of AIs gaining sentience. On the other hand, the side that constantly argued against them grew louder after learning that the humanoid weapons were in fact aliens from another dimension.
Though one can dismiss their opinion as nothing more than the usual racism, it was very natural to be concerned about the implications of a much more powerful species moving in with them.
Though some hope was gained after they learned that humans were on the road to gaining abilities on the same level as those aliens, the fear that they might choose to eliminate them still remains, and that''s without considering the threat of countless other worlds.
The day after the award ceremony, a press conference was scheduled to give civilians the chance to ask the questions guing their minds. Sara Pinkman was one of the few dozen reporters given the chance to participate which was a bit surprising considering that her newspany, Frontline Times, refused to be a part of the propaganda machine.
"Haa¡" Sara could only sigh as she stared at the stage where a long table was ced.
As her fellow employees went around setting the cameras and microphones, she hunched over in her seat looking like life was sapped out of her slender body. She was a typical woman in herte twenties with no notable features. Her honey brown hair was neatly tied into a single bun over her head and the clothes she wore were proper but in.
It was clear that she put the minimum effort into looking presentable, but even with the efforts of her makeup artist, the dark circles under her were impossible to hide.
"I want a smoke¡"
Just as another sigh escaped her, a familiar voice called out to her.
"Well well well, if it isn''t Ms. Pinkman."
ncing to her left, Sara saw a tall man walking her way with a huge grin on his face.
"George¡" The name brought out another sigh from her.
Compared to the exhausted woman, George Schrader beamed with energy and excitement, his pearly-white teeth sparkling as he grinned from teeth to teeth. He was a tall man with a well-built frame sporting an expensive-looking suit with a badge hanging from his breast pocket. As a reporter from the much bigger Today News he enjoyed many privileges the underpaid Sara could dream of.
"I''m surprised you have the energy to be so loud." Shemented.
"Hahaha! I on the other hand am surprised you look so gloomy on such an important day!" George replied, his energetic voice contrasting the woman''s. "Aren''t you excited to take part in creating history!?"
Sara''s eyes lowered into thin slits.
"What history? With everything that''s going on, I would be surprised if we''re still around by the end of the year."
"Now that''s a pessimistic take! Come to think of it, you were always a vocal skeptic of the Resistance."
"Can you honestly say I was wrong?"
As a reporter for the Frontline Times Sara always had a bone to pick with the Human Resistance. She helped expose many of the corrupt officials and was one of the few who actively tried to expose Odin as nothing but a myth.
It was quite suspicious for the man who took the lead after humanity was brought down to its knees to remain faceless. Until recently some believed that he was nothing but a fictional character created to boost morals, but even after the supposed truth came out Sara remained skeptical.
"To tell you the truth, I''m not so sure about this whole thing as well."
The change in the man''s tone caught her by surprise. It was just on rare asions, but whenever George dropped his cheerful act it was a sign of the matters discussed being serious. Taking the seat right beside her, he directed his gaze to the from and spoke in a subdued tone.
"Word''s going around that Odin is being made into a scapegoat so the two sides cane to an agreement."
"Is he even real?" Sara asked.
"He might as well be fake," George replied. "The new Head General stinks as well."
"Doctor Sam Sanderson, huh¡"
The name was rtively unknown until he took on the role of the forty sixth base''smander a few months ago.
"There are several inconsistencies in the stories we heard about him." George continued. "The most mind-boggling one is that he once imed to be able to create Valkyries, but now he''s telling us they''re beings from another dimension."
"Yeah, I wonder what excuse he''ll use to exin that," Sara smirked, recalling how she nned to use that fact in the uing conference.
Several recounts from the soldiers in the forty sixth base confirmed that the man in question did indeed announce that he had ns for creating Valkyries, iming he was confident that he could produce something better.
Looking at how he put an end to the war soon after it was difficult to dismiss it all as lies, but it was for that exact same reason that everything else he said was put under scrutiny.
"One thing for sure is that he''s hiding something." As she spoke, the reporter reached into her pocket and took out a pack of cigarettes. "The way he gathered all the Valkyries under his name, the Council suddenly bowing to him, the Nephilim backing down after everything; there is definitely more to the story than what we have heard so far."
Just as she put one of the cigarettes in her mouth she remembered that smoking wasn''t allowed in the conference room. George caught on to that and understood that she would leave for somewhere else, that''s why he decided to bring their conversation to an end.
"Well, just be careful what questions you ask." He said before standing up. "I don''t want to wake up one day and hear that you disappeared."
"Weren''t you talking about creating history a couple of minutes ago?" Her lips curled into a smirk. "Disappearing will guarantee that no one will forget my name."
Today News yed things safe by reiterating whatever they heard from the source, unlike the Frontline Times which worked hard to peel away theyers of lies and expose the truth. It was more foolishness than thews that once guaranteed the freedom of the press were long gone, but even with that being the case some still held on to their ideals.
"I''ll be back."
Unable to resist it anymore, Sara got up and walked toward the exit, making sure to inform her crew that she was going for a smoke break. There was still quite a bit of time before things started so she wasn''t in a hurry. Sadly, it seems she wasn''t the only one who decided to light one as they waited so the smoking area was densely packed.
With no other choice but to look for another ce, She walked to the elevator and headed for the underground parking lot. With so many guestsing for the press conference it only made sense for it to be full of cares, but Sara paid no mind to that. She found herself in an empty corner, took out a cigarette and lit it up.
"Ha~"
Her shoulders rxed soon after the first puff left her mouth. Unlike ten years ago, smoking was a luxury very few could afford. It was understandable; with the threat of Cmities looming over their head, the surviving humans didn''t have the leeway to cultivate something unnecessary like tobo.
"Let''s hope the prices fall soon." She muttered, looking at the half-empty pack in her hand.
Now that the war was over people could finally get back to rebuilding their world. Of course things would never be that simple so she would probably have to wait a few years.
"Are you sure about this, Ingrid? We might get in some really serious trouble."
"C''mon, what''s the big deal! We''re just going to take a look!"
Sara had thought she was the only one in the area so the pair of voices came as a surprise. Not that it mattered. It had nothing to do with her so she just had to mind her own business.
"I don''t know¡ Doctor might get really angry¡"
"Stop being a baby, Juni. Do you really want to wait in that room all day?"
Though she tried to ignore them at first, Sara was quick to recognize the second name which caused her eyes to shoot open. The ashes fell from her half-burnt cigarette as she stood frozen, unable to decide what to do, but after a few seconds of thought, she quickly put it away and walked over to the source of the voices.
"Just think about it; do you think we will get another chance to visit a human city?"
"But¡"
"Don''t worry, we will be back before anyone¡"
Though she knew what she was getting herself into, the reporter was still speechless when she saw who it was that hid behind the corner. Two girls barely past their teens, each wearing a hood that covered their heads. Though they had face masks on as well their effectiveness was reduced drastically by the simple fact that the girls had their eyes exposed.
The eyes were big and colorful, simr to a human''s but at the same timepletely different. The moment those eyes fell on her Sara felt a chill envelop her body, but it was quickly reced by an overwhelming desire to take advantage of the current situation.
Quicklyposing herself, Sara stepped toward the two girls.
"Hi there! I didn''t mean to eavesdrop but¡" making a calcted stop, she pretended to check their surroundings then leaned in to whisper. "Could it be that the two of you are Valkyries?"
Chapter 337: Are you actually a...
"Aaaaaaaaaah!" One of the girls suddenly cried before turning to her friend. "We got caught, Ingrid! We will be in big trouble!"
"No we aren''t. Stop overreacting." The second one could only sigh as her body got shook back and forth.
The scene was somewhatical allowing Sara to rx a little. Now that she got a good look at them it became clear that her guess was right.
Having studied the ceremony''s recordings extensively trying to learn everything that can be learned from it, the reporter ended up memorizing the appearance of everyst Valkyrie that received an honor medal. Because of that it was easy for her to recognize the taller girl despite most of her face being covered. As for the other one she couldn''t tell for sure.
"We should head back!" The first one cried once more. "We still have time! No one should''ve noticed we were gone yet!"
"Seriously, where did all your excitement go?" The second one frowned. "I thought you liked sneaking around."
"The old base is one thing! This is a human city we''re talking about!"
Sara quickly connected the dots from everything she heard so far. The two were trying to sneak out and visit the human city while everyone was busy with the press conference, though one of them seemed more enthusiastic than the other.
The need for secrecy probably meant that they weren''t allowed to wander into popted areas, which was understandable considering the problems they might cause. Still, the two chose to go against their orders despite knowing it would get them in trouble. It wasn''t something they would''ve been capable of if they were the cold machines everyone thought they were.
"Hey you." Pushing away her panicked friend, the shorter girl turned to the reporter. "You can drive one of these, right?"
She was pointing at a nearby car. Sara stared at it for a few seconds then returned her sight to the girl.
"Um, of course!" She replied after a moment of hesitation. "In fact I have one of my own parked nearby."
Having a feeling about where things were progressing, her mind began working tirelessly trying to weigh the options she had. Only half an hour was left until the press conference. As the main reporter from her news agency, covering that important event fell under her duties. Missing it wasn''t something she could afford, but the opportunity in front of her held much more potential.
"Great!" the shorter one spoke. "We are trying to reach the city. Do you mind taking us there?"
"Ingrid!"
Ignoring her friend''s protest, the girl named Ingrid stared intently at the reporter. There wasn''t much of a negotiation as she offered nothing in return for the favor she was expecting. Still, that didn''t matter much to the reporter.
"I don''t mind but¡ are you sure about this?" She nced at the taller girl, named Juni, who seemed on the verge of copsing from stress.
"Ah, you don''t have to worry about her." Ingrid nced at her friend with half-lidded eyes. "This coward will be staying behind."
"I''m not a coward!" Juni shot back.
"Then, are youing?"
For a few seconds, Juni stared at her in silence. It was clear that she was having trouble making up her mind, but after a while she gave in.
"Alright them." Celebrating her victory with a smug grin, Ingrid shifted back to Sara and motioned with her head. "Lead the way, miss."
~[ ]~
[What are you saying, ma''am!? There is no way I can do this!]
"Well, you have to figure it out, Rena." Sara spoke into her phone. "Don''t worry. Just check the notes I left in my bag. I wrote down all the questions we need to ask so make sure to get at least two of them through."
[I don''t know about this¡ can''t youe back in time?]
"Sorry about that. I will make it up for youter, okay?"
Before her apprentice could voice any moreints, the reporter hung up and put her phone in airne mode. Noticing the rhythmic drumming of her heart, she fastened her grip on the steering wheel and let a smile creep onto her face.
"I can''t believe it was that easy." Said Ingrid "Isn''t the security a bit toox?"
The hotel seemed to shrink as she watched it from the rear window, pulling her facemask so she could breathe properly. Thest checkpoint was already behind them, but since they faced no trouble when passing it, the three couldn''t help but feel that something was off.
"Indeed." Sara said. "They were a lot more thorough when we arrived this morning."
She couldn''t believe what was happening. To think that the resistance would just allow her to drive off with two of their most important assets. It would be the epitome of idiocy to think this would end well for her, but that didn''t stop her from taking the risk.
"Doctor is going to be really mad." Said Juni, her face looking slightly paler than usual.
"You''re still worried about that?" Ingrid frowned.
"Buuut¡"
Before they could go on another round of banter Sara decided to throw in a few questions.
"By Doctor do you mean Head General Sam Sanderson?"
"Yes¡" Juni answered.
"You still call him that even though he''s no longer a physician? Sounds like the two of you are rather close."
Juni heaved a sigh.
"Not really." She said. "Everyone calls him Doctor so I just did the same."
"I see." the reporter observed the Valkyries'' reflection in the rearview mirror. "But you received an honor medal the day before. That must mean you achieved a lot in thest war."
"Say, miss." Ingrid leaned over the driver''s seat and asked with a smile. "You''re a reporter, aren''t you?"
Sara''s heart jumped in her chest, but she didn''t allow the panic to settle in. One of the girls was much sharper than the other and was able to catch on to her intentions rather quickly. Still, even if she was exposed that didn''t mean they were going to dispose of her right away.
"Ah,e to think of it, I have yet to introduce myself." She tried her best to keep her voice from shaking. "My name is Sara Pinkman. I work for the Frontline Times news agency."
"I knew it!" Ingrid''s grin widened and she plopped back into her seat. "Be careful, Juni. This woman is probably trying to learn some things from you. Your boss might not like it if you revealed something important to her."
"E-eh!?" Juni shifted from her friend to the reporter. "Is that true!?"
With the Valkyrie''s panicked eyes directed at her, Sara went speechless for a moment. Eventually, she began to feel bad despite herself.
"If your boss got angry then I would be the one in so much more trouble." She said. "But, well, I won''t deny that I want to learn a few things about you."
Just then a tune began ying inside the car startling Juni and almost causing her to jump. She quickly reached into her pocket and pulled out a phone, and once she checked whatever was disyed on it, her face seemed to grow even paler.
"It''s a message from Nana." her voice crackled a little.
"Give it to me."
Ingrid snatched the small device and began tapping on it.
"... She says you aren''t allowed to use any of your abilities." Her expression rxed a little as she read the message. "Only barriers and teleportation."
"Eh?"
"Oho! She sent you some money as well!"
"M-money? What are you talking about!?" Juni reached for the phone but was met with a hand to her face as Ingrid pushed her away.
"Guess this means we''re free to go." She said. "Ah, she says you''ll have the sole responsibility for any problems that might ur."
The messages were proof that whoever was in charge knew what the two girls were up to, but when the shorter one looked at Sara she realized that thest part was meant for her.
"You mean that warning wasn''t for your friend?" She asked.
"She used your name so yeah."
Ingrid passed the phone back to its owner and rxed in her seat. Meanwhile Sara was battling confusion as she failed to understand what was happening.
Since they made no attempt at hiding from the surveince cameras, she knew it was only a matter of time before the Resistance found out what happened. The message the Valkyrie received showed that the cat was out of the bag, but if that was the case then why did they allow them to continue?
"Well, I did receive permission, but what about you, Ingrid?" Juni looked up from her phone and asked. "Won''t her Highness be angry?"
"Well, it doesn''t really matter." The shorter one answered dismissively. "In the first ce we just came with her for the sake of appearances. I''m sure the others can handle things without me."
"What about Tove? I don''t think she''d be happy about you abandoning your post¡"
"Guh!¡ Let''s forget about her for the time being¡"
Something about that short exchange gave Sara a really bad feeling. Now that she could see her entire face, it became clear that she wasn''t among the Valkyries who participated in yesterday''s ceremony. Adding to that her name and the mention of ''her Highness'' and only one conclusion came to mind.
"Um¡ Ms. Ingrid, could it be¡" Cold sweat beaded her forehead as she hesitated to ask the question.
"Hm? What is it?" The girl in question raised an eyebrow.
With the two in the backseat staring at her, Sara understood that she couldn''t keep dying it so she braced herself.
"Are you actually a¡ Nephilim?"
Chapter 338: Its Juni.
"Haa~¡"
When Sam entered the living area of his hotel suit, the first thing that caught his attention was Zero Three yawning as shey down on one of the sofas. Compared to Five and the other Valkyries around, she was the only one who seemed to becking her usual energy.
"What''s wrong, Three?" He asked. "Didn''t you get enough sleep?"
His question didn''t make any sense as the Valkyries didn''t have the same needs as humans, but looking at her state, that was the only conclusion he coulde up with.
Sadly it seems his guess was off as she gave him a re before turning away with a pout.
"It seems Ms. Ranford had kept her awake all night." Nine casually slid to his side as she spoke. "She brought a lot of clothes and asked her to try all of them."
"Oh, I see¡" His brows rose a bit as he finally understood. The red haired Lieutenant was the kind of woman that would do it.
"The clothes weren''t the problem." Three said, still frowning. "It''s the photos that bother me. She Kept taking more and more, and before we knew it morning already arrived."
Apparently Melissa had borrowed some equipment from the reporters who came for the award ceremony and turned her room into a shooting set. She took thousands of photos all while salivating like an obsessed drug addict, and if not for Eleven showing up, Three would''ve been stuck with her all day.
"Now that''s too much." Sam said angrily after hearing the entire story. "How dare she hold a fashion show without inviting me!!? I need to get my hands on those photos!"
His very serious response only angered the young Valkyrie even more, but she couldn''t stay like that for long when he sat beside her and began patting her head.
"Sorry, Three. I''m sure Melissa didn''t have any ill intent, but I will make sure to warn her either way."
"No, it''s not really that important." Three replied, leaning against him as she savored his touch. "She said I can keep the clothes so¡"
"I see. Then, how about I make it up for you when we get home?" He asked. "Is there something you want?"
As soon as he finished saying those words, the young Valkyrie looked up at him with sparkling eyes.
"The sea!" She said without a moment of hesitation. "I want to go swimming in the sea!"
Sam felt that she had that answer prepared for a while now, but that didn''t really matter.
"Then, let''s have a short vacation once we''re done with the Ritual." He said, holding her chin while bringing his face to hers. "Make sure to choose a cute swimsuit, okay?"
A single kiss was enough to take away all the exhaustion both of them felt. The truth was that he wanted to do a lot more than that, but time wasn''t on their side.
"That''s not fair." Nine puffed her cheeks. "I want a kiss as well!"
"Your punishment isn''t over yet," Sam replied. "You should learn to restrain yourself."
Just as he was about to stand up his phone rang. The caller wasn''t someone he expected so he had no idea what it might be about.
[Doctor Sanderson.] Mimir''s face appeared on the window projected by his phone. [I apologize for calling so early in the morning.]
"No need." He shook his head one. "Did something happen?"
[One of the guards we brought along is trying to sneak into the human city.] The green-haired Nephilim spoke with a calm voice. [Apparently, she convinced one of your Valkyries toe along.]
Sam looked over his shoulder, and as soon as his eyes met hers, Nana took out her own phone and started looking through it.
"It''s Juni." She said. "Should I tell her to return?"
The energetic tomboy''s face sprang up in Sam''s mind and he began to consider his options. He nced at Nino who was having her breakfast nearby and she responded with a shrug of her shoulders. Such an event probably didn''t hold much significance so she never mentioned it before, but it might be another Divergence her Needle failed to predict before as well.
''In the first ce, should I be allowing Valkyries to roam free among humans?''
Coexistence was one of his main goals so it would be for the best if the Valkyries themselves were proactive in trying to get along with humans. There were many ways this could go wrong though so he didn''t hurry in making his decision.
"I have checked the security footage." Nana''s voice cut his train of thought. "It seems they''ve made contact with a woman in the underground parking lot and convinced her to take them with her car."
"A woman?" Sam raised an eyebrow.
"She''s a reporter named Sara Pinkman." The silver-haired Valkyrie replied, having already figured out the woman''s identity. "She was smoking in a corner before the two arrived so I don''t think she knew they would be there."
"Hmm¡"
Sam knew he recognized the name from somewhere so it didn''t take him long to remember. Sara Pinkman was a reporter working for the Frontline Times and was very critical of the Resistance and the Valkyries.
''She''s an honest reporter, though. I doubt she''ll do anything stupid¡''
After giving it some more thought, he turned back to Mimir.
"What does her Highness think of this?"
The Nephilim''s expression barely changed, but Sam understood that she had already caught on to what he had in mind.
[Our schedule for the day is empty so she gave everyone permission to do as they please.] Mimir answered. [Though I doubt that included going off to the human city.]
The hotel they were staying at was a five stars by pre-war standards, meaning it had enough leisure facilities to keep them upied for more than one day. Because of that, it was a mystery as to why those two decided to visit the city, Then again Juni always seemed to be the adventurous type so curiosity must''ve taken the better of her.
"How about we just leave them to it for the time being?" Sam eventually said, the idea putting a smile on his face.
[Pardon?] Mimir was expectedly perplexed.
"Let''s just say it''s an experiment. There shouldn''t be any problem with allowing those two some freedom, and you don''t have to worry; we will take responsibility if anything goes wrong."
The whole thing sounded like a disaster waiting to happen, but Sam wanted to proceed anyway. Mimir stared at him for a while, her expression remaining unchanged. Eventually, she closed her eyes as if to admit defeat.
[As long as it doesn''t reflect badly on us.] She said. [Her Highness seems to be gaining poprity among the masses. We don''t want anything that might harm her image.]
"I will warn them to avoid trouble so rest assured."
The call ended soon after. Sam gave Nana some instructions, and by the time he was done the press conference was only a few minutes away.
Chapter 339: Eternal youth.
Silence took over the interior of the car for a few seconds, the only sound that could be heard being the wind outside. Sara''s eyes were reflected in the backview mirror. Noticing the fear in their depths, a sinister smile slowly spread across Ingrid''s face.
"That''s right." She said. "I''m one of the bad bad Nephilim that destroyed your world. Are you scared now?"
Sara was lost for words; it never even urred to her that one of the girls might be a Nephilim. One couldn''t fault her for such a mistake, though. How was she supposed to know that a Valkyrie would be hanging out with one of their enemies?
Returning her sights to the road, the reporter tried getting her thoughts in order. The girl might be a Nephilim, but it didn''t really feel like she was in danger. There was a Valkyrie with them as well so it was highly unlikely that they would cause any problems.
"It''s better to keep it a secret, even if people find out you aren''t human." Sara said eventually. "I imagine you know how people would react if they learned of your true identity."
Ingrid frowned at the calm response.
"Yeah yeah, I know." She said. "We never intended on revealing ourselves to begin with."
Juni was a bit confused by their conversation, but she still felt relieved when the tension subsided. The fear that dampened her mood was gone as well so her usual liveliness quickly returned as she began inspecting the car.
"This is really exciting! I have never been inside a car before!"
"Good thing we didn''t go back, huh?" Ingrid asked with a grin.
"Well, it''s good and all that we got permission, but I''m sure we will get yelled at when we get back."
After fiddling with the buttons on the side the Valkyrie finally figured out how to lower the window ss. The strong wind threw her hood off causing her short ck hair to dance wildly. Despite that she still peeked her head out, grinning as she took in the unfamiliar sights.
Seeing her delighted expression lifted some weight off Sara''s chest and she was finally able to breathe in relief.
"Come to think of it, the two of you can fly, right?" She asked. "You can teleport as well."
"If you''re going to ask why we didn''t use our powers to sneak out then forget it." Ingrid spoke as she opened the window on her side.
"I''m just curious. Wouldn''t it be easier if you used them?"
"And where is the fun in that?"
If they were to use teleportation then they would''ve made it to the city in less than a minute, however neither Ingrid nor Juni saw any point in taking the easy route. Sneaking out of the hotel and the fear of getting caught added to the enjoyment of their little trip.
"Is there any ce you want to visit in particr?" Sara asked.
"You''re the one who lives there." Ingrid grinned. "You better show us some nice spots."
Sara had less than twenty minutes toe up with a n; the road so far had been clear, but it wouldn''t be the same once they arrived at the city. At the very least, the girls in the backseats seemed to enjoy the ride quite a bit. She was worried that the two would have some entricities, but so far they didn''t seem that different from those their age.
"By the way," when the thought sprung up in her mind, she couldn''t help but wasn''t to ask. "Do you mind if I ask about your age? It gets a little confusing, you know."
"Well¡" Juni looked up in thought, but then she seemed to remember something. "I''m twenty one, though I don''t remember anything before five years ago."
"Twenty one!?" Sara eximed. "I could''ve never guessed¡"
It was a bit difficult topletely adjust one''s perception in a single that. Because of that, the reporter was still under the impression that the Valkyries were weapons created in thest decade. Hearing one of them say she was more than twenty years old was a bit shocking.
"You know we don''t really age like humans, right?" Ingrid chimed in. "It might not look like it, but I''m twenty as well."
Of course there were a lot of details Freyja''s Children were taught to keep under wrap. While Ingrid was indeed twenty years old, just like most Nephilim. Juni''s age on the other hand was a bit difficult to calcte. She had been separated from Freyja six years ago, but after spending sixteen yearspressed into a single one inside Asgard it would add up to twenty one.
Not that any of it mattered.
There were too many mysteries rting to the entities called Freyja''s Children, and one of them was the memories from their past lives. Sam spected that they yed a big part in forming their personalities, even if Nino was the only one who seemed to regain enough of them to remember her past identity.
It was the only way to exin how they didn''t turn into emotionless robots after Wolf''s brainwashing.
"You don''t age like humans?" Sara raised an eyebrow. "Is that why you still look so young?"
"Hmm¡ It would be more urate to say we don''t age at all." Ingrid looked down at her own body. "I just like this form, that''s why I never changed it."
The Nephilim''s answer only served to confuse Sara more.
"Hold on..." Turning her sights to the road, she thought all of it through before asking for confirmation. "So¡ if I got this right, you don''t age at all, and you can remain like this if you want?"
"That''s what I said." Ingrid replied with a slight frown.
"Then¡ it''s like that¡" Still not sure if she understood everything, the reporter smiled weakly as she attempted to confirm her conclusion. "You have eternal youth?"
"You could say that."
The Nephilim, as well as the Valkyries, were beings of immense power. They wielded abilities beyond humanprehension, but even while knowing that, it never urred to Sara that they might have something that dealt with lifespan.
"What about you, miss?" Ingrid. "How old are you?"
"A-ah! I''m twenty seven!" Sara replied, still a bit shaken.
"Oh, too bad¡" The Nephilim sighed. "Guess you lost your chance at Awakening."
"You mean that thing the idols talked about in the video?"
While the purpose of the press conference was to inquire about the Nephilim and the peace treaty between their worlds, the video released the previous night shot up to the top of any reporter''s priority list. Hearing the three idols talk about humans gaining the same powers as them, everyone and their mothers were waiting to learn more about the strange concept called the Awakening.
"If you were less than fifteen-" turning her sight to the window, Ingrid''s voice took on a disinterested tone. "You would''ve had the chance to gain it as well. Eternal youth, I mean."
Chapter 340: Too cute for this world.
"Alright, we have finally arrived."
"Whoa¡"
The long ride has finally reached its end and the three girls -one Nephilim, one Valkyrie, and one human- finally descended from the car.
"Wee to the first district of the first human settlement." Sara spoke with a smile. "As the name suggests, this is the first city that was built after the war started. You could say it''s as close to the old world as it gets, in terms of appearance, at least."
"Ingrid! Look! Look! It''s a skyscraper!" Juni said excitedly.
"Stop shaking me." Ingrid replied, though she wore a huge grin as well.
"It''s just like in the movies!"
For a city built during the apocalypse, the First Settlement looked like a normal concrete jungle of a city,plete with thousands of buildings separated into blocks. Still, despite it resembling the cities of old, the post-apocalyptic city seemed strangely alive,cking the depressing air one would expect from the gray constructs.
"Strange¡" Juni said as she looked around them. "It feels kinda¡ empty¡"
"Hm? What makes you think so?" The reporter asked.
"I don''t know. It''s just¡ ah!" Looking up with a start, the Valkyrie turned to the car they arrived in. "There are no cars! In the movies, the roads are always full of cars!"
Ingris raised her eyebrows a little as she understood what her friend meant.
"The air is clean, too. I thought we wouldn''t be able to breathe."
Not that breathing was something those two had to worry about. Still, their observation was correct; there were far too few cars roaming the roads and the air was so clean it might as well be from some grasnds.
"When the city was first built, the roads were kept wide on purpose so the residents wouldn''t have trouble driving around. That was a major oversight though as cars were no longer as prevalent. People now rely on public transport a lot more, then there is the fact that we no longer rely on fossil fuel.
It''s because of those factors and more that don''t have the same problems as the cities of the past."
"O~h¡"
Sara had lived in the world before the war so she knew exactly what surprised the two girls. The pollution that gued the world was no more.
The threat of Cmities forced humanity to abandon the resources they relied on before, which meant no millions of vehicles puffing poison in the air, flight was limited to military purposes, and with most manufacturing being done inside each settlement, cargo transports were a thing of the past.
Of course, there were many other factors at y, chief among them being the technological advancements that resulted in more efficient and clean energy. Sadly with the war still ongoing those advancements remained out of the public''s reach, but now that it was finally over the world would soon start heading toward its past.
"So, what''s our next destination?" Ingrid asked, pulling her sunsses down to look at the reporter.
Soon after they entered the settlement, Sara retrieved a pair of sunsses from her glovepartment and handed them to the girls. Both of them were able to get their hands on civilian clothes before sneaking out. Though the hoods and face masks helped a little, people could still figure out what they were simply by looking at their eyes.
Of course, walking around with such a disguise drew the attention of many passersby, however it was much better than the alternative.
"Hm¡ I don''t really know how to go about this¡" Sara said as she swiped through her phone.
Tourism was dead in the apocalypse, except for the asional trips to battle sites and city ruins. One wouldn''t expect a lot from what was once nothing more than a refugee camp, but with survivors from all across the world gathering in one ce, it was only inevitable that their cultures would mix, creating one of the most culturally diverse ces in history.
Sara was lost for choice. There were quite a few monuments and establishments that could only be found in the First Settlements, and with the time on their hands being limited, she had to draw the best route that would allow them to make the most of it.
"Ah, how about we visit the Cmity Exhibition?" She said after a while. "It''s near the southern gate so we would be passing quite a-"
It was then that she noticed that the girls were gone, and a shock of panic hit her immediately after.
"Old man! Give us two of these!"
"Old man!" A gruffugh resounded. "Guess I do look old."
Relief spread through her chest when she spotted the two suspicious figures a few meters down the street. While she was deep in thought, the girls made their way to a small shop near the corner and were already in the process of ordering.
"Anyway, that''s quite the strange getup you got there." The shop owner spoke while working on his utensils. "You trying to stay low, or stand out?"
The two girls nced a each other for a second before Ingrid answered.
"Well, let''s just say we''re too cute for this world."
The old man gave them an incredulous look beforeughing a couple of secondster.
"Hahaha! Too cute, huh? I believe you, alright? I believe you!"
He grabbed argedle and began pulling out something that''s been in therge pot for some time now. Bite-sized golden orbs, deep-fried to perfection. The surface of each is delicately textured, showcasing a slightly crunchy crust that hides a pillowy interior.
The round shape and uniform golden hue create a visually pleasing treat that tempts the senses, and as the middle aged shop owner ced them into two small paper boxes, the girls couldn''t help but swallow.
"Well then, here you do!" He said, handing them the white containers, a sweet fragrance wafting in the surroundings. "For my extremely cute customers, this serving is on the house!"
"Eh!?" Ingrid looked up from her box. "Are you sure, old man?"
"As long as you promise toe again." The man gave them a knowing smile. "I hope to see your cute faces next time."
Chapter 341: Sightseeing.
"By the way, what do you call this?"
Juni poked a small wooden pick into one of the golden orbs and raised it a little.
"We call it Lokma." The old man replied.
"Lo¡ what?"
"Lokma. It''s a traditional dish from Misr, or Egypt as they call it."
"Strange word."
Even as she made thatment, Ingrid pulled her mask down a little and proceeded to bring one of the treats to her mouth.
"Well, that''s to be expected." said the old man, his eyes locked on the Nephilim. "Some Arabic words are hard to pronounce unless you grew up with thenguage."
"I know about Egypt!" Juni eximed. "That''s the ce where aliens build the giant triangles!"
"Hahaha! You mean the pyramids? Sorry missy but those were built by humans. Aliens aren''t real." The old man paused for a moment. "Well, space aliens, at least."
Though she entered panic mode when the two girls disappeared, Sara was able to regain her calm immediately after. Instead of rushing after them, she kept her distance and observed the situation. To her surprise the two were able to order without a problem and even engaged in small talk with the shop owner.
"Whoa! This is really good!" Ingrid said in amazement.
"So sweet!" Juni took a bite as well and couldn''t restrain her excitement.
"d you like it! Come again soon, okay!"
Hearing the delighted remarks of the two girls, some of the people passing by were drawn to the store. In no time a crowd formed and the old man found himself overwhelmed with customers.
Sara quickly went and pulled Ingrid and Juni away. The store owner might have feigned ignorance despite figuring out their identity, however she couldn''t expect the same from everyone else.
"And why did you wander off by yourself, may I ask?" The reporter felt a slight headache as soon as they were out of sight.
"Something smelled nice," Ingrid replied, nonchntly putting one of the treats into her mouth.
"Sho guuuud!" Juni added while chewing on another bite, a blissful expression on her face.
"What happened to being careful so people wouldn''t find out about you?"
Sara heaved a sigh, shaking her head slowly. She noticed her right hand reaching for the inner pocket of her jacket, the ce where she usually kept her cigarettes. Shaking away the urge to smoke, she sighed again and turned to the pair.
"You seem too stressed out, miss." Said Ingrid. She nced at the small box of treats and thought for a moment before picking one of them with the wooden pick. "Here, you can have this."
Seeing the Nephilim extend the golden chunk, the reporter was taken aback, words betraying her. A few seconds passed before she snapped back to reality, clearing her throat andposing herself.
"I appreciate the gesture, but I''m fine." She replied. "I can''t really afford to gain more weight."
"A~h, right¡" Ingrid''s eyes widened in realization and she chomped on the treat right away. "Sweet food makes humans fat."
"What''s that?" Juni asked, still munching another piece.
Sara was speechless for a moment, having concluded that the alien girls didn''t have to worry about gaining weight from that short exchange. Outstanding beauty, eternal youth, and on top of that a perfect figure that never grew fat. It would be a lie if she said envy wasn''t getting to her. Because of that, the reporter turned around and started walking in the direction they came from.
"Wait here." She said. "I will be back in a couple of minutes."
The girls looked at each other, confused, but when the reporter returned carrying a box of her own they understood.
"Guess you couldn''t resist." Ingrid grinned.
"Leave me be." Sara replied, going through her serving of the extremely sweet Lokma at quite a fast pace, though the frown she had on made it difficult to believe she was enjoying the treat.
~[ ]~
After finishing their food Sara went on to exin her chosen route for the two girls. They had noints whatsoever, agreeing to follow it right away, but something told the reporter that they had no intention of doing so.
Along the way they passed several shops and restaurants, stopping whenever the alien girls saw or smelled something that tickled their appetite. Unfortunately for her, Sara was already way past her daily calorie intake.
If she were to eat anything after that deep fried dessert, it would take her weeks to burn away the excess, and with how busy she was most likely going to be in the near future it was unlikely that she would have the chance, which would only cause it all to get worse.
The party visited two of the sites on their list; the Fountain of Beginings and Time za. The first one, as the name suggests, was arge fountain surrounded by a small park.
Nestled in the heart of a meticulously well kept garden, the fountain stood as a shimmering masterpiece of elegance. The glistering water cascaded from above, moving from one level to the other with a gentle, rhythmic grace. Intricate details carved into the smooth white marble revealed delicate patterns and sculpted aquatic motifs that seemed toe alive in the dancing water.
Crystal-clear streams arched gracefully into the air before delicately descending, creating a mesmerizing y of liquid light.
Surrounding the base, vibrant bursts of blossoming flowers added a ssh of color to the scene, their fragrant perfume mingling with the soft murmur of the water. It was a ce where serenity and beauty converged, inviting contemtion and stirring the senses with its timeless charm.
"Whoa¡ this is so¡ beautiful¡" Juni spoke with a gaping mouth, her mind overtaken by the mesmerizing water dance.
"We definitely need something like this in the new pce." Said Ingrid as she took photos with the Valkyrie''s phone.
The Fountain of Beginnings was once a single well from which the first refugees drew the water they needed to survive. It was the center of themunity for years but eventually ran dry, forcing people to abandon it for another source. That didn''t cause its significance to be lost, however.
When the war entered a more stable phase after the Valkyries arrived, the fountain was built over the old well, turning into a symbol of humanity''s tenacity, will to survive and the start of a new age.
"You should see it at night." Sara smiled. "The light show is something else."
The Time za didn''t have as much historical significance as the Fountain of Beginnings, but it was a sight to behold.
A long pir of shimmering darkness stood at the center of a vast circr space paved with stone, divided into twelve equal sections by spears pierced into the ground like golden streaks of lightning. Upon closer inspection, one could see the Roman numbers from one to twelve were engraved into the heads of each spear. A shadow fell on the spear with the X, signaling that the time had hit ten.
"For some reason, this ce feels a lot more impactful." Ingrid observed, looking around as she walked to the center of the za.
"The artist who created it wished to depict the aftermath of a grand battle." Sara exined. "The golden spears represent the twelve heroes who fought against the great darkness."
"Oooh! These look just like the spear I used back in the day!" Juni spoke with sparkling eyes, looking up at one of the golden spears. "But they''re much bigger!"
"I thought you fight with a bat?" The Nephilim asked.
"We couldn''t use halos back then." The Valkyrie answered. "We had to rely on normal weapons back then."
The topic of their discussion seemed to catch some attention so before they could get themselves exposed, Sara once again found herself dragging them away.
Chapter 342: Blueberry ice cream.
"There you go!"
"Thank you very much!"
Juni excitedly epted the cone extended to her by the vendor. They were at their fifth destination now, the Soaring Heavenly Dragon, and immediately upon seeing the ice cream truck parked nearby she couldn''t help but rush toward it.
Ingrid followed right behind her, but unlike the Valkyie, she at least stopped to nce at the golden statue at the center of the square, which depicted a mighty dragon, its long body forming a spiral as it reached for the sky.
As she epted her own cone, Ingrid tapped Juni''s phone against a small terminal to pay for their orders. The two then walked back to where the reporter was waiting for them, sitting on a nearby bench as she drank from a small water bottle.
"This ce feels deserted." The Nephilimmented, unbothered by the cold as she bit into the frozen treat. Seeing that there was barely anyone around she opted to take her shades off, cing them on top of her head so they would fall back in ce with a single move.
"Well, that''s to be expected." Sara replied. "The press conference will be starting soon. I''m sure most people have been waiting for it since yesterday''s ceremony."
The event was of such importance that most people were glued to their screens, watching the packed conference room as they waited for the new Head General to walk onstage. Many questions kept them awake the previous night so they couldn''t wait to hear some answers from the man who orchestrated a peace deal with a race of aliens from another dimension.
"You''re a reporter, aren''t you, miss? Shouldn''t you be there right now?"
Ingrid''s question drew a confused look from the human woman, but all that came from her was an exasperated sigh.
"That''s right. The conference is supposed to be one of the most important events of my carrier." She said. "But here I am being a tour guide for you two. I made a big sacrifice, you know. If it turns out all of it was for nothing I would regret it for the rest of my life."
The truth is Sara learned quite a few things about the Valkyries and Nephilim during the few hours she spent showing the around. The fact that they were practically immortal, and that humans could gain long lives by awakening.She also learned that their behavior wasn''t so different from the average person, and would''ve blended in society just fine if not for their distinct appearances.
One fact that surprised her quite a bit was that they felt the need to use the toilet. It has been only one day since the truth was revealed so it only made sense that she was shocked to see the Valkyrie running over to the public restroom.
''I still need something¡'' the reporter thought. ''Anything¡''
"Well, I''m sure you already know this but¡" Ingrid paused, turning her sights to the golden statue. "We can''t really tell you anything major, and it would be for the best if you don''t ask."
"So delish!" Juni seemed oblivious to the exchange as she enjoyed the frozen treat.
Sara understood what the Nephilim was saying. The world wasn''t going back to what it was before the Cmity war, and with how things are now, saying the wrong thing could result in her disappearance. Though she liked to believe that she would do anything for the truth, the fear of what might happen to her was something she couldn''t entirely get rid of.
"I''ve read on you earlier, miss." Ingrid said, raising Juni''s phone a little. "You''re a prominent figure in the Anti-Valkyrie crowd, right?"
Juni''s eyes snapped open as she chomped on the the remainder of here.
"The what!?"
"They''re the people who hate you." Said the Nephilim. "Not everyone were so supportive of you until recently, remember?"
The Valkyrie could only tilted her head a little, looking quite confused.With the Resistance shielding them from most information sources until a couple of months ago, the Valkyries still knew nothing about humans or the life outside the military bases. They didn''t care before, and they don''t care now.
The brainwashing being removed didn''t mean they would suddenly start searching for a different way of living.
"Hm¡ I don''t really get it but¡" Snatching the phone from her friend''s hand, the Valkyrie turned around and ran toward the ice cream truck. "I want another one!"
"She really doesn''t care." Ingrid sighed before shifting back to Sara. "You still think she''s a threat to humanity?"
To her credit, the reporter somehow managed to keep herposure while being faced with such a piercing gaze.
"That was a stupid question, huh?" Sighing, the Nephilim brought the ice cream cone to her mouth and licked. Realizing it was starting to melt, she quickly finished it off and proceeded to wipe her hands with a piece of tissue. "Say, you called out to us because were hoping to learn something that would further your case, right?"
Once again Sara kept her silence, but not for long.Before she said anything, though, she reached into her breast pocket and took out her cigarettes, lighting one and taking some puffs.
"First of all, I''m not exactly rted to the Anti-Valkyrie movement. People assume I am just because I''mcritical of the Resistance and the way it does things." Said the reporter, the smoke she exhaled slowly dissipating in the air. "As for whether I think you are a threat to humanity, then yes, I do."
Ingrid''s eyes narrowed a little.
"You''re powerful beings from another world. You almost drove usto extinction without even joining the battles yourself, and if not for those of your own kind siding with us we would''ve been gone by now.
You have no reason to work with us, and considering our history, it would be a stupid move to allow our future generations to gain the same powers as you." Pausing to take another puff, Sara exhaled the smoke once more then looked up at the Nephilim. "You have every reason to exterminate us, so, yes, I do believe you''re a threat to humanity."
The two gazed into each other''s eyes, neither faltering even for a moment. Their staring contest was interrupted by Juni who suddenly jumped between them holding a cone of ice cream in each of her hands.
"Here! This is for you, miss!" Before she could refuse it, the Valkyrie pushed the cone into Sara''s hands. "It''s very tasty, you gotta try it!"
The reporter was speechless,pletely taken aback. Ingrid couldn''t help but smile while her taller friend seemed oblivious to the tension between them.
A few seconds passed before she noticed the ashes falling from her cigarettes. Putting it of, she brought the blue berry ice cream to her mouth and tasted it, a smile forming on her lips immediately after.
"You know, I don''t think we can do much with the conference going on." Sara said, looking up at the pair of alien girls. "How about we watch it at my house? We can continue our tour once it''s over."
Chapter 343: Smoke Sticks.
"Now this is more like it..."
Ingrid smiled under her mask, her eyes carefully surveilling their surroundings.
"Somehow¡ this ce feels off¡" Juni didn''t share the Nephilim''s enthusiasm. "It reminds me¡ It reminds me of the abandoned cities we used toe across¡"
Following Sara''s suggestion, it was decided that the three would head to the reporter''s house so they could watch the press conference there. Questions sprung up in the girls'' minds when they took one of the self driving buses instead of going back to retrieve the car.
Soon after they received their answer as the scenery around them began to change, signaling that they had left one side of the city and entered another.
The concrete jungle wasn''t the most pleasing of ces, butpared to it, the area they arrived at gave quite an ominous feeling. The buildings looked weathered and old, theck of maintenance showing in the webs of cracks spreading through the walls and the holes littering the once paved road.
A chaotic jumble of graffiti encircled the base of every structure, making it difficult to discern where one starts and where it ends, causing the meaning behind the art to be lost.
As the three walked barren roads, the alien noticed a few more things. Most of the windows were broken or sealed with wooden nks, some doors were reced with curtains or alloy sheets, small shacks squeezed into the small opening, and piles of trash gathered around every corner.
When the Valkyrie made herment, Sara couldn''t help but smile. Theparison couldn''t be more true. As a reporter from the Frontline Times she always jumped at the chance to document the devastation left behind by the Cmities.
Whether it was the cities that were burned to the ground or the viges that managed to evacuate in time, she had seen it all and could tell with confidence that those sites didn''t differ that much from what was in front of them right now.
If there was one thing that set them apart from each other then it would be the people. Though it appeared like just another abandoned city, the area the reporter led them to had a spark of life. The sounds of kidsughing as they ran around shattered the gloomy atmosphere, and several shops and kiosques were open selling one thing or the other.
"So this is the true side of the First Settlement." Said Ingrid. "This is what I was expecting from a post-apocalyptic world."
The farther they walked the messier the environment got. The buildings seemed to expand in whichever direction, some merging with each other and growing taller and less stable. The wide road thinned out quite a bit as well, though for the time being it was still wide enough for five people to walk side by side.
"I want to agree with you but¡" heaving a sigh, the reporter looked up at one of the buildings. "Things like this weren''t umon in the old world."
"You seem to be doing pretty well for yourself, miss. I never expected that you would be living in such a ce."
Sara chuckled, amused by the Nephilim''sment.
"Does it look that way?"
"Don''t you get paid enough?"
"Going against what''s basically the government doesn''t earn us much support."
The resistance might not have taken direct actions against her and her news agency, but that didn''t mean they simply left them alone.
"We''re-"
Just as she was about to inform them that they had arrived, several figures emerged from behind a nearby corner and surrounded the three. Ingrid''s smile widened the moment she got a look at their appearance; all of them were young men with rough features and ragged clothes, and some even had weird haircuts and tattoos. In other words, they were your typical hoodlums looking to make some trouble.
"Yo, Sara." One of them stepped forward. Seeing that he was dressed better than the others, there were no doubts about him being the leader. "Didn''t expect to see here."
"Simon¡" the reporter''s lips curved downward as she gazed at the man.
"Shouldn''t you be at that fancy conference? I thought it was your big day?"
"Something came up so I had to bail."
Noticing the irritation in the woman''s voice, the two girls nced at each other. The conversation hinted at a connection between their guide and the gang leader, but with one of them being rxed while the other tensing up, it was unclear whether they were on good terms or not.
"Does it have something with the guests you brought?"
Simon, as she called him, looked to be in his early twenties. Adding to that his slim frame and he appeared younger than most of his followers. His light brown skin and wavy ck hair hinted at an eastern origin. By human standards, he was quite the handsome guy, which made it feel like he didn''t belong among the nd group of street thugs.
"I believe that is none of your business." Sara replied, her frown having turned into a piercing re. "Now, if you don''t need anything else¡"
"Whoa there! No need to be rude!" Raising his hands in the air, the brown man spoke with a smile. "You brought fresh faces to my territory so I was just curious. Still, I don''t remember you paying their entrance fee. How about you do so now so we can leave you be?"
Though the reporter seemed to be in quite a bad mood, the alien girls seemed excited by the situation as they watched with broad smiles under their masks. After a short staring contest the human seemed to give in as she sighed. Reluctantly, she reached into the inner pocket of her jacket and took out a pack of cigarettes.
Once she checked the contents, she tossed it to the gang leader and clicked her tongue.
"That should be enough, right?"
Simon''s expression seemed to turn solemn as she caught the small paper box, and once he got a look inside, a smile returned to his face.
"Seven, huh? That will be enough for one day." He said while stashing the pack into one of his pockets. "Remember to pay in advance the next time you bring someone, okay?"
Without causing a fuss, the thugs followed after their leader as they dispersed. Sara remained in her ce for a while, silently looking at the ground. After a few seconds she turned to the two and smiled, holding up two cigarettes for them to see.
"Good thing I always keep some extras separately, right?"
The girls were speechless, confused by the sudden shift in her mood. A chuckle escaped the Nephilim as she finally understood and the three of them resumed their walk.
"You can pay with your smoke sticks here?" Juni asked, still confused by the exchange.
"I''m probably the only one." Sara replied. "They''re hard toe by so anyone would take them over money."
The road seemed to tighten even more as they proceeded toward their destination. Arge group of children came running from the opposite direction,ughing and shouting as they chased after each other.
"That man," Ingrid spoke, moving aside so the kids wouldn''t bump into her. "You seem to know him well."
"Well, you could say that."
Sara chose to not borate and the Nephilim decided to leave it at that. Juni on the other hand had her attention directed somewhere else, smiling as she followed the children running past her. She must''ve missed some of them as two boys ended up brushing against her, though their frail human bodies couldn''t possibly cause a Valkyrie to trip.
"Sorry!" The two boys shouted before continuing to chase after the group of kids.
Juni was speechless for a moment, but then a wide grin spread on her face. Though she didn''t seem to mind that the two boys ran into her, the truth was that she wanted to start running as well, having realized they were ying a game called tag. Unfortunately for her, the children were no match for the speed of a Valkyrie.
Feeling a little disappointed, she quickly caught up with Ingrid just as they arrived at Sara''s apartment.
Chapter 344: Too sudden.
When the clock hit 11:00, the door opened and the six Generals making up the new Resistance Council walked on stage, with Nathaniel Carter at their lead. As the higher-ups of humanity''s only military force as well as its governors they had a duty to answer the questions of their people, but in truth, their participation was nothing but a show.
A few secondster the new Head General entered the scene. Though the man didn''t know it himself, the air surrounding him was different from the other Generals, and the two Valkyries following behind him only helped amplify it further.
As he took his seat at the center of the Council, the drones hovering in the air captured the entire event with utmost precision, broadcasting the footage all across the human settlements. Almost everyone was glued to their screens, waiting to hear what questions would be asked and the answers their leaders would provide.
~[ ]~
"Damn it¡" Sara gritted her teeth. "I should''ve been there right now!"
In the outskirts of the First Settlement''s first district, the reporter was in her small apartment, sitting in the corner as she smoked one of her remaining cigarettes. Juni was still looking around, her excitement at visiting such an unfamiliar ce clear. Ingrid on the other hand was much more restrained.
"You know, we could''ve made it in time." Said the Nephilim. "We can teleport, remember?"
Sara stared at her for a couple of seconds before her eyes widened.
"You should''ve said that earlier!!!"
"Well, we probably wouldn''t have been allowed toe back here afterward. Anyway, the old man is about to appear. Let''s focus on the show for now.
~[ ]~
After a few moments of silence, Sam stood up from his seat and spoke, his voice amplified so it would be heard all across the conference hall.
"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for joining us today. As we gather here, I want to express our gratitude for your continued dedication to the truth andmitment to transparency, coboration, and progress. Our shared journey towards a better future requires open dialogue and the exchange of ideas so I look forward to addressing your questions and worries as we head toward a new era."
The round of apuse shook the conference hall, but it did little to lower the tension felt by the attendees. One Sam took his seat once more, Melissa who was standing on the side raised her mic and announced the start of the event. As the moderator of the event, it was her job to choose the order in which the reporters get to ask questions.
A woman from Dawn, a big news website from the Third Settlement, received the signal on her smartwatch and stood up after a couple of seconds.
"Head General Sanderson, as I''m sure you''re already aware, many believe the end of the war was too sudden. The public learned of the Nephilim''s existence only recently, and the details of the peace deal remain unknown to most. If possible, we ask that you divulge more information regarding your negotiations with the Nephilim queen."
The reporter took her seat and a few seconds of silence passed. Keeping a polite smile on, Sam leaned toward the plethora of mics ced in front of him and spoke.
"You are correct in that the end of the war was too sudden. I''m sure no one would''ve expected it, especially after the attack on our organization''s previous headquarters. As for the peace negotiations, once it was revealed that Odin orchestrated everything behind the scenes, neither side saw any need to continue the conflict and so it came to an end."
In order to soften the blow, Sam made sure to inform the public about H''s capture and the subsequent peace negotiations. Doing so helped convince the masses that the faction supporting the war was defeated, and that the new queen who ascended to the throne right after was someone who always supported a peaceful solution.
Of course, the truth was a little different, with Thor having no interest in war, peace, or politics before she was forced into the leadership position. Most of the Nephilim who supported H''s genocidal campaign apanied her to thest battle where they were ughtered by Loki long before the trio from the forty sixth base arrived at the scene.
With them out of the scene, there was no one to rail up those who remained leading to the peace negotiations proceeding smoothly.
The same reporter raised her hand, signaling that she wanted to ask for rification. Standing up after receiving permission, she red at Sam and spoke with a slightly agitated tone.
"My apologies but I don''t think anyone would believe it''s that simple."
Before she could say anything else, the reporter''s eyes met Zero Five''s. The Valkyrie still had her usual stoic expression on, but something in her eyes sent shivers down the reporter''s spine severing her line of thought.
"It goes without saying that there is a lot more to the story. Enough to fill an entire book, in fact." Noticing the fear taking over her, Sam decided to give his reply before anyone noticed. "If I had to give you a summary, the terms included our side receiving some important technologies, such as dimensional travel. In exchange, we would provide assistance in the search for Odin.
Other than that, both sides have agreed to form a united front and provide military aid when needed."
As he spoke thest few words, the other Generals couldn''t help but remember the footage they saw during their first meeting with the Nephilim queen. The Cmities have already brought war to a level beyond theprehension of a normal human, and the Awakened raised it to an even higher level than that.
In the end, their only choice was to rely on the aliens to protect them, and even when their world''s first generation of Awakened reached the same heights, humanity would still be at risk of being erased.
In just a few decades, normal humans will be obsolete.
Chapter 345: Two predictions.
Though she seemed to have more to say, Melissa chose to move on from the first reporter and gave the next one on the list permission to speak. A well-dressed man in histe forties stood from his seat. He gazed at the Council for a few seconds before moving his sights to the paper in his hands.
"Recently, as more truths are being uncovered, we learned that the enemy we have been fighting came from a different dimension than ours. Though that erased the misconception of Cmities, and subsequently the Nephilim, being aliens from outer space, does it change the implication of different life forms being out there?"
''What is the difference, huh?''
"The implications do not change," Sam replied, still smiling. "Though it might appear much more convoluted, the truth is that nothing has changed since ancient times. We started as tribes and viges, some of which chose to be enemies while others formed alliances and lived among each other. Throughout the ages, the scale kept increasing from viges to cities to kingdoms then to nations.
After thousands of years, we''re finally moving toward an age where entire worlds are involved, but whether it''s space or other dimensions, those ancient concepts will never change." Pausing for a moment, Sam looked at the middle-aged man and smiled. "We will befriend those who seek our friendship, and we will crush those whoe to us with ill intent.
If there is anything that will change, it would be that we can no longer afford to be as divided as we were in the old world. Going forward, there will be no more borders separating the people of our world. We will unite under a single banner and seek to cement our position in the new age."
When Sam finished delivering his answer, a chilling silence overtook the conference hall. Several seconds passed with no one doing as much as taking a single breath, and once the idea finally settled in, the hall ignited as if set on fire.
It was an expected reaction and for an obvious reason. The odds being against them didn''t stop the humans from trying to predict how the world would turn out once the war was over.
The vast majority of humans were wiped out in the decade-long war; some nations don''t even have a single survivor. Trying to redraw the borders of the old world was a meaningless idea. Because of that, there were two popr predictions as to how the world would turn out.
The first was a future where each of the human settlements dered their independence and eventually turned into their own nations. Going by the political climate and the movements made by the Six Generals, it was expected that the world would be divided into six nations headed by each of the Generals.
To avoid any single nation from getting its hand on the Valkyries, a seventh region will be created with the other six managing it. The Resistance would be allocated to said region and would be responsible for defending their world against external threats.
The second prediction was that the Human Resistance would expand from a military organization to epass a political branch as well, uniting the world under a single banner.
One could say that this prediction has alreadye true. The Resistance managed to gain a foothold because there was no single nation left that could effectively organize the survivors.
The Settlements started as refugee camps that were expanded and connected with its help, and though they had their own internal governing bodies, in the end, it was the military organization that ran everything as nothing could be done without the protection it provided.
The only thing that made people doubt that such a status quo would continue was the same that convinced them they were heading for the first prediction; the leaders of the Resistance were making moves to divide the world amongst themselves.
It was easier to see them having a fallout than working together, and even if it didn''t turn out like that right away, one could still expect things to proceed in that direction over time.
In the end, just like how the war was over suddenly and without a warning, the world shifted in the least expected direction, and most people could already tell it was all that one man''s doing. Sam Sanderson.
"If that answers your question then may we move on to the next one?"
When his voice resounded through the conference hall, silence took over once more. All eyes turned toward the man sitting in the middle, like a king surrounded by his loyal ministers.
The six Generals had no choice but to hide their true feelings and ept that they had lost. That man had the Valkyries at his beck and call, not to mention the Nephilim''s support. No one could hope to match his backing, and unless they somehow found other worlds to ally with, their hope ofpeting for the throne was practically none existent.
The next reporter in line received permission to stand up. She had questions of her own prepared beforehand, but those clearly had to take a backseat considering their current topic of discussion.
"Head General Sanderson, seeing the position our world is in right now, it is understandable that we need to stay united. However, do you believe it is possible to achieve such a thing? Though history shows that humans are capable of working together toward amon goal, it is also littered with examples of division and strife.
Would the Resistance truly be capable of leading our world to such an idealistic future?"
That was the only way to phrase the questions without outright insulting the man at the top. The reporter wanted to cast doubt on the Resistance and its new leader. She wanted to stand in his face and tell him he was nothing more than a delusional dictator wannabe. But that would never happen.
"I think you''re mistaken here." When he spoke, everyst person watching the conference opened their minds and listened carefully. Each word he spoke was a signal that marked the start of a new world. The authority it held left no room for arguments, and though many would''ve liked to protest, nothing they said could ever hope of countering him. "We do not have any choice.
To face the threats that lurk in our path, to ensure we survive the trials that lie ahead, we must not allow division to weaken our stand. Anyone who rejects to unity is a fool who''ll bring nothing but death and destruction to our world. We will not fall for the same mistakes our ancestors made. We will remain a united monolith, and together we will ascend to the pinnacle of this endless multiverse."
Chapter 346: No comment.
The next few reporters took the same route of putting aside their nned questions, instead putting their focus on the revtion made by the new Head General.
Before the Third World War started, there used to be a lot of conspiracy theories about a secretly emerging totalitarian world government, led by the world''s elites who wished for world domination and to rule through a one-world government in ce of sovereign nation-states.
Just like most conspiracies from that time, the one about a New World Order turned out to be true as well,plete with a superior alien race that pulls the strings from the shadows
The presence of the Nephilim ended up casting a shadow of doubt on the legitimacy of the resistance. Many expressed their concern over the only fighting force they have consisting of the same aliens who destroyed their world, and following that line of question, the conversation eventually led to the topic of the Valkyries being alive and a certainplicated question.
"Head General Sanderson."
A certain female reporter stood up from her seat after receiving permission to speak. Her name was Rena Fring, a reporter from the Frontline Times. Her luck ran out when Sara Pinkman, her teacher, decided to take off without an exnation, dropping the responsibility of participating in the press conference to her.
Anyone else would say it''s the opportunity of a lifetime; it was an event that would go down in history, and simply being present to witness it would surely bring a lot of opportunities. Rena, however, wanted nothing more than to disappear without leaving a trace.
She was the youngest and least experienced among those sent to cover the conference. Her posture and voice showed herck of confidence, and she was barely able to stop herself from panicking whenever something major was said. Because of that, the smartwatch on her wrist vibrating took herpletely off guard.
Thankfully she had the option to decline the opportunity allowing the event organizer to move on to someone else, but before she could press it the image of Sara grilling her doing so came to mind and she quickly dismissed the idea.
Gathering what little courage she had, the young woman got up from her seat and prepared to ask one of the questions her teacher left. It was a topic she was familiar with as her teacher would mention it often. Though she understood the danger that came with bringing it up, Rena understood that it was the only way she would get a pass without having to stand up again.
"There have been rumors going around about you iming to have the ability to create Valkyries. A number of conscripts from the forty sixth base havee forward to confirm said rumors, adding that you promised to create something that could surpass what was believed to be a humanoid weapon back then.
If that is the case and you are indeed capable of creating humanoid weapons, how are we supposed to believe the Valkyries are sentient living beings?"
A background check on Sam Sanderson revealed that he''s a talented scientist with expertise in the medical field and nanotechnology, one of the few who are said to have as much potential as Odin himself.
It wasn''t too far-fetched for someone of his level to be able to create weapons that could rival humanity''s greatest scientist, or so people thought before learning that Odin was a fraud who brainwashed a bunch of aliens to do his bidding.
The tension in the room only kept increasing as everyone awaited the Head General''s answer. So far the man had answered every question with a smile on his face, but as soon as Rena finished speaking, the rxed smile disappeared from his face alerting the attendees that something had gone wrong.
"Noment... is what I would like to say, but¡" heaving a sigh, the Head General shook his head. "I believe you will not be satisfied unless I give you an answer."
A silent pause drove the reporters to hold their breaths, anticipating what he would say. Whenever he was faced with a troublesome question, the man named Sam Sanderson would always reply with a world changing revtion. Following that line of thought, the world expected to hear another such revtion, and when that man opened his mouth, the things he said didn''t disappoint.
"Indeed, I am capable of creating Valkyries." He said, his expression unchanging. "I''m capable of creating humans as well, though as you might have already guessed, it is not by any means a simple process, nor is it an ethical one."
To say the answer was shocking would be an understatement. Whether it was the people in their homes, the reporters in the conference hall, or the six Generals sitting on either of his sides, everyone stared at Sam with horror-filled eyes.
Only a few minutes ago he cemented his position in people''s minds as a rising tyrant who aims to rule over their world with an army of powerful warriors by his side. Now, however, he came out with an even more absurd statement that warped his image even further.
Before the whole thing got thrown into chaos, Sam spoke again. He didn''t hope to ease the tension nor did he n onforting the public. They wanted to know the truth and so he gave them the truth. How they deal should deal with it, that wasn''t for him to say."
"One of the conditions for our alliance with the Nephilim is that I would never attempt to create someone of their kind. I intend to honor that agreement no matter what happens in the future, and I will be taking what I learned to my grave."
That was mostly a lie. Though he might be capable of constructing the physical bodies of Freyja''s Children, all of it would be meaningless without the original Alice.
In the end, what he''s able to create is a mindless puppet thatcks the abilities possessed by the Valkyries and their Nephilim sisters. The same could be said about creating humans. No matter what he tries the oue will always be an empty husk; a piece ofb-grown human meat. The only way for a human to be born into this world is for a man and a woman toe together and sow the seed.
''The old man never tested them¡'' Sam thought, remembering that they have no proof of the Valkyries'' artificial wombs working.
So far he never considered confirming it for himself, but knowing what the future holds for them, dark thoughts began to arise from the depths of his mind.
Chapter 347: Failure to cooperate.
Whether it''s the details of the peace treaty, the new world order, or the confirmation that he can create Valkyries, Sam has already given the reporters enough information to keep them busy for months toe. s, the press conference was far from over, and one of the main topics has yet to be discussed.
Throughout the whole thing, the six Generals kept their silence, the importance of their presence dismissed. The only one who could answer the public''s question was the new Head General Sam Sanderson, and with each passing minute, it seemed more and more like he was the one in charge with the others being nothing but extras.
Nathaniel Carter was taking it surprisingly well, however. He even had a hard time keeping his expression neutral, the urge tough weakening his resolve.
''Is he trying to make things easier for me?''
Each answer the Doctor gave was like gallons of fuel being poured into a field. No matter what kind of crops he would grow on it, it would only take a single matchstick to send the entire thing into mes.
The world might celebrate him for being the hero who ended the war, but when the party ends and the people sober up, they will see him for who he truly is, with the signs being clear from the beginning.
"About the video released on the Resistance website the previous afternoon." After a long wait, it was finally George Schrader''s turn to ask some questions. "We would like to hear more details about the creature referred to as a Primordial, as well as the Awakening phenomena that is triggered by its arrival."
The conference hall was silent for a few seconds before the Head General spoke.
"If possible, I would like you to be more specific with your question. The video contains all the information the public needs in order to make a well-informed decision. I don''t believe we have missed out on anything."
The same reporter stood up again.
"First of all, is it true that humans can obtain the same powers as the Nephilim and the Valkyries?"
A curt answer followed right after.
"Indeed. It has been confirmed." Pausing for a moment, Sam then added. "Though to be more specific, when someone Awakens, they gain the ability to learn and use the same powers. It would still take years of studying and training to reach the same levels as our otherworldly allies."
Instantly obtaining powers that could destroy worlds is nothing more than wishful thinking. It would still take talent and years of hard work to reach a level where one could stand side by side with Freyja''s Children.
"Is it safe?" George asked next.
"I believe we have been clear about this." Sam sighed. "Anyone under the age of fifteen is safe, whether they Awaken or not. Those above the age of fifteen do not Awaken. Instead, they are at risk of contracting Madness, subsequently losing their minds and humanity."
"In the case of someone contracting this Madness, is there any cure for it?"
"None."
This time the answer came with a distinct pressure from the Head General. Looking at him, the reporters knew the topic wasn''t something he enjoyed. George suffered the most, finding himself in a position where he might gain the ire of the strongest man on earth right now. Still, he couldn''t cower and y it save.
Even if his news agency always yed along with the Resistance''s whims, this press conference is fated to go down in history and he was adamant on leaving his mark on it.
"Then¡ how do you n on handling the cases where people contract this¡ disease?"
"We have already made preparations to ensure people''s safety during the Primordial''s visit. As long as you follow our instructions, you''ll be safe from the infection." Pausing for a moment, Sam then continued. "However, we understand that not everyone is ready toply with our procedures, whether it is because of mistrust or foolish ignorance. The chaos caused by Madness must not be underestimated.
That is why, starting from 12:00 tonight, a new set of regtions will be in effect. The details will be delivered to the public through various means, and a special emergency evacuation notice will be issued to mobile devices when the timees."
"And what do those regtions entail?" The reporter asked as if anticipating that reply.
"Failure to cooperate will be considered as treason of the highest order and thus punished ordingly. Those who choose to ignore the evacuation order will face one of two sentences: the first is in the case of surviving the Primordial''s visit without contracting Madness. Those who maintain their sanity after the crisese to pass will spend a minimum of twenty years in prison.
The second sentence will be applied to those who end up contracting the disease. As they pose unimaginable danger to themselves and everyone around them, the Resistance will spare no effort in subduing them, which includes the use of lethal force if necessary.
If the subject is restrained before causing damage or loss of human life, they will be put in cryogenic sleep for an indefinite amount of time until we find a way to bring them back."
The crowd was suspiciously silent as Sam finished his exnations. As if in a daze, the reporters stared at him with ghastly eyes, not sure if they heard what he said.
Eventually, they came back to their senses one by one. Though the regtions were nothing short of draconian, seeing that disobedience might lead to another tragedy everyone decided to keep their opinion to themselves. Logically speaking, anyone who willingly chooses to not follow the evacuation order can be considered to be acting with malicious intent.
Whether they lose their humanity to the disease or not, they should be punished for putting themselves and others in harm''s way.
"What about those who Awakened?" Though his turn should''ve run out, George decided to take the risk and ask one more question. "As they have the ability to gain such formidable powers, are they expected to fight in future wars as well?"
As if the contained anger he showed before was never there, the new Head General smiled at the reporter, the clearance he gave his next answer with shocking the entire hall.
"Of course. It is only natural that those with the ability to fight will be tasked to protect their world." Before anyone could process his words, Sam continued. "Obviously, we aren''t going to send children to war. Until they are of the appropriate age, the Awakened will be receiving the necessary education and training to make use of their newfound abilities. But don''t be mistaken.
The duty of defending this world falls on all of us, whether we are Valkyries, Awakened, or Regr humans. That''s why I intend to invest in talented individuals and future generations as much as possible. The age of limited resources is a thing of the past. With the multiverse open to us, everyone will get a chance to join the race, and sess will depend on your efforts and nothing more."
Chapter 348: Thats not fair.
"Haaa¡ That was exhausting¡"
Back to his hotel suite, Sam plopped down on one of the sofas after passing his coat to Ichigo.
"Good work today, Doctor." Nine said with her usual smile, bringing him a ss of iced water and a towel. "You were truly amazing. The world will surely understand your true brilliance now."
"I don''t know about that." He nced around but couldn''t see Elina anywhere. "Maybe I''m moving a little too fast after all."
Nino teleported to the spot beside him.
"It would be more urate to say we were always short on time." She said. "Things will move fast whether we like it or not."
"I guess you have a point."
cing his left arm on her shoulder, Sam pulled the Japanese doll into his embrace. She had offered to give him a list of all the questions that might be thrown his way, but he refused to the very end, stating that he should face the people head-on.
The truth is, he didn''t need future sight to know how the press conference would go. Most of the questions asked were easy to predict, and he made sure to practice answering them beforehand. Still, the whole event was stressful, to say the least.
It was much worse than the party from the previous day, and though he kept a tight grip on his emotions the whole time, it still felt like he would copse from stress at any time.
"A part of me wishes we could get this done with a little faster. I want to have some fun already."
More time for preparation would surely lead to better results. Unfortunately, it was one of the many resources they didn''t have much of.
"Now now, you should be a little more patient." Nino giggled a little. "We can have all the fun you want once we get home."
Sam could only smile as he looked down at his ultra cute fiance, but then he felt a pair of hands grab his face before turning his head around. It was Miku, and the look on her face seemed quite serious. Without saying anything, she ced her lips on his, shocking everyone around them.
When they finally separated, Sam felt a little confused. Before he could ask for the reason, though, his face was once again grabbed and turned to the other side. Nino kissed him this time and his confusion only grew.
"What''s wrong, you two?"
The obvious question was something he asked out of reflex, and as he did, he noticed Nine in the corner of his eye. Though she wore the same smile as before, for some reason Sam could tell that she was burning with jealousy right now.
"Doctor was so stunning back there." The petite blonde rested her head on his chest. "Watching the conference, I knew I chose the right person to fall in love with."
"Indeed." Nino did the same. "Doctor is the only man who deserves to have my heart. It''s no wonder I never found any man interesting before."
"You two, didn''t you hear Doctor say he is exhausted?" annoyed by their inappropriate behavior, Venti walked over and started reprimanding them. "You shouldn''t bother him while he''s trying to get some rest."
"You just want a kiss as well, don''t you?"
Sitta appearing behind her scared the green haired Valkyrie quite a bit. She was about to protest, but her usuallyzy friend ignored her and stepped forward.
"W-w-wha-!!! I never-"
Ignoring her stammering, the ginger walked over to Sam.
"I already knew you were so cool, but you surpassed my expectations," she said, taking a seat on hisp. "Now I want to be yours even more."
Sitta''s voice had a much more seductive tone. Coupled with her well endowed body, she easily overwhelmed Nino and Miku, drastically increasing the heat in just a few seconds. Before Sam could say anything, she went for the attack and kissed him as well, shocking everyone in the room.
The third kiss was much more erotic, with the ginger Valkyrie taking the initiative by using her tongue. The others could only watch as she made out with the Doctor, each one wishing she was in that position.
"Alright, that''s enough." Sam said after a while, pushing Sitta away. "Any more than this and I won''t be able to hold back."
"Maybe you shouldn''t." Leaning against him, the ginger pressed her ample bosom against his chest. "You have been working too hardtely. Maybe you should take a break?"
She looked into his eyes, her smile inviting him to have some action. Sam could already feel his dragon rising, but the res he got from the cuties on both of his sides told him to restrain himself.
"I will take a break when we get home." He said, moving to indicate that he was about to stand up. "Our work here doesn''t end until then."
"I see. Then, how about we discuss the suspicious individuals I caught earlier today?"
The mood in the room suddenly changed.
"Suspicious individuals?"
"You know of my ability, right?" Sitta''s smile deepened as she ced a hand on Sam''s shoulder and pushed him down. "Nana instructed me to use it when we arrived here. At first I believed such a thing was unnecessary, but then a group of uninvited guests arrived during the conference. Seeing that they were armed quite a bit I assumed nothing but bad intentions was on their minds."
Sitta''s ability, "Walls Have Ears" as she calls it, allows her to perceive everything that''s happening within the barriers she creates. Obviously it isn''t as omniscient as it might sound, especially when applied on a wide range, but coupled with her skills in barrier creation it became quite the useful ability to have around.
"We intended to let the security handle them, but¡" She whispered, bringing her face closer to his. "Just in case, Triska and Nana went to take a look."
The ginger Valkyrie proceeded to kiss him again. Thankfully, she seemed to understand that the mood had changed and kept it short. Sam already had an idea who the intruders were. Nino never mentioned anything about them so their influence on the timeline should be negligible, but after what happened with Selene he didn''t want to let his guard down.
"Maybe I should go and check¡"
Miku and Nino looked quite disappointed as they moved aside. Ichigo approached him with his coat in hand, but before he could grab it Sam felt his right arm being pulled back.
Before he could wonder who it was, Five jumped into his embrace and locked lips with him.
"Oh my~"
The Valkyries gasped in unison, the actions of their ponytailed friend taking them by surprise. Sam was the most shocked, the suddenness of her actions breaking the restraints he ced on his emotions just a few seconds ago.
"I¡ I''m sorry¡" she said after separating, her face flushed red. "I¡ I couldn''t hold back¡"
Seeing her adorable expression, Sam couldn''t help but kiss her once more. It had been quite some time since he gave her special attention so it only made sense that she would start acting like this.
"That''s not fair." Nine pouted. "I want Doctor to kiss me as well."
After giving it some thought, Sam decided to grant the blond Valkyrie her wish. He made sure to kiss Ichigo as well, leaving her face glowing red, and though she seemed against it earlier, Venti soon gave in. Though he offered them a turn, both CS and Trenta refused, saying they weren''t interested. That got them res from the other Valkyries but the two didn''t seem to care.
Chapter 349: You sure she isnt...
[We do not have any choice. To face the threats that lurk in our path, to ensure we survive the trials that lie ahead, we must not allow division to weaken our stand.]
"Haha, they don''t get it, do they?"
Sitting in the usual corner of the old attic, Rollo watched the live stream of the press conference on his old beat-upptop. He couldn''t help butugh when some of the reporters asked stupid questions, but when the new Head General gave the obvious answer, it was still a bit shocking to hear.
"The haters will have quite a lot to work with¡"
The chat was already going wild, some of the smart ones having already caught on to what was happening and informed the others. Sadly that''s all they could do; type furiously until either their fingers or keyboards break.
A single man has surrounded himself with powerful beings from another dimension and taken control over what''s basically the world government. Looking at the faces of the other six Generals and how they kept their silence this entire time, it was clear that not a single one among them was happy about the arrangement.
Just when the apocalypse was finally reaching its end, a dictator rose to the seat of power. From the looks of it, the chaos wouldn''t be calming any time soon. That''s what the boy concluded, and knowing how many things he was right about before, he knew this time wasn''t much different.
"Can I really entrust him with the kids¡"
As he muttered that to himself, the boy heard one of the boards covering the door move.
"We''re back."
"Wee ba-
His words were cut at the sight of a small rectangle flying toward him and he moved quickly to catch it. Once it was in his hands, he realized it was a smartphone and the blood drained from his face.
"Keven!" He yelled. "Didn''t I tell you to cut it out!!?"
"Calm down." The blond boy scratched his right ear, looking quite annoyed. "Some outsiders wandered in here. They had really nice clothes so I couldn''t let it go."
"What are you saying? If the Resistance found out about this you might have a difficult time even if you Awaken!"
"You''re still going on about that?" Kevin''s frown deepened. A few secondster he heaved a sigh and shook his head. "Even if we Awaken or join the Resistance, we would still need money. It wouldn''t hurt to have more."
"Just cut it out, Rollo." Kai spoke from beside Kevin, the hood covering his head casting an unsettling shadow on his face. "You more than anyone should know things won''t be that easy."
Silence filled the old attic and the three boys continued to stare at each other. Eventually, Rollo let his shoulders drop and turned to hisptop, a resigned sigh escaping him as he began toin.
"The conference has just started, you know? I wanted to watch it live." He picked one of the cables lying around and plugged it into the smartphone, and as he took a proper look at it he started to notice some oddities. "This one seems brand new. There isn''t even a scratch on the screen."
"Yeah, we thought it was weird as well." Said Kai, Sitting nearby with his back to the nearby wall. "Well, its owner was weird as hell."
"Hmm... how so?"
Though heined before, Rollo was already engrossed in the task entrusted to him by the other boys. The world''s banking systems broke soon after the Cmities appeared, but ever since, several new institutions havee forward to fill the void.
Though all of them dealt with the only currency currently in use, Credits, their refusal to merge into a centralized entity left a lot of openings to be exploited.
''That new Head General, he''ll definitely get rid of it all right from the get go¡''
If the banks were to merge into one centralized organization, more control would be exerted over the surviving humans, allowing a single entity to monitor all financial transactions in the settlements and intercept any illegal deals.
Once they reach that point, he and his friends wouldn''t be able to continue with their little business venture, which included using stolen devices to buy different cryptocurrencies, trade them around for a while then sell them for credits.
''Might as well sell all the coins I have¡''
He was sure the market would copse in a single night as people started reaching the same conclusion as him. After all, if one couldn''t sell their crypto for Credits then their value will be worth nothing.
"Well, they were with that reporter," Kevin said. "Sara Pinkman."
Rollo''s fingers halted.
"Really?"
"Yeah, we saw her talking to ck Tiger Simon. He asked her to pay the fee for the two guests she brought."
"Hmm¡ So, what''s weird about these guests?"
"Well, the way they were dressed was fishy." The blond boy answered. "They had their hoods on the entire time, and they wore masks and shades that covered their faces. It was as if they were trying to hide their identities, though it made them stand out even more."
"Their clothes were brand new." Said Kai, his eyes on the shabby ceiling. "They seem to be eating well, too. I bet they''re some rich hoes from the Center."
''Sara Pinkman, two guests, the conference¡'' As his hands went back to working the keyboard, Rollo felt his throat go dry. ''I have a really bad feeling about this¡''
"Why would some rich girlse all the way here?" He asked.
"Who know?" Keven shrugged his shoulders. "What matters is that she must have a fat wallet. We should buy some new clothes for Runa and the others. Can''t let them go to the hall as is."
The conversation died down as their eldest focused on breaking the stolen phone''s security. It was clear that he was having a difficult time as he stopped paying attention to everything around them, even forgetting about the live stream he was watching from the corner of his eye.
The process was taking longer than usual and the two boys were starting to get worried. Eventually, Rollo stopped mashing the keys on his beat-upptop and quickly grabbed the phone which had been unlocked.
Sighing in relief, the two boys approached him from behind eager to see how many Credits the rich girl carried on her, but what they saw was their friend entering a messaging app instead of the digital wallet.
Though they wanted toin, their curiosity prompted them to watch in silence. Their confusion grew more and more as they read the messages, and just as they were about to ask, Rollo turned to them with a pale face.
"Say, Kevin¡" He spoke with a shivering smile. "That girl you ran into, are you sure she isn''t a Valkyrie?"
Chapter 350: Its just a hunch.
Wind whistled through the broken window. Thest rays of light flickered as the sun disappeared behind the horizon. The room was messy, to say the least. Cracked walls, fallen debris, holes in the floor. The furniture was nothing but charred remains.
It was a room just like any other, though the dust covering everything and the cobweb decorating the corners showed how many years had passed since anyone stepped inside.
In the corner of such a room, behind the remains of a broken desk, a little girl no older than ten sat hugging her knees. She wanted nothing more than to cry but her tears had long since dried. Now all she could do was sit and wait, and the longer she did, the more painful it got.
[There you are!]
Though she heard the voice, the little girl didn''t move.
[Everyone has been worried about you, you know. You''re too good at this game.]
The man waited by the entrance, but no reply came. After a few seconds he heaved a sigh and dismissed his helmet.
"You know you aren''t supposed toe here." The man said.
"..."
"This ce is dangerous. What would you do if something fell on you? No one will be around to help you."
"..."
With no repliesing, the man couldn''t help but frown.
"Aa-aah! I''m starting to get angry! My Super Rex isn''t meant for bad girls. Maybe I should pick someone else to teach how to ride it!"
A weak bang followed, and a momentter the little girl peeked her head.
"But you promised¡" She said, tears welling up in her eyes.
"And you promised not toe here." The man crossed his arms, pretending to frown even more. "What did we say about sneaking to the old city?"
"I¡" The little girl opened her mouth to say something but then lowered her head. "I Just¡ I wanted toe home¡"
The man stared at her for a while then heaved a sigh.
"Come, everyone is waiting."
Not saying anything, the girl slowly walked over. She stood in front of the man for a few seconds then, with her head still lowered, she raised her arms up toward him as if asking for something. Understanding what the gesture meant, the man leaned down and picked her up.
"I''m sorry." The girl said after they left the crumbling house.
"It''s okay." The man replied, walking with her head resting on his shoulder. "We will rebuild everything soon, and you cane whenever you want after that."
He tried to be careful with each step, navigating his way through the rubble-ridden street, avoiding the broken fragments of what was once a lively neighborhood.
"... I wish Papa and mama were here¡"
"... Me too¡" The man replied, feeling the little girl tighten her grip around his neck. "Me too."
~[ ]~
"AAAAAH!!!"
A loud cry snapped Ingrid out of her daze. Turning to its source, she saw her Valkyrie friend rummaging through the surroundings with a panicked look.
"Hm? What''s wrong?" Sara asked.
"IT''S GONE!!!" Juni replied, her face pale. "THE PHONE IS GONE!!!"
The Nephilim could only blink repeatedly, failing toprehend what was happening. They were still at the reporter''s house watching the press conference. Though she only spaced out, Juni dozed offpletely, the slow pace and the seriousness of the show being too much for her. Waking up, the Valkyrie tried to check for time but couldn''t find her phone, and that led to her panicking.
''Ah, this might be a pain¡''
Noticing Sara''s gaze on her, Ingrid sighed and began checking her pockets. She had borrowed the device many times to take photos and to pay for things so it would''ve made sense for it to be in her possession, but she still remembers handing it back before they reached the old city.
"Ah¡" Her eyes widened a little. She remembered the two boys who had run past them earlier and realized what happened. "I think¡ I think it got stolen."
Juni didn''t seem to understand at first, but then her face went several shades paler than before.
"No¡ It can''t be¡" She cradled her head and rolled into a ball. "Nana is going to kill me!!!"
Ingrid could only sigh. She was already in trouble, having sneaked out without permission, and now she was facing another problem. Tove wasn''t going to let her go easily.
"Those kids." She turned to the reporter with a question. "Do you know who they are?"
Sara remained silent for a while then shook her head.
"I have seen them around before, but¡"
"Nana is going to kill me¡" Juni murmured. "Nana is going to kill me¡"
Heaving another sigh, the Nephilim tried thinking things through once more.
"A blond boy, around fourteen. The other one had shaved hair and wore a hood over it. I''m guessing they''re orphans."
Thestment caused the reporter to raise an eyebrow.
"What made you think that?"
There was silence for a few seconds, only Juni''s ravings could be heard. Ingrid then tilted her head seemingly confused.
"I¡ don''t know? It''s just a hunch, I guess¡"
She didn''t know why but for some reason it felt like the situation was familiar.
''No, it''s not that¡''
The two boys, it felt like she had a grasp on their intentions. Two strangers wandered into the poor side of the city, their clothes making it clear they had it good. Being in thepany of a prominent figure from the neighborhood discouraged the thugs from doing anything, but the kids feared nothing, not wanting to let go of such an opportunity.
The phone they stole had high grade military security so it was useless in the hands of kids, which is why they would either try to sell it to some old electronics shop or have someone hack it with half the credits in its digital wallet as the payment.
The Nephilim was leaning toward the second option. Seeing how good they were, she guessed the two boys had been doing this for quite some time, meaning they knew where to take the phone to get its locks broken.
As she was deep in thought, runes began to form above Ingrid''s head. Juni suddenly stood up, but before she could say anything her friend teleported and gave her a good smack on the head. Sara watched the sequence with her mouth agape.
"Calm down, idiot. We will get it back soon enough." Turning her sights to the reporter, she spoke in a slightly annoyed tone. "Call your boyfriend, he should know how to find them."
Sara was stunned for a moment, but then furrowed her brows as she grabbed her phone.
"Ex." She said, sounding quite annoyed. "He is my ex!"
Chapter 351: Some rumors.
By the time the press conference started, most people were already glued to their screens. Some chose to watch it at home, others gathered in bars and shops. It was one of the most important events in human history, even before the video from the previous night was released.
"This doesn''t sound good¡" Simon clicked his tongue, red at the projection for a few more seconds then brought the half-empty beer bottle to his mouth.
He was sitting at the counter, away from the rest of his followers who gathered around a projector casting arge image on the empty white wall. Though they mighte across as mindless thugs, they all held their breaths, not making a sound as the new Head General spoke.
Whether they caught the real meaning behind his words was a mystery, but at the very least they were putting in the effort to understand.
"You think?"
The question drew his attention to the bartender standing a couple of meters away. He was a tall ck man whose muscles couldn''t be contained within a shirt. Despite his hulking appearance, he was handling a small ss cup with the utmost elegance, continuously polishing it as if he were posing for a scene in some old movie.
Simon nced at the man then sighed.
"He isn''t even hiding it." He said. "The Resistance bastards were up to no good from the star, sure, but never did I think there will be someone who can top them."
"Pessimistic today, aren''t we?" The bartender sighed. "At least try to see the bright side of this."
"There is no bright side to this, Antony. We are heading straight for one of those dystopian futures from the old movies."
The brown man took another swig and almost mmed the bottle only to stop a couple of inches over the counter. He wasn''t the kind who would let alcohol fuel his anger.
The bartender stopped his hands, his eyes wandering down in thoughts. The speakers carried the Head General''s voice across the mostly empty nightclub, and the more he spoke the gloomier the atmosphere got.
"I¡ Patricia and I have decided¡" Those few words caused Simon to raise an eyebrow, his eyes showing some interest in the topic. "We are going to let Callie try it out."
It was the expected response so the brown man didn''t look too surprised. As he took another swig of his beer, his mind went through all the possible benefits that coulde from a child Awakening. Neither Antony nor his wife were the kind to take advantage of such a situation for their own gains. Their daughter, Callie, was three years old.
Awakening would guarantee that she gets a future the bartender could never earn through any means, whether legal or not.
"You don''t seem too thrilled about it." Simonmented, having noticed the difficult expression on his dark skinned fried.
Antony kept his silence for a few seconds, going back to polishing the cup in his hands before speaking.
"There have been some unsettling movements as ofte." He said. "Yesterday''s ceremony was¡ like someone smoking in front of a gas pump. I hear some are trying to gather the idiots angry about the aliensing here."
Simon couldn''t help but snort.
"What are they going to do? Being annoying never did anything ten years ago. Guess they have too much time to waste."
Antony turned to the projection and sighed.
"It won''t make the big guy change his mind, but we would still have to deal with it ourselves." He sighed again, turning his eyes to the young gang leader. "Some rumors are worse than others, though."
Simon''s expression grew serious.
"Worse in what way?"
"There have been more cases of kidnappings as ofte, even before that video came out. I don''t believe everyone was as oblivious about tomorrow as we were, and as expected they''re rushing to profit from it."
"That''s¡"
Predictable was the only way to describe it. If the Resistance is trying to have aplete monopoly on the Awakened, it would raise the price for anyone with the powers who isn''t affiliated with them. Those powerful enough to know everything before it''s publicly announced must''ve taken actions to secure more power for themselves.
"The human trafficking business has been especially lively in the past few days¡" Simonmented. "I''m not looking forward to the next few years."
"We can hardly celebrate the war being over." Simon sighed.
The two turned their sights to projection once more. Not long after, the rattling sound of a phone vibrating on the polished surface of the counter drew their attention, and seeing the name it disyed, a smile formed on Antony''s face.
"What? Are the two of you back together?" He spoke in a teasing tone.
"As if." Though he sounded annoyed as replied, the slight excitement in his movements as he answered the call didn''t go over the bartender''s head. "What do you want?"
Listening silently to the voice on the other side, the brown man eventually sighed.
"I''m at Antony''s. Come over and let''s talk."
As Simon closed the phone and sighed, Antony''s eyes turned contemtive as he seemed to realize something.
"Hold on, this should be a big day for Sara, right? How in the world is she calling you in the middle of the conference?"
"Because she didn''t go." Simon moved to take another swig only to realize the bottle was empty. "I met her earlier. "Don''t know why but she seems to be stuck babysitting some rich kids."
"Babysitting? Our Sara?" Antony paused, holding a freshly opened bottle.
"That''s how it looked to me, at least." Simon shrugged. "Apparently one of the girls she brought had her phone stolen. She wants our help to bring it back."
"Interesting¡"
Taking the bottle handed to him, the brown man remained silent for a few seconds before asking.
"So? Any idea who did it?"
Antony couldn''t help but frown.
"Who do you think I am? Some kind of irvoyant?" He remained silent for a few seconds, contemting his answer before sighing. "It''s probably Kai and his friends. They have been doing this for a while, but not around here."
"... I see¡"
"They''re orphans, Simon. Go easy on them."
"Sure sure¡"
Chapter 352: The Possessive type
Just like every human on the, the Nephilim too took the time to watch the press conference. It was a good opportunity to get an insight into how their allies intended to deal with their civilians, but the longer it went on the more bored the Nephilim queen became.
"Humans, they really are something, aren''t they?" Thor asked.
"Your majesty?"
Mimir had already taken notice of the crimson queen''s bad mood. She was sitting on one of the hotel''s exquisite chairs, her legs crossed as she leaned her head against her right hand. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary; she looked exactly the way she would while sitting on her throne. Still, the frown on her face said otherwise.
"Though they understand their position, they still act with impunity. It''s as if all the suffering they underwent did little to bend their spirit.
Thor heaved a sigh and went silent.
"I have to say I disagree with that, Your Highness," Mimir replied. "I believe it is ignorance that drives their behavior. Most of them lived through an era where their leaders had to answer to the masses, even if on the surface. They still believe that if they''re loud enough those at the top will listen to them."
"... I see¡"
The Nephilim didn''t have many interactions with humans. If she were to exclude the Doctor, yesterday''s celebration would be the first time the queen got to speak with humans from this world. Despite that, Thor was able to see through their masks easily.
The worst among them were those who presented a friendly front trying to earn her favor,pared to them, she preferred those who barely held back their hostility.
In the end her already bad mood only got worse ever since. It has been like this ever since they arrived in this world, but what led to all of this originally had nothing to do with the humans of this world.
Mimir nced at the silver haired Nephilim standing in the corner and held back a sigh. Long story short, Thor got wind of Mjolnir''s romantic involvement with Sam Sanderson, and as if that wasn''t bad enough, she also learned that several Valkyries had their hold on him.
That caused the terrible illness known as love to grow all the more painful, and because of that the usually calm and collected crimson queen started directing her anger on those who hurt her,even going as far as changing her approach when it came to dealing with the humans, trying to distance her people from them.
''How am I supposed to deal with this?''
When taking everything into ount the best future they have, or the one with the least conflict, would be one where the Nephilim integrate themselves into human society. The best way to go about that is to have the leaders on both sides enter a marriage contract, but with how things have been proceeding it was starting to look impossible to achieve.
''Who knew she was the possessive type?''
Thor was still unaware of her feelings. Though telling her everything would most likely solve their problem, or at least push her in the right direction, there was no fun in doing that so Mimir was a bit hesitant. The Doctor seems to be in the knowing, and though she was sure they were on the same page, his position prevented him from making decisive moves.
''Guess the only way I can solve this is by getting them onto the same bed somehow¡''
"Doctor should be on the same level as Father, right?"
Thor''s question snapped Mimir out of her thoughts. One of the reporters had just tackled one of the topics they previously discussed and Sam was in the process of answering it.
"He is, indeed."
There was a time when the Valkyries were considered nothing more than machines and the scientist imed to have the ability to create them. In a way that wasn''t a lie as the onlyponent hecks is Freyja, the original Alice. Still, the man insisted that they add a condition to their peace deal forcing him to not create any new Nephilim as well as to ensure no one learns of the way it''s done.
In his words, it was a countermeasure against the people who would ask him to produce more Valkyries in order to counter the influx of Nephilim to their world.
"I hope things don''t end up the same as our world." Thor sighed.
"That is doubtful." Mimir shook her head. "We did not exist to deter them back then. For the time being there is nothing to worry about, but we still have to work toward a future where we don''t have to make the same mistakes again."
The humans of their world were willing to do anything to get their hands on the secret to immortality and because of that Heilung, the man they consider their father, had to fight a one man war against the entire world to protect his secret.
In a way Sam was in the same position right now, possessing the secret to ultimate power but refusing to share it with anyone. There is no doubt that countless idiots would try to get their hands on it one way or another, butpared to their old man, the Doctor has the Valkyries and Nephilim on his side from the very start.
No other faction was strong enough to pose a threat to him so it would be nothing short of stupid to try and force his hand.
"You''re right." Thor sighed again. "He also has a great fiance who can see the future. With her on his side there should be nothing to worry about."
''Ah, this isn''t good¡''
An oppressive might gushed out of the crimson haired queen, startling even Mjolnir who was standing in the corner. This has been a frequent urrence as ofte, and that only caused more people to figure out her Highness''s condition, though most kept it to themselves.
''And to think she only learned what the word meant a couple of days ago¡''
Mimir couldn''t help but shake her head at the difference of situations between the two rulers. Unlike humans, the Nephilim could be said to be a really big family instead of a state or a civilization. That spared them the usual politics and allowed them some leeway, but seeing their eldest sister lose herself to a man, they couldn''t help but fear what the future holds for them.
Just as she was about to sigh, the sound of a bell ringing brought her attention to the door.
[Room service.]
Chapter 353: White van.
Though he wanted to have control over everything, Sam had no choice but to delegate most of the work that went into the award ceremony and press conference to other people. The Valkyries were fast learners and were able to take on most of the vacant roles in the forty sixth base, but one thing they couldn''t do was manage events that involved humans.
Since said events were taking ce around the First Settlement, It was General Rosita Walsh who took care of everything. The five-star hotel they used was one of her properties and thus she handled everything from the security to the food served in the restaurants and other services.
Of course that alone wasn''t enough to make her the perpetrator. Though she wasn''t happy about his sudden rise to power, Nino''s needle revealed that the General would eventually drop any intent on antagonizing Sam and his Valkyries. In fact, the same went for five of the six Generals.
The only one who holds on to his animosity is the previous Head General, but Sam couldn''t just throw him in jail when he has yet tomit any crimes.
"Alright, open it."
After receiving the news from Sitta, Sam had her teleport him to where the intruders were being kept. The location was a secluded corner on the first floor of the underground parking lot. Nana and Triska were already there, keeping watch on arge white van.
"Head General." Nana bowed her head. "Thank you for the superb work, and I apologize for disturbing your rest."
"At ease, Nana." Sam raised his hand to alleviate her worries. "Did anything happen?"
"It is difficult to say." The silver haired Valkyrie answered, turning her eyes to the van. "This vehicle isn''t as mundane as it seems. Its walls are imprable by our eyes, and if not for Sitta''s ability I doubt anyone would''ve noticed that something was off."
The Valkyries'' eyes and ears were nothing short of being the most powerful sensors considering their size. Cloaking something from their sights wasn''t an easy task, and anyone capable of achieving such a feat was far from average.
Just to be sure, Sam performed an additional scan using his drones.
"Quite daring, those five." Said the ginger Valkyrie. "They remain calm despite knowing we got them surrounded. I''m guessing it has something to do with those strange weapons they have."
"Strange weapons?"
"They aren''t the guns humans usually use."
Sam couldn''t help but frown. The data he had just gathered revealed that the interior of the vehicle was made out of several alloys that can only be found in shells of certain Cmities. Such materials have been the mainponents in creating some of the weapons and armor the Valkyries used back in the day; it wasn''t something ordinary criminals could get their hands on.
''Are they trying to advertise it or something?''
Having such equipment narrowed down the list of suspects quite a bit. Even if their supplier didn''t rely on the factories used to process the remains of Cmities and create the equipment for Valkyries, Sam was confident that he could put together something capable of sniffing out the source in a couple of days.
"Alright, open it up."
There was no need to dy the inevitable. As he stood facing the side door, Triska walked over and grabbed the handle. He expected the van to explode at any moment, but surprisingly that didn''t happen. If the intruders were professionals who could urately assess the situation, they would''ve ended their lives by now.
Then again anyone good enough to take that step wouldn''t have involved themselves in something like this to begin with.
"You might want to take a step back, Doctor." Sitta stepped forward, summoning her halo. Though he couldn''t see it, Sam noticed that she had renewed the barrier surrounding the Van. Apparently, she learned a trick that allowed her to maintain barriers without having to rely on the required Runes. The lengths she goes to minimize her work astound him sometimes.
Triska took a deep breath. Without any more dy, she ripped the door off with a single move freeing a wave of light as if it was trapped inside.
Lasers exploded from the van only to shatter against Sitta''s invisible barrier. Sam instinctively squinted his eyes. The shing lights did nothing more than annoy him so after a couple of seconds he ordered his Valkyries to put an end to it.
With minimal effort, Sitta created small barriers around the muzzles of each gun, causing them to explode one after the other. The light show ended briskly allowing Sam and his entourage to get a good look at the infiltrators.
Sam already knew what to expect, but seeing the high-tech suits they still wore came as a surprise. Though they were a far cry from the Second Armor the Valkyries wore when deploying their more destructive weapons, the specs surpassed anything humans could''ve dreamed of ten years ago.
Not everyone was content to leave humanity''s fate to the Valkyries, and that was the case even before it was revealed that the humanoid weapons were sentient beings. While the biggest brain on Earth supposedly abandoned the idea of sending humans to battle, others worked tirelessly to give mundane humans the ability to fight against world-ending monsters.
Their efforts didn''t take them far, but they still managed to create some magnificent tools that would''ve tipped the scales in the old world.
The brokenser rifles fell to the ground moments after the intruders recognized their uselessness, but something told Sam that they weren''t about to raise the white g.
"Sitta."
"Understood."
Before they could make any other moves, ropes of light materialized around them binding their wrists and ankles together. The intruders, dressed like a bunch of Iron-man knockoffs, were instantly subdued by something akin to the most generic magic spells, leaving them no choice but to squirm as they tried to free themselves.
''Well, at least they didn''t fall¡''
Sam was impressed by their ability to stay bnced. He silently observed the four intruders waiting to see what their next move would be, but after a couple of minutes they just stopped moving and turned to stare at him. Well, he couldn''t really tell with their eyes hidden behind their helmets, but he could still feel their gaze on him.
Chapter 354: Dinner.
"Alright," Sam spoke as he directed his drones. "Let''s see those faces."
Sam was far from being an expert on cybersecurity so all he could do was initiate the hacking software Elina made once for fun. A couple of minutester it became clear that he didn''t have much to worry about. Whoever designed the high-tech suits made sure he didn''t skimp on their security, but in the end it wasn''t enough.
The intruders'' helmets folded open to reveal a set of calm faces. The drones began working their facial recognition program immediately while Sam tried to see if he recognized any of them. Turns out two of them were women, which he wasn''t expecting considering the rtively masculine design of the tech suits.
''Something is off¡''
The more he stared at the four intruders the more suspicion gnawed at his mind. Before long it became clear that the source of his difort was the lifeless gaze in their eyes. Lifeless pupils stared back at Sam, eachcking the clear glint of a living being. In that moment Sam was confident that none of them were alive despite their life signs saying otherwise.
''Brainwashing, huh¡'' He thought, unable to suppress a grimace. ''It makes sense now.''
There was no need for them to end themselves since they were already dead. In such a state, the only thing they''re capable of is executing their orders. Sam guessed that there was no point in interrogating them.
"Confiscate their equipment and throw them in a cell somewhere." As he gave the Valkyries their instruction, he felt his phone vibrating. "Make sure to restrain them well. We don''t know what they might still do."
[Head General Sanderson.] Mimir''s face appeared the moment Sam took the call.
"Did something happen, Mimir?"
[Nothing urgent.] said the green haired Nephilim. [I just wanted to inform you that we managed to capture an assassin.]
Sam stared at her incredulously.
"Pardon?"
[An armored individual showed up at our door and opened fire as soon as we opened it.] She replied, her expression unchanging. [We were able to restrain them before anyone got hurt. I suggest youe here to assess the situation.]
Sam turned his gaze to Sitta who averted hers at the same moment. As it turned out, her Walls Have Ears ability isn''t as omniscient as they thought.
''Well, this isn''t a first¡''
"I will be there in a few minutes."
Sam finished the call then stopped to reorganize his thoughts. Four intruders sneaked into the hotel''s parking lot and another made his way to the upper floors somehow. Their gear shows that they weren''t some average terrorists, and with their brains wiped it''s clear that the one behind it all had put some thought into this operation.
"You three can handle things here, right?" Sam asked.
"Yes." Nana straightened her posture and saluted. "Please rest assured. We will take care of it."
Sam spared the four intruders one final look before walking away. Sitta took his arm and summoned her halo. The next instant they were looking at the door to the Nephilim suite. Inside a small half transparent box sat a short woman dressed in ck. Her equipment wasn''t as bulky as what the other intruders wore and the design alone said that it was calibrated for speed.
"Head General."
Mimir''s voice pulled him out of his thoughts.
"So this is the assassin?"
"Indeed." Mimir sighed. "She wasn''t much of a threat but¡"
Just like the four from before, the one in front of them remained motionless the entire time. Mjolnir came over and showed them the weapon used by the intruder. Though it was the size of a hand gun, the ammunition loaded into it turned out to be radioactive, making the weapon a miniaturized nuclear bomb.
"Sitta, gather the other Valkyries and make a full sweep of the entire building." Sam instructed. "I want to make sure we didn''t miss anything."
"Understood."
Before the ginger Valkyrie went away, Zero Five and CS appeared to take her ce. Confusion slowed Sam''s thoughts. His mind failed toprehend what was happening. Who would be stupid enough to make an assassination attempt on the Nephilim queen? Did they seriously believe that the gear they had would be enough to do the job?
Or was everything just a decoy to avert their attention from something else?
''Again... something doesn''t feel right¡''
Heaving a sigh, Sam turned to the Nephilim, wanting to inquire for more details.
"You said she wasn''t much of a threat, right?"
"Yes. I made sure to ce a barrier before opening the door." Mimir answered. "Still, I''m sure nothing would''ve happened even if I didn''t do that."
"How did Her Majesty react?"
"She''s troubled by theck of security. Even if the assassin was incapable of doing any harm, the fact that she made it so far is rming."
"Right¡"
Though killing the Valkyries and Nephilim was a very difficult task, doing so wasn''t the only way tond a blow on Sam and his allies. If the assassin focused her efforts on eavesdropping and information gathering instead she might''ve got her hands on some crucial intel that would prove to be useful another time.
Sam''s drones finished scanning the assassin and recognized several materials used among them. One in particr was a miniaturized version of a stealth module used by Cold Breeze, an A ss Cmity that was famous for striking deep into human territory without triggering any of the surveince sensors.
"I guess I owe Her Majesty an apology." Sam muttered to himself.
"Then may I suggest inviting her for dinner?" Mimir pounced on the chance right away.
"Yeah, I think that-"
It took him a moment to think her words through, at which point he he turned a shocked look to the green haired Nephilim.
"A dinner?" He parroted.
"Yes, a dinner." Mimir nodded. "Did you intend on just saying sorry and be done with it?"
Of course, that wasn''t the case. Despite everything, Thor is still the leader of a very powerful group. He knew that he would have to make an official apology of sorts, a written letter for example, but he wasn''t thinking of a dinner invitation.
It clicked to him that the suggestion was another ploy to close the distance between him and the crimson queen. Mimir made it clear on several asions that she wished to bring him and Thor together, after all. Still, with how things have been going so far Sam couldn''t help but feel like the opposite was happening.
''I doubt a dinner would do much¡''
Chapter 355: Reunion. Part 01.
The assassination attempt on Thor was a disaster in the making despite its failure. It didn''t matter that the perpetrator never had any chance of harming the Nephilim queen; as their host, Sam had allowed someone with ill intent to make it so far. His negligence was unforgivable and thus he owed the otherworldly beings some kind of reparations.
Fortunately, the Crimson Queen agreed to leave that matter to another date. Sam didn''t want to think about it too much at the moment, especially when he had to ensure the reporters who had yet to leave the hotel didn''t get wind of the incident.
Mimir must''ve predicted the PR disaster that would''ve resulted because she went through the effort of cing a barrier with sound blocking properties around the assassin, isting the st from the gun she used so no one would hear about it. Her quick thinking saved them a lot of headaches.
It was a favor Sam intended to repay, or rather, he had to repay as the green haired Nephilim conveyed that she expected as much from him.
The cleanup went through without a hitch. Just like the infiltrators from the white van, the assassin was a brainwashed puppet that stopped working the moment she failed at achieving her objective. Teleportation proved useful in moving things around and in less than an hour everything went back to normal.
Some didn''t even hear about the incident until muchter, like Eleven who was busy preparing for a very important event.
"I¡ my stomach hurts¡"
The blue haired idol held her tummy and sighed. Her face was paler than usual, nervousness eating at her as she awaited the designated time.
"You know that''s not possible." AK said, looking down at her friend with arms crossed under her chest. "It''s just an illusion."
"I''m getting nervous as well." T-Two frowned, holding her stomach as she sat on the edge of her bed.
"You aren''t going so¡" AK''s voice trailed off at the end, finally giving up.
The truth is, she was as nervous as those two, if not more. She failed to understand why. After all, she wasn''t the one who had a very important meetinging up.
"Still, I can''t believe Producer agreed to meet you so soon¡" said T-Two, still grimacing from the imaginary pain.
"Yeah¡ The truth is, I was worried he wouldn''t pick up at all." Eleven replied, recounting what happened the previous day.
After her talk with the Doctor, Eleven gathered her courage and made that call. All of it went away the moment someone answered from the other side, but after the most stress inducing couple of minutes she experienced in her life, the conversation finally returned to the flow she was used to.
The two inquired about each other''s lives after which the Producer asked if what he saw in the video they made was true. Once she answered all of his questions, Eleven became nervous about his reaction only to feel relieved when he agreed to meet. That said, she never expected him to visit the next day causing her to panic.
It only made sense as she wouldn''t have much free time with the Primordial''s visit on the way, but her heart wasn''t ready and she wished she had more time to prepare.
Worst of all, her fellow idols decided to sit out of the reunion, saying that they would only get in the way.
"It''s time."
The clock hit 14:50, ten minutes before the Producer was scheduled to arrive. Eleven stood up and braced herself, checking herself in the mirror onest time before heading out.
The previous night she had asked Melissa tond her some clothes. Though her unique uniform should''ve been enough, something urged her to choose something different for her meeting with that man. In an attempt to look cuter than usual she went through a number of outfits until she settled for a light blue dress with darker frills that matched the color of her thigh highs.
Her new appearance was quite refreshing, making her look less than a Valkyrie and more like a normal girl. Or so she thought, at least. No normal girl was as beautiful as her, and everything looked like designed clothes when worn by her.
"C''mon, get going already!" AK was quick to notice her friend''s dyed actions. "You''re going to bete at this point."
"A-are you sure you don''t want toe?" Nervousness took over once more and the blue haired Valkyrie found herself fidgeting in her ce.
"We discussed this already!"
AK seemed to run out of patience, summoning her halo and teleporting. Appearing behind her blue haired friend, she started pushing her toward the doorpletely disregarding her flustered reaction.
"Wai- I''m not re-"
"I don''t care." Said the purple haired Valkyrie. "Go and get it done with already!"
With a final push Eleven was thrown out of the hotel room. The door was mmed shut behind her as if to say she couldn''te back inside, and as she stood by herself in the hallway it became clear that retreat wasn''t an option.
"I can still teleport inside, you know?" She muttered to herself, her cheeks slightly puffed.
Obviously she wasn''t about to do that. What''s the point of dying things when she was the one who asked for the meeting? Besides, who knows if she''ll get another chance if she wasted this one.
"Alright!"
Once again the blue haired idol gathered her courage and forced herself to move. She could''ve reached the meeting room in the blink of an eye with a single teleport, but instead she chose to walk there. In the end her nervousness still affected her actions, making her hesitant to meet the man she has special feelings toward.
~[ ]~
"... She''s gone¡"
AK watched as her blue haired friend marched toward her destination. Heaving a sigh, she exchanged a look with T-Two before wicked grins took over their faces.
"Elly looks so cute when nervous." Said Twenty Two. "I feel kinda jealous."
"Let''s wait a little. We don''t want to get caught before it starts."
The truth is, there was another reason why those two decided to not attend the reunion. Their friend was in love and she finally got to have a date with the man she desired. They said they didn''t want to get in the way of such an event, but truthfully, they just realized that watching it from the sidelines was bound to be much more interesting.
Would she confess her feelings and ask him to make her his Personal Valkyrie? How would the Producer react? Whenever they thought about Eleven''s affair, the two idols couldn''t stop their overflowing excitement.
Chapter 356: Reunion. Part 02.
A slight chill snapped Eleven out of her reverie, bringing her back to reality. Her eyes moved to the source, falling on the bright yellow coating of a soda can, then on the hand holding it, going up until she saw the smile that man directed at her.
"Good work today, Elly." The man said. "Superb performance as usual."
"Thank you very much." She replied, epting the drink with a smile.
Lemon has never been to her taste, but she neverined when he bought it for her. It became a sort of routine for them. Whenever they finished one of their shows, he would offer them a cold drink as they rested. A small gesture, sure, but itwas one that madehim stand out in the idol''s eyes, separating him from the rest of the humans she got the chance to interact with.
"You''ve been a bit out of it today. Is something the matter?" The man, Ryan Wilson, was quite perceptive. Theblue hairedidol wasn''t her usual self today, and though she hid it well throughout the concert, he was quick to notice her absentmindedness soon after she left the stage.
A hint of embarrassment warmed Eleven''s cheeks. Her efforts were meaningless and the producer noticed her troubled heart anyway. That said, a part of her felt happy that he did. It meant he kept his eyes on her the entire time, paying attention to her every move and expression.
As an idol, Eleven was used to thousands of eyes watching her every move, but none of them brought her the same joy as his. She enjoyed her job, sure, but nothing came close to the happiness she felt in moments like this, moments when the two of them sat backstage and shared a drink after another sessful show.
"I¡ have been thinking..." She spoke, her eyes looking down at the soda can in her hands. "It would be nice if we¡ if things remained like this¡"
A moment of silence passed, neither of them saying anything. The Cmities have been making a lot of movements recently and things didn''t seem to be going well for humanity. More and more Valkyries were destroyed in the war, but many victories were achieved, resulting in an increase of morals and a joyful atmosphere. As an idol, Eleven''s job was to cheer the humans and drive away despair.
However in times like these her shows became more of a celebration; a festival to spread the joy of another step taken toward an evesting peace.
"The best has yet toe, Elly." A faint popping sound came from the can in Ryan''s hand. "Once the Cmities are gone, the world will be free to enjoy your songs in peace."
The smile disappeared from Eleven''s face, her silencesting longer than it should. After a while, she popped the soda can open and sipped from its contents. The sour taste was a bit prickly but quite refreshing, and as always, it helped move her thoughts along stopping her from lingering on them longer than usual.
"Once the Cmities are gone, will there be a reason for us to exist?"
Her question took the producer by surprise, freezing him as he held the can to his mouth.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, even if we work as idols, in theendwe are still Valkyries." Heaving a sigh, Eleven allowed her thoughts to wander once more. "Valkyries are created to fight Cmities, right? That means, once the Cmities are defeated, there would be no reason for us to exist anymore."
She didn''t know when it started, but at somepointthose thoughts began to appear in Eleven''s mind. Valkyries are weapons made to fight the battles humans couldn''t fight on their own, but once those battles are a thing of the past, would there be a need for Valkyries?
Her kinddidn''t even have the ability tochoose; the humans decided everything for them. Even if she wanted nothing more than to keep singing for the rest of her life, if the humans in charge decided that she must leave for the battlefield, she could only pick up a weapon and join the fight.
"I don''t believe that''s true."
Her thoughts were halted by the man''s unexpected response.
"... Pardon?"
Ryan looked up for a moment, sipping from his drink before offering a response.
"I don''t think you are weapons."
Eleven blinked a few times, her confusion growing further.
"Weapons don''t talk." Sensing her confusion, the Producer went on. "They don''t sing, and they don''t worry about their future. And one thing for sure, they don''t drink lemon soda."
Thest couple of words prompted the idol to look at the can in her hands.
"No matter what the people at the top say, you are yourownperson and you decide what to do with your life." Donning his usual smile, the Producer asked her a very important question. "You work as an idol because you love it, not because you''re told to, right?"
As she looked up at him with wide eyes, Eleven felt that something was changing deep inside her. Valkyries were created to fight, but that was never the case for her. She wanted to sing, she wanted to dance. She wanted to stand on the stage and spread joy all over the world. The realization pulled on her shackles, and one by one the chains began to snap.
"You want to continue being an idol even after the fighting ends, right?" bending down a little, Ryan bumped his can against Eleven''s. "Don''t worry, as your producer, I will do everything in my power to ensure the show goes on as long as you want."
~[ ]~
When she thought about it, Eleven realized that her feelings for that man blossomed back then. It was also the moment she broke free from Odin''s restraints, regaining her free will and determination to decide herownfate.
Still, another feeling came forth with that change. Fear was a powerful emotion and it held a strong grip on the idol''s mind. She feared a future she had no say in, but she also feared that the present would be taken away from her. Because of that, she did her best to lock her feelings deep inside.
Not anymore, though. A lot has changed, and thanks to the Doctor she was now free to say what she always wanted to say.
As she stood at the door to the meeting room, Eleven held a hand to her chest feeling the warmth growing inside it by the second. The nervousness that troubled her was gone and excitement took its ce. After months of separation, she was finally about to reunite with the man who freed her emotions.
The door slowly opened and the idol walked inside. Her eyes immediately fell on thedark hairedman. He looked no different from how she remembered him, but something told her that he was a changed man.
"Ah, Eleven!" He said, his smile more brilliant than usual. "You don''t know how happy I am to see you again."
The idol was frozen, still unable toprehend. She silently watched as he approached her, but then her lips curved up into a smile, an unintended reflex she couldn''t intentionally stop.
"It has been so long, Producer." She said in an even tone. "I hope you''ve been doing well."
"Better than ever!" Ryan replied, happiness radiating from him. "A lot happened since west talked. I tried to find a way to contact you, but things have been chaotic after the HQ fell."
The conversation was a bit off. The two of them talked the day before so they knew how the other was doing. Still, they talked as if that conversation didn''t happen, and worst of all, it seemed to flow naturally with neither of them showing signs of recognizing the weirdness.
Before it could go on any longer, the man halted his words and turned around. Someone was standing behind him, tugging on his sleeve to draw his attention.
"Ah! Right, let me introduce you."
When he shifted his gaze to her, Eleven felt that something about it changed. His smile was different as well. It felt warmer and more intimate, unlike the one from her memories.
"Elly, this is my wife Natasha." He said. "She has been looking forward to meeting you ever since we got together. Sometimes I feel like she married me just so shecou-"
An elbow jab silenced him before he could go on, but that didn''treallymatter as his voice slowly faded away, failing to reach Eleven. When she entered the room her eyes only caught the Producer, but something felt different about him, as if he was another man entirely.
She failed to see the source of that feeling, or rather, her mind refused to see it, not until the man himself forced her to acknowledge it.
It was a woman. A human woman. She was no Valkyrie andcked the perfect proportions of one, her face might be considered beautiful whenpared to humans, but it was far from the perfection that was a standard among Freyja''s Children. Despite her weaker charm, when standing beside Rayan, the human woman appeared more beautiful than any Valkyrie or Nephilim.
The reason was very simple, and she currently had her hand on it, holding it gently as if it were the most precious thing to her.
The human woman, Natasha, had a slightly swollen belly, something that warped her otherwise decent figure. That bump, however, was the center of infinite affection, and as she looked at it, theblue hairedidol felt her entire reality shatter.
Chapter 357: Reunion. Part 03.
"Elly, this is my wife Natasha."
The moment she heard those words, Eleven felt the world crumble around her. She didn''t know their true meaning, not entirely. Still, she somehow realized that it was something special.
Ryan, the Aurora''s Producer, gazed at his wife with warmth. That look was unlike anything he had shown the idol before, and the moment he turned his eyes to Natasha''s swollen belly that warmth only grew stronger.
"It is so nice to finally meet you!" Natasha said, stepping forward with a beaming smile. "I''ve followed your career since your first concert! Ever since, your songs were the only thing that kept me going!" Stopping as if she just realized something, the pregnant woman blushed. "Ah, sorry, I¡ I''m Natasha Wilson, I''m¡ I''m a really big fan of yours¡"
Seeing his wife grow embarrassed of her own actions, Ryan couldn''t help but chuckle.
"Somehow, this went exactly like I expected."
Hisment earned him a re from the embarrassed Natasha, but that only seemed to amuse him more. Seeing their interactions gave Eleven the chance to reorganize her thoughts, and though her inner turmoil was far from calming down, she somehow managed to present a somewhat normal front.
"A fan?" She asked, pping her hands together. "That''s so great to hear!"
There were no lies in the idol''s words. Disregarding her rtionship with the Producer, Eleven chose to focus on something that linked her to the woman. So far the Aurora''s never had the chance to hold the usual fan meetups. Being Valkyries prevented them from interacting directly with their fans so the only time they got to see them was during live performances.
Of course that changed recently when they started working with Melissa, but for some reason Eleven felt a difference between meeting a soldier and a normal civilian.
"It''s very nice to meet you, Natasha." Turning to the Producer, the idol furrowed her brows a little. "That said, this is the first time I''ve hearing about this. You never said anything about bringing someone, Producer. And you never mentioned having a wife before."
"Ah, sorry about that!" Ryan held his palms together and bowed deeply. "Nat wouldn''t stop nagging me about meeting you, and this sounded like the perfect chance!"
His answer earned him a smack on the head from his already embarrassed wife. Once she made her disapproval known, Natasha''s expression switched and she turned a troubled look at the Valkyrie.
"I''m sorry for showing up unannounced." She said. "My idiot of a husband said it''s okay and¡ and I''ve always dreamed of meeting you¡ I hope I''m not being a bother¡"
Though she understood that she meant no harm by it, Eleven still felt a hint of anger hearing someone call Ryan an idiot. She didn''t let it show on her face, of course, and while masking her expression she dismissed the woman''s worries with a smile.
"Not at all. It''s quite a pleasant surprise, actually. Producer never talked about his personal life so I''m quite happy to know he has someone to look after him."
It was only when she said the words that Eleven realized she knew next to nothing about the Producer. Besides work, their conversations always involved the war and what happened around the headquarters. At most they would talk about the ces they visit during concerts, but nothing seemed to involve what the man did when he was away from his job.
With the introductions done the three sat down. Ryan asked about AK and Twenty Two, getting a little gloomy when Eleven said they were busy with other things. Natasha seemed to get down as well when she heard they weren''ting, but she quickly regained her energy the next moment.
"I always knew in my heart that you were alive!" She said. "Your voice carries true emotions! There is no way it belongs to a machine!"
Natasha spoke of her favorite songs and how she always listened to them when she had the chance. The idol heard a lot about the importance of her job from the Producer and other staff, but this was the first time she got to hear it from someone who was directly affected by her.
"I¡ I lost my parents during the first invasion." Said Natasha, weakness apparent in her smile. "For a long time I didn''t know what to do with my life. I simply drifted around in refugee camps doing the bare minimum to stay alive. Back then it felt like there was no meaning in going on, but then you made your debut and everything changed for me."
The Aurora''s first song was "Fight". It recounted the atrocities inflicted on humans by the Cmities and how the survivors owed it to everyone else to pick themselves up.
Many tried and failed to lift the morals of the surviving humans, but when the Valkyries took to the stage, the dark veil of despair was lifted and the world remembered what it meant to keep going, shattering the doubts about the apocalypse being something they couldn''t surpass.
"Elly¡" When Natasha finished telling her story, Ryan inched closer to his wife, pulling her toward him before gently rubbing her swollen stomach. "I''m going to be a father, can you believe that? We are having a baby girl! I''m sure she''ll grow up to be a wonderful Valkyrie someday."
The Primordial''s visit was a once in a lifetime event, and unfortunately Ryan and Natasha''s child wasn''t going to make it in time. That said, as someone who worked so close to the Valkyries, the Producer was smart enough to know that the Resistance would find other ways to allow future generations to awaken.
"The truth is, we didn''te here just to reminisce about the past." Shifting his gaze to the blue haired Valkyrie, Ryan spoke with his usual smile. "Elly, I wouldn''t be exaggerating if I said your work is the reason we are still here. Natasha isn''t the only one; even I was saved by you and the others." Pausing for a moment, the man closed his eyes as if to suppress his tears.
When he looked up once more, Eleven couldn''t help but straighten herself. "Natasha and I have discussed this already. We want to name our daughter after you, and for that we need your blessing."
Chapter 358: You are wrong.
The infiltrators were caught before they could do any harm, not that their target could be harmed to begin with. That said, the fact that they were able to bypass the security set by the Resistance sent a very clear message.
The hotel was swept multiple times to ensure no more threats were around and the route used by the female assassin was discovered. For the timebeingit seemed like their hidden enemy had exhausted their moves, but even then Sam still found it hard to rx.
"Doctor?"
Hearing the calm voice call for him Sam snapped back to reality. He looked down to see ared eyedbeauty staring back at him, her brows arched with concern. His long silence was worrying her. Afterallit wasn''t like him to get lost in thought when they were in the nude together.
When he asked her to follow him to his room right after the investigation Zero Five tried to tamper with her expectations. The Doctor had a habit of holding off on lovemaking when he had important matters lined up. Knowing that she concluded that it was nothing more than a security measure, that conclusion was shattered upon being invited to have a bath with him.
The ponytailed Valkyrie felt a little guilty about receiving such an opportunity. The res she got from the others showed her how much envy they felt, but there was nothing they could do about it as they couldn''t argue the rule that gives the Doctor the final choice on who gets to sleep with him.
Sadly Five soon learned that her night wasn''t going to be as exciting as everyone expected. Soon after they submerged themselves in therge hot tub, she noticed that the man got lost in hisownthoughts. Even as she sat right between his legs, her hair tied over her head, her damp skin slightly flushed, Sam didn''t as much as touch her.
To make things worse, his spear was deactivated, showing that he was too distracted for her charm to work on him.
After a few long minutes of silent hesitation, Five could no longer bear it. Bringing him back to reality, she looked him in the eyes before addressing the most likely cause for his absentmindedness.
"Doctor, are you still concerned about the intruders?"
Sam was taken aback for a moment only for his expression to melt into a warm smile.
"You could say that." He replied. "A lot of things are happening at the same time. Thest thing I wanted was an attack from myownside."
If there was one thing the assassination attempt did then it would be revealing the existence of traitors among the humans. That wasn''t exactly news to them thanks to Nino''s ability to see the future, but they still got caught off guard due to Fate''s tendency to screw with everyone who peeks at its Tapestry.
"Humans are... confusing¡" Five turned her eyes forward and hugged her knees. "I can''t believe they''re doing this now¡"
With a threat that far exceeds that of the Cmities on its way, it made no sense for anyone to try and sow discord among humans and their newest allies.In fact,having learned of the vast multiverse and the powers that would do everything to crush them, it was the pinnacle of stupidity to get on the bad side of the only ally they have at the moment.
"Humans are stupid." Sam shrugged. "They don''t always follow logic, even if they agree with it."
"Is¡ that so¡"
The confusion Five felt made way for anger. It wasn''t like her to harbor such emotions when she didn''t have a face to direct them at, but that didn''t stop her from being infuriated by their enemy''s behavior.
The more threats they have to deal with the less free time the Doctor has. It had been months since theyst made love, and though she could control herself far better whenpared to Nine, Five hated that she had to wait so long to feel the passion of her beloved.
She knew the Doctor felt the same. He was a man of endless lust and keeping it locked must be causing him quite a bit of stress. It was her job as his Personal Valkyrie to take care of his needs. Seeing how much he was struggling with their current conundrum, her only wish was to help him forget everything and rx.
As the silence lingered once again, the Valkyrie finally made her decision. She abruptly stood up, her plump behind drawing the man back to reality once more. Sam didn''t know how to react when Five grabbed his arm and dragged him out of the water. His first thought was that they had been submerged for far too long, but what the Valkyrie did next told him it was entirely different.
"Um¡ Five, now isn''t the timefor-"
"You are wrong, Doctor¡" she looked up at him, her gaze showing utmost seriousness. "There is no better time to do this."
She was already on her knees, her face right in front of his crotch. Her intentions became clear when her gaze moved to his tool, and without her having to touch it the limp rod instantly became fully erect.
Before he could say anything else, Five reached for the meat pir and held it firmly in her hand. Sam knew he lost his chance to escape, and as he felt his whole body shudder from her grasp, his will to resist was shattered and he gave in to the temptation.
"I can tell we are going to be quite busy from now on." Five moved her hand as she spoke, slowly stroking the hardened penis. "I know you prefer to finish all your work before indulging yourself, Doctor, but I believe it''s better to have a change of paceeverynow and then."
Her excitement increased the longer she stared at the thing in her hand. Though she wanted nothing more than to have it prate her most sensitive ce, right now she understood that her task was to please the man she loves and help him rx.
Unable to wait anymore, Five closed her eyes and brought the tool to her lips.
Chapter 359: A tough battle.
With the ability to control hisemotionsit wasn''t that difficult to turn off the horny whenever he wanted, allowing him to focus for longperiods of time. Adding to thatthenight he spent with Ichigo, then the wild sex he had with Nine the next day, Sam was prepared to go for months without touching his Valkyries.
Even when he invited Zero Five to bathe with him, he only intended to have a quickie beforegoing backto the stress of his current ordeals. Unfortunately, his thoughts kept wandering to the infiltrators and the assassination attempt on Thor, leaving him incapable of setting the right mood.
Five wasn''t taking it, though. It washerchance to enjoy the Doctor''spanyandso, shewas going todo whatever it took to ignite his mes. The ponytailed Valkyrie didn''t have much to worry about, though, as the man lost the will to resist the instant she grasped her destiny.
When Five kissed the tip of his erect penis, an enormous wave of pleasure washed over Sam, clearing his mind of all unnecessary thoughts. A wet tongue slowly brushed against his [ ]causinganother wave, and another kiss caused his head to shoot up.
Sam was far from a virgin as he had his fair share of women, both humans and Valkyries. Despite that, he still has to builda resistanceeversince he got his new body. Thanks to Elina enhancing his tool, both in size and sensitivity, any sexual act felt like the first time.
The Valkyries were getting better as well.Compared to the first time she gave him oral service, Five''s skills improved quite a bit.She held his cock in ce and ran her tongue along his shaft, gently squeezing the head while making her way to the base. Her saliva traced a line as she moved up and down, going over every side until theentiremeat pir glistened.
Sam had to practice restraint the entire time. Five''s meticulous licking brought him to the doors of a climax, but the best had yet to arrive. The Valkyrie didn''t allow him a moment to catch his breath. With hunger in hereyesshe gobbled the hard wood, pushing itall the wayinto her throat in one swift moveparalyzingthe naked man.
Sam reflexively reached down and grabbed her head. His muscles strained as he did his best to withstand the shock cursing through his body, trying not to shame himself by pulling out. Not thathecould, anyway. Five wasn''t letting go of the thick sausage, and she wrapped her arms around his legs to ensure he couldn''t run.
A tough battle followed, ending with Sam keeping his dignity and not ejacting from a simple deepthroat. His body soon began to rxandhe straightened againonlyto go stiffonce morewhen Five went into action.
She moved back, taking most of the rod out of her mouth so she could swallow her spit,then, just like before, she gobbled the entire thing once morecausinganother violent shock to assault Sam''s nervous system.
"Guhh!!!"
The Valkyrie didn''t give him a second to adjust this time and began bobbing her head back and forth, flooding Sam''s senses with wave after wave of pleasure. She worked her tongue on the memberslidingin and out of her mouth, tilting her headeverynow and thencausingher cheeks to bulge a little. The meat pir seemed to grow in her mouth, heating up like a volcano that was about to erupt.
Sensing a slight tremor across his length, the Valkyrie swallowed the entire rod once morepreparingto receive the results of her hard work. The dam broke the next momentanda flood of white cum shot out directly into Five''s throat.
She closed her eyes and did her best to swallow everything he released, but no matter how many loads she gulped downmorecame inleadingto the thick white fluid leaking out of her mouth, dripping onto her chest and thighs.
Sam was frozen, his mindhaving gonenk from the intense oral service. What brought him back to the real world was Fivewhowaited until he was done ejacting before taking out his rod and starting the cleaning process.
"Ah¡ F-Five¡ That''s¡"
The switch was in his handssohe could always turn his tool off wheneverhe wanted. With just a simplethoughthe could retract his spear andput an end toit all, but even when he knew they didn''t have much time to spare, Sam couldn''t bring himself to stop. After all, even if hestillretained his old body, unloading one time would never be enough to cause his stinger to lose its sharpness.
The ponytailed Valkyrie seemed to understand that as well. Ignoring his groans and broken words, she went ahead and started the second roundlickingthe erect rod with as much enthusiasm as before. When she took a moment to nce up at him, Sam saw that the pink hearts appeared in her irises, showing that shereacheda level of arousal that matched his.
''Fuck¡'' Sam gritted his teeth. ''Why did they have to act out now?''
His original n was to wait until theywere donewiththe Ritual before letting loose. It was a sound ninhis opinion, though it was doubtful that things would remain calm enough for him to enjoy himself. He was supposed to have Venti next, then Sitta.
He wanted to ravage Ichigo once more and have a threesome with Nino and her twin sister.There were many Valkyries hewanted to feast on, and even more if he were to include the Nephilim.But time wasn''t something he had plenty of and he couldn''t afford to dy thingsjust sohe could indulge his carnal desires.
As he slowly approached his second climax, Sam looked down at his Personal Valkyrie. Seeing her service him dutifully caused his heart to falter, and onceagainhe wished he couldjusttoss everything aside and enjoy the fruits of hisbor a little sooner.
''I¡''
Before he could finish the thought, his mind shedandhis gun fired once again.
Chapter 360: Too delicious to resist.
Zero Five felt Sam''s cock rx inside her mouth, showing that it was done firing thest shot of his second load. She slowly pulled back making sure her lips cling tightly to the shaft, cleaning every drop of the cloudy white liquid while ejecting the exhausted rod.
A few licks here and there finished the job, and when she saw that the member returned to its normal, deted state, a small smile formed on her face. Her oral service was enough to satisfy the Doctor''s hunger, even if temporarily.
As his PersonalValkyrieshe knew how much it usually takes to lower his spear. Seeing that only two rounds did the job,the Valkyriecouldn''t help feeling prideful of her achievement.
"Doctor." She took her eyes off the inactive tool and gazed up at her beloved. "I hope that helped you relieve some stress."
Sam seemed to snap out of his daze at that moment. He looked down, his eyes a little wide. His mind felt awfully clear, making all his worries seem trivial. The fog was cleared and everything began to fall into ce.
"Ah, yes." His expression rxed a little, the corners of his mouth curling up. "Thank you, Five. That feltreallygood."
"I''m d."
The situation would''ve been quite wholesome if not for the white sticky substance dripping from Five''s chin and onto her chest and thighs. Looking at her from above, Sam couldn''t help but think of how erotic she looked. Thinking that her job was done, Five walked to the shower and washed away the sticky substance.
She felt a bit disappointed that their intimacy wouldn''tst longer, but there was nothing she could do about it. She was much better at controlling herself, unlike a certain blond Valkyrie.
That said, the ponytailed Valkyrie failed to take one thing into ount.
"Hm?"
Noticing a shadow envelop her Five turned around to check only to get pushed onto the wall, and before she could question her situation she felt a pair of hands grab her waist, pulling it back and making her bend.
"D-Doctor?"
"Tell me,Five." Sam spoke, ignoring her confused look. "Do you know why I try to avoid doing such things with you when I have work lined up?"
The Valkyrie was about to attempt to look for an answer, but then her thoughts halted and her mind went nk.
"It''s because you''re too delicious to resist."
Five couldn''t help arching her back as she felt a long and thick object invade her insides. It happened in an instant. One swift thrust was all it took to spread her walls open, stretching her love tunnel and making it envelop the massive cock.
As he relished the familiar sensation of Five''ssoul suckingpussy, a crack spread across Sam''s face turning into an unhinged grin. This was it. This was what he was missing.
"Doc- ahh!!!"
Another thrust silenced the Valkyrie, and another told her there was no going back. Before she knew it, Sam began pumping his hips. Restraint was tossed aside in favor of fast rhythmic movements, like the pistons of an engine cranked to its highest settings.
Therge bath was filled with fast pping sounds, made worse by the water showering the two. Five''s bouncy rear buns wiggled with each m making for a truly beautiful sight, one that fueled Sam''s arousal driving him to increase his pace.
Five looked back at him, the glowing pink hearts having returned to her eyes.
"Ahhn~?¡ah~?¡hah~?¡haahh~?¡ahh~?¡"
Fighting the Cmities, stopping the Nephilim. Defeating the Olympians, sealing the Primordials. Reaching Akasha, stopping Loki, bringing Alice home. When he thought about it, Sam couldn''t help but question why he was going through all of that.
Of course, Sam knew the reason. He knew it all along.
After an entire year of holding back,dy luck smiled upon him and he gained ess to the three Valkyries that threatened to free his sealed lust. Soon after more Valkyries fell into his hands, and even more followed. He could choose to sleep with a different Valkyrie every day and it would be months before he goes through the list, but what did he choose instead?
"Ah~?¡ahh~?¡hahh~?¡nhahh~?¡ahn~?¡"
Sam wanted nothing more than to enjoy his Valkyries, but time was a scarce resource. The problem was that they were simply too good. The instant he plugs his pole into their wonder hole, an irresistible force takes over him, driving him into a lustful frenzy that wasn''t easy to stop.
Such a predicament could be prevented back when he was a normal human, but now that he had an inexhaustible body with endless cum reserves, Sam could no longer rely on nature to stop him from going at it nonstop.
''Damn it¡'' feeling his approaching climax, Sam''s thrusts grew more violent.
He didn''t want his bottomless lust to get in the way of everything he was trying to achieve, but what was the point of all the struggles if he couldn''t enjoy his prize whenever he felt like it?
Limiting himself to the little free time that follows long sessions of work was far from satisfying. The night he had with Ichigo was a clear proof of that. Thepink hairedValkyrie wasn''t at fault; he enjoyed their first night together and was looking forward to the next time with her. Nevertheless, his libido was far from being diminished when he left his room the next day.
It was for that reason that he started flirting with Venti soon after, and why he didn''t resist when Nine took him to her room. Only after spending an entire day making love to the blond Valkyrie did his lust subside a little, enough for him to go back to work with a clear mind.
"Ahh! D-Doctahh~?¡I¡hahh¡I''m¡hahh~?¡"
Diving into the farthest depths of Five''s love tunnel, Sam released his restraints allowing his hot essence to erupt inside, causing the Valkyrie to finish as well.
"Ah¡ah¡aaaAAAAAHHHHHHH~????????!!!"
Pleasure washed over the two throwing them into a state of blissful euphoria. Sam''s mind went white, all of his thoughts bing clear just like what happened when Five serviced him with her mouth. He felt himself reaching a new understanding and the path forward no longer seemed so difficult.
Making love to his Valkyries was the only thing he had to look for. Whether he stops Loki, brings Alice homeorgathers the keys to Akasha, at the end of it all, he would still go home and feast on his harem of the world''s most beautiful.
If that was the case, what''s the point of holding back?
His harem was there right in front of him, all of them eager to receive his love. The only thing stopping him was the fear of losing control, but since when was he the kind to allow such things to get in his way?
''Screw holding back¡'' with a single thought, Sam forced his spent rod to harden once more. ''I''m going to enjoy this as much as I can!''
Chapter 361: Some pics.
"To think that one day you woulde to me for afavor." Simon spoke with a smirk. "After everything that happened¡"
"Cut the crap, Simon." Sara heaved a sigh. "We don''t have the time for this."
Sparks started flying the moment the three girls entered the nightclub. There was still quite some time before it opened so no one was around besides the brown man and the bartender. Simon dismissed his followers as soon as the press conference ended, not wanting them to cause any trouble while he talked to his past lover.
"Ingrid! Ingrid! This looks just like that ce in the Summer Soldier!"
"Yeah¡ this is bordering on copyright infringement."
The tense atmosphere was shattered by the two girls standing behind the reporter. The shabby old bar seemed to draw their interest as evidenced by the cheerfulness with which they discussed the interior.
"You think anyone would bother with copyrights nowadays?" Antony shook his head with a grin. "The owners are probably dead by now."
The bartender couldn''t hide his joy. He went through a lot of effort to model the bar after the one that appeared in a favorite movie of his. Few recognize it at first sight, but those who do never fail to bring him joy.
The girls walked over to the counter and sat down.
"Old man! I''ll have Margarita!" The short one said.
"Tequ for me!" The taller one added cheerfully.
"I need to see some IDs first." Antony grinned. "I don''t think you''re old enough to drink."
"What do you mean not old enough!?" The short one retorted. "I''mtwenty one, you know?"
"And an ID would prove that."
In the end, the two had to settle for some c. Meanwhile, Sara sat beside Simon and asked the important question. The brown man wasn''t in a hurry to talk. He took the cigarette out of his mouth and puffed the smoke in the air, letting it slowly fade out of sight. He was going to take another puff, but before he could the reporter grabbed the cigarette out of his hand.
"Haa¡ we already know who took your damn phone," he said, sounding quite annoyed.
"Alright." Said Sara. "What are we waiting for, then?"
The Silence returned as the two stared each other in the eyes. Simon let out another sigh and turned away.
"You know this isn''t how we do things."
"Pardon?"
"Nothing is free. Youe to me for a favor, then you better have some payment prepared."
His voice was brimming with irritation and the reporter felt it right away. She knew he would have that kind of reaction and still cameempty handedanyway. What would she give him in this situation anyway?
"We get the phone back and I pay you another time." Sara pressed the cigarette on the ashtray, putting it out. "This is an emergency. We don''t have the time to discuss it."
"You don''t have the time." Simon rxed, leaning his back against the counter. "I, on the other hand, am quite free."
"Are you being serious right now?"
Sara was getting closer to snapping by the second. Her day was thrown off rails after she ended up ying tourist guide to a Valkyrie and a Nephilim, two aliens capable of raising the entire settlement to the ground. Her stress level has been climbing consistently, but here is thisgood for nothingrefusing to give her a hand when she needs it the most.
"Let''s start from the beginning." Simon pointed his thumb at the two girls.
"They aren''t just any rich brats, correct? Who are they?"
His question went unanswered for a couple of seconds. Sara contemted telling him, unsure of the ramifications of doing, butbefore she could make up her mind someone else spoke up.
"That''s right, we aren''t just any rich brats." The short girl spoke. "We''re neither rich nor brats."
"I never used any money before today¡" the tall one mused, but then she seemed to tense up all of a sudden. "Aaaa! My phone!!!"
Apparently, she forgot all about it the moment they entered the bar.
"Reallynow?"
Unamused by theedic scene, Simon brought his brows together in a frown.
"If you don''t have any cash then what''s the point in helping you?"
"Oh, that''s very simple." Lowering herrge sunsses, the short one gazed at him with her purple eyes. "You help us and we won''t tell the big guy about your little mafia game."
A shiver runs down Simon''s spine. The irises staring at him were inhuman, and it wasn''t just the color. He couldn''t tell what made him think that, but the feeling was too strong to be ignored. He nced at Antony as if to ask for confirmation and saw that he was doing the same.
As the horror began to settle in, they turned to their reporter friend next, silently asking what kind of mess she dragged them into.
"I''ll exin another time." Sara could only sigh. "Let''s get the phone back first."
"The hell you mean you''ll exinter!!?"
The brown man practically jumped out of his seat and quickly put some distance between them. The bartender did the same, his eyes looking like they were about to fall out of their sockets.
"Now that''s a bit harsh." Said Ingrid, her voicepletely calm. She then slipped the straw under her mask and sipped from the c she was served.
"Y-you brought those things here!?" Simon pointed a trembling finger at the two girls. "W-w-what were you thinking!!?"
"Hey now, I get that they made you believe we were robots on this side, but can you not call us ''things''?" Ingrid spoke with a frown. "We have feelings, you know."
"We came in peace!" Juni added, making a peace sign with each hand. "Peace. Peace!"
Antony disappeared into the back room leaving the four on their own. Though she knew it woulde to this at some point, Sara couldn''t help feeling exasperated. Unable to take it anymore, she took out a cigarette and lit it up.
"The new Head General knows about this." She said after exhaling a cloud of smoke. "They were told to not use their powers here."
Before the conversation could proceed, Antony barged in carrying a camera and some light equipment.
"I will give you that Margarita." He said, sweat beading his forehead. "Just let me take some pics!"
Chapter 362: What do you want?
"I already knew, but¡" Ingrid heaved a sigh, her shoulders slumped. "Alcohol really has no effect on us¡"
"Isn''t that a good thing?" Sara asked. "You can enjoy the drinks without a worry."
"And where is the fun in that!?"
As they walked through the narrow hallways of the old city, Simon couldn''t help but grimace as he nced behind him. His mind still refused to believe that the two girls he passed earlier that day weren''t human.
If they kept their highly suspicious disguise on he wouldn''t have realized it in a million years, and it didn''t that his reporter friend was talking to them naturally as if there was nothing strange about it.
"Say, these kids that stole my phone¡" The taller alien, the one named Juni, walked by his side asking questions. "They lost their parents, right? Shouldn''t they be in an orphanage if that''s the case?"
Simon suppressed a grimace, turning away from her masked face.
"Yeah, they should."He replied.
"Then why are they living in such a ce instead?"
Why, indeed. Simon didn''t expect much from the girl who only knew the life of a brainwashed weapon until recently, but hearing her talk the same way a sheltered rich brat added to his anger.
"Everyone got their reason."
When he thought about it, he realized that he had nothing against the two girls. They were aliens from another dimension, sure, and they were capable of ttening the entire settlement in a matter of minutes.
But they weren''t exactly out to hurt him or his people, and though he didn''t have much trust in the Resistance, he knew that they wouldn''t have let those two into the settlement if they posed a danger to the citizens.
"Do you think they''ll take the test tomorrow?" Asked Juni.
"I wonder." Pausing for a moment, Simon turned to the tall alien. "Is it true?"
"What?"
"The¡ Awakening thing, I mean."
"Ah! Yeah, it''s true."
Theck of hesitation in her answer cleared any doubts the brown man had. It was a bit difficult to believe that they were on the precipice of yet another world-changing event. It was even more difficult to believe that their kids had the chance to gain powers beyond their imagination just by being alive to witness that event.
"If only I was born a few yearster¡"
Until yesterday, no one in their right mind would make such a wish. Who would want to be a helpless child in the midst of an apocalypse? Many still hold that mindset, of course, but when faced with the prospect of gaining abilities that could overpower the strongest of cmities, one can''t help but see the appeal.
"Nothing to do about that." Said Juni. "Just remember to go to the designated shelter tomorrow. You sound like a nice person, Simon. It would be very sad if you turn into a Fallen."
A chill ran down Simon''s spine. The Valkyrie didn''t say it out loud but he could easily guess what she truly meant by those words. Thankfully when they turned around the corner they came across something that helped take his mind off that topic.
"We''re here."
An empty street turned into a makeshift yground where the children from the area gathered. Some were jumping rope, others yed tag. Some ran around kicking a stic bottle as if it were a ser ball.
The area was surrounded by crumbling abandoned buildings. Piles of trash spilled from the corners, making it appear as if a dumpster was not that far away. Theughter and cheerful cries of the children burned away the gloomy veil that should''ve covered the ce.
It was like a safe refuge where they could forget all about the cruelty of the world and enjoy the childhood taken away from them by the decade-long war.
Juni seemed to positively glow at the sight, and if Ingrid hadn''t appeared just in time to stop her, she would''ve run off to join the kids and y their games. Once she got her friend under control, the Nephilim finally got to have a good look at the makeshift yground.
The scenery of ying children was enough to bring warmth to the coldest hearts, and though she didn''t have one, Ingrid still felt the sensation.
"Ingrid?"
Juni''s voice snapped her back to reality. She couldn''t see her expression due to the mask and sunsses, but the hint of concern in Valkyrie''s tone told her that something was wrong. She notices that the hand she used to stop Juni is still grabbing her.
Not only that but she unintentionally put too much strength into it, forcing her friend to increase the output of her Force Field to keep it from breaking.
"Ah, sorry!" She said, quickly letting go of her. "I spaced out for a moment."
Simon had moved toward a group of older kids sitting on the steps of a nearby house. The kids noticed their arrival a while ago and halted what they were doing, observing them with cautious eyes. One of them got up and went to face the brown man. At the same time, another one moved away from the group before disappearing into the nearby abandoned building through a broken window.
"What do you want?" Was the first thing that came out of the kid''s mouth.
Simon''s left brow twitched and he couldn''t stop his lips from curling up. Being the boss of the gang that ruled over this entire side of the city, he should''ve been well known to all of the residents, especially the orphans who would end up working for him at some point. The kid facing him wasn''t oblivious either.
He appeared to know exactly who Simon was but chose to face him and showed no fear while doing so.
"I''m looking for someone called Rollo." Said Simon.
"As I said." The boy''s re grew sharper. "What do you want?"
Simon''s irritation grew exponentially, blood pumping to his head. There was nothing he could do, however. If his reputation didn''t scare the kids into submission, he couldn''t just beat them until they told him what he wanted.
Of course, it was only a matter of time before this problem was resolved. But before he coulde up with a way to do so, the taller alien walked past him and faced the young boy.
"Hi! Are you friends with Rollo? You see, my phone was stolen earlier and I was told I could get it back if I asked him. Can you show us where he lives, please?"
Chapter 363: I just followed the girl.
A few minutes earlier, Saif got word from Rollo telling him that someone mighte looking for Keven and Kai. He didn''t give him all the details, but knowing his friends it wasn''t that difficult to guess what kind of trouble they got themselves in.
The kids had to take care of themselves somehow and those two took on pick-pocketing to survive. They had trouble with their victims before, but none bothered toe all the way to the slums. That''s why it came as a surprise when he saw Simon making his way toward their yground.
"Setsuna." the boy signaled toward the neers. "Go tell Rollo his guests are here. I will keep them busy."
The girl was confused for a moment, but then herplexion paled when she saw the gang leader. Without saying a word she moved away from the staircase and slipped into the nearby abandoned building.
Saif went to face the visitors on his own, and as he approached them he couldn''t help but think it was weird that the gang boss came without his goons. Saif recognized Sara Pinkman as well. The reporter was famous on their side of the settlement, and many respected her for not being afraid to speak against the Resistance. The two girls dressed in brand new clothes, he didn''t recognize either.
They were putting some effort into hiding their faces so he guessed they were famous enough for it to be a problem if people saw them.
When Simon asked about Rollo, Saif''s first thought was to deny that anyone like that exists. He dropped the idea right away, though, having realized that they wouldn''te all the way here if they didn''t have trusted info. He decided to ask them what they wanted instead.
When the girl came forward to talk to him, Saif felt dumbfounded for a moment. He was sure he had his most intimidating face on, but she didn''t seem to be intimidated at all. Still confused, he turned to the man by her side and raised an eyebrow.
"Is she serious?"
"Of course I am serious!" the girl eximed in the most unserious voice he had ever heard.
"She is serious."
The tired sigh that followed Simon''s response showed that he felt the same way Saif felt right now. It caused his expression to soften, and before he knew it, his wariness dropped quite a bit. After struggling with what to say for a while, he finally let out a sigh and faced the masked girl.
"Listen, you¡ whoever you are. Just get a new phone and be done with it. It''s pointless to try and get the old one back."
"I can''t! I got it just a few days ago!"
"You still don''t get it, do you?" The boy shook his head. "You can''t get back something that was stolen. No one will return it to you."
"Why not!?"
The masked girl seemed to get more distressed, causing the boy to feel more troubled. He was even starting to feel bad for her. Still, even if his friends still had her phone, they definitely wouldn''t return it. By now Rollo must''ve cracked its security and drained her bank ount. If he was done with that a little faster, he most likely disassembled the entire thing so he could use the parts.
"Listen, you can''t juste here and start making demands. You think because we''re kids you can boss us around?"
By now Saif realized they didn''te here with malicious intentions. So far the tall one seemed like a good person. He expected a rich girl like her to be a lot more rude and demanding, but she was quite polite while speaking, and she didn''t seem to be looking down on him.
"That''s not wha-"
"I get that you''re used to having your way, but we won''t just do as you say."
"But¡ I¡"
Seeing her dete with each response was painful, but Saif wasn''t about to change his mind. It would be great if they gave up and left on their own, but if they kept insisting, he would have to stall them until Rollo and the others went into hiding.
"Coming all the way here was a waste of time." he went on. "This isn''t a ce for spoiled brats like you. Did you even stop to think about the problems you might cause? Rich bastards like you think they can do whatever they want, go wherever they want, and when something bad happens to them they end up ruining everything for people that did nothing wrong. Why do-"
"Alright kid, that''s enough."
The one who interrupted him wasn''t Simon but the other girl. She didn''t sound angry or annoyed, but rather rxed. She approached the first one and ced a hand on her shoulder.
"It''s okay, Juni." She said. "I already found the guy we''re looking for."
Silence took over for a second, but then all eyes turned to her.
"Really!?" The tall one regained her spirits instantaneously.
Saif, on the other hand, had a very bad premonition.
"Yeah, this guy here was probably trying to buy time while his friend warned the others." The short one said. "I just followed the girl that slipped away earlier. I can''t really tell what they''re doing from here, but I have the feeling they aren''t going to stay around for long."
Even with the mask and sses, Saif thought that he could see the smug grin the short one gave him as she spoke. She saw straight through him from the start, but something about what she said didn''t make sense.
''She''s talking about Setsuna¡'' he realized. But¡ how?''
He was sure she took a route they built inside the abandoned building. The passages were made so only children could pass through; it was supposed to be an escape route inessible by adults, and it was hidden well enough so it wouldn''t be seen from outside.
''How did she-''
For a moment, something sparked inside Saif''s mind. He recalled what the short one said seconds ago, and the name she used to refer to her friend. Juni. He felt like he recognized that name, but he couldn''t tell where he heard it. As he struggled to remember, the tall one turned to her friend and grabbed her arms, shaking her while speaking in a panicked voice.
"Then what are we waiting for! Let''s go!"
"Calm down." The short one seemed really annoyed by the shaking. She freed herself then turned to Simon and Sara, Shaking her head. "Well, you two wait here just a little. We will get it done with ande back."
The one who seemed to have the strongest reaction was Sara. Her face lost its color and she was about to say something, but before she could the two girls disappeared.
Just like that, they were gone.
For a second there, Saif thought he saw something. It was a purple crown, but it was floating in the air right over the short girl''s head. It was exactly then that he remembered that he heard the name Juni during the award ceremony from the previous day and that it belonged to one of the Valkyries who contributed greatly to the war.
"No way¡"
Chapter 364: Are they here?
When Rollo asked to be informed of any strangers that might appear, Setsuna didn''t think much of it. There was no shortage of monsters trying to take advantage of the orphans so they learned to be on guard long ago, protecting each other and keeping an eye on the little ones.
Still, when she saw Simon, Setsuna knew they were in trouble. Her worries only grew when Saif told her to hurry back and warn the others. She took the secret escape route just in case. It wasn''t easy to get to their hideout, and the narrow paths made it harder for the adults would to follow them to it.
It took her a few minutes to arrive and when she entered the chaos that met her wasn''t what she expected.
At the center of the room was the metal barrel they usually use as a heater. A fire was lit inside it, but what burned inside wasn''t wood or coal. Several electronicponents rested in the fire; data chips, disk drives, motherboards, and many others. A loud bang drew her attention to the corner of the room and what she saw shocked her.
It was Rollo holding a hammer in his hands, swinging it repeatedly at theputer setup he worked so hard to build.
"Rollo!"
When he heard her call, the boy turned to face her. He looked quite terrified, and his face grew paler when he saw her.
"Are they here?" He asked.
Setsuna nodded frantically. "Simon was with them."
Rollo was confused for a moment, but then went back to smashing with the hammer. "Listen, Kevin and Kai need to go into hiding. I''ll go with them as well."
"W-what!?"
"You stay with Saif and take care of the little ones. Make sure you go to the event the day after tomorrow."
His response told her there wasn''t much room for discussion, but that only served to increase her worries. Setsuna knew about Kevin and Kai stealing from time to time. She knew it was wrong, but she couldn''t bring herself to reprimand them. What they brought in helped take care of the kids, and Rollo alone couldn''t take the burden.
It was bound to backfire on them at some point but they didn''t have much choice.
"Rollo¡"
"Ah, so that''s him."
A voice came from behind her, scaring her stiff. She slowly turned around and was met with the strange sight of two girls, one tall and the other short. Both of them wore medical masks andrge sunsses, and their heads were covered with hoods.
Setsuna was shocked, to say the least. How did they make it here? She didn''t hear any steps, and none of the rms they installed went off. It was almost as if they appeared behind her out of thin air.
"Setsuna." Rollo spoke. "Come here."
Still in shock, Setsuna did as she was told, her eyes never leaving the two strangers.
"Now this is strange." The short one said. "burning electronics, smashingputers. Kinda fishy, don''t you think?"
The tall one seemed to ignore her friend as she stepped forward.
"Are you Rollo?" She asked. "Please return my phone!"
The boy kept his silence and pushed the younger girl behind him.
"Your phone is with me." He said. "I will give it back, but you have to promise me you won''t go after the kids."
"Under-"
"Whoa! Hold on, Juni." The short one interrupted her friend. "This guy is acting awfully suspicious."
"Really?"
"Just look at him. He clearly knew we wereing and was preparing to escape. If my guess is right, he might''ve already hacked into your phone and learned of our true identity. Isn''t that right, boy?"
Rollo grimaced. He nced at the girl behind him then shifted his sight back to the two strangers.
"Listen, I was the only one who looked inside." He said. "I only learned that it belongs to you because of thest messages. I made sure to lock it right after seeing them and haven''t touched it since."
"And you expect us to believe that?" The short one said
Rollo gritted his teeth "I have no reason to lie to you. It''s your phone so you should know it doesn''t have much on it. I mean, I wouldn''t be surprised if you took it out of the box only yesterday."
"That does not matter. The fact that you stole military property still stands. We will have-"
"Stop it, Ingrid! You''re scaring them!"
The tense atmosphere was shattered by the tall girl''s interruption.
"C''mon, Juni. You can at least let me have some fun."
The tall one ignored her friend''s grumble and walked over to Rollo. The boy took a step back and positioned himself so he could cover for Setsuna better. He was trembling all over, his heart almost stopping. The being in front of him was capable of erasing them out of existence, and no one would care that she did so with a bunch of homeless orphans.
Stopping just a meter away from them, the tall girl extended her right hand "Please return my phone."
"Only if you promise not to hurt us," Rollo replied, his re bing sharper.
"What? Why would I do that?" She turned to her short friend. "That would make Doctor reeeeeally mad, right?"
The short girl, named Ingrid, heaved a sigh and shook her head.
"He''s going to be mad either way. Losing your phone might''ve caused a huge security breach." She motioned toward the barrel with burningputer parts. "That kid seems to be involved in a lot more shady stuff than we thought. I''m afraid you won''t get off easily."
"Eeeeeeh!?"
Rollo, though still scared, felt that something was off about the way the one called Ingrid spoke. Going by what she said earlier, and her tone right now, it felt like she wasn''t taking the matter seriously. Still, Rollo didn''t dare to lower his guard. They weren''t out of trouble yet and things could turn for the worse at any moment.
He decided to try arguing his case again, hoping they would understand.
"Listen, I only hacked the lock screen." He said. "I didn''t even touch the wallet. You can take it to an expert if you want. Or maybe you should just destroy it and get a new one to be safe. I don''t really care what you do with it. We just don''t want any more trouble."
"Really?" The tall girl, Juni, asked in a hopeful voice.
She didn''t sound like a dangerous alien or a weapon of mass destruction but instead, just a girl who found herself in big trouble. Rollo was a bit conflicted. He didn''t know if it would be right to trust a Valkyrie, but at the same time, he didn''t believe she would hurt him or the other kids just because they stole from her. The phone didn''t contain anything important, after all.
She didn''t even have to go through the trouble of retrieving it.
After giving the matter some more thought, Rollo reached into his pocket and took out a small device.
"Here." He said. "You can make sure nothing is wrong yourself, and if you want to have someone else see it then go ahead. We still have to go to the evacuation center the day after tomorrow so if there is any problem you can always catch us there."
Chapter 365: Please stop.
When she saw the phone handed to her, Juni didn''t hesitate to take it.
"Finally!" She raised it over her head and eximed. "I was so worried!"
After the momentary celebration, she brought the device close to her face and began looking through it. A few secondster, she moved it away and stood still, as if she saw something that stunned her.
"I-Ingri~~d! What should I do!? Nana already knows!"
"Oh, you''re done for," Ingrid replied
As soon as the phone was in her hand, a message was delivered to it. The sender was Nana. Despite already being busy with the press conference, she still kept an eye on Juni and Ingrid ever since they left the hotel. That turned out to be the right call as she was quick to notice when Juni''s phone got stolen, allowing her to hide anything they didn''t want outsiders to see.
Her first thought was to factory reset the device just to be sure, but then she noticed something strange prompting her to leave it as is and see what happened.
After a few seconds, Juni slumped her shoulders and turned to Rollo, speaking in a defeated voice. "Here. She wants to talk to you."
The boy was quite confused. He remembered seeing the name Nana in the messaging app so he guessed she was another Valkyrie. Was she going to reprimand him for what he did? Or are things going to get much worse than that?
As soon as he took the phone from the depressed Juni, its screen lit up and a face appeared on it. A beautiful woman with silver hair stared at him with cold eyes and Rollo couldn''t help but swallow. She was a Valkyrie, there was no denying that. The question was what kind of trouble was he going to be in.
"Rollo Romanoff, born on December 15TH 2020 to a supposedly ordinary couple of Russian origin. All three were in the first wave of refugees that arrived at what wouldter be the Third Settlement. Both parents lost their lives in a Cmity raid on March 14TH 2030. You were moved to an orphanage in the First Settlement, but less than a monthter you ran away."
Hearing his entire past, including hisst name, being recounted right in front of him, Rollo realized how much he was screwed.
"The Resistance has been looking for you, Mr. Romanoff. You-"
"Please stop!"
A sudden burst cut her off, startling those watching from the sides. Setsuna looked up at him, her face still pale after everything that happened. Juni seemed a little confused. Ingrid, on the other hand, kept her distance and observed with great interest.
After a moment of silence, the silver-haired beauty on the phone closed her eyes and nodded. "Understood. I won''t say more than this. In return, I expect you to pay us a visit in person very soon."
The boy kept his silence for a while before asking a question. "Could it wait until after the uing event?"
Nana didn''t answer right away, and when she finally did, her expression looked a lot more troubled than before.
"Unfortunately, that is not possible."
There was another moment of silence. Rollo lowered the phone and turned to face the broken window. He then shifted his gaze to Setsuna who still looked terrified. She clearly had something to tell him, but the words had trouble leaving her mouth. Giving her a reassuring smile, he held the phone and faced the Valkyrie again.
"Give me until the end of the day." He said. "I still have matters I need to resolve."
He stared the Valkyrie in the eyes, refusing to budge in the slightest. After a few seconds, she finally seemed to give up as a sigh escaped her.
"Understood. However, we will have to take the appropriate measures to ensure that you keep your word. Is that eptable?"
Rollo got a really bad premonition.
"W-what kind of measures?"
"Please return the phone to its owner."
Her tone left no room for discussion so he reluctantly did as he was told.
"Juni. I want you to stay there and keep an eye on him, and when he''s ready, bring him back with you."
"... eh?"
Juni was confused by the order, not understanding where it came from.
"Though you got permission from Doctor, it doesn''t change that you acted withplete disregard to your position. Not only that but you lost an important piece of military equipment because of your negligence. Thatsaid, I''m willing to overlook your mistake as long as youplete this task sessfully."
The tall girl seemed to regain some liveliness. "Really?"
"Stay on guard. Do not disappoint me."
With that, the video call ended. There was silence in the old attic. Juni stared at her phone for some time and then raised it into the air, her joyful aura lighting up the space.
"Hooray!"
She began hopping around for some reason, which was quite a surreal sight to Rollo, and even more so to Setsuna who had yet to understand what was happening.
"To think you really were hiding something."
The voice startled Rollo, causing him to jump a little. At some point Ingrid had moved to his side, doing so without his notice. She pulled her hoodie down then removed her sunsses and mask, finally revealing the beautiful face hidden beneath them.
"R-R-Rollo!" With a shaking finger, Setsuna pointed at the dark-haired girl. "A V-V-V-Valkyrie! It''s a Valkyrie!"
He thought he already figured it out, but when his eyesnded on her he felt like his heart was about to stop.
"Hm? What''s this?" With a smug grin, Ingrid leaned toward the boy, bringing her face dangerously close to his. "I see you''ve noticed. That was pretty quick."
Even with such a cutie an inch away from him, Rollo felt nothing but absolute horror.
He recognized that face. He had seen it just the day before, during the award ceremony. She was there, always in the back, right behind the crimson hair of the otherworldly queen. Her name was never mentioned, but there was no doubt about it. She was a Nephilim, and one of the queen''s four guards at that.
Chapter 366: I saw her on TV.
"A Valkyrie!?"
With her staying behind, it didn''t take long for Juni''s identity to be exposed, especially after Ingrid went and revealed herself to Setsuna and Rollo. As soon as they went out, the kids who had been ying around quickly gathered wanting to take a look at the visiting aliens.
"Ah! I saw her on TV yesterday!" One of the older kids eximed. "They gave her a medal!"
"What!?" A girl looked up with eyes wide open.
"Seriously!?" Another one followed.
As the excited chatter continued, Juni struck a pose causing all of them to go silent.
"Hello everyone! I''m a Valkyrie and my name is Juni! I hope we can be friends!"
The silence went on for a second then the chatter resumed, this time with twice the excitement.
"It''s true!"
"So cool!"
"So pretty!"
"A real Valkyrie!"
Ever since the mission to the Nephilim World, Juni had shown quite a bit of skill when dealing with children. Because of that, she had no trouble mingling with the orphans living in the slums. Ingrid was thankful that she took all the attention to herself. As the Valkyrie went to y with the children, the Nephilim kept to the sides watching as Rollo talked with the kids his age.
"Why!?" Setsuna asked, doing her best to stop the tears from flowing. "What did you do? What do they want from you."
"It''s nothing big, really." Rollo smiled wryly. "They probably realized my talent and wanted to hire me."
"That''s not what it sounded like!"
Kevin and Kai were back from wherever they were hiding, and along with Saif they all stared at Ingrid, their faces a little pale.
"She''s¡" Saif turned to the others.
"Don''t say it." Kai shook his head.
"I can''t believe it." Kevin scratched his dirty blonde hair. "We actually stole from a Valkyrie. And the other one is a¡" He didn''t say thest word.
"What are you so afraid of." Said Ingrid, the smirk she wore sending shivers through the three boys. "I already put a barrier around. The others can''t hear you."
A simple sound-blocking barrier didn''t require much skill. The Nephilim was being strangely considerate. She knew the older kids wanted to discuss things they didn''t want the younger ones to hear so she offered to help. That did little to make them lower their guards, though.
"Seriously, how did things get like this?"
As if prompted by Kai''s murmur, the three boys sighed simultaneously. They then turned their sights to their leader, and Kevin was the first to speak.
"Don''t tell me you hacked the Resistance or something."
Rollo spent quite a lot of time tinkering with hisputer. They couldn''t even begin to grasp what he does most of the time so they simply ignored it, but they all had a feeling that he might get himself in trouble at some point.
"No way, I''m not crazy," Rollo replied. He was patting Setsuna''s head as she hugged him while crying.
"You aren''t going to tell us what you did, are you?" Kai followed.
"Hmm¡ I don''t want to bore you with the details." Said Rollo. "Let''s just say I might have something they want. I can''t say any more than this."
The boys noticed that he wasn''t being entirely honest, but they all decided to keep their opinions to themselves. Whatever trouble their eldest got himself into, it was big enough for the resistance to send two Valkyries to get him. With that considered, it might be for the best if they didn''t know much about the topic, less they want to get themselves dragged into it.
A few meters away, Juni was getting bombarded with questions from the children.
"Did you fight Cmities?" A young boy asked.
"I sure did." Juni puffed her chest with pride.
"How big were they?" Another followed.
"I fought really small ones and ones as big as that building!" She pointed at a nearby abandoned apartmentplex.
"Are you a robot? Or are you an alien?" A little girl asked.
"I''m not a robot, but I''m not an alien either!" Juni struck a pose. "I''m a superhuman from another dimension!"
A smile formed on Sara''s lips when she heard the excited cries. As she watched the scene from a distance, A hand entered her field of view, holding a pack of cigarettes.
"Here."
Simon was offering her one of the smokes he handed him earlier, but she decided to decline this time.
"Well, suit yourself." Shrugging his shoulders, the young man ced a cigarette between his lips then took out a lighter.
"Strange, isn''t it." Said Sara. "They''re getting along like it''s nothing."
The kids seemed to have asked Juni what powers she had. Because of that, she formed her halo and was now showing a glowing blue baseball bat she produced out of nowhere.
"Never in my life did I think the day a Valkyrie visits us woulde." Exhaling, Simon released a small cloud of smoke and watched it disappear into the air. "How did you do it?"
"Hm? Did what?" Sara raised an eyebrow.
"Don''t tell me You only met them by coincidence."
The reporter seemed to catch on to what he meant as she turned her sight to the yground.
"They wanted to see the city so they had me sneak them out." She said, realizing how absurd that sounded halfway through. "It wasn''t much of a sess, though. The big man sent a message saying I would be responsible for any mess they make."
"That¡ a bitx¡"
"Tell me about it."
Before they knew it, the kids had spread around and started a game of baseball. Apparently, the Valkyrie was dying to try it out and was now in the batter position with an old helmet on her head and a normal bat in her hands. One of the older boys threw the ball and she swung her bat, but despite hitting the ball it didn''t go as far as everyone had expected.
"I did it!"
With a cheerful smile, Juni tossed the bat and started running around. By the time she reached the base, though, the ball had been passed around and a young girl tapped it against her body putting an end to the round.
"Aaah! I lost!"
"You aren''t very fast, miss." the girl said. "Are you sure you''re a superhuman?"
"Guess I''m not good at running."
From the start, it was clear that Juni was holding back her strength, but that only helped her blend with the kids more. Before long, those who had been wary of her began to let their guard down and the game continued for a while.
Time passed like the wind and the sun began to set. Everyone went inside to have dinner and they invited the visitors to eat with them as well. Sara decided to leave and Simon offered to walk her back so only Juni and Ingrid remained behind.
After the meal, Juni yed with the kids some more until it was bedtime. Once the young ones were asleep, the older kids gathered outside to send Rollo off.
Chapter 367: No can do.
"Alright everyone, remember what I said."
Once the younger kids were asleep, the others gathered outside to see Rollo off. Setsuna and Effa were crying, while the boys looked on with grim expressions.
"What''s wrong," Rollo said, smiling. "It''s not like I will be gone forever."
Kevin ruffled his dirt blond hair. "Yeah, that won''t make us worry any less." He heaved a sigh then smiled as well. "Don''t keep us hanging for too long."
"Well, if they don''t let me out by the time you are a respectable Valkyrie, you can alwayse and save me."
"The hell you mean by that!" Kai bunched him on the shoulder, but then his expression became serious. "Hold on, all Valkyries are female, right? Don''t tell me¡"
"We have awakened boys, though." Out of nowhere, Juni barged into their conversation. "Oh, and there was this boy from the other world. He was the same age as you, I think."
Her exnation gave them a moment of relief, but then they turned their eyes to her.
"Say, can you put in a good word for him?" Kevin said. "I don''t know what he did, but¡ Rollo is a good guy¡"
They all saw how Juni warmed her way into the hearts of the kids. Valkyrie or not, they knew she was a good person, and she surely would help them if they asked. As they looked at her with anxious eyes, Juni nced at Rollo then at the other kids, a cheerful smile spreading on her face.
"Don''t worry!" She held a thumb up. "Doctor is a good guy as well. I will tell him to go easy on him."
"Really?" Setsuna asked.
"Yeah! Doctor owes me a reward so I can always ask him for a favor."
"Well, if mister ''I got in trouble with the Resistance'' told us what he did, maybe we can help him better."
Rollo went stiff and from behind him, Ingrid appeared. The others noticed it before but they didn''t pay it much mind.
"Please help him if you can," Effe asked with tears in her eyes.
"Sorry, no can do." Ingrid shrugged nonchntly. "I''m a Nephilim, after all."
There was a moment of silence, then the kids went so pale they seemed about to pass out.
"Well then, thanks for the food." cing her hand on Rollo''s shoulder, Ingrid summoned her halo.
Realizing they were about to teleport, the boy quickly turned to his friends.
"I will be back as soon as I can!" He said. "Take care of yourselves!"
And just like that, the two were gone. Juni only noticed after a couple of seconds.
"Take care!" She waved before disappearing as well.
The kids remained stood in silence for a while, but then the sound of sobs was heard. Effa began crying again, and Setsuna went to hug her only to end up in tears as well.
"Seriously though, who would''ve thought it would end up like this¡" Kevin mused.
"Right¡" Kai added.
"Ah!" The sudden cry drew all eyes to safe, who looked quite shocked. "I forgot to ask them for Eleven''s autograph!"
They all gave him stern res, but those soon turned to wry smiles. The five kids walked back to their hideout, joking andughing as they tried to stave away the worries brought by Rollo''s situation. They only hoped that the Valkyrie would keep her word and that he would return to them safe and sound.
~[ ]~
"Ah, the boss is back!!!"
The moment he entered Antony''s bar, Simon was met with the lively mor of his subordinates. They swarmed him like a flock of hungry birds, pushing each other as they bombarded him with one question after the other.
"Boss! Is it true!?"
"Boss! Did you really meet a Valkyrie!?"
"Did two Valkyriese to drink in this ce!?"
"Idiot! You saw the photos, right? They were here, in this bar!!!"
"Is that why you sent us away, Boss!?"
"How can you be so cruel to us, Boss!?"
A long sigh escaped the youth and he turned to his friend whose skin was much darker than his. Antony was standing behind the bar, polishing a whiskey ss as he usually does. There was one difference, however. Arge photo hung on the wall behind him. It was one of many he took when the alien girls visited his humble nightclub.
That photo alone would be a great attraction, bringing in customers other than the local gang. It was for that reason why the owner printed it out and put it in a frame. He was a businessman, after all. Of course, he would use anything that would allow him to gather customers.
"You have got this wrong, everyone." Having adjusted to the rowdiness of hispanions, Simon let a smile form on his face. "Only one of them was a Valkyrie. The other was a Nephilim."
His words brought in a moment of silence to the bar, but then the rowdiness returned. Even Antony was wide-eyed, and his skin seemed to lose all the mnin turning him pale white.
"No need to worry." Simon walked toward the counter. "It''s not like she would just go berserk and start killing people. She was just a kid, you were able to tell that much, right?"
"Riiiight¡" Antony was sweating, but then his expression brightened as if he remembered something. "I remember hearing something about the only Nephilim left being those who opposed the war."
"Exactly. Now get me a beer. I need to celebrate surviving an entire evening with two aliens."
The crowdughed and drinks were served. Simon then went on to tell them about his experience with Juni and Ingrid, and how the former was easily able to blend in with the children. He also told them about Sara and the tour she gave the two girls.
"I can''t say it''s believable." Said Antony. "That¡ girl¡ Juni¡" heaving a sigh, he gazed at the ss in his hands. "She¡ I can''t believe she fought in the war. Powerful or not, it pains me to think she had to face all those horrors¡"
Antony could remember the first days of the war with vivid details. He survived the first wave of attacks and served in the Resistance before the Valkyries were introduced; because of that, he knew all too well the kind of despair Cmities brought, and he didn''t think a cheerful young girl such as Juni deserved to have the fate of humanity forced on her shoulders.
"Having second thoughts?" Simon ced his bottle down.
"About what?" Antony raised an eyebrow.
"About little Callie," Simon replied.
There was a pause and the bar seemed to be engulfed in silence. Antony opened his mouth to answer-
"I-"
The sound of bullets cut him off. The music was off and everyone was silent. There were a few more shots then screams soon followed. It all sounded quite far, but firearms weren''t a toy anyone could just get their hands on, especially not in the poor side of the city.
Simon was about to give orders when he heard an explosion. He hesitated for a moment before gritting his teeth.
"Everyone! We''re moving!" He yelled. "I don''t care who they are! Make sure to get all of them!"
The authorities didn''t pay much attention to the old city, that''s why the residents had to take peacekeeping into their own hands. The ck Panthers were a gang, true, but when it came to protecting their territory they never held back.
Chapter 368: Not just a rumor.
The news about two Valkyries visiting the old city spread quite fast. It caused some fear to spread among the poption, but what most didn''t know was that their presence was dying a tragedy in the making.
In the corner of an abandoned building near the orphan''s yground, a man listened to the conversation some of the kids were having with the aliens. Normally anyone with a sane mind would never dare to spy on those creatures; their senses are supposedly far superior to those of humans, allowing them to see in the dark and through walls.
Nevertheless, the man hade prepared, and thanks to the suit he was wearing, his presence wasn''t detected at all.
After a while, the first alien disappeared, taking with her one of the kids. The second one followed soon after. The man waited until those who stayed behind went inside. He then waited some more, and as the silence of the night lingered, he finally tapped the device on his wrist and made a call.
"This is Gamma One reporting in." He said. "Operation Command, do you copy?"
[This is Operation Command. We hear you loud and clear, Gamma One.] A voice sounded in his ears. [Do you have an update on the Variables.]
"The Variables have left the area." The man replied. "They appear to have used teleportation to transport the Priority Target."
There was a short silence before a response came.
[Understood. The operation has been pushed back twenty minutes from now. If the Variables don''t return to the scene by then you are to proceed as previously instructed.]
The man didn''t respond right away. His eyes kept observing the empty yground, the night vision function of his suit painting it in a ghastly neon green.
[Gamma One?]
"Understood."
Twenty minutester, the operation started.
~[ ]~
Simon ran toward themotion without hesitation, the gunfire sounds doing little to slow him down. One of his underlings arrived carrying arge bag. He reached into it and drew a slightly dented metal bat and continued forward.
His first target soon came into sight; a man dressed in ck standing at the center of the road to one of the open squares as if blocking it. Simon sneaked up on him while making as little noise as possible then swung his bat with everything he got.
The suspicious man had a strange helmet on so the strike didn''t take him down right away, but before he could retaliate Simon swung his bat again and this time he felt the unmistakable sensation of bones breaking. Even then he didn''t stop.
The stranger had his left arm broken so he tried aiming his rifle with only the right hand, but the gang leader smashed it with another swing of his bat. Just then the underlings who were right behind him arrived and without question jumped the guy.
"What in the world¡"
Simon was sure his underlings finished the job but even after all the beatings the stranger seemed to still be alive, but that''s not where the strange things ended. The man was well-built and the equipment he wore was something one would only expect to see in the army. He wasn''t just some random street thug; the guy was a trained, well-equipped soldier.
"Tell the others to be more careful." Simon broke the silence. "This might not be as simple as we thought."
The underlings watched as their leader dragged the unconscious man to a nearby wall then took his rifle and checked its ammo. His hands moved with practiced confidence, showing that he knew exactly what he was doing.
They saw him reach for the gun strapped to the man''s thigh next, but when he turned its muzzle toward the unconscious man and pressed it against his now exposed head, they all felt the blood drain from their faces.
Before any of them could utter a sound, a single shot was fired, and brains scattered along the wall.
The gang members stood in silence and watched as their boss searched the dead man''s body for ammo or other weapons. In less than a minute he seemed to be done as he stood up and strapped the rifle around his shoulder.
"I will draw their attention," Simon said, ignoring the terrified looks they gave him. "Keep a low profile and only attack when they have their backs to you."
Simon kept close to the wall until he reached the corner. He peeked his head and looked around then moved out leaving the others behind. They stood there in silence for a few seconds, but then the sound of gunshots pulled them back to reality and they quickly went to do as they were told.
Simon sneaked around using what little cover he could find. He heard amotion in one of the buildings, followed by screams and several gunshots, then nothing but silence. A couple of secondster another man dressed in military gear walked out. This one, however, was dragging an unconscious kid along.
Feeling his blood boil, Simon waited for the right moment before stepping out of his cover. The soldier, or whatever he was, barely reacted before his brain exploded by a bullet shot right from under his jaw. As histest victim toppled to the ground, the door came into view and Simon saw another armed man carrying two unconscious children.
Their eyes seemed to meet at that moment, but before he could reach for his weapon he felt the slightly hot muzzle of a freshly fired gun press against his neck and he suffered the same fate as the other guy the next moment.
"LET GO!" came a cry. "DAAAAAD! HELP ME!!!"
The horrified cries of another kid resounded a momentter. Before he could turn around to check, Simon heard a bang, and the metallic fence beside him snapped. He left the kids where they were and quickly took cover. He struck two birds with one stone, drawing the shooter''s attention away from the kids while taking a few seconds to catch his breath.
From a gap Simon saw a group of two soldiers, one pointing a gun in his direction while the other carried a kid in each arm, seemingly unfazed by their desperate attempts to free themselves.
Bullets flew and Simon was forced to hide again. His opponent was gradually closing in, his finger on the trigger. It looked like he would have no choice but to gamble, but then he saw one of his gangsters about to fling a brick at the shooter.
Timing his actions, Simon jumped out of his cover the moment the brick struck the shooter on the shoulder. Three bullets shot out and the first one fell immediately. His friend had no choice but to let go of the kids to draw his weapon, but as soon as he did two young men appeared behind him and pummeled him with the crowbars and metal pipes they held.
With things settling down in that area, more gangsters stepped out of the shadows and quickly gathered the guns, fearing that their adversaries would wake up at any moment.
"You and you, take the kids somewhere safe." Simon pointed at two of the gangsters before turning to the others. "Most of you never held a gun in your lives. Shoot only if the enemy doesn''t have any hostages."
Even as he gave his orders, Simon didn''t stop analyzing their situation. He didn''t know who the strangers in military gear were, but he already figured out they were after the children, and he could guess why.
''So it wasn''t just a rumor¡''
Chapter 369: Crush.
"That was a st!" Natasha eximed while stretching in her seat. Her bulging stomach made those movements a source of stress to anyone looking, but the woman herself didn''t seem to care all that much. After all, she got to spend an entire day with her favorite idol.
"It sure was." Her husband''s response was much less enthusiastic, but that might be because he was used to it, having worked as the Aurora''s producer for years.
A calm orange glow coated the road leading to the first settlement. There wasn''t much traffic out here, making the drive back home a peaceful one. Ryan couldn''t help but rx however his wife''s constant fangirling was getting in the way of that.
"AK was so gorgeous!" She said. "And T-Two was super adorable! Aaah! I''m d to be alive!"
"Dear, you should calm down a little," Ryan spoke with a smile. "You don''t want to identally hurt our baby."
"Her name is Eleven!" Natasha shot back, smiling from ear to ear. "I can''t believe we got her blessing!"
"Really? I wasn''t worried about that at all."
One didn''t really need permission to name their child after someone. Still, it felt a lot more special to get permission from the person themselves. Ryan knew for sure that Eleven wouldn''t have minded if he names his daughter after her, but he wanted to do something to help cheer his wife and the visit came just at the right time.
Natasha kept talking about their day with the idols. She spoke of the conversation she had with Eleven as if her husband wasn''t there the entire time, she then talked for a while about AK and Twenty Two joining them. She spent a while looking through the photos she took and only once they reached the city did she calm down a little.
The sun had set and the street lights took over the task of illuminating the street. There wasn''t much left before they reached their home. As he drove, Ryan nced at his wife. She was looking outside the window, her mood seemingly having changed from a few minutes ago. He was about to ask her what was wrong, but before he could she was the first to speak.
"I think Eleven hates me," Natasha said, sounding a bit resigned.
Ryan nced at her and saw that tears were gathering in the corners of her eyes. His expression became a tad more serious just then.
"And what makes you think that?"
Natasha turned ti him with a re.
"So you are going to pretend you didn''t know?"
Ryan didn''t reply.
"You are a heartless bastard, you know that, right?" Turning away from him, she leaned her head against the car window. "You could''ve given her a proper closure. Now she''ll think I stole you from her."
Once again Ryan kept his silence and things remained quiet for a while. Eventually, he let out a sigh and scratched his head, feeling a bit annoyed.
"There was once this guy I knew." He began. "He worked in one of the Resistance bases, although his position was barely above that of a janitor. We only met for drinks when he came to the city on his days off. After a few sses, he would start telling me about this Valkyrie in his base who likes to snoop around and how he got to talk to her a few times. At first, I didn''t take him seriously.
It wasn''t a big deal; I talk to Valkyries all the time. The problem was that the stories started to change after a while, and with each one, I got the impression that the two of them were getting a little too close. At one point he stoppeding to our meetings. I then learned that he went missing some day and that the Valkyrie he told me about was recalled to the headquarters and never came back."
Natasha listened to the story attentively, her eyes widening a little with each word. She didn''t say anything when he was done, and when he didn''t receive any questions Ryan continued.
"I¡ I was starting to notice things around that time. Eleven might''ve been some kind of idol to many, but to me she was starting to seem like a normal teenage girl. Of course, I also noticed how she felt, but¡ I couldn''t bring myself to feel the same way."
Tears began to flow down Natasha''s cheeks and she sniffled while pinning him with a re.
"So you only got with me because you couldn''t be with her¡"
The statement caused Ryan to flinch and he almost lost control of the car.
"What!? of course not!" He said, suddenly losing his previousposure. "I mean, I don''t know what her real age is, but I was almost confident she was underage. That would be enough reason to make me disappear."
"As if anyone would believe that." She said. "Romance between an idol and her producer was prettymon before the war. Age never stopped your kind."
"Hey now, just because some perverts couldn''t keep their hands to themselves doesn''t mean everyone with this job would do the same."
"Then you''re an idiot." Natasha huffed and turned away. "If I was in your ce, I would''ve risked everything to be with her."
"That''s¡ a bit too far, don''t you think?"
"You had the world''s greatest idol crushing on you and you went for a nd woman from the suburbs? You truly are an idiot."
"Well, thanks for thepliment."
They both decided it would be for the best if they didn''t dwell on it for very long. Whether Eleven had a crush on him or not, Ryan was now a married man who has eyes only for his wife. If the Valkyries were indeed no different from humans then the blue haired idol will ovee her heartbreak sooner andter.
Everyone has to go through that experience at least once in their life and it would without a doubt contribute to building their character.
The couple soon arrived at their house. People didn''t usually stay outside around this hour so the area seemed deserted, but thanks to the lights shining through windows and the loud music ying somewhere.
Ryan and Natasha''s house was only one thatcked the liveliness of the other homes in the neighborhood, but there was nothing they could do about it since all three members of their family had only just returned.
Ryan decided to park outside since Natasha''s car was in the garage. Amp near the front door lit up as soon as they stepped outside. The neighbor''s dog barked at them from beyond the fence shattering the delicate silence. The two ignored it, unlocked the door, and went inside. Back at home, they were finally able to rx. Ryan helped his wife reach the couch then went to use the toilet.
After finishing his business, the producer proceeded to wash his hands in the sink. When he reached for the towel to dry his hands its light blue color caught him by surprise and Eleven''s face resurfaced in his thoughts.
The shocked look she had after entering the meeting room, just remembering it caused his heart to ache. Despite having no romantic feelings toward her, he still like he had done something terrible, and the urge to apologize overwhelmed him.
''Maybe I should-''
"Ryan¡"
His line of thoughts was severed by a call from his wife. Her voice sounded a little disturbed so he hurried back to the living room fearing that something might have happened to her or the baby. As soon as he reached the door, however, his entire body froze.
Natasha was still on the couch just like he left her, but now there were three masked strangers surrounding her, one of them pointing a gun to her head.
Ryan didn''t know what to do, but his body moved before he could. He was about to rush toward the intruders, but because he had his sight focused on them he didn''t notice thest one that was waiting for him by the door. A sharp pain struck the back of his head and the next moment everything went ck.
Chapter 370: Quiet steps.
Simon instructed his subordinates then went to take down more of the gunmen. His luck ran out soon after as those who remained became more vignt, most likely because word of what happened to theirrades had reached them. Because of that, he was forced to slow down a little and that let to his stress building up as more and more children were being taken away.
Contrary to his expectations, whatever operation those gunmen were involved in, it wasn''t a small one. Their main goal appeared to be kidnapping young children. They seemed to have detailed intelligence on the residents of the old city and were going after those who had kids younger than fifteen.
The parents who tried to stop them were killed with no questions asked. The kids then got taken to a single retrieval location where more gunmen waited around a bunch of trucks where the kidnapped children were being kept.
The trucks weren''t your average everyday vehicles either. For one, they had much better armor than anything normal civilians could get their hands on, but more importantly, none of them seemed to have wheels. Simon had nned on poking holes in the tires to stop them from running away but was forced to think of something else.
Simon considered going back to try and stop them from taking any more children, but he knew that would only lead to the worst oue possible. He couldn''t risk those at the retrieval point escaping when they realized no more of their aplices would return.
after observing them for a while, he retreated and regrouped with the rest of his gang.
"Boss, we have done as you told us." One of them said, looking down at a pile of clothes and weapons stripped from the gunmen he had killed.
Simon was quick to notice his grim expression, but he didn''t think it came from taking clothes off dead bodies.
"What''s wrong?" He asked.
"They got Mark and Randy." The gangster replied.
Simon''s eyes widened for a moment and anger took over right after. He said nothing and forced himself to calm down and went down to pick some of the clothes.
"Let''s save the kids first." He said.
Mourning the deades after avenging them, and they could only do that after stopping the kidnapping. Simon gave more instructions then took off his clothes and put on those who belonged to one of the kidnappers. Another one of his subordinates did the same.
They made their way toward the retrieval point. Along the way, Simon fired some shots in the air to make it seem like there was fighting going on. The gunmen guarding the trucks were confused to see two of theirrades, both injured and bleeding, one leaning on the other while firing at the alley they emerged from.
Several shots came from the alley as well signaling that someone was chasing after them.
Two of the guards rushed past the injured ones and went to take care of their pursuers. Four remained to guard the trucks, but only one of them went to help the wounded. The others remained on guard the whole time as if they noticed something was off.
"Hey! How did you end up li-"
His words were cut short when the shooting suddenly intensified. The two that went to take care of the troublemakers found themselves facing a storm of bullets that turned them into Swiss cheese and those who saw it happen were taken off guard.
The terrible seen caused the guards to flinch and that bought Simon the moment he needed. Letting go of his subordinate, he kicked the ground and closed the distance between him and one of the guards, leaving him no time to react to the knife heading for his neck.
The remaining three turned their guns toward him but Simon used the body of the first one as a shield, pushing toward the second and shing his neck.
The kids in the trucks cried at the sound of gunfire. Simon dropped his meatshield and took cover behind one of the trucks. The remaining kidnappers chased after him, clearly having forgotten about the other guy who came with him. The gangster fired his rifle while doing his best to aim at their legs.
The kidnappers were stunned for a moment, but before they could snap out of it one of them took a boot to the face and his head spun in an unnatural direction. The second one tried to react, but by the time he raised his gun, a de had already passed through his neck drawing a red arc with his blood.
"That was thest of them," Simon said. "Go check the driver seat."
The gangster went to do as he said while Simon approached the rear doors. He waited for a couple of seconds and reached for the handle, but the moment he touched it the doors swung open mming him back and he fell on the ground. One more gunman appeared from the cargo hold, this one armed with a shotgun which he aimed at Simon the moment he jumped down from the truck.
Thest one was more troublesome than the others, seeing that he waited inside while his aplices were being ughtered. He walked confidently toward the copsed Simon and took out the handgun strapped to his side. Instead of shooting at him he turned to the left and aimed at the gangster who had just returned, shooting him multiple times before he could even react.
Seeing him copse, he turned to the other one on the ground and prepared his shotgun.
"Guess the folks around here aren''t all pushovers," The kidnapper said. "Don''t take it personally. We''re just doing our job."
"You aren''t¡ very smart, are you?" Simon said. "You think the Resistance will let you go?"
"If you were so sure then you shouldn''t have tried to stop us. Well, I''m getting paid as long as the trucks make it back. What happ-"
Blood sttered and the kidnapper fell to the ground. Simon pushed the corpse off of him and removed his mask. He had just survived a very bad situation, but the look on his face showed he wasn''t that pleased.
"I see your skills haven''t dulled." Came a feminine voice.
"Same for you." Simon replied. "Your steps are as quiet as ever."
The one who had just saved him wasn''t someone he had expected to see, or rather, he wished they wouldn''t meet. Sara checked her ammunition and adjusted the gun in her hand. A long silencer extended from its barrel, which exined theck of sound when she fired it just now.
The reporter was strangely calm as she lighted a cigarette. Simon was tempted to do the same, but he chose not to. Smoking could wait until his job.
There were two more kidnappers hiding in the remaining trucks. One of them tried to drive off but was shot in the head by Sara. The other took one of the children and suffered the same fate.
Once all the kidnappers were taken care of, Simon called for his subordinates and tasked them with taking care of the children. The one who helped him get close to the trucks was safe as well thanks to the bulletproof vests they stole from the gunmen.
Simon was about to approach Sara intending to discuss what was happening with her, but at that moment one of the gangsters came running to him with a phone, a disturbed look on his face.
"Boss! It''s Antony!" He shouted. "They got him and his wife!!!"
Chapter 371: Where is your anger?
Rollo was frozen still, his eyes widening as the scenery in front of him changed like a slideshow. He only realized what was happening when it all stopped. In less than a minute, they had teleported several times.
The area around them seemed more random than he expected. There was a barricade in front of them and nothing else. Not even one or two guards to keep watch.
"We''re here."
Ingrid''s voice snapped him out of his daze, but that led to blood draining from his face making him extremely pale. He had already known that she was a Nephilim, but hearing her say it out loud was quite the shock.
"What''s wrong?" The dark-haired girl approached him with a look of concern, bringing her face close to his. "Did you get teleportation sickness?"
"I-I-I-" Rollo took a step back, feeling that his heart was about to stop, but the alien girl didn''t seem to care, closing the distance between them once more with a smirk on her face.
"Oh, right, there is no such thing as teleportation sickness." She said. "You''re just scared."
Rollo wanted to retort. He wanted to say he had every reason to be scared. After all, he was brought to a random ce in the middle of nowhere, and by a Nephilim nheless. How could he not be frightened?
"I won''t eat you, you know." Pausing for a moment, she looked him up and down. "Or maybe¡"
Seeing the Nephilim lick her lips, danger bells began ringing in Rollo''s head. He wasn''t so innocent that the real meaning would go over his head, and like every healthy teenager he had at least fantasized about doing it with a Valkyrie once. But not like this. He never expected it to happen outside his hormone-powered imagination, let alone that a Nephilim would show any interest in him.
"Seriously, Ingrid," A voice came to save him at the right moment. "Stop joking like that. He might think you''ll actually eat him."
It was Juni who had just teleported a few meters ago. Despite nning to depart together, she seemed to arrive a few seconds after the other two.
"Who said I''m joking." Sliding to his side, the Nephilim wrapped her arms around his right.
There was a moment of silence, then the Valkyrie''s face turned red.
"O-oh, y-you meant it that way¡"
Rollo was a hair''s breadth from passing out. He didn''t know what to expect from an alien from another dimension, but the delicate softness pressed against him far exceeded that of any girl he knew, and that threw his thoughts into chaos.
"How about it, darling?" Said Ingrid. "I can convince them to let me have you for the night. Don''t you want to have some fun before you''re locked in a cell?"
[Ingrid, Mr. Romanoffis a minor. Do you want to get convicted of sexual assault?]
At some point, a holographic screen appeared near the barricades. On it, a green-haired girl was looking in their direction withplete indifference. Despite the sses she wore, her beauty couldn''t be understated. That alone was proof of her being a Valkyrie, or maybe a Nephilim. It was impossible to tell considering they are technically one and the same.
"I was just messing around," With an annoyed grumble, Ingrid finally let go of the boy''s arm. "No need to get so worked up."
[I see. If that''s the case, I''m sure Tove will understand.]
The simple mention of the name caused Ingrid to twitch. Noticing that, Rollo turned around to check only to see that she was as pale as a ghost.
[She should be there to pick you pick you up any moment now. Please wait patiently.]
"Wait! Just lift the barrier and let us in! No need to send a-"
[Ingrid, just to be clear, Her Highness will decide your punishmentter on. Don''t think your transgression will be overlooked.]
"Wha- hold on, Mimir!!! I-"
Not giving her the chance to plead her case, the transmission was cut. The silence of the night enveloped the road for a while. Rollo didn''t dare say anything and pretended not to exist, but fortunately, there was someone else there to offer ament.
"Ms. Tove is going to be really angry."
Juni gave her friend a look of pity, but Ingrid was too far gone to even react.
~[ ]~
Freezing cold water brought Ryan back from the depth of unconsciousness. His body jerked once and his head moved frantically as he tried to get a grasp on his surroundings, and once the blurriness faded, what he saw sent his blood boiling.
His surroundings made it clear he was in the kitchen, and sitting across from him was Natasha, his wife. She was tied to one of their wooden chairs, a thick rope wrapped around her arms and legs. Instinctively, Ryan tried to rush to his wife''s side.
It was a futile attempt as one look at himself was enough to make him realize he was in the same state, then there was the sharp pain on the back of his head.
"Na-"
[¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö-]
"Huh?"
A strange, iprehensible voice halted histhoughts. Ryan looked around trying to locate its source, and in the process of doing so he noticed several cloaked figures standing in the corners of the room.
[¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö-]
The voice spoke again, its words still mingled gibberish. Despite being on high alert, Ryan was still unable to deduce its source.
"Oh, I see you''re awake."
Another voice drew his attention to the entrance. It was rough and sounded a bit broken, the product of a voice changer much like the ones used in movies and TV shows. The mask worn by the speaker, which was whitepared to the ck ones worn by the others, was responsible for the distortion, there was no doubt about that.
"You!!? What did you do to-" Sharp pain halted Ryan''s outburst before it could take off. "What did you¡ what did you do to her!!?"
"Just a bit of sedative. She wouldn''t stop crying, you see." The masked man, as indicated by his tall stature and wide shoulders, walked toward him with unhurried steps. "This is a rather peaceful neighborhood. It would be troublesome if anyone outside heard her."
For a moment Ryan considered yelling with everything he got, but then he realized it would only lead to him getting knocked out again.
[¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö-]
The strange voice whispered to him again, but he still couldn''t locate its source. He was starting to believe he was hallucinating. Everything from Natasha''s dull expression to the strangers in masks and cloaks to the strange voices in his head; all of it sounded like a particrly nasty nightmare. Nevertheless, the pain he felt took away the hope of it all ending with him waking up in bed.
He was left with no choice but to ept reality, and by doing so he took the first step in trying to free himself and saving his wife.
"What¡ what do you want?" He asked. "You can take anything, just don''t touch my wife and child¡"
"Great response." The white mask said. "I see that you care quite a bit about your family."
The robotic voice was calm and easygoing, showing ack of care for what was happening. Ryan got a bad feeling about it, and that led to panic returning as he failed to find any opening to free himself.
"Family is a great thing, Ryan." The white mask spoke again. "Blood connections are the strongest bond a human has, and the support they bring is what helps many of us go through life."
Grabbing a chair, he dragged it to the center of the room and sat down facing Ryan. He remained silent for a few seconds, and the next time he spoke the broken voice sounded a lot more serious.
"I had a family as well. A wife and two sons. You could say Randy was family as well. We got along even though I was more of a cat person." The man let his head hand down and heaved a sigh. "My brothers¡ we didn''t talk for years at a time. Everyone was busy with their lives.
They also had families of their own to take care of. Thest time I saw them was at our dad''s funeral." He raised his head and seemed to look Ryan in the eyes, though it was difficult to tell with the white mask covering his face. "I''m sure you can guess what happened to them, Ryan. After all, you and I are the same."
[¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö]
Ryan understood without the man having to say it. He was a survivor of the war, and all of them had one thing inmon. They all had someone dear to them taken by the Cmities, forcing them to live with a gaping hole in their hearts. Some couldn''t keep going and chose to follow those who lost, others went on living, choosing to hold on to the hope that everything will be better in the future.
Then there were those who persevered with nothing but the desire for vengeance, choosing to fill the hole with unfathomable hate for those who took away what they cherished.
"Ryan, you lost people too." The white mask held his hands and stared at his palms. "You lost more than anyone. Everyone you ever knew from the old world was killed. Your parents, your brother and sisters, your friends, your girlfriend. All of them were killed by those aliens, yet¡" Pausing for a moment, the man sighed.
"Yet here you are, acting all friendly with one of them, even going as far as to name your child after her."
Ryan''s eyes slowly widened. Many things went through his head, but even through the chaos he was able to understand a few things. Those people know a lot about him, whether it''s his life before the Cmities or ever since. They know about his job, and they know about his rtionship with Eleven, and about the meeting they had that day.
They knew about him asking permission to name his daughter after her. Ryan didn''t know how they obtained that information, but the fact that they had it showed their visit had been nned long ago.
"Tell me, Ryan." The white mask spoke again, his voice trembling with restrained rage. "Where is your anger?"
Ryan only stared at the man, eyes still wide open. After a few seconds, he replied in a hoarse voice.
"You¡ you''re one of them. The anti-Valkyrie terrorists."
"That''s what they always called everyone who resist the world''s dominant power, even in the old world." Standing up, he pierced the Producer with a sharp re. "We refuse to ept those alien scum, and we will never ept them living among us. Even if we are mere humans, we will continue to fight them until the very end." Turning his back to him, he held up a hand as if to give a signal.
"We are Jotunn, the true Resistance. Traitors like you have no ce in our world, and the time for forgiveness had long since passed."
With unhurried steps, he walked toward the entrance. At the same time, one of the ck masks came forward. He made his way to the unconscious Natasha, and from under his arm he pulled a most vicious object.
[¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö]
Ryan could only watch as the masked intruder pressed the barrel against his wife''s dark brown hair. The world around him lost color, and everything seemed to distort into much simpler frames. The sound was gone so he couldn''t even hear his own screams. He might''ve tried to free himself, but no amount of force freed him from his restraints.
[¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö]
Everything turned into chaotic lines and scribbles. For a moment he believed his wife was looking at him, her sweet smile bringing relief to his heat. The next moment light shot out of the ck object the masked intruder was holding.
It entered her head from the left and exited from the right, and following it were flowers of crimson, each one blooming brilliantly, their color contrasting the monochrome of the canvas.
[¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö]
The crimson color continued to spread, seeping from the flowers and painting everything red. Before he knew it, that was all there is in Ryan''s head. His wife was gone, and so was his daughter. They were both dead, just like his mother and father.
Once again he could only watch as his loved ones were killed mercilessly. The pain he buried came back all at once, and what the man with the white mask said helped ignite his darkest desires.
[¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö]
As Ryan silently gazed upon the lifeless corpse of his beloved wife, her killer walked toward him with unhurried steps. Standing to his right, he pressed the gun barrel against his head. He was about to press the trigger, but something odd distracted him from doing so. At first, he believed it to be his imagination, but then it appeared once more, then again and again.
Specs of light, red like the fireworks scattering throughout the darkness of a clear summer night. At first, there was only one or two, then more and more started showing, and before long they simply stopped disappearing, each one merging with the others to createplex crooked symbols as they lined up to create a full circle.
Recognizing the shapes, the masked intruder panicked and tried to finish the job. Before he could, however, a strong pressure came down and pressed against him, and the next instant his entire body exploded.
The same happened with the other masked intruders. One by one, they all exploded, their blood and guts sttering all over the furniture and walls. Hearing themotion, their leader came back.
He watched in horror as thest of his subordinates disappeared into a cloud of red mist, and by the time he identified the perpetrator, a pair of eyes turned to stare in his direction, the untamed madness contained within them screaming that his turn was next.
Chapter 372: Dont get any ideas.
A carpet of red and gold filled Rollo''s field of vision. His eyes were cast down, the nervousness he felt prevented him from looking up. The boy knew his life was over when a Valkyrie showed up at his house, but what he didn''t expect was to be brought in front of their boss right away.
As the silence lingered, the boy couldn''t help but nce at the man sitting across from him. He regretted doing so right away. Sam Sanderson, the newly appointed Head General, was looking at him with a face thatcked emotion, though the darkness in his pupils informed the boy of the anger restrained inside. As if that wasn''t enough, the entire room was full of Valkyries.
''This is¡ this is much worse than I thought¡''
Though Rollo had an idea for as to why he was taken in by the upper echelons of the Resistance, he was unaware of the true reason that earned him the Head General''s ire.
Sam was indeed seething with anger, but the reason had nothing to do with the boy.
''Damn it¡''
He was doing his best to restrain his emotions but that barely worked. A few minutes earlier, he decided to let loose and have some fun with Zero Five. They did it in the bath once then moved to the bed intending to go at it for the whole night. It was then that he received a call from Nana informing him of an important matter that needed his attention.
He tried to leave it for another time, but his secretary insisted that he show up right away.
Among the things Sam hated the most, having to stop before he''spletely satisfied ranked pretty high. Worst of all, the reason he got interrupted turned out to be not that urgent. It wasn''t that Nana made a mistake; the matter concerning the boy was indeed of utmost importance, but it could''ve waited for the next day.
If she had understood that much he wouldn''t have had to leave his business unfinished and his mood wouldn''t have turned for the worse. Now he was feeling even more frustrated than before, and as his anger continued to boil, Sam decided that he would teach her not to interrupt his fun.
ncing at the silver haired Valkyrie, Sam heaved a sigh and calmed his nerves. After a few seconds he returned his eyes to the boy sitting across from him.
"Nino." He called.
The Japanese doll stepped forward and bowed slightly.
"Is it him?"
"Yes, Doctor." She replied. "There is no doubt about it."
"I see¡"
The silence returned, but it didn''tst for very long.
"Rollo Romanoff." The Head General spoke. "Son of Daria and Boris Romanoff."
The boy gulped audibly.
"Do you know why we brought you here?"
"... I¡ I do not know, sir..."
Obviously he wasn''t going to admit to anything right from the start. There is always the chance to that they didn''t have anything to use against him and if he fell for their intimidation he would only be digging his own grave. Unfortunately for him, that would remain nothing more than siwhful thinking.
"Several ounts of cyber crimes, including theundering of stolen funds, hacking into Government faculties, hacking into satellites, hacking into the Resistance bases and headquarters. Just a week ago you attempted to hack into the forty sixth base. And you''re quite good at hiding your tracks. I believed it would take us more time to catch you, but to think it happened this fast."
Rollo didn''t say anything in return, opting to keep his head lowered.
"One thing for sure, I never expected you to be this young."
That was a lie.
Sam sighed and looked at the boy again. It was true that he didmit quite a few cyber crimes, but his arrest had nothing to do with crimes hemitted so far. Nothing he did warranted the attention of someone in Sam''s position, but that was only when it came to the past. The future, on the other hand, was a different case.
''So that''s him¡''
Curly ck hair, pale white skin, dark brown eyes. Cloths that had been worn out by the constant washing and a pair of sses with a frame that had been glued back together multiple times. His appearance matched the earliest description they could get of him.
Nino had spent most of her time looking through the Tapestry of Fate, trying to understand the divergences that awaited them and to choose the most optimal Path to take. By doing so she was able to learn of the many events that influenced their potential futures and the people who had an impactrge enough to pose a danger to them. One of those people was Rollo Romanoff.
''But seriously, how in the world did this happen?''
Sam''s previous anger slowly faded, making ce for wonder and confusion. With the current state of the world, tracking a specific individual was quite difficult, especially if that individual was trying to remain undetected.
The relevant governing bodies did their best to register all the refugees that came to the settlements, but with no way to confirm their identities, those who wanted to stay under the radar had more than one way to do so.
It wasn''t that long since Nino informed them about Rollo Romanoff, but ever since they had tried to find him only to fail every time. The only reason they knew about him and the crimes hemitted was through the reports they gathered in the future, but those reports didn''t contain any of the specifics, making it impossible to find him.
With that considered, the fact that Juni just so happened toe across him during an unnned visit to the First Settlement felt quite suspicious.
''Is Fate messing with us again?''
"Um¡ can I say something?"
Being under the watchful eyes of so many powerful people was messing with Rollo''s nerves, but even then he still managed to gather the courage to raise his hand and ask for permission to speak.
"Go ahead." Sam was quite interested in what the boy had to say.
Taking a deep breath, Rollo took hold of his emotions and forcefully calmed himself down. He entered a state of focus simr to when he''s engrossed in his hobby, even though there were noputers in sight. Sam noticed the change right away and upped his guard.
It was as if the air around the boy suddenly changed, turning him into a person different from the nervous kid that was sitting there a few seconds ago.
Opening his eyes, Rollo looked directly at the Head General sitting across from him.
"I operated alone the entire time and never had any partners." He said, his voice calm and steady. "The children that lived with me had nothing to do with any of the illegal activities I was involved in."
Silence returned to the room. Sam didn''t understand what the boy was trying to say, but that didn''tst for long.
"Are you trying to protect your aplices?" He feigned a hint of annoyance, trying to probe the boy for a reaction.
"I have no aplices." Rollo shook his head. "I work alone. The other kids know nothing about what I did."
Though it wasn''tpletely true, he wasn''t telling a lie either. The other kids could barely read so most of what he did with hisputer looked like magecraft to them.
"Other kids?" Sam turned to Nana with a questioning look.
The silver haired Valkyrie adjusted her sses and answered his question.
"ording to Juni and Ingrid, he has been hiding in the slums of the old city among other orphans that lived there."
"Orphans, huh¡"
Suddenly, Sam got a really bad feeling.
"There seem to be some problems with the social services in most settlements." Nana added. "We haveunched investigations into the matter, but it will take some time for them to show results."
Corruption went unchecked due to the constant threat of Cmities, but now that the war was over and a new government is being set, none of that would be tolerated anymore. Still, weeding out the bad actors was going to take some time. Aware of what the potential futures held for them, Sam connected the dots and came to an upsetting conclusion.
"For the time being, give him a room and keep a close eye on him."
Sam gave some instructions and stood up to leave. Though his emotions were still under control and his expression remained neutral, Rollo was able to sense that something was wrong.
"Um¡ do I get a phone call?" This time he couldn''t hide his nervousness, causing his voice to die out at the end.
"This isn''t a movie, kid." The Head General replied. "Keep your head down and follow instructions, less you want to spend the rest of your life in a cell."
Sam spared the boy one more look before Exiting the room. He silently walked down the hallway, his secretary and personal Valkyries following after him. He only spoke once they were about to reach the elevator.
"Nino, check the Paths once more." He said, urgency clear in his voice. "Nana, Send someone to check on those orphans. Have Juni and Ingrid take them there."
Nana looked confused for a moment, but then her eyes widened in realization. She nced in Nino''s direction as if asking to confirm her guess, and from the Japanese doll''s expression she realized they were thinking the same thing. The two of them teleported right away, each going to take care of their own task.
Sam turned to Ichigo next.
"Use your ability on the boy. Don''t let him out of your field until I tell you otherwise."
"U-understood!"
Watching her depart, the bad feeling Sam felt only got stronger. Even when he was making the right countermeasures, something told him that it won''t matter all that much.
His mind went back to the boy, Rollo Romanof. His name came up many times in Nino''s reports on the divergences that could potentially ruin their future. In one of the paths he hacks the forty sixth base and releases its secrets to the public, in another he ys a vital role in Nataniel Carter''s rise to power and the civil war between the Valkyries and the humans.
In one potential future, the boy would grow up to be a scientist that rivals Sam and Elina, creating weapons that put mundane humans on the same ying field as the Awakened. But the future that concerned Sam the most was one destined to happen very early on if they made no effort to prevent it.
With the Primordial''s visit approaching, it was only a matter of time before the first Fallen makes its appearance. Trying to stop that from happening was like ying an impossible game of whack-a-mole; whenever they try and iste one of those destined to be the first to contract Madness, a different Path would open and someone else would take their ce, leading to the same result.
Rollo was among those destined to be the first to contract Madness. In those Paths, something happened to the boy leading to the infection, and the destruction he caused made it impossible to investigate what led to his rampage.
''He is barely fifteen¡'' Sam grimaced.
Madness is fueled by the negative emotions in the human heart, which make the Fallen act on their darkest desires, even the ones buried so deep that people never know they existed. Sam didn''t understand why a boy of such a young age wished for death and destruction, but the instant he heard about the orphans living in the slums, he felt like he had an idea of what might be the trigger.
With the boy in their custody they no longer had to fear the disaster he was fated to cause, but that didn''t mean they could just ignore the reason of his rampage.
~[ ]~
Panic hit Rollo like a sludge hammer. He didn''t want to believe it, but something clearly happened to Kai and the others.
''I need to get-''
"Don''t get any ideas, kid." Came a voice from behind him, and a hand fell on his shoulder.
Rollo instinctively turned around to look at its owner, and the moment their eyes met he felt the shivers run down his spine. She was a Valkyrie, of course, but unlike the kind and energetic Juni this one was like a hungry beast. A beast that would shred him to pieced the moment he made the wrong move.
"Just follow the orders and everything will be fine."
Chapter 373: Citrus Ice Cream.
The clear sky of a calm summer night was always a great opportunity to gaze at the stars. The settlements that emerged from the rubble weren''t much different from the cities of the old world, however the level of light pollution wasn''t as bad, allowing anyone to watch the constetions from anywhere they want.
Sadly, the past few days didn''t allow for such an activity. A veil had been cast on the entire, one that painted the sky an ominous shade of red. One couldn''t bear looking at it during the day but the night was even worse. The moon looked especially terrifying, its timeless beauty taking on a dark, malevolent undertone.
Superstition ran rampant throughout the reign of the Cmities. Followed by migrating angels and a bloody sky, the tormented remnants of the human civilization took those as yet another sign. The end was approaching and nothing stoke the fires of that rumor more than the news of a descending god.
Time was short and called for drastic measures, not only from those in charge but those who oppose them as well. Each faction was on the move preparing for the world toe, but all they did was steer the resting chaos, slowly driving themselves toward the end they loathed so much.
Under the ethereal glow of the crimson moon, a single man walked down an empty street. His clothes were a mess and so was his hair, blood covered them both yet he had no wound from which it could''ve leaked. His steps were slow and he swayed from time to time, but he kept on walking, moving closer to the city that has yet to sleep.
The silence of the night was chased away by the ring sirens of speeding police cars. The first among them just so happened to be the captain and he saw the man from a distance away. Sliding to a stop and almost causing the others to crash, the shocked captain jumped out of his vehicle and immediately rushed after the man.
"You there! Stop where you are!"
The captain, a middle aged man with a hanging belly and receding hairline, carefully approached the suspicious individual with a hand ced on his holstered gun. The station had just received several calls about a violent incident, one of which described some rather disturbing scenes.
The bloodied man in front of them was without a doubt rted. He might''ve been an escaping survivor, but for some reason, every officer at the scene was convinced that he was the perpetrator. They quickly surrounded him with weapons drawn, each one preparing to shoot him full of bullets the instant he made a sudden move.
The man came to a stop. The captain continued shouting instructions at him however he didn''t seem to pay them any mind and resumed walking at the same pace.
The whole scene crept the officers quite a bit and the crimson moon above them only made things worse. The surrounding darkness yed with their minds, and despite the suspect''s slow steps, the captain ced his finger on the trigger, having tricked himself into believing the bloodied man was running away. At that exact moment, someone ced his hand on his shoulder.
Thinking it was one of his subordinates trying to stop him, the captain came back to his senses. He was about to thank whoever they were for saving him from making a disastrous mistake, but when he turned around all he saw were the slender shoulders, a severed neck being the only thing between them.
The area was suddenly enveloped in a deafening silence. The captain was static, not knowing how to react. A red glow drew his attention and his eyes unintentionally moved upward, but what he saw wasn''t the crimson moon that followed them on the road so far. Arge ring floated right before him, its color an ominous deep red.
The instant heid his eyes on it his head became ovee with piercing pain.
The surrounding darkness grew more oppressive and the pain became unbearable, but then it suddenly disappeared and with it went everything else. The other officers watched in disbelief as the head of their captain popped like a water filled balloon, and when the rest of his body fell to the ground they found themselves looking at the still standing headless corpse.
Spurred by iprehensible terror, the officers turned their weapons to the headless monstrosity. It looked like the decapitated body of a woman, its upper half covered in freshly spilled blood. One of them gritted his teeth and was about to pull the trigger only to stop when he saw another crimson ring floating in the darkness. A third one appeared nearby, and a fourth one followed suit.
Without making a sound, more decapitated bodies walked out into the light. Men, women and children. Their ages, genders and sizes varied, but they were all missing something important, the glowing red halos floating over them serving to highlight the absurdity of the sight.
The officers were frozen cold. They were all survivors who lived through the decade long war. They witnessed horrors that could wipe entire cities out and bonded over the experience, but nothing could''ve prepared them for what they encountered that night.
~[ ]~
Peeking her head into the room, Twenty Two looked around until she spotted the familiar light blue hair. She hesitated for a moment then gathered her courage. ncing at the bowl in her hands, she nodded to herself and pushed the door open.
"E~lly~" With the brightest smile she could muster, Twenty Two approached her blue haired friend. "Guess what I found in one of the shops~! It''s your favorite citrus ice-"
The words suddenly got caught in her throat. Thinking her friend was feeling down after everything that happened a few hours ago, the idol went around looking for something to help cheer her up.
Her search didn''tst long thanks to the hotel having all the luxuries one could ask for, but when the time came for her to deliver the present she was shocked to see the idea urred to someone other than her.
"Ah, you found it as well, T-Two?" Eleven asked. "It tastes a much better than what we have at the base, don''t you think?"
With a bright smile, the blue haired idol brought a spoon to her mouth. On herp sat a mostly empty bowl, and what little remained in it showed that the contents were no different from the one in Twenty Two''s hands.
Citrus ice cream with sprinkled vani powder and chocte sauce. The treat itself wasn''t so strange, being a favorite of Eleven''s and something she ate whenever her mood sank low. What took her Twenty Two by surprise was her fellow idol''s expression and the look in her eyes.
Eleven seemed rather cheerful for someone who had just gone through a heartbreak. Seeing her smile should''ve alleviated her friend''s worries, but for some reason it led to the opposite instead.
"Elly¡ are you okay?"
Twenty Two realized what a stupid question that was right after asking it.
"HM? What do you mean?" Eleven asked with the spoon still in her mouth.
"I-"
Before she could say another word, the phone in her pocket started ringing. The same went for Eleven''s and the two took them out at the same time. "Let''s go."
Forming her halo in an instant, the blue haired idol vanished from the hotel room.
"Elly wai-"
A faint thud drew Twenty Two''s attention to the mostly empty bowl that just fell to the floor. Something about her friend''s sudden departure felt unsettling, and the fact that she didn''t take the time to finish thest spoonful of her treat only increased the idol''s worries.
"Elly¡"
Chapter 374: Cant you be wrong at least once?
Keven''s eyes snapped open at the feeling of a swaying floor. For a moment he believed it was an earthquake, but one look at his surroundings told him otherwise. Sharp pain assaulted his head, chasing away the sleepiness. Waiting until it faded a little, he looked around again and tried to guess what was happening.
''This is¡ it''s moving?''
That was the only sensation he experienced. He was in pitch-ck darkness, one that didn''t allow him to see his hands when they were in front of his face. It reminded him of the cold winter nights when the power was suddenly lost, leaving them blind until someone brought a shlight.
This time, however, they weren''t in the sealed attic of the abandoned building they called home, and when he patted his pockets he didn''t sense his phone. Thinking he had dropped it somewhere nearby he started feeling around and almost jumped away when his hand brushed against something. The scare stirred his memories and he remembered how he ended up passing out.
The moment that happened he reached for whatever he had just touched and began shaking it.
"Wake up!" He yelled as quietly as he could.
It took a few more attempts before he heard faint murmurs and a deep yawn.
"What''s up¡ so dark¡"
"Keep your voice down!" Keven said, realizing it was Kai from his voice. "Help me wake the others."
After Rollo disappeared with the two Valkyries, the older kids couldn''t bring themselves to sleep. The girls cried some more while the boys discussed what they were going to do if their leader didn''t return. Of course just mentioning the possibility led to a fight, though before any blows were exchanged a they noticed a strange stench in the air.
Next thing they knew they were inside that unfamiliar dark ce.
''Damn it¡'' Keven balled his fists. ''Can''t you be wrong at least once?''
He remembered the warning Rollo had given them the day before. Theirputer-obsessed eldest suspected that there would be a rise in child kidnappings and told them to be careful. As orphans with no one to look after them, they had always been targets so it didn''t sound like anything out of the ordinary, but ording to him, things were going to be different in the future.
Rollo exined that it had to do with the video released by the Resistancetely.
Since it came out that children are the only ones who can gain the powers of Valkyries safely, it was guaranteed that there would be those who would want that power for themselves without having to answer to the Resistance, and what better way to get it than to gather unregistered children who didn''t exist as far as thew was concerned?
"Why''s it so dark?" The trembling voice belonged to Runa. The girl was barely five and couldn''t control her fear. "Rollo?"
Hearing her call his name, Keven felt great pain in his chest. The young ones still didn''t know that their leader was gone, and hearing his name in that situation reminded him how much they relied on him.
"It''s alright." He said, talking to himself more than the others. "Everything is okay¡"
"Keven?" The little one asked when he pulled her into a hug. "Where is Rollo?"
"He went to check the lights." He replied. "Don''t worry, go back to sleep."
It was only then that he began to realize that waking everyone up was a big mistake.
''Damn it¡'' He gritted his teeth. ''I just had to mess up from the start¡''
A couple of minutester silence returned to the dark room, which was a relief that onlysted for a few seconds. Keven realized that everyone falling asleep again might not be such a good idea, but there was nothing he could do about it. Most of them were children below the age of ten.
Staying awake at night wasn''t something they were used to, and the lingering effects of the sleeping gas only made things worse.
"We need to figure out where we are," Keven suggested, doing his best to remain calm.
"How the hell are we going to do that?" Saif, on the other hand, was on the verge of losing it. "I can barely see anything!"
"We''re inside a truck," Kai said. "The road is smooth so it''s already left the old city. We are a little fast so it''s on a highway. Also, it''s either night or we''re outside the settlement."
"Whoa, slow down Sherlock. Where did you get all of that?" Saif asked.
"Whoever got us, they weren''t messing around this time." Kai ignored the question. "Sleeping gas isn''t something an average gang would use to kidnap a bunch of children. They also took our phones and removed our backups."
"You serious?"
Those still awake began searching their clothes, the fear they felt escting as they realized the burner phones they were supposed to keep under them so it would be possible to track them under such a situation.
There were a few seconds of silence before Kai spoke again.
"They also know about our shoes¡"
Just then, Keven seemed to notice that he was barefoot.
"Huh? Wai- what do you mean shoes?"
Kai didn''t answer right away, sighing after a while.
"Rollo hid trackers in the soles of our shoes." He said. "Ever wonder why he taught us to never take them off while outside?"
"I thought he was afraid we would lose them¡"
Keven never even suspected there was such a reason, but he found it easy to believe that their tech-savvy leader would be so thorough. There was always the chance of their backup phones being taken, but no one would suspect a tracker small enough to fit in the soles of their shoes.
"W-what are we going to do now?" Setsuna asked.
"Nothing," Kai replied. "Like I said, whoever caught us, they aren''t messing around."
Even in the darkness of their moving prison, Keven could still feel the mood dropping. Their situation was hopeless, to say the least. Just when they got the news that their future might not be as bleak anymore, their leader was taken away and now the same was happening today.
''If Rollo was here¡'' Frustration burned in Keven''s heart. Even though he was the oldest, he feltpletely inadequate to lead the others. As he wished their older brother was there with them, he suddenly came to the realization.
"Rollo isn''t here¡" Although he couldn''t see their faces, Keven felt their confusion and quickly exined. "Rollo isn''t here with us. He isn''t trapped in a dark ce with no exits!"
Kai was the first to understand.
"But¡ They removed all out trackers¡"
"Rollo will find a way!" Keven said. "If anyone can do it ten it''s Rollo!"
"What are you talking about?" Saif was unconvinced. "The Valkyries took him, remember? There is no way he would be-"
"Exactly!" Keven interjected. "Since he was taken by the Valkyries, that means he''s dealing with some really important people. Once he notices that we''re missing, he can ry the information to the big shots directly!"
"Yeah!" Effy jumped in, sounding quite furious. "Rollo didn''t do anything wrong! The Valkyries will definitively realize that!"
Their words were merely wishful thinking. Still, even the most skeptical among them soon became convinced that Rollo woulde to their rescue. He was always there whenever they got in trouble, and this time wasn''t going to be any different. Even if Valkyries stood in his way, Rollo would find a way.
It was something they all chose to believe in, and that gave them a hope not even the darkness of their prison could extinguish.
Chapter 375: Thats right, old man.
For the first time in her life, Juni finally learned what it meant for silence to be deafening. She had just arrived at the slums of the old city, an entire district of abandoned buildings where no one lived, save for the few orphans she had yed with earlier that day. Something seemed off right away, but she couldn''t get her hands on it right away. Not until her friend arrived.
An instantter, a suffocating pressure fell on the entire area, startling everyone present.
"Ingrid?"
The Nephilim was expressionless, but they all could sense the rage radiating from her body.
"They''re gone¡"
There was no need to search the buildings. One look using their special eyes and it became clear that not a single person was inside, living or otherwise. No less than sixty children took residence in those buildings and now they were all gone.
"Is there a possibility that they moved elsewhere?" A Valkyrie, one whose name she never bothered to learn, asked with a grave expression. She was one of the three assigned to this mission along with Juni and her.
"No, the small ones wouldn''t be able to move at night." Ingrid summoned her halo and floated up. "Someone took them."
The conclusion was an easy one to reach however all it did was fuel her anger. As she began to look around for clues, she happened to catch a glimpse of Juni''s face and the terrified expression she had on. It was like a bucket of cold water was spilled on her head, cooling it down and helping her regain herposure, consequently killing the pressure she subconsciously emitted.
Having calmed down, Ingrid went back to looking for any clues for what happened. It didn''t take long for her to find a few things. Doors left open, their locks clearly broken. Wooden boards snapped in half, nks with holes made by something heavy stepping on the wrong spot. But most importantly, some of the traps set all over were activated.
The orphans living in those buildings weren''t slouches. They were well aware of the danger children like themselves were in and so they came up with clever ways to protect their home. They blocked most passages and left only a few. The only safe one was the secret passage only kids like them could take.
The others were seemingly normal-looking corridors, all of which contained different traps that could easily incapacitate an adult. Looking at the aftermath made it clear that they worked as intended, though it was unclear if those who fell into them were taken out.
"Hm?" Ingrid entered one of the living areas through a window and immediately noticed a strange stench. "Sleeping gas?"
It was a little faint but still lingered despite the open window, which told her it hadn''t been that long since it was used. There were no obvious signs of struggle, which was a little difficult to ascertain considering the chaotic nature of a room where a bunch of unsupervised kids lived.
"Ingrid, did you find something?" Came Juni''s voice from outside.
"Nothing." She said before stepping out. "This doesn''t seem like the work of some sloppy gang."
It has been barely an hour since they went to deliver the boy named Rollo. The culprits couldn''t havee up with their n and executed it in that short time, meaning they were waiting for their opportunity the entire time.
"Call thedy with the sses." Said the Nephilim. "Tell her we might be dealing with the same people responsible for today''s attack."
Ingrid was prepared for a lecture to follow her return to the hotel, expecting her little trip to the human settlement to be the reason. The idea that someone might make an assassination attempt on her queen never even crossed her mind.
The assassin was a normal human who had some exceptional stealth equipment, one that allowed her to bypass the tight security of the hotel as well as the watchful eyes of several Valkyries. In the end, the assassin failed to achieve her goal, but the fact that she got close enough to shoot at one of them was an achievement on its own.
Ingrid had a good reason to believe that the assassination was rted to the children''s disappearance. When they visited the area to retrieve Juni''s phone she happened to scan the entire area multiple times. Back then nothing seemed suspicious, but if there was someone capable of fooling a barrier expert like Sitta then she believed her own eyes wouldn''t have been enough to uncover the perpetrator.
"Should we check with Simon and Sara?" Juni suggested. "Maybe they know something."
"Why would¡ no, you have a point." Ingrid gave the idea more thought then nodded. "It wouldn''t hurt to ask. Maybe they noticed something suspicious as ofte."
Instead of answers the only thing they received upon reaching their destination was more questions. After some search, they found themselves at a hospital full to the brim with injured humans. To Freyja''s children such scenes felt a bit alien, but it wasn''t like they were incapable of empathizing with the suffering that was in front of them.
"This¡ Who could''ve done this?" One of the Valkyries asked.
"We will know soon enough." Said Ingrid. She then turned to one of the rough-looking youths watching them from a distance. "You there, we''re looking for Simon."
It didn''t take a lot of convincing before they were guided to where the gang boss was and what they saw at the destination was further proof of the severity of the situation.
"Antony¡"
On an old hospital bed was the tall bartender. His body, wrapped in white bandages, was strapped to several medical devices. Juni was frozen still when she saw him, her mind not registering the presence of other people in the room. Simon was there and so was Sara along with several others.
"What are you doing here?" Simon asked, his question directed at the Nephilim.
"The big guy sent us to check on the orphans," Ingrid answered. "What in the world happened?"
The young gang leader seemed reluctant to answer so he turned to the reporter silently asking her to do the talking. Sara recounted everything that happened so far while the others listened with grim expressions. She told them about the gunmen that raided the old city and all the kidnappings.
While the ck Panthers were able to stop some of them, they soon found out that the same was happening in several other locations.
"He was shot while trying to get back his daughter." Simon gazed at his bedridden friend and gritted his feet. "We couldn''t make it in time..."
Silence permeated for a couple of minutes as everyone took in the information.
"This is much bigger than we thought¡"
Ingrid found herself struggling to understand the situation despite its rity. Children under the age of fifteen had the highest chance of Awakening safely so it wasn''t so strange that someone would try to kidnap a few.
Obviously one had to be truly foolish to believe that they could get away with it, which is why she was starting to suspect that the purpose wasn''t the kids themselves but something else.
''Am I overthinking it?''
"Ngh¡"
A weak groan drew their attention to the hospital bed where the bartender slept. His injury was quite severe so no one expected him to wake up so soon. After some struggle, he finally opened his eyes and began looking around.
Simon was the first to catch his attention, having been right beside him the entire time, but then he noticed the two alien girls on the other side of his bed and the machines he was plugged into went haywire.
"Good morning, princess. Did you sleep well?" Ingrid asked with a grin.
Antony stared at her for a moment then smiled under his oxygen mask.
"Can''t¡ can''t say I did¡"
"Antony, are you okay?" Juni asked with genuine worry. "You aren''t in pain, are you?"
"I¡ I''m good." His body shook as he tried to push himself up. Simon rushed to his aid, adjusting his pillow to allow him to sit.
"Simon... they¡ they took Callie¡"
The young gang leader hung his head.
"You should rest for now," Sara spoke in an even tone. "Everything will be fine. We will definitely find her."
"That''s right, old man." Ingrid added. "You sit tight while we get your little brat back. I will be expecting some free drinks afterward, ."
Everyone including the bartender were seemed surprised by her deration, their eyes widening as her words gradually set in. It hasn''t been that long since they learned of her being a Nephilim and they didn''t know how to feel about it. They still couldn''t get over the fact that she wasn''t human, and if not for her stunning beauty they would''ve mistaken her for a normal girl.
"Antony." Juni took the bartender''s right hand in both of hers and looked up at him with a serious expression. "We will definitely find the bad guys and get Callie back!"
~[ ]~
"We have received a response frommand." When they went back outside, the supporting Valkyrie was there waiting to inform them of the news. "The order to start the operation has been given."
"... What?" Juni was stunned. "I thought we still had one more day!?"
"Clearly not." Ingrid sighed.
She had a feeling things would proceed in this direction when they discovered what happened in the old city. Many have died and many more were injured, and to top it off, a bunch of children were kidnapped. The conditions were perfect for the influence of Madness to spread.
''Good thing the big guy foresaw this¡''
Among the Valkyries sent to support her and Juni, two of them were Cleansers. They were told to bring with them all the necessary equipment to perform their job, and as soon as they noticed the aftermath of the raid they set up their drones and cast a wide-scale purge.
"May I ask what this operation entails?"
Sara''s question took them off guard. She and Simon had followed them outside intending to join the search for the children.
"That is none of your concern."
As she wasn''t familiar with the reporter, the supporting Valkyrie came out a bit hostile while responding to the question. Ingrid quickly jumped in to cover for her.
"They''re starting the evacuations, that''s all." She said. "It''s not a big deal.
Simon turned to her with a frown.
"Sounds like a big deal to me."
"Let''s just focus on finding the children, okay?"
"I will call Nana and ask her for more help," Juni said and took out her phone.
"Yeah, you do that." Said Ingrid before turning her eyes to the gang leader. "Alright, let''s go check on the guys you captured."
Chapter 376: The wound has yet to heal.
Quick, repetitive taps echoed inside the small space of an elevator. As he red at the digital screen disying floor numbers like the countdown of a bomb, Nathaniel Carter felt his irritation rising. The elevator soon reached the lobby, and when the doors opened he found himself face to face with another one the council members.
"General Carter¡" The look on the woman''s face betrayed her anxiousness.
"General Walsh." Nathaniel smiled, his previous irritation seemingly gone.
Father time was especially harsh on Rosita Walsh. Wrinkles littered her face and white took over her hair if she went too long without dyeing it. Looking at her, one couldn''t believe she was still in her forties.
Nathaniel felt pity every time he met the woman. Being responsible for the First Settlement was a constant source of stress, and though she did her best, some things were just too much.
''I guess the news has already reached her¡''
The two stared each other in the eyes before the woman looked away, her jaw tightening a little. Nathaniel held back a scoff and walked past her. Their bodyguards kept a short distance as they followed behind them.
"I hear Head General Sanderson is up to something."
"Y-yes, he¡" She contemted his words for a couple of seconds before replying. "Something must''ve happened. He... he is moving the schedule forward."
''So you aren''t going to mention it?'' The corners of Nathaniel''s mouth twitched. ''Rude, but understandable.''
"So much for peace¡" He feigned annoyance with a sigh. "The youngster might be a brilliant scientist, but he barely knows anything about leadership. He could''ve relied on our help, shared more details with us. Instead, he treats us like henchmen."
Though the Council had several meetings since the sky turned red, most of them boiled down to the new Head General issuing demands and giving out orders. He listened to their opinions when they voiced them, but he never cared to consider them when making his decisions.
"The scope has changed." Said Rosita. "I doubt any of us are equipped to handle inter-dimensional politics."
"Inter-dimensional or not,it is insulting that he insists on keeping us in the dark. He treats us like civilians, unless there is unimportant work that needs delegation, of course."
"Is that so..."
Nathaniel raised an eyebrow at the woman walking beside him, prompting her to borate.
"These matters with the aliens and Primordials, it is too much to take in. We are no longer in the old world. Our expertise is worth nothing to a bunch that could wipe out cities with a wave of their hands."
The Generals ruled over humanity until a week ago. Now they were nothing more than servants, only existing to carry out the order of a new ruler. Nathaniel knew he wasn''t the only one who feels negatively about the turn of events, though he suspected the others had already given up on reiming their power.
''No matter. It is all within the n.''
They soon arrived at the entrance and went outside. The reports that came informed them of what was taking ce, but the scene that met them still managed to freeze them with shock. Row after row, nothing but beautiful women dressed in pristine uniforms. Their expressions remained stoic as they stood for attention facing the one leading them.
At the very front, on a slightly elevated podium, A woman whose crimson hair stole the gaze of anyone who so much as nced in her direction stood firmly. Her voice thundered across the za, sending chills through anyone listening.
Neither of the two generals managed to catch a word from what she said, though. Both their minds nked at the sight of an army of Nephilim. For an instant, they thought they were just mistaken and that said Nephilim were, in fact, Valkyries, but a single look at their uniforms disproved that.
"What in the world¡"
They looked around once more trying to make sense of what was happening. A familiar face caught Nathaniel''s sights and she seemed to notice his presence as well. As he pondered whether to approach her first, she seemed to end the conversation she was engaged in and was about to walk in their direction. The next instant she appeared right beside them.
"General Carter. General Walsh. May I ask what you are doing here?"
Nana questioned them with an even tone. Her irritation was clear to Nathaniel, though. She didn''t want them there, and if that was the case then her boss had no interest in meeting them at the moment. Of course, Nathaniel wasn''t about to take any of that.
"Where is the Head General?" His eyebrows arched down at a steep angle. "I don''t remember hearing about any of this."
The Valkyrie stared back at him in silence. Adjusting her slim sses, she let out a soft sigh then turned a much colder gaze in their direction.
"As I remember, the Head General made it clear that he will discuss his actions with the council only if he deems it necessary."
The implications were clear, though neither Nathaniel nor Rosita could''ve predicted that the silver haired Valkyrie toe out and say it right to their faces.
"These are¡ enemybatants." Nathaniel said. "He brings an army to our door and he doesn''t even bother to inform us first? That''s overstepping his authority!"
The Valkyrie stared at them for a moment, a little perplexed, then sighed.
"You are a smart man, General Carter. You are smart to have realized it by now." She said, her gaze forcefully causing the temperature to drop several degrees. "This matter does not require your input, and thus, we have no obligation to inform you of anything."
"Alright, that''s enough, Nana."
Everyone turned to the right where they saw a man in ab coat walking toward them, followed by two more Valkyries.
"Head General Sanderson." Nathaniel, still petrified by the words of the silver haired Valkyrie, was a bit slow to react when he saw the Doctor.
"What do you want, General Carter? I''m sure you can see we don''t have the time."
His tone caused something to snap inside Nathaniel''s head, but the former Head General was able to control his reaction, showing only the slightest of frowns.
"Head General, I''m not sure if you forgot already, but the Nephilim were our enemies until just yesterday."
"Get to the point, General. I have got ces to be." The Doctor sighed.
"The wound has yet to heal. Bringing an army of them will only cause panic among the civilians."
"You don''t say¡" Heaving another sigh, the Doctor shook his head. "We are already past way that, General Carter." Pausing for a moment, he turned his eyes to Rosita next. "General Walsh, I have received some concerning news about your Settlement."
Rosita went a few shades paler. Nathaniel watched her age a couple more years in front of him, feigning confusion as he waited for her to answer. He then turned to the Doctor and was about to ask the question only to be met with a dark gaze.
"General Carter, have you ever heard of Jotunn?"
Chapter 377: What are you?
"General Carter, have you ever heard of the Jotunn?"
Nathaniel''s mind nked out for a moment. His extensive experience as a politician and military leader allowed him to mask his expression perfectly. Nevertheless, the gaze directed at him by the man in ab coat suggested that his efforts were futile.
"The Ice Giants from Norse mythology?" He said, feeling cold ws slowly tightening around. "Don''t tell me we have new aliens to deal with¡"
The scientist remained silent, his expression betraying no emotion. After a few tense seconds, his eyes moved to Rosita Walsh, petrifying her entirely.
"I assume the news has already reached you."
Rosita''s mouth pped a few times. Whatever words she was about to say came out as unintelligible groans, shattering whatever dignity she had as one of the highest-ranking military officers in the world. Sam Sanderson sighed, though it was unclear whether it was out of annoyance or sympathy for the female General''s pathetic state.
"May I ask what news you are referring to?" Nathaniel asked, feigning ignorance.
"Terrorists, General Carter." Said the scientist, his voice showing a hint of true emotions for the first time. "Vile, worthless scum who sought to take advantage of the chaos we''re facing."
"Jesus¡"
Nathaniel widened his eyes, though only acting in part. He turned to Rosita who seemed to have shrunk beside him. Her eyes fell to the paved ground, shame keeping her head down. He shifted back to the Head General trying to gauge his reaction. To his shock, their eyes met at that moment, causing the ws gripping his heart to tighten once more.
"Do we know their aims?"
The question was delivered naturally, even with the pain piercing his chest. Nathaniel started to suspect something was wrong with his heart. It didn''te as a surprise; after everything he went through in the past ten years, he suspected it was only a matter of time before the stress caught up to him. That didn''t make it any less dire, though.
"That is irrelevant." Said the scientist. "I have already taken the matter into my own hands. It will be over before the next sunrise."
Once again, Nathaniel''s eyes shot open, this time oveing his control to show his genuine emotions. Rosita looked up with a start, her shock more than apparent. The scientist turned away from them and addressed a Valkyrie that was waiting by the sides.
For some reason, his voice didn''t reach the two Generals even though he was standing a few feet away, almost as if everything in his direction was muted.
The two generals waited patiently for him to be done. Once he turned to face them again, Nathaniel brought forward the question he was waiting to ask.
"Head General Sanderson, correct me if I''m mistaken, but¡ you don''t n on using the Nephilim to deal with the terrorist matter, do you?"
"Of course not," Sanderson replied. "The Nephilim are here to defend against the Primordial."
"... I''m not sure I follow¡"
"Well, since some morons decided to steer up trouble, we lost what little time we had for the evacuations." The scientist began fiddling with his tablet as he spoke. "Our only choice is to spread the Cleansers over the entire settlements. Of course, since we have a much wider area to cover, the number of escorts needed quadrupled. Things are going to get messy so I suggest you go back to your rooms."
The exnation was clear and the two Generals heard every word. Even then they still failed to grasp what the scientist was talking about. Time was limited from the beginning. ns that would''ve taken months or even years to execute had to be implemented in a week.
The public wasn''t even given the time to process what was happening properly, but now they were being told they no longer had the day they put aside for the evacuation.
"The Primordial¡ it''s already here?" Rosita muttered.
Her words snapped Nathaniel out of his daze.
"It can''t be¡"
"It sure can," Sanderson replied. "Now, I would much appreciate it if you returned to your rooms. The hotel is safe so you don''t have to worry about losing your sanity."
And just like that, the scientist walked away, paying them no mind as he went around talking to the Valkyries and Nephilim.
"Sir, should we return to the suit?" One of the bodyguards stepped forward to ask. Having listened to the conversation, he was quite stressed, and being in the presence of so many aliens wasn''t doing him any good. He expected his employer to be the same but to his surprise he found the old man smiling.
~[ ]~
''This is¡ really bad¡''
When the Valkyries took him away, Rollo knew he was in some serious trouble. His current situation could be called exactly that, butpared to what he had in mind, it waspletely different.
"Um¡ would you like something to drink?"
The soft feminine voice sent chills throughout his whole body, prompting him to press his legs together even tighter. Shaking his head, he kept his gaze down and muttered in a barely audible voice.
"N-no, I''m fine¡"
"I see¡"
The silence returned and with it came another wave of anxiety and stress. The boy nced at his left only to look away the next moment. He nced at his right and did the same but for a different reason. he wanted to run away but couldn''t bring himself to even stand.
He was sitting in the middle of a wide sofa with a Valkyrie on each side. He recognized both from their appearance in the award ceremony. Of course, he never expected to meet either of them at any point in his life, let alone sit among them.
One of them was the pink haired Ichigo. Her height alone was quite intimidating, but what made it difficult to even look her way was her well-endowed figure. For a hormone-driven teenager like him, being in her proximity was a disaster waiting to happen. The other one was CS. Though her figure was much more normal, she was a peerless beauty nheless.
If only she didn''t look angry the entire time she has been around.
"Seriously, why am I stuck babysitting at a time like this?" She said, leaning into the sofa and resting her arms on its back. Rollo shrunk a little, afraid of touching her by ident.
"I for one am d Doctor assigned us this task." Ichigo replied with a wry smile. Her halo glowed with a faint white glow and the sounding staff in her hands made a weak jingle when she moved. She was in the process of using an ability of hers, though Rollo had no idea what it did.
"Seriously kid, what did you do?" Asked CS.
It took the boy a few seconds to realize she was talking to him.
"Eh? Ah! I¡ I don''t-"
The door opened just then and cut him off. Rollo had no hope of his salvationing through it, but when he saw the look on the Valkyrie that had just entered he felt a sudden urge to visit the toilet. Her name was Nino, if he remembered correctly.
"Please tell me you came to take my ce."
Ignoring CS''s inquiry, Nino stopped in front of the boy. Her ruby-red eyesnded on him with a re. Having no idea why she was upset only made things worse for him. After a brief moment of silence, the Valkyrie finally spoke, asking a question Rollo didn''t understand.
"You¡ what are you, really?"
Chapter 378: It wont work.
"You¡ what are you, really?"
Nino was furious, to say the least. Following themand of her beloved fiance, she went to check the Tapestry of Fate once more. Her goal was to confirm that they were still on the same Path they had decided on before, or at least one that closely followed it.
She expected to see slight changes since capturing the boy wasn''t supposed to happen, but to her utter shock, the Tapestry looked nothing like the state she left it in, almost as if arge part of it was burned then reced.
"I¡ I¡"
understandably, Rollo was frightened. The Valkyrie''s doll-like beauty did little to diminish the intensity of her re, and the boy was too innocent to enjoy being under it. As he struggled to form a reply, Ichigo intervened, having felt bad for him.
"N-Nino! Please calm down!" She still couldn''t prevent her timidness from showing.
The Japanese doll turned her gaze to the pink-haired Valkyrie, causing her to shrink back in fright. That helped the former realize how intense she came through and forced her to dial it back a little. Heaving a sigh, she shifted back to the boy.
"You were born on the fifth of May, correct?" She asked. "That makes a few months past fifteen."
The boy twitched, remaining frozen for a few seconds. He then answered in a barely audible voice.
"... Yes¡"
"Have you heard any strange voices in your head?"
Rollo lookedpletely baffled. His expression alone answered the question.
"You think he''s up to something?" CS grinned. "Maybe we should kill him just in case."
"I already thought of that." Nino shook her head. "It won''t work."
"Seriously?"
in an instant, the boy lost all color, bing an outline on a white piece of paper.
Nino crossed her arms and held the ghastly pale boy with her eyes.
''We already killed him in a different path...'' She thought to herself. ''Well, Madness got him in that one... and it led to a disaster anyway...''
When she looked into the future after their return from the Nephilim World, the boy''s name always came up no matter what Path she studied. Nevertheless, his early capture created more divergence points, each one leading to its own bleak future. Why was this seemingly normal kid causing such anomalies? It was a question she couldn''t find the answer to.
''If only I had all my memories¡''
"Um¡ can I¡ can I ask s-something?"
Still pale with fear, Rollo looked at the Japanese doll with pleading eyes.
"What is it?"
"W-well, I¡ I didn''t do anything so¡"
It was clear he intended to inquire about the reason for his arrest, but in the presence of the mighty aliens, the words decided to betray him.
"You didn''t?" CS''s question sounded more genuine than it should. She raised an eyebrow at Nino, prompting her to sigh in exasperation. She was trying not to say anything about her future sight in front of the boy so her silence dragged on indefinitely.
''Was that skunk right after all?'' She wondered. ''Is it the work of someone from a Higher Realm?"
As if responding to her thought, the door opened and a certain female scientist came in.
"What is going on here?" Elina asked, sensing the heavy atmosphere.
"Nothing." Nino replied. "Just wanted to ask him a few questions."
"What good would that do us? You''re just scaring him to death!"
Seeing a human enter the room, Rollo''s face regained some color, though all of it went away when he saw the tray she was holding.
"Rollo Romanoff, right?" She asked with a smile. "My name is Elina Brians, nice to meet you."
"Um¡ uh¡" He wanted to return the greeting but found himself unable to. For him, it didn''t exactly feel nice to meet any of them.
"What are you doing here, anyway?" Nino nced at the contents of the tray and asked.
"Sam''s orders," Elina replied. "You should go back already. He probably wants you to check the Path again."
The female scientist ced the tray on the coffee table and asked Ichigo to change seats. Rollo watched in silence as she grabbed the tool, inserted a small capsule into the slot on top then closed it with a click. When she turned to him with a smile, holding what can only be described as aser gun, the boy swayed a little then passed out.
"Whoa¡" CS quickly caught him before he fell. They all turned to the female scientist with usatory eyes.
"Who''s scaring him to death again?" Nino smirked.
"H-hey! I didn''t mean to¡"
Deting a little, Elina pressed the sci-fi gun £which was in fact an injection gun£ to the boy''s neck and pulled the trigger. A distinct beep came from the tool a few secondster announcing that it had emptied its contents.
"What did you pump him with?"
Elina sighed and ced the tool aside. Aplicated expression surfaced on her face as she nced at the boy.
"MindLink." She said. "It''s made from the same ASC Sam used, though it doesn''t rece any organs."
"... What?" Nino''s eyes slowly widened.
Sighing, the female scientist turned to the raven-haired Valkyrie, her gaze more serious than before.
"After reading your report, he believed it to be the most optimal solution."
CS and Ichigo sensed the tension rising, though it only served to confuse them. A subtle pressure began emanating from the Japanese doll, weighing down on the human female, gradually suppressing her ability to breathe.
"This isn''t it¡" She muttered. "He said it won''t get to this¡"
A deafening silence permeated in the hotel room. A whileter, the Japanese doll stormed out, mming the door behind her. Elina gasped sharply then went into a coughing fit.
"What was that about?" CS asked, frowning slightly.
Ichigo on the other hand quickly brought a ss of water to the female scientist and gently rubbed her back as she recovered.
"The ASC¡" she muttered. "Isn''t that the very small machines Doctor invented?"
"Yeah¡ you could call it that..." Elina took the ss presented to her and downed the contents.
"And you put it inside the kid?" CS''s frown deepened. "No wonder she got angry."
"We¡ we don''t have much choice," Elina replied. "He''s too much of a wild card. We¡ we have to control him somehow."
"Yeah, good luck with that."
Chapter 379: Your life depends on it.
"What do you mean you captured only one?"
Ingrid''s voice echoed in a dimly lit basement. In front of her was a badly beaten man hanging from the ceiling with thick rusty chains. His head moved upon hearing a young girl''s voice, his confusion clear even with the bag covering his face.
"I kinda went overboard." Simon scratched his nose, showing a little embarrassment. "By the time I realized, most of them were dead."
"God, did they kill your dog or something?"
Clicking her tongue, the Nephilim dragged a chair and sat a couple of meters away from the restrained man.
"Please tell me he isn''t just some grunt."
"Well, he was driving one of the trucks," Simon replied. "We might figure out where they took the kids, at the very least."
"Bring him down." She said. "I don''t want to look up while doing this."
Following hermand, two of the gangsters that followed them to the basement went around releasing the chains and lowering the captive to the ground. They weren''t worried about him escaping, and with a Nephilim around it would be the epitome of stupidity tosh out. There was no way to tell how stupid someone was, however, so they kept him cuffed just in case.
Once he was sat down on the floor, they took off the bag covering his face. The man did his best to remain calm, his expression stoic while looking at his captures one by one. His eyes must''ve taken some damage as it took him a few seconds to notice the beauty sitting in front of him since he did a double take when he finally realized she was one of the aliens.
"Talk." Ingrid said, her voice even.
The man struggled to close his mouth, continuing to gawk at the dark-haired Nephilim while fear slowly took over his face. They waited a few seconds, but no words came out of his mouth. That was natural for someone in his situation; he might as well be looking at Death herself right now.
A few more seconds passed and the man appeared to havee to terms with his fate. Instead of giving up and confessing his sins, however, he chose to stick to his guns, turning a defiant re at Ingrid and pressing his lips tightly together.
His expression amused the alien, even if a little. Unfortunately for him, she didn''t have the time to mess around so, returning the re, she stopped holding back and allowed her presence to permeate through their surroundings.
A heavy pressure suddenly fell on those gathered in the basement, most of it concentrating on the captured terrorist. It soon became clear that she had gone too far as the captive began frothing and copsed on his side. He wasn''t the only one as the two gangsters passed out as well, leaving only Simon standing.
"Oh, right¡" she said with a grimace. "Humans. Completely forgot."
"W-what was that?" The young gang leader asked, his face so pale it seemed all the mnin had left his body.
"Soul Pressure." Ingrid answered. "It''s a handy way to show how strong you really are, but if those you use it against have weak minds it turns into¡ that."
"Is everything okay?" Came Juni''s voice from outside.
Being the good friend she is, Ingrid didn''t want the bright and cheerful Valkyrie to see what she intended to do. What they witnessed at the hospital was enough for the night.
"Everything is fine!" The Nephilim replied loudly. "I just got a little excited, that''s all!"
"Oooh! I thought we were under attack!"
"If you don''t get back to keeping watch that might happen!"
"Okay okay!"
The silence returned soon after and the two turned their sights to those copsed on the floor. Simon hesitated for a moment then asked.
"They aren''t dead, are they?"
"Does any of them have heart problems?" Ingrid replied sarcastically.
Lights began to flicker above her head and in a matter of seconds, a halo formed. Raising her right hand, droplets of water began to gather over it, coalescing into three balls.
"Alright, that''s enough sleep." She said, throwing a ball at each of the unconscious men. The gangsters jumped to their feet right away but the terrorist was slow to wake up. "Feel like talking now?"
The terrorist regained the same terrified look from before. When he took too long to reply, Ingrid sshed him with another cold water ball. She had to do it again a third time. Only then did he open his mouth.
"You¡ you can kill me if you want¡" he forced out the words, his brows knitted into a determined look. "I''m not¡ telling you anything¡ alien¡ scum¡"
"Kill you? Nah, why would I give you the easy way out?" Ingrid rotated her index finger, causing the water ball floating over it to circle around. "You think you''ll get to rest after everything you did? There are fates worse than death, you know."
The man''s expression remained determined, but his confidence seemed to leak out as the Nephilim exined what she was going to do with him. Leaning forward, Ingrid rested her chin in her hand and smiled, her halo still shimmering above her head.
"We will take you out of the settlements and tie you to some tree. You will start hearing voices in your head. They will be quiet at first, but then they''ll keep getting louder and louder. Eventually, you won''t be able to resist it and start losing your mind. You will be trapped inside your own body, watching as you slowly turn into a monster."
Fear gradually took over the man and Ingrid''s smile reached her ears.
"The big guy is a scientist, you know? He''ll definitely try to find a cure. Oh, but he would need a lot of test subjects to do that. You''ll get a front-row seat to what goes on in thosebs. You might even get your name recognized as one of those who contributed to the cause. So, what do you say?"
Nothing. The terrorist couldn''t say anything. And what could he say? The video released by the Resistance instilled some kind of primal fear in anyone who saw it. Even if they didn''t fully understand it, no one in their right mind would wish for their sanity to be taken away, or for them to beb rats for a mad scientist who ims to know how to create aliens and humans.
"I¡ if I tell you, will you let me go?"
The man finally spoke after a long silence. With a satisfied smile, Ingrid leaned back into her seat and dismissed her halo.
"Go on." She said. "Your life depends on it."
Chapter 380: Warehouse.
"So this is the ce¡" Ingrid said with a bit of doubt in her voice.
"Seems like it," Simon added in a simr tone.
After Ingrid threatened him a little, the terrorist confessed everything he knew, which wasn''t much at all. That said, they still got something by the end of it.
The manufacturing district of the First Settlement. It was an area on the western side near the outer wall, dedicated solely to factories. Most of the time it is closed off to anyone other than the workers. That didn''t stop Ingrid and the others, however.
They surveyed the area from a high altitude, and once they spotted their destination, she and Juni teleported straight inside, bringing both Simon and Sara with them.
"I¡ don''t think I like this¡" the reporter said after they arrived. She held a hand to her mouth like she was about to vomit, indicating that teleportation wasn''t her strong suit.
"Whoa... We''re already inside¡" Simon, on the other hand, seemed to be doing pretty well.
They were inside one of the warehouses at the very back. ording to the info they got from their captive, he and the others were supposed to drive the trucks to this location. Having scanned it from outside, Ingrid already knew there was nothing inside besides a number of crates and some empty containers. She decided to check the ce anyway, hoping to find some clues.
"This ce wasn''t used in ages," Simon noted, after tracing one of his fingers on a nearby crate and seeing the dust umted on it.
"There might be a secret door somewhere." Juni said with utmost seriousness.
"Or it might be that the location they gave that guy was a fake." Though she said that, Ingrid was hoping they would find a secret door as well. She didn''t believe their captive was lying about the information he gave them, but if turned out to be fake it might be that he didn''t know from the beginning.
''Did they wait till the kidnapping happened before giving them the real location?''
While deep in thought, she noticed something moving in the corner of her eye. Pretending to walk around one of the containers, Ingrid summoned her halo and teleported. An instantter shended a couple dozen meters away with something held in her hands.
"What''s that?" Sara asked, having recovered from the slight dizziness she felt.
"A drone," Said the Nephilim. "Maybe we are in the right ce after all."
The drone was already broken; she had to crush it to remove its optical camouge. That said, the fact that someone bothered to leave one behind meant they didn''te here for nothing.
After searching a little more, another clue presented itself. Some of the containers had been moved recently which resulted in some traces being left in theyers of dust. After deducing which and moving them out of the way, to their surprise they found... nothing.
"Strange¡" Ingrid held her chin and tried to think of something else.
"I think I have seen something like this before." Said Juni.
"I think I know which one you''re talking about," Simon added with a smile.
"You don''t mean¡"
Walking toward the containers at the center, Ingrid smashed the lock on one of them and tried to open it. When she did, it became clear that its door and several others were linked together. The lock she broke turned out to be a decoration with something else keeping the containers closed.
"This is a pain¡"
There was no point in locking doors if the intruder could break through them with ease. Forming her halo once more, Ingrid went on to create something peculiar. It extended from her lower back, its thickness decreasing along its length. It ended in three long des joining together to form a single sharp tip.
"A tail?" Simon asked.
"Yup."
As the young gang leader had said, the thing Ingrid created was indeed a tail. It was blue in color, and though it appeared reptilian, in truth it was entirely mechanical.
"Hey! Isn''t that from Super Rex?" Juni eximed.
"Yeah," Ingrid replied while waving the tip of her tail left and right.
"Youe you can use it without taking out the whole thing!?"
"Because I''m awesome." The Nephilim grinned. "Want me to teach you how?"
"Of course!"
"Maybe you should leave that for another time." Sara interrupted them. "We came here to look for the children, remember?"
"Right."
Ignoring the sulking Juni, Ingrid turned to the stack of containers. Her tail moved slowly, the glow of her Force Field spreading to its tip. The next instant it turned into a blur before stopping. Stepping forward, she ced her right hand on the container''s surface and pushed lightly.
With a faint creak, a rectangr-shaped metal sheet fell down, leaving behind it a hole of the same size and shape.
"Showoff." Simon snorted.
"Ha! This is nothing." replied the Nephilim.
Having created the entrance herself, Ingrid was the first to walk through it. A wide grin spread on her face once she got a look at what was inside.
"Well look at what we got here."
As it turned out, the stack of containers was fake after all. Their insides were hollowed, leaving only arge shell used to cover something at the center of the warehouse. There was arge hole in the floor with a slope leading to a gate at its bottom.
The gate itself looked like the door to a massive vault and as soon as they saw it everyone became convinced that they found what they came to look for.
"I knew it!" Juni eximed as she followed inside.
"Now that''s unexpected." Sara came in next. She was using her phone as a shlight since she couldn''t see in the dark like the other two. "Didn''t you miss it in yourst scan?"
"It might sound strange but¡ we aren''t really omniscient." Ingrid looked around the hollowed containers. "It''s a little difficult, but one can still trick our eyes if they put in the work."
She noticed several devices installed around the shell''s corners. Those seemed to be what masked the center of the warehouse in herst scan so she quickly disposed of them and turned her sight back to the gate.
"Alright then."
Using her tail again, Ingrid sliced through the vault door. Halfway through, she realized that the whole thing might be boobytrapped. Thankfully nothing exploded and she was able to create an entrance for them to pass through.
"Hmm¡ this doesn''t look good¡"
After peeking inside, Ingrid faced the others with a slight frown. Simon crossed his arms and knit his brows.
"What? Don''t tell me it''s a dead end."
"Far from it." The Nephilim shook her head. She nced at the hole behind her and exined. "There is a tunnel beyond this point. A long one at that."
The others were confused for a moment but Sara seemed to realize what she meant.
"It leads outside the Settlement."
"So it seems."
The tunnel itself wasn''t a problem but the fact that it might lead somewhere that falls outside the Cleanser''s range. With the Primordial having moved its visit forward, those at risk of contracting Madness had to be careful not to leave the safe zones. That included both Sara and Simon.
"I told Antony I would bring his daughter back," Simon said, his expression full of determination. "I''m not going back without her."
"You heard him." Sara shrugged, sighed then smiled. "As for me, I won''t be wasting the chance to get such a great scoop. Besides, you can just teleport us back if we start losing it, right?"
Sighing, Ingrid shook her head while smiling. Something told her that would be their response but she still asked just in case.
"Just be sure to say something if you start hearing voices in your heads." She turned to face the hole she created. "Alright, let''s go get those bastards."
Chapter 381: Not a fan of spanking.
Don''t miss chapters on m v l e m p y r
''Where am I?''
When he opened his eyes, the boy found himself lying in absolute darkness. He turned left and right but saw nothing. As fear began to get a hold on him, his gaze fell down. His own hands came to into sight followed with the rest of his body. For some reason that was enough to give him a sense of relief, but it was followed by confusion a secondter.
''This is¡ strange?''
Rollo couldn''t understand how it was possible for him to see in the darkness. What''s stranger was that he could only see his own body. It was as if there was a light source somewhere, but instead of illuminating his surroundings, it only effected him.
''Custom lighting¡''he thought to himself. ''Is this VR?''
That was the first exnation that came to his mind. Dreams were chaotic by nature so things couldn''t possibly stay consistent for too long, and if he was lucid dreaming, a single thought would''ve dispelled the darkness. The strangeness of his body being illuminated while everything else was dark gave him the impression of being in a virtual space with no assets, as if the area had yet to load.
''But¡ since when¡''
Getting up, the boy looked through his surroundings once more. He didn''t remember putting on any headsets, not that headsets with such capabilities existed in the first ce. He tried searching his memories for thest thing he did before waking up in the dark space. Just then he noticed something in the corner of his eye.
A white dot appeared on the pitch ck background. It blinked a couple of times before moving, tracing behind it a long line. The line took a sharp turn, and a secondter it did it again. Before long it went back to the start and connected with its other end, creating a long rectangle.
An instantter, the rectangle turned into a wooden door.
''Hm?''
The door floated in the darkness. It had a frame but no wall to hold it. Such a strange door. Whatever the case, doors were meant to be opened, and so the boy walked straight toward it. He didn''t even stop to think of the possibility that there might be no floor under his foot the next time he tried to take a step.
Thankfully he made it to the door without a problem. Without giving it much thought, Rollo grabbed the knob and gave it a twist. As his heart danced with anticipation, he pushed the door open and walked inside.
The surroundings changed without him noticing. The darkness was gone, reced by a room full of vibrant colors. He could see a small bed in the corner and toys littering the carpeted floor, building blocks, massive legos, action figures, and stuffed toys. There were some picture books as well. It was clearly a child''s room, one Rollo recognized very well.
''This is my room¡''
It was his room, indeed. His room from back when he was three years old. Seeing it for the first time in years should''ve been heartwarming, but instead, it felt strange. Rollo believed that he had a good memory, but even then he didn''t think it was possible for him to remember things from so long ago with such vividness. He could even read the words written on the picture books lying on the floor.
''This is getting freaky¡''
Something appeared at that moment as if to show him that the strangeness was only starting. It was a kid. A toddler no older than three. He wore a simple red shirt and blue overalls and was staring down at the screen of a tablet.
''That''s¡ me?''
His thoughts were interrupted by the door, which closed on its own at some point, open again. Rollo turned around and felt his chest tighten. A woman made her way inside the room, a stern look on her face. She seemed to be in herte twenties, with a small frame and dark hair.Rollo recognized her as well, and the longer he looked at her the more painful the feeling in his chest got.
{Again with this thing.} The woman spoke in Russian. {I knew getting you one was a mistake.}
She reached down and grabbed the boy, pulling him away from the device. The kid seemed to be on the verge of throwing a temper tantrum but went silent in an instant.
{Now now. It''s time to eat your lunch.}
Rollo watched with a smile as she dragged the kid away. He remembered his mother being strict. Whenever it was time to do something, she would drag him away without asking questions. He learned very early on that defying her would be a very big mistake and so he did everything she said without uttering a singleint.
''I never was a fan of spanking¡''
Rollo followed after the woman, expecting to arrive at the kitchen. As soon as he crossed the door frame, however, the scene changed entirely. He found himself in another room, one clearly different from thest. The lights were off see he was barely able to see around. It wasn''t as dark as the emptiness from before, however, and there was a source of light close by.
It was the screen of aptop, which was on the floor for some reason. Rollo approached it with careful steps, but he was still startled when a kid suddenly appeared out of nowhere. That kid was also him, of course.
Unlike the scene from before, Rollo didn''t have trouble remembering this one. That''s because this was when he first got into contact with the programming world. A thick booky on the floor beside theptop, and his child self sluggishly tapped on the keyboard. It would be very long before he could get to his current typing speed.
''If I remember right, it took me two months to grasp Python¡''
His reason for learning thenguage was so he could remove the restrictions his parents ced on his tablet, which included forceful shutdowns after certain amounts of time and no inte ess.
''What the hell does a five-year-old need the inte for?''
He might''ve been smart for his age back then, but he was still a child. His simple-mindedness led him down a rabbit hole he never climbed out of, and to this day he still wishes he never fell into it.
Chapter 382: Facility.
The scenery changed again, this time to what appeared to be a living room. Young Rollo was sitting on the sofa with his head hanging down, and standing over him was a very angry-looking couple.
''Yeah¡ I messed up really bad back then¡''
The house belonged to his parents so naturally all electronics belonged to them as well. When his father found out he had been sneaking into his office and messing with hisptop, little Rollo ended up in some really big trouble. Thankfully thatptop was for personal use.
If he had made the mistake of messing with the ones his parents used for work, a little spanking would''ve been thest of his worries.
''Well, it was their mistake for showing me the passwords¡''
The younger him didn''t care much back then, but now that he was older, Rollo realized it must''ve been quite the terrifying experience for two Russian nuclear scientists to find out that theirputers had been tampered with. The same could be said about when they found out it was all their five-year-old''s doing.
''I could''ve gotten all of us killed¡''
Just thinking about it gave him the shivers. Fortunately for them, they soon had the Russian government off their backs. The sequence of events that followed the appearance of the Cmities was a blur at best. His parents called in some favors and used the chaos to get out of their homnd, never to return.
The scene changed again, this time to a refugee camp that wouldter be the Second Settlement.
''I remember getting electricity was a struggle around this time¡''
Without a way to charge hisptop, young Rollo had no choice but to y around with the other kids. He had quite some trouble getting along with anyone. Being raised with a tablet from the age of two was never good for his development. Thankfully, things soon changed for the better.
That''s what young Rollo thought back then, but now that he was older, he recognized that this was the point where things started going downhill.
The scene changed again. The refugee camp was gone, reced by the cold white walls of a room with a high ceiling and no windows. it only had very simple furniture andcked anything of note. Young Rollo didn''t care, however. The room had electricity, meaning he didn''t have to worry about hisptop running out of power.
''What an idiot¡''
As he watched his younger self endlessly tapping on theptop''s keyboard, the door to the room opened and his parents entered. They seemed to have aged quite a bit since the Cmities appeared, and signs of stress were visible on their faces.
It gotten so bad that even he noticed it at the time, and at one point he began to suspect that it wasn''t the war that had been taking a toll on them but something else.
''...''
The scene changed once more. Seven-year-old Rollo woke up one night wanting to get some water. Leaving his bed, he went to the kitchen and poured himself a cup. Once his thirst was quenched, he was about to return to his room when he noticed that the door to his parent''s room was slightly open. Both his mother and father had to work through the night and wouldn''t return until morning.
It was a little difficult to tell day from night since they were apparently underground, but young Rollo didn''t need the sun or a clock to know morning had yet to arrive.
''Don''t do it¡ Don''t open it¡''
Of course, he could not change what already happened. The scene changed again, but this time it didn''t jump too far into the future. Young Rollo stood frozen at the door to his parent''s room, his hand reaching for the light switch, having just turned the lights on.
Driven by curiosity, he went to check if his parents had returned earlier than expected. His guess was right; his father did return earlier than he should. Only he didn''te back to rest or retrieve some documents he forgot to take with him. He came back to run away from something, and seeing the state his son found him in, whatever that thing was, only a rope could have helped him escape from it.
"... Why¡"
Rollo knew his father was an extremely rational man. Because of that, he failed to understand what could''ve driven him to take his own life.
"Why are you showing me this?..."
Following his father''s suicide, his mother''s mental state got even worse. The incident caused the young Rollo to mature faster and he soon began to question what was happening around him. At one point, he understood that his parents didn''t move them to their new home because it was a better ce to live than the refugee camp.
They were scientists specializing in several fields including nuclear physics. Someone had recruited them to work on something, most likely a weapon to be used against the cmities.
Even after concluding that much, young Rollo still couldn''t figure out why his father ended up that way. He was a hero trying to save humanity, after all. Why would someone working toward such a noble goal take their own life? The child''s desire to learn the truth led him to do something he had always avoided.
He hacked into the facility he was trapped in for two years and searched tirelessly for what might have been the reason for his father''s suicide.
It wasn''t that difficult of a task to aplish. He was already inside the facility, after all. Before long, he learned everything there was to learn about the ce and what his parents were doing.
As he had predicted, the facility turned out to be a research center for developing weapons to be used against Cmities, or so it was at first. Those funding and running the facility weren''t too happy about the autonomous humanoid weapons Odin had created. They sought a way for humans themselves to fight the war and that desire led them to a rather dark path.
Chapter 383: Lets talk business.
Though it appeared that humans were entirely powerless against the Cmities, the truth was much moreplicated. Many brilliant minds gathered after the invasion and managed to create weapons that had the potential of pushing against the mysterious enemies, and by studying their remains, those weapons were polished even further.
There was a problem, however. The mental and physical load of operating such weapons far exceeded what humans were capable of handling. Attempts to substitute the operators with artificial intelligence always ended in failure.
In the end, the only ones who could operate those weapons safely were the Valkyries, which was yet another blow to those who opposed cing the fate of humanity in their hands.
The sentiment against the autonomous humanoid weapons became more radical as their role in the war grew bigger. The purpose of the research center expanded from the study of Cmities and weapon development to gic and cybeic experimentation. Their main goal shifted to the enhancement of the human mind and body so it could withstand the toll high caliber weapons exert on their users.
Young Rollo saw all of it. Every attempt. Every experiment. Every test. People had their bodies ripped apart, their limbs torn, and their organs plucked. Some were stripped of everything, leaving them as heads strapped to machines designed to keep them alive for as long as possible.
Others were ced under extreme conditions and tortured in the hopes that it would push them past their human limits.
Women were made to bear gically engineered children, most of whom came out disfigured or mentally challenged. Very few survived a single year outside the womb. Orphaned children were brought in and experimented on. No one cared for their disappearance. No one was there to mourn their deaths.
Of course, very few of the scientists brought to the facility were so heartless that they wouldmit atrocities without feeling anything. Even those who deluded themselves into thinking they were doing it for the sake of humanity''s future reached their limit sooner rather thanter.
Those running the facility were having none of it, however. They used various methods to ensure the experiments continued, going so far as to threaten the lives of the scientists and their families. Rollo realized that he had been a hostage all along and that his father couldn''t live with the guild of what he had to do to keep him safe.
"Stop¡"
The scene changed again, this time depicting his mother''s bleeding corpse as shey down on the bathroom floor. It happened soon after he had discovered the truth. Unfortunately, he was toote to do anything. With his mother gone, he was ced in an orphanage run by the same people from the facility.
Knowing what kind of future awaited him there, young Rollo escaped and did his best to hide his presence. Though he had ample evidence of what happened in the facility, he didn''t believe that releasing any of it would have done much of anything. Considering the tight grip the Resistance has on the surviving human poption, no one would be able to stand up to them.
That didn''t mean he gave up on exposing the horrors he witnessed.
"Interesting¡"
As the scene changed to the attic of the abandoned building he lives in, a voice spoke to him, one that clearly was not a part of the memory he was watching. Turning around, Rollo saw a man in ab coat walking over to him.
"So you bid your time all while gathering any evidence you came across. Not bad, kid. Not bad."
Rollo''s eyes widened, having recognized the man. He suddenly recalled what he was doing before finding himself in the mysterious virtual space. That led to another wave of strong emotions raging inside him and he suddenly felt like puking.
After forcing everything back down, the boy turned to face the man in ab coat, this time not afraid to re at him
"What¡ what did you inject me with?"
"Nanomachines, son."
Silence permeated for a few seconds before the tension suddenly vanished.
"... Eh?"
Rollo wasn''t sure if he heard him right, or if he misunderstood the meaning behind his word.
''No way he just made a video game reference, right?''
"I can hear your thoughts, you know?" The man said. "And yes, it''s exactly what you''re thinking."
The man was the new Head General of the Human Resistance, Sam Sanderson. The two of them have already met, butpared to before, the way he acted made Rollo wonder if he really was the same person.
"Wait, did you just say you can read my thoughts!?"
"Of course. How do you think we were able to recreate your memories?"
Standing beside him, the Head General raised his hand and snapped his fingers. The scene changed again, this time showing a different room in the same abandoned building. Rollo was sitting alone in the darkness, one hand holding a phone, the other holding something else. Realizing what he was doing in this scene, the boy''s face lost all color.
"That''s quite the intense expression." Said the Head General, barely able to contain hisughter. "Someone is enjoying himself a bit too much."
"The hell you think you''re doing!!?" Rollo suddenly burst out.
"Rx, kid. There is nothing to be embarrassed about." Stillughing, the man snapped his fingers and the scene changed again, bringing them back to the attic. "You can''t keep going at it like that, though. You won''t be able tost long when it counts."
Rollo kept ring at the Head General, his face beet red. He didn''t understand what the man got from humiliating him so much, but he couldn''t just keep taking it.
"Guess the legends are right." The boy said. "The government really is run by pedophiles."
"Don''t tter yourself, kid." Taking off his sses, the man wiped the tears that began to gather from all theughter then put them back on. He then cleared his throat and spoke in a more even tone. "Anyway, now that you calmed down, let''s talk business."
Just then Rollo seemed to realize that the nausea was gone along with the storm of emotions raging inside him. Though he still felt a little embarrassed, he was feeling a lot better than when he had to go through all the memories of what he saw after hacking the facility.
"As you might already know, messing with people''s memories isn''t exactly an ethical practice."
"As if you care about that," Rollomented.
"But my fianc¨¦ does." The Head General shrugged. "We had a really big fight, you know? I only convinced her to let me do it by saying I would have to kill you otherwise."
Rollo went stone still.
"Aren''t you d we didn''t go that route?"
Though he was still smiling, the man''s eyes seemed a lot colder than before. At that moment, Rollo had no doubts about what he said. The boy was sure that his life would''ve been over if he the Head General didn''t peek at his memories, or if he didn''t like what he saw.
''Hold on¡'' as if realizing something, he turned to the man and asked. "You aren''t going to kill me?"
"Hm? Why would I do that?"
"W-well, I mean¡"
The boy has been gathering evidence against the Resistance for quite some time now so he thought getting rid of him was the first thing their leader would do. He just knew too much.
"What are you talking about?" The man said. "That facility has nothing to do with me. Did you think everyone in the Resistance is on the same side?"
Once again Rollo felt dumbfounded.
"In fact, I should be thanking you. You just gave me everything I need to crush those old geezers. Wait till people hear what they did."
"I¡ I''m not sure I''m following¡" Rollo said. "Are you saying you''re¡ you''re going to expose what happened?"
"Of course. They have been on my ass this entire time, but I couldn''t just kill them." Heaving a long sigh, the Head General turned to face him. "That''s why I said let''s talk business."
Rollo swallowed, not knowing how to respond. After a brief silence, the man in theb coat spoke again, each word carrying the same hidden message; refuse this offer and you die.
"In exchange for all the evidence you gathered and your silence on me reading your memories, I will let you keep the Mind Link."
Chapter 384: I refuse.
"Mind Link?" Rollo blinked a few times. "Is it something like the Neuralink from a decade ago?"
Sam''s left eyebrow twitched.
"Please don''tpare it to that primitive flop." He said. "The Mind Link is a brain imnt made using nanomachines of my own design. It''s far more advanced and is capable of a lot more than moving a cursor on a screen."
"Really?" The boy gave him a doubtful look.
"How do you think I got to see your memories?" The scientist replied. "Also, you have been connected to this virtual space using it. All of that with zero rejection and next to no side effect."
"Is that so¡"
Rollo remained silent for a few seconds before heaving a long sigh.
"You say this is a deal, but¡ I don''t really have much of a say in it." He shrugged his shoulders. "Since you can read my memories you should already know where I hid the evidence. And the price you''re paying me might as well be a bomb inside my brain."
"Well, that''s one way to put it," Sam replied. "Keep in mind that my first choice was to just erase you from existence."
"Why? I thought we''re after the same people¡"
"True, but¡" heaving a long sigh, Sam shook his head. "Well, as you said, the deal has already been sealed. You can either ept it or-"
"I refuse."
"... What?"
"I refuse your deal." The boy replied. "You can go ahead and kill me. I refuse to ept your deal."
Sam stared at him for a few seconds then took his sses off.
"Were you even listening?" He said while rubbing the bridge of his nose. "You can''t refuse or ept. It is already a done deal."
"No shit." Rollo looked at him with half-lidded eyes. "You know there is no way my disappearance would go unnoticed, don''t you?"
"No offense but¡" Sam''s expression darkened. "No one would care if a bunch of orphans disappeared."
"A bunch of orphans who were visited by two Valkyries. I bet the news has already spread."
"So?"
"A very famous reporter just so happened to be there at the time. Are you going to kill her as well?" The boy smirked. "I bet she has been a thorn in your side for quite some time now. She has been quite vocal about the Resistance. I doubt you can buy her silence easily."
"You''re referring to Sara Pinkman, right? She''s a tough nut to crack, but I got the tools."
"Let''s say you silenced her, then what? Will you go after Simon as well? His subordinates? Their families? Their friends? How far are you willing to go?
I bet your fiance wouldn''t like it too much."
"... I don''t even know why I''m listening to you." Sighing, Sam put his sses back on and walked away. "As I said, the deal is done. You have no choice but to live with it."
"What makes you think I won''t find a way to get it out?" Rollo shouted. "Even if you silence me, I would still get the truth out at some point!"
"You''re wee to try." Sam waved his hand without turning around. "Let''s see you get out of here first."
The whiteb coat disappeared the next moment and with it went the scene of the rundown attic. The darkness returned, and just when the boy thought it was there to stay, everything suddenly became so bright it almost blinded him.
Once his sight adjusted, Rollo slowly opened his eyes and checked his surroundings. He found himself standing in the middle of an empty street he didn''t recognize.
~[ ]~
[LOG OFF COMPLETE.]
Seeing the green words blinking in front of him, Sam tapped the pad on his right side and waited for his capsule to open. Getting up, he scratched the back of his head and heaved a long sigh. He was about to turn to his guards when he noticed a petite figure standing a short distance away. Seeing the frown on her face, he almost sighed again.
"As promised, I only looked myself." He said. "No recordings."
"I hope it was worth it." Nino crossed her arms and asked.
"Oh, it was."
Sam walked over and stood in front of her. The difference in height meant that she had to look up when talking to him, but as she continued to re he ced a hand on her head and ruffled her hair a little.
"The kid is innocent." He spoke on his way to the door. "Well, as long as we ignore all the theft and hacking."
"Are you sure?"
Nino quickly caught up with him and walked by his side. His guards, Triska and Venti, silently took their ce behind them.
"He did see a lot of messed up things at a very young age. But that''s nothing new."
It wasn''t just those who witnessed a Cmity attack. The war had been hard on all of humanity and no one alive had gone without seeing something that would haunt them for the rest of their lives.
"I see¡" The Japanese doll lowered her head in thought. "So it is the orphans after all..."
"Has there been progress on Juni''s part?"
"They found an underground tunnel that leads outside the First Settlement. Nana said it''s not in any of the schematics we have."
"This might be a pain¡" Recalling what he saw in the boy''s memories, Sam clicked his tongue. "Send word and tell them to be careful. The bastards might have weapons on the same level as high-ss cmities."
The facility in the boy''s memories was a closely guarded secret even in the Resistance. Sam suspected that the tech used by the intruders they caught and the assassin who attacked the Nephilim came from that ce.
Reverse engineering the Cmities was a field of research in and of itself so there was nothing strange about it, but attempts at creating weapons that would allow humans to fight them should have stopped the moment the Valkyries entered the scene.
''I doubt anything they create could beat the Valkyries as they are now, but¡''
Sam held his hand out and Nino took it, having already summoned her halo to teleport them outside. The night sky had a crimson hue to it, but hopefully, that wouldn''tst too long.
"Are we going back to the first settlement?" Nino asked.
"Not yet, no¡" Find out what happens next on m_vl.em,pyr
Sam stared at the sky some more then turned his gaze to the western side of the forty sixth base. A newly built tower rose to the sky, its walls carved from obsidian stone. At its peak, a white sphere shone with a brilliant light, several rings of Runes surrounding it like a cage.
"I will stay here and wee our guest."
Chapter 385: Hand.
The preparations for the Primordial''s arrival were pushed forward without a warning, and as expected, that didn''t go well with anyone, be it the humans who were forced to evacuate all of a sudden or the Nephilim tasked with helping defend the settlements.
"Seriously, what is Queen Thor thinking?"
Thyra, in particr, wasn''t all too happy about helping the humans. Though she didn''t participate in the genocidemitted by the previous queen, she never bothered to oppose it. She also didn''t oppose the massacresmitted in this world, believing it was unforgivable that they supported their traitorous father whether knowingly or not.
"Politics are a pain," Hervor said, her muscr arms crossed. "Let''s leave that part to Mimir and the others. Our job is to follow orders and crush whatever needs crushing."
"Our job is to stop any Primordial Spawn from reaching the humans." Eira mmed the butt of her sounding staff on the ground. "Until the evacuations are done, there will be no crushing anything."
"Yeah yeah, just get that porridge field of yours going." Hervor waved her hand dismissively. "I''m already sick of this ce."
"It''s Purge Field!" Eira scrunched up her face but gave up the argument a secondter. Her drones were already in position so it was time to unleash her ability. Not long after, a gentle wave spread out from their position and covered an area of two kilometers.
"This ce sure is quiet," Thyra said. "It''s giving me the creeps."
"You think they sent us here on purpose?" Hervor asked. "To keep us away from the humans?"
"What are you talking about?" Eira looked at them with half-lidded eyes. "This ce is jam-packed. If they wanted to keep us away from humans then they would''ve stationed us outside the wall."
It was true that there were no humans in range, but there was a crowded residential area nearby, with a few hundred apartmentplexes stacked closely to each other.
"For a cleanser, your ears sure clogged." Thyra sighed while brushing a few strands of her crimson hair aside. "That ce is clearly abandoned. Do you think it would be this quiet wh-"
The words halted in the Nephilim''s throat when she felt a handnd on her shoulder. A chill ran down her spine and she whipped her head around. Strangely, there was no one there. If she were a human she might have chalked it up to her imagination, but as a Nephilim, her senses couldn''t be easily fooled so she was sure something had touched her there.
"What''s wrong?" Hervor asked, noticing her friend''s distress.
"Did you see a ghost or something?" Eira sneered.
"Something is here." Speaking in a serious tone, Thyra formed her halo and took out her weapon. Seeing that, Hervor did the same.
The tension increased as the three Nephilim prepared for battle. Seconds turned to minutes but nothing happened. Heaving a sigh, Eira was about to make another mocking remark when she noticed something in the corner of her eye.
"Hey, is that a¡ human?"
For a moment she was sure what she saw was indeed a human, and since they weren''t wearing a uniform it was clear they were a civilian. There was one problem, however. The person -a woman, considering her figure and the dress she wore- didn''t have a head. Her neck ended in a mangled mess, with the flesh appearing to have been ripped and what''s left of her cervical vertebrae peeking out.
"That''s-"
Once again the words halted in Thyra''s throat, but that was due to no fault of her own. A strange buzzing sound started ying in her ears and the world around her grew darker. Seeing the shocked looks her friends were giving her, she slowly lowered her gaze to see what caught their attention.
A hand, one that didn''t belong to her, was covered in the faint glow of a Force Field as it held a small orb with several wires and threads attached to it. The hand''s position was a little odd, but the reason wasn''t very hard to figure out. After staring at it for a couple of seconds, the Nephilim realized that the hand was protruding straight out of her chest.
"What¡ is¡"
Before she could say anything, the hand closed, the glow coating it growing brighter. The small orb crumbled, tendrils of electricity and a flurry of sparks scattering from it. An instantter, what remained of the orb fell to the ground with an audible ng, the sound bringing the other Nephilim back to their senses.
"THYRA!!!"
A wave of rage washed over Hervor and she brandished her axe, rushing over in a mindless attempt to save her friend. The glowing hand retracted from the hole in Thyra''s chest, and as soon as it did, the Nephilim''s body slumped like a puppet whose strings had been cut. Hervor raised her weapon and prepared to swing, but when her friend fell to the ground, the one who had attacked her was nowhere to be seen.
"Where is-"
A tremor spread through her body and the shock returned. Looking down, she saw the same glowing hand from before now protruding from her own chest. Failing to understand what happened, she turned around, wanting to catch a glimpse of her assant. The confusion she felt grew several folds when she saw that no one was there. The glowing hand started closing on the orb it held, but before it could crush it like thest one, Hervor fought through the confusion, gritted her teeth, and raised the output of her Force Field to the maximum.
Sparks scattered from the hole in her chest and an instantter the hand gripping her Heart weakened and fell to the ground. Barely clinging to consciousness as she fell to her knees, Hervor turned to the only standing member of their team and forced one word out.
"Run¡"
Waving witnessed what happened, Eira quickly deactivated her cleansing ability and enveloped herself in the full output of her Force Field. She quickly rushed over to herrger friend and was about to whisk her away, intending to abandon their station and retreat to the base of operations. She was only a cleanser, after all. Herbat abilities were almost nonexistent, and retreating in the face of a much more powerful enemy was a part of their instructions.
As she summoned her halo and prepared to teleport away, the severed hand that fell from Hervor''s chest came into sight. A puddle of crimson liquid had formed under it, its skin was covered in burns, and the nails at the end of its fingers were split and torn.
The hand undeniably belonged to a human, or to something that was once a human. Coming to that realization, Eira turned to the headless woman from before, and for the first time, she noticed the crooked halo floating a short distance over the severed neck, leaving a ghastly gap for a head that was no longer there.
As her eyes slowly widened with realization, the Nephilim vanished without making a sound. With no time to spare, she was forced to leave the body of their crimson-haired friend behind. A few silent seconds passed. The headless woman moved, approaching Thyra''s motionless body with slow steps.
A rustle sounded from a different direction, and a secondter, a man slowly walked out of the darkness and approached the dead Nephilim. Just like the woman, he as well was missing a head. Not long after, someone else appeared, this one a kid. Another woman, another man, another kid. Before long, a crowd of twenty people surrounded the dead Nephilim. They all stood motionlessly, like a group of ghastly mannequins. A couple of minutester, they all shifted around and walked away without doing anything.
Chapter 386: Costume.
"This tunnel sure is long," Junimented, her voice betraying her boredom.
The magic of a hidden location was bound to fade after an entire hour. Even someone who is inclined toward exploration would get bored if they were forced to in a straight line for that long.
"Well, it''s probably meant for vehicles," Simon said, his breathing having grown rougher once more. "Maybe we should''ve brought one with us instead of going in like this."
The tunnel wasrge enough to fit three semi-trucks side by side. The ceiling was arched and the only illumination avable was the small redmps ced at set intervals, adding to the eeriness of the underground structure.
"Well, that''s toote now," Ingrid said. "Going back would be a pain."
Unlike the young gang leader and the reporter apanying them, she seemed to be doing perfectly fine. Despite running the same distance as them, the alien girls didn''t have a single drop of sweat on them.
"Can''t you¡ can''t you just teleport us to the end?" Sara asked. It was at moments like this that she got reminded of the terrible state her lungs were in thanks to all the smoking.
"And lead us straight into a trap? Forget about it."
Though she was equally as bored as her Valkyrie friend, Ingrid was doing her best to remain alert. Following their report, they got word from Nana informing them to remain vignt. She said the Head General suspected that the kidnappers might be capable of a lot more than what they expect from a bunch of mundane humans.
"Let''s¡ Let''s take a break."
"It hadn''t been ten minutes since west stopped," Juniined. "We won''t get anywhere at this rate!"
"Sorry, but¡" wheezing, Sara slowed down then came to a stop. "Not¡ not everyone¡ is an immortal alien¡ like you¡"
Though she tried to persevere, the reporter found herself at the limit of her physical abilities. Regret started to creep in with everyone wondering if bringing the humans along was the right choice. It took a few minutes for Sara''s breathing to settle down, though that didn''t mean they could continue moving right away.
"Ah!" Juni gasped while checking her phone. "I think we lost reception. Does this mean we''re getting close?"
"Maybe. I don''t thi-"
A faint ck drew Ingrid''s attention and she shifted her sight back to the path ahead. Her halo manifested the next instant and a translucent box formed around the four. Several projectiles collided with the barrier the next second, startling Sara and Simon.
"Juni."
"On it!"
Summoning her own halo, the Valkyrie conjured a blue baseball hat and bat. Resting the bat on her shoulder, she produced a fist-sized orb and tossed it in the air. The projectiles stopped at that moment and Ingrid dispelled her barrier. With nothing in the way, Juni grasped the handle of her bat and twisted her body.
"WATCH.IT.FLY!!!"
Light shed through the tunnel, following the distinct sound of a wooden bat hitting a cork ball. Several bangs echoed through the tunnel as if it had turned into a massive pinball machine. Juni leaned forward, squinting as if trying to see the results of her strike. The translucent wall of Ingrid''s barrier returned the next instant and sparks scattered as more projectiles collided with its outer surface.
"What a pain." The Nephilim sighed. "Do they seriously think this will stop us?"
"You sure?" Simon raised an eyebrow. "Seems to me that we have already stopped."
"We would''ve been at the end if it weren''t for you two." Turning to her Valkyrie Friend, Ingrid motioned for the path forward with her head. "Crush those things. And make it quick."
"Aye sir!"
Saluting with a big smile on her face, Juni disappeared the next second. Before they could question what happened, Sara and Simon heard repeated bludgeoning and crushing sounds interrupted by heavy gunfire. A couple of minutester, the silence returned, and so did Juni.
"It''s done!" She said while saluting.
"Alright, let''s go," Ingrid said.
The four proceeded at walking speed and soon passed beside the wrecks Juni created. They appeared to be some kind of hexapod robots that barely reached three feet tall. Their main weapon seemed to be the pincer-like guns at the front.
"These things don''t look like something meant for fighting Cmities," Simonmented after tapping one of the remains with his foot.
"Tell me about it." Sara stopped to take some photos with her phone.
"Hey! What are you chitchatting for?" The Nephilim called after noticing that the humans weregging behind. "Breaking those things must''ve alerted whoever runs this ce. They will probably send more soon enough."
"You don''t say." Sara sighed. She wanted to say the enemy already knew about them since the Nephilim destroyed one of their surveince drones but dropped the idea.
A quiet hum came from the end of the tunnel. Its source seemed to multiply by the second as it got closer and closer. Several drones appeared soon enough. Their design without a doubt took inspiration from a wasp, with fans in ce of wings, a thin thorax, and a Gatling gun taking the ce of the abdomen and stinger.
The drones arrived a couple dozen meters away and immediately began shooting.
"Not this again¡" Ingrid sighed as the bullets banged against her barrier. "Juni."
"Aye sir!"
"Wait!" Simon suddenly shouted, drawing everyone''s eyes to him. He felt some pressure for a moment before clearing his throat and exining himself. "This is almost exactly the same situation as before, right?"
"Nice deduction, Sherlock. What about?" Sara asked.
"Well, they say madness is doing the same thing and expecting different results."
"And he''s starting to get philosophical." The reporter shook her head, heaving an exasperated sigh.
"No, I think he''s on to something," Ingrid said. "Go on."
Simon red at his fellow human then went on to exin what he thought.
"The people we''re up against already know they have Valkyriesing after them so they should also know that normal weapons wouldn''t work." Pausing, he nced at the Valkyrie then returned his gaze to her Nephilim friend. "What if the point is to trick us into thinking they''re using the same strategy when it''s just a cover for what they''re really nning?"
"Oooh!"
Juni was the only one impressed by the gangster''s theory while Ingrid and Sara gave him disappointed looks. The drones seemed to run out of bullets just then, but when they retreated, new ones came to take their ce,unching another salvo despite the first one not putting a dent in the Nephilim''s translucent barrier.
"Well, he does wave a point," Ingrid said as she faced forward. "I can see it from here. They have some big cannon thing charging in the back."
Even with their special eyes, Freyja''s Daughters couldn''t see very far in such a dimly lit tunnel. Of course, things would be different if there was something glowing in the distance. The Nephilim could tell at first nce that the weapon aimed at them wasn''t meant for humans, but that didn''t really change what needed to be done.
"Alright, Juni. You can go handle them." Thinking for a moment, she then added. "Just put on something appropriate first."
The Valkyrie was a little confused by what her friend meant, looking down at her clothes and seeing no problem with them. Her eyes widened as if she figured something out and she summoned her halo again. A strange device appeared on the back of her left hand right after.
"HEN-" taking a strange pose, she raised the device and tapped it with her right hand. "SHIN!"
A bright light enveloped Juni''s body and forced the others to avert their gazes. It faded after a couple of seconds and the Valkyrie emerged from it with apletely different appearance.
While making their way through the tunnel, Juni kept pestering her friend to teach her how she brought out the tail from her Super Robo without summoning the entire giant mechanical dinosaur. The Nephilim only gave her a hint but that was all she needed.
[Alright! How do I look!?]
Her hoodie and clothes were gone, reced by blue and white armor. Most of it looked like a tight spandex with the more mechanical parts being concentrated around her arms, chest and legs. Her head was covered in a strangely designed helmet with a big ck visor.
The three stared at her for a while, the two humans appearing quite confused.
"Is that¡ a Power Rangers costume?" Sara asked.
"Are you deaf?" Simon turned to her with a frown. "She said the word. She''s clearly a Kamen Rider."
[I''m Super Juni!] The Valkyrie posed.
"Alright," Ingrid interjected, not bothering to ask what they were talking about. "Go take care of those things."
"Roger!"
Chapter 387: Beam Clash.
The instant Super Juni teleported outside Ingrid''s barrier, the wasp drones began shooting their Gatling guns at her. Though she could''ve crossed the distance between them by teleporting again, she instead ran toward them on her feet. Your next chapter is on m v|l-e-NovelBin
With smooth movements and footwork, she evaded each bullet fired her way. Sidestepping one, she jumped in the opposite direction then somersaulted forward. The drones tracked her trajectory but failed to keep up with her speed. She closed the distance in just a few seconds, bringing the first drone within her range.
"SUPER JUNIIII-" Kicking off the tunnel wall, she flipped a couple of times before stretching her leg. "KIIIIIICK!"
As if pushed by an invisible force, Super Juni''s body suddenly shot toward the nearest drone. The sudden eleration ignored the momentum from her previous movements, and the instant her foot met its cold surface, the drone suddenly burst apart, pieces scattering in every direction.
The destructive power behind Super Juni''s attack felt unreal. No matter how one looks at it, a simple kick couldn''t have possibly caused that much damage. At no point did the glow of a fully activated Force Field envelop her leg, which could only mean that her new suit was responsible.
The remaining drones aimed their guns and continued to shoot, but just like before, Super Juni evaded their bullets with ease. Reaching another drone, she punched it so hard it crashed into the wall. She kicked another drone then grabbed one more and mmed it into the one beside it.
The drones turned into piles of junk as soon as they got into arms reach from Super Juni. She kept on destroying them one after the other, shouting the names of her attacks each time. Before long, the number of drones dwindled drastically, leaving only a few. As she was about to go finish them, she noticed a sh of light at the end of the tunnel.
"Be careful, Super Juni!" Ingrid shouted. "That thing is about to fire!"
Having realized as much, Super Juni quickly retreated and took a stance in the middle of the tunnel. Stretching her arms on both sides, she raised the right one while lowering the left, she then brought them together in a snappy move, forming a cross with her forearms.
"SUPER JUNIIII-" her arms began to glow a bright blue. "BEEEEEAAAAMMM!!!!!!"
The tunnel lit up as a brilliant yellow beam shed through it. At the same time, a second beam shot out of the opposite direction, its bright blue color banishing the yellow one.
The two beams collided and the ensuing sh resulted in a violent tremor that spread far and wide. At first, it seemed like they were equal in power, but then the yellow beam began to push the blue one, swallowing it little by little while approaching its source.
"Ngh!" Super Juni seemed to be struggling, her feet sliding as she was slowly pushed back. As the struggle continued, she remembered all the faces of the children they were trying to save and felt power surging through her body. "HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!"
The blue beam suddenly swelled, filling the entire tunnel as it shot forward. It swallowed the yellow beam in an instant and melted the remaining drones that had scurried to the sides, continuing toward the other end of the tunnel.
The cannon firing the yellow beam was at its limit, unable to raise its output any further. Though it was connected to a powerful energy source, there was only so much a single machine could handle. The generated heat cracked its frame and melted its parts, but before it could copse on itself, the blue beam arrived.
A massive explosion devoured the cannon and everything in its vicinity then continued to spread in every direction.
~[ ]~
"No way¡" Sweat beaded a certain man''s forehead as he watched the battle through a screen. "No fucking way¡"
He wasn''t the only one stunned by the scenes ying in front of him, butpared to the others, he seemed to be the most devastated by the sight of the yellow beam losing to the oneunched by the Valkyrie.
"Does she think she''s Ultraman?" Ament shattered the oppressive silence.
Mockingughter erupted and in just a few seconds the atmosphere in the roompletely contrasted the situation they were in. Arrogance was a trait many of those who im to pursue the science had, but when faced with such a threat it can only be considered lunacy.
"What''s with the face, Dean? You scared?"
Theughter boomed once more. Whipping his head around, the man red at his colleagues and gritted his teeth. The lounge had been turned over its head after a long celebration. Many of the staff were either passed out drunk or trying to get there. Only a few bothered to watch the live security footage shared to theirms and the TVs scattered around the hall, and only one of them was sober enough to recognize the danger they were in.
"That thing just destroyed our Gamma Tank! How can you be so rxed!?"
"That''s what the powder is for! Come here, take a sniff!"
Another wave ofughter followed with mocking remarks. Drugs and booze were the only things that could''ve shielded their minds from the catastrophe heading their way. With some of the best chemists living among them, it was easy to concoct something that could push away the fear of their eminent death slowly approaching.
"This is getting out of hand. We might not survive till the next day."
Ever since he received the news, Dean Norris had been anticipating such a raid. Children under the age of fifteen were a resource more precious than anything. If the new Head General were to be believed, that demographic would have the opportunity to gain abilities on par with those of the aliens who pushed humanity toward extinction. Of course, as soon as they heard about it, it was only a matter of time before those at the top would try to hoard that resource.
The higher-ups had made the bold move of kidnapping hundreds of children from the First Settlement and no doubt used some despicable means to do it. The reason was easy enough to guess and so were the consequences.
"What are you saying?" One of the hammered scientists ced an arm around his shoulder. "We are the Jotunn! No way we would bow down to a bunch of aliens!"
"That''s right!"
"Yeah!"
"Kill the aliens!"
"Murder those bitches!"
"Go to hell!"
"We won''t forget!"
The wasted scientists and staff started cheering and chanting the organization''s name, the one they adopted not that long ago. Before, they were just another part of the Resistance. They shared its goal of putting an end to the tyranny of Cmities and reiming what they lost a decade ago. Their direction suddenly changed three months ago and ever since it has felt like they were sliding down a very steep slope, getting more extreme by the day.
Chapter 388: Hangar 23.
"C''mon! Would it hurt you to rx a little? We just finished the biggest project of our lives! If that''s not a reason to celebrate then what is!?"
Though he tried to ignore him, Dean found being shaken by his drunk colleague quite unpleasant. Pushing him away, he red at him and the others, his expression telling of how sick he was of them acting as if nothing mattered.
"Can''t you take this more seriously? We might die any minute now!"
The hall went silent for a couple of seconds but then theughter erupted again.
"And what would stressing over it do!?" One of them retorted.
"If we''re going to die, the higher-ups will be the ones who order it!" Another added.
"They can''t risk us spilling the beans!" Another followed.
Watching the scene before him unfold, Dean couldn''t believe these were the same people who spent thest decade trying to pull humanity out of the grave it fell in.
"Listen, buddy." cing an arm over his shoulder again, the same guy from before spoke, the look in his eyes carrying both confidence and faith. "We are Jotunn. We have survived this far and will continue to survive no matter the odds. We will crush our enemies and avenge our people. That''s what we have dedicated our lives to, remember? Be it those aliens or Primordials or whatever, everyst one of them will be nothing but fodder in front of our brilliance!"
Talking to a bunch of schmucks high out of their minds was a mistake. Dean''s face contorted as he came to that realization, and with a scoff, he turned away and left the lounge. He could still hear theughter even with the door closed behind him.
A lot has changed over the years. Those who had some good in their hearts couldn''t ept the way things were moving and took the shortcut out of this world, leaving only the worst to take the reigns. Dean had contemted doing the same for years, but after everything he found himself unable to. Even with everything he had been forced to endure, he still had something to live for. Someone who helped him keep going. Now that his death was approaching, the only thing he could think of was how it would affect that person.
"Nat..."
As the face of his beloved came to mind, his phone rang.
[Professor Norris. Your presence is required at Hangar 23.]
"Understood."
The call ended just like that.
"Hangar 23..." He muttered to himself, staring at his reflection in the screen of his phone. "That''s the¡"
rm bells began to ring in his head. Not wasting any more time he got on the first tram he could find and rushed to the location he was summoned to. As soon as he arrived, he spotted a familiar face and felt his heart almost stop entirely.
"Nat¡ what are you doing here?"
His shaky voice drew the gaze of everyone gathered in the lobby, though the only one he cared about was the woman standing at their center.
"Dean¡"
The woman, Natalie Anderson, fixed him with a stern look. The bags under her eyes had be a constant ever since her brother''s death, but her face looked a lot paler than usual. He remembered her informing him about what happened in the award ceremony the previous day.
Overwhelmed with grief and anger, she had tried to unload some of it on the otherworldly visitors. The aliens from the forty sixth base had pulled her aside and demanded that she keep her mouth shut. It was to be expected; that the event was a celebration of the peace treaty between the human world and the Nephilim world. Having someone ruin it for any reason could have quite the serious ramifications. That said, almost no one on the human side cares, especially those who are thest remaining members of their families.
"Nat, what are you doing here?" He felt an unpleasant sensation at the back of his throat.
"Ms. Anderson has agreed to pilot the Hrungnir."
The one who responded to his question wasn''t his fiance but one of the men in ck suits. He recognized him and the others as representatives of the higher-ups. They were a group of inspectors usually sent to supervise the testing of projects. Their authority was second only to the General, meaning a meager scientist had no way of opposing a decision they already made.
"... why?" He asked. "The project is indeedpleted, but¡ we have yet to perform a single test run!"
"Professor." The man in ck shook his head. "This is not a matter for you to concern yourself with. You are here to help Ms. Anderson with her preparations."
As he listened to the man''s cold, emotionless voice, Dean could only hang his head. A brief silence ensued after which he heard the shuffling of feet. One by one, the men in ck left the lobby. Only the one who spoke to him remained, and after a few seconds, he moved to leave as well. He took a few steps then stopped by his side.
"This is war, Professor Norris."cing a hand on his shoulder, he spoke in the same emotionless tone. "If we lose here, it will be the end for the Resistance. The true Resistance." Giving his shoulder a light tap, the supervisor continued on his way. "Our survival rests in your hands. Prove to the world that we do not bow down to anyone."
Soon enough, silence enveloped the lobby. The only two remaining were Dean Norris and his fiance, Natalie Anderson. As the seconds continued to pass, the reality of the situation became apparent. The decision has already been made and he was powerless to stop it.
"... Did you make up your mind¡" He asked.
"... yes¡" A soft voice replied.
The silence lingered once more. Remembering the events taking ce at the moment, emotions steered in Dean''s heart.
"Did they¡ did they order you to fight the intruders?"
"... yes¡"
"You will die¡"
"... yes¡"
Looking up with a start, the professor gritted his teeth.
"What¡ what about our future¡?" He asked, his voice tinged with pain. "Why didn''t you talk to me first!!? You¡ you didn''t have to do this¡"
Betrayal. That was the only way to describe what was happening. Although he wasn''t on board with the direction the new Head General was taking them in, the prospect of peace was something he didn''t mind. His beloved had lost every member of her family, but it wasn''t like he had it any different. His wish was to build a new family with her once things settled down a bit more, but from the looks of it, she no longer had any intention of walking down that path.
"We are Jotunn, the true Resistance." She spoke in a cold voice, slowly driving a knife through his heart. "We will rid this world of those filthy invaders and reim what is ours. No matter the cost."
Chapter 389: A troublesome one.
The call had been made and the Ritual was underway. With the Primordial approaching, it was expected that the human settlements would experience attacks intended to finish off the remaining humans so no soul could escape the eldritch abomination.
Countermeasures were put in ce to ensure the safety of civilians. Some focused on preventing any Fallen would appearing among the adult poption, others were intended to stop Primordial Spawn from reaching the settlements.
Both Valkyries and Nephilim were deployed. As the minutes passed no sign of danger was spotted anywhere, but it was exactly for that reason that everyone remained on high alert.
"This is¡ troubling." Mimir lowered the tablet in her hand and heaved a sigh.
She nced at the crimson haired queen giving a speech a short distance away then at the Nephilim who had just arrived. An illusory pain drew a hand to her neck and as she gently rubbed it another tired sigh escaped her.
As a Nephilim, her shoulders didn''t get stiff or require some kind of relief, but from time to time she found herself wanting a good shoulder rub or nice full-body massage.
"I could use some coffee right about now."
The moment she spoke the words, arge white paper cup appeared in front of her.
"Here you go."
Frowning, she nced at the blue haired Nephilim who had appeared beside her at some point.
"Sigyn." Another sigh followed the name. "I thought Her Highness ordered you to remain at the pce?"
"The circumstances have changed, haven''t they? I''m sure you can use all the help you can get!"
Defying the queen''s order came with severe punishment, but for the time being there was no point in stressing over it.
Mimir took the paper cup and brought it to her mouth. Caffeine was another thing Nephilim like her didn''t need but she still found herself addicted to it. The bitter taste of a hot cup of coffee never failed to get her thoughts in order.
"How were the humans?" Though her tone sounded casual, Sigyn''s question seemed to contain copious amounts of malice.
"They were fine," Mimir replied evenly.
"Did any of them try to flirt with you?"
"Few had the courage."
"So there were a few." The blue haired Nephilim nodded a couple of times, her smile remaining the same. "Alright, I should get going."
Just as she turned around to leave, a hand fell on her shoulders.
"Going where?"
Mimir was restraining herself at the moment. They were at a very sensitive point so thest thing she wanted was to deal with her man-hating friend.
"You should go back."
"Okay." Sigyn ced a hand over Mimir''s. "Just let me grab the security footage from thesttwo days."
"Should I inform her Highness that you''re here?"
Faced with that threat, Sygn froze in her ce. Mimir let go of her and sipped from the paper cup again.
"We don''t have time for this so I would appreciate it if you didn''t cause any mess."
Her shoulders slumping, the blue haired Nephilim sighed in defeat and turned to stand beside her friend.
"I¡ just don''t get it¡" She said. "Why are we bothering with all of this? Can''t we just find some nice and peaceful world to settle in?"
"There is no peace for us, Sigyn," Mimir replied. "There is no retiring from this."
Just then the tablet in her hand seemed toe to life. ncing at it, she handed the paper cup to her friend and tapped the screen to ept the call.
"I''m guessing there is an update?"
The face that appeared belonged to Nana, Head General Sanderson''s secretary and the Valkyrie handling their forces at the moment. Going by her expression, it was clear that something had happened.
[You need to see this.] Was all she said.
Since they were not that far apart, all Mimir had to do was teleport once and she arrived at the tent serving as themand center. There were quite a few others gathered around, both Valkyries and Nephilim.
A pair of drones passed in the gap between them carrying a pod of some kind. At first, Mimir was confused by what was happening, but when she looked through the transparent lid and saw what was inside her eyes narrowed as if she understood what was happening.
"Hervor?" Sygn muttered, her eyes wide with shock.
"She''s alive," Mimir said as she turned away. "Worry about the other two."
Once they made their way inside, Mimir immediately spotted one of the two she mentioned, but seeing that the other was missing rmed her.
"What happened." She asked.
"M-Mimir¡" Tears gathered in Eira''s eyes. "Thyra¡ she¡"
Expecting no casualties amongbatants would have been foolish, but hearing that a Nephilim had already lost her life still came as a shock.
"We analyzed the footage from the drones." Came a calm and collected voice. "There is no doubt about it. It''s the work of a Fallen."
Nana walked over and extended the tablet in her hand toward the green haired Nephilim. Taking a look at the contents, Mimir pursed her lips and furrowed her brows.
"This is¡ a troublesome one."
"That thing¡" A murmur came from the Cleanser sitting beside them. "It wasn''t¡it wasn''t affected by my Purge Field at all..."
Mimir lingered for a moment then turned to the silver haired Valkyrie.
"Some kind of puppet?"
"Clearly." Coming closer, Nana tapped the tablet screen then slid her finger on it, moving the footage forward. "And not just one."
The drones had remained behind after Eira teleported away. While there, they recorded a peculiar scene where a group of headless people gathered around Thyra''s motionless body before walking away.
"We have yet to find the puppeteer," Nana said.
"Howe it''s already this... rational?" Mimir asked. "Even if we were careless, I doubt it could have stayed out of our radar long enough to reach this level¡"
Once they''re infected with Madness, even the most harmless of people would turn into a ferocious beast driven by the desire tomit evil. Under such a mindless state, the Fallen would hardly be capable of hiding its presence for long.
"That does not matter for the time being." Nana sighed. "We need to take it down before the casualties increase."
Their enemy controls a horde of headless corpses; the longer it remained on the loose, the more thralls it would be able to gather, greatly increasing the damage it is bound to cause.
"I will gather a few good trackers," Mimir said. "We still need Cleansers, but¡"
Eira''s Purge Field might have failed to incapacitate the headless puppets, but that didn''t mean the puppeteer wouldn''t be affected. Considering its abilities and how it remained undetected for so long, Mimir believed that their opponent had already reached a level where the power of a single Cleanser wouldn''t be able to restrain it.
"I¡ I will go." Though appearing reluctant, Eira clutched her sounding staff as she stood up from her seat. "I can''t just hide after everything that happened¡"
"That would be a great help." A relieved sigh escaped Nana.
"Here. I will go as well." Sigyn raised her hand, speaking in an even tone.
Mimir turned to her with a sharp re but the blue haired Nephilim only shrugged.
"I disobeyed her Highness''s orders. Might as well be useful and lighten my punishment."
Though she saw no reason to stop her, Mimir didn''t feel like letting her go. Heaving an exasperated sigh, she turned to the Valkyrie and asked
"As for the other Cleansers-"
"I will go."
The clear voice drew everyone''s attention to the entrance of the tent.
"Eleven¡" Nana muttered the Valkyrie''s name.
"You need Cleansers, right?" The idol spoke in a calm, emotionless tone. "I can''t be sitting around doing nothing."
The mood inside seemed to drop even lower than before. Everyone, with the exception of Eira, was aware that the three members of the Aurora''s idol group were ordered to remain on standby despite the dire need for Cleansers.
The Head General nned to make use of their poprity if the evacuations didn''t proceed as expected so having them roam around didn''t seem like the right idea.
"This is too dangerous." Nana shook her head and said. "We can''t put you at risk like that."
"Many more people might have died while we ''re discussing this." The idol retorted. "If the situation is as dangerous as you say, we need to put an end to it and fast."
Silence permeated once more as the two Valkyries stared at each other. After some time, the one with silver hair heaved a defeated sigh.
"I wish I didn''t have to do this but¡" Pausing for a moment, she met the idol''s gaze again and spoke in a serious tone. "The Falln uses some kind of spatial maniption ability through the thralls. We don''t know its range yet so it would be for the best if you remained as far as possible and only used your drones."
"Understood." Eleven bowed her head as she spoke. "I will go inform the others."
Once the idol left, silence enveloped themand center once more. After some time, a sigh escaped Nana and Mimir followed suit.
"A broken heart?" Sigyn held her chin as she wore a much more serious expression. "She carries the mark of unrequited love¡"
The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and
continue reading tomorrow, everyone!