Chapter Text

Interlude 3: Hopeful Slices of Mundanity

(Source: https://yuushya.com/townscape/download-en.html) 

"To our health!"

"Our luck!"

"And to your career after the army!"

Three cold glasses of beer clinked against each other, a merry celebration of an ending, and new beginnings underway in the lives of the three members of Reunion. Through desperation, to hope, and finally, realization of their shared dreams, Kevin thought back to the start of his journey, leaving his hometown and just wandering through the wilderness with…not quite nostalgia, but with some longing for its simpler moments.

"Drink up, it's customary to do so."

Kevin, in his civilian clothes, turned to his comrade who said that. Big Bob had downed his entire glass already…and noticeably without taking his armour off, let alone helmet even once. Deciding to not question his abilities, Kevin downed half of his beer in one go, hard to believe that he'd ever prefer an ice-cold drink over a hot cup of anything. Just a year ago, he was freezing his ass off in a Reunion camp…back then it wasn't even called Reunion!

"Bob, let's not get him too drunk now, he still needs to show up to his barracks tomorrow…"

Kevin turned to his other friend, Ethan. The Savra…infiltrator? Well, Kevin wasn't quite sure what Ethan's true capabilities were, but he could render himself near invisible and using that skill got them both out of trouble a few times before joining up with Patriot's group. They met by chance in the Ursine wilderness, and since leaving his hometown, they watched each other's backs to the present day. A true brother in all but blood.

"It's fine, Ethan, I handed in the keys to my jetpack already. As far as they're concerned, I am just a simple reservist."

Kevin left the army, or more specifically the Reunion flying corps, and made himself into a simple reservist. With the peace treaty in force, and a new dedicated defence force, a policy was made to allow current active duty members to slide into the newly created reserves. It was a change in policy, going from active combat to more subversive activities, and thus resources needed to be pulled elsewhere. Of course, the city was still going to have a dedicated force just for defence, but otherwise, they weren't expecting to meet other armies in the field at any point.

"I still don't get it, man. You were made a Captain, unlike some of the others I know, you've got a whole officer career ahead of you. Why'd you choose to leave?" Ethan asked, prompting Kevin to sigh.

"You won't get it…so basically, they're looking to make it even more professional, in line with other armies. So, to do that, I'd have to be sent to officer school or something, learn a few things, and then come back. I don't know about you, but my school experience stopped at around age twelve, not exactly officer material. I can barely do algebra, let alone plot out complex flight patterns. I was just going off instinct before!"

That was one reason, but the primary one…

Well, anyone would be awed, or more accurately, fearful upon seeing that giant beam of light annihilate an invading army from the sky. Kevin suddenly realised after the battle, that maybe that wasn't what he wanted to do, be that close to things beyond normal comprehension. So, when the chance came up, he took it, letting someone else under his command take over temporarily until a new commanding officer could take over. Besides, he accidentally got the role anyway, being the first ever jetpack test 'pilot' all those months ago…

"You hate school that much?" His friend nudged him with a grin.

"No, Ethan, I just know my limits…how about you, Bob? Any grand dreams for you too?"

Big Bob, like Kevin, also left the army, formerly part of its logistics division. The three of them were, in Playaar slang, the OGs of Reunion, being there since even before Alina contacted Alex. Look at them now, all sentimental for a…not so great time. Here, he was drinking cold beer, hot exotic food, when he remembered they often had to make do with stale, sometimes rotten bread as that was all they could get in terms of supply. Now, with the opportunity of something else presented, many of the original members decided to seek other paths in life.

Being part of Reunion was always a means to a goal, to achieve normal lives with their Infected status, and they finally had it now, however small it currently was.

"I don't know, but now that I have left…I want to start a grocery store."

"A grocery store?" Kevin was surprised, Bob, no offense to him, didn't seem like the type to start one. What, was he still going to wear his full armour while running it?

"Yes, my brothers have started their own farms, I can arrange some things to get a preferred deal."

"Isn't food insanely cheap here? How are you going to make a living from it?" Everyone could easily afford, or was even outright given food for free, usually in the raw form of it such as flour or raw meat then cooked to their desires. Restaurants existed here, but you typically only paid for the labour, and not the food costs.

"Ah, but you see, not all food is. Some speciality products are not produced, or consumed by Playaars. For example, I have not seen chips, sprats or even kolbasa. I have tried it, and all of those things can be made with Playaar ingredients, you just need to do them the old-fashioned way."

Come to think of it, the only food stuffs the Playaars did eat and produce were high-end, usually fresh vegetables and meats, often in extreme quantities to the point where there was no need for anything processed, unlike life back in Ursus. However…if he was being honest, Kevin did somewhat miss eating processed products, like chips or even the odd sausage in plastic instead of making them from scratch. Those items were quite rare here, no manufacturer out to make industrial amounts of them just yet as there was no market for it in the Playaar civilization, something about it not providing enough 'saturation' or something.

"Heh, so you're planning on rivalling the Bescos…"

"Not rival, but partner with. Once they see my products, we will be working together to spread them throughout both of civilizations. I have asked some Playaars, and they are receptive to many Terran products. I may even incorporate Originium Slugs into the local cuisines, my brothers and I have the knowledge to breed them."

Getting a head start, then? Bold, but for some reason, if it was Big Bob, then just maybe he could carve out a little grocery empire.

"Come on, Ethan, your turn. What plans do you have, since you're apparently staying in Reunion?"

"Hm…actually, not sure. All I know is that I'll be sent somewhere else, long-term assignments. You know how it is, I'll be using my talents for the cause, you know, some silent work. Ursus isn't the only place on Terra where the Infected are suffering."

He did hear of the intelligence services being greatly expanded, as part of new priorities in Reunion, now that their southern flank was relatively secure. If you asked him, Kevin didn't trust the Ursine government all too much, but what could he do about it?

"Who's your boss then?"

"Miss Crownslayer, I think? And also this Playaar called Pravda, haven't met them yet, but hopefully it'll be soon. I haven't really done anything since coming here, unlike you two, being part of our glorious defence and everything." The jab was welcomed, because Kevin and Big Bob did fight in the defence, even when it seemed desperate. Patting his friend on the shoulder for reassurance, Kevin wanted him to know it wasn't bad to miss something like that, no, it may have even been better. He still thought, and dreamed of that night, flying through the city and fighting literal dragons of all things.

The feeling of flight however, without the use for fighting, there were few things he'd experienced so far that could replicate it. No matter how wonderful the feeling was, Kevin still had to return to the ground eventually, and this time, it may have been permanent.

"Hey, you did and are doing your part. No one's efforts are wasted…and besides, we got to retire and do the things we truly wanted to after that, some others didn't get their applications to leave approved." Kevin suspected that those who saw actual combat were allowed to leave, while the fresher recruits were kept in. He couldn't understand why, but that was his observation from talking with those leaving the army like him.

"Honourable discharge isn't so bad, think of it like…retirement from one career, and going to the next, who knows what we're going to find next?"

"That, I cannot agree more."

A dish was placed in front of him, a yellow dish of something rolled up, with a pinkish core inside of it. Looking up, he realised it came from the owner of their drinking establishment, this 'Izakaya' run by a Playaar. It had an odd name too, what did 'Five Rings' mean? Probably some Playaar cultural thing. It wasn't quite his most obvious choice, the first going to that Victorian style pub in the city centre, but Ethan found the spot, and liked it enough to recommend it to them.

"Your order, mentaiko tamagoyaki, you asked for some light seafood, and this is what I recommend for those who aren't used to a strong, fishy taste."

 The Playaar manning the small establishment was a young…man, though from afar you couldn't quite tell his gender. Dressed in simple Higashi-style robes, and with long black hair tied to a ponytail, he was inconspicuous, but as with all Playaars, you couldn't judge them by appearances alone. Certainly not because of the giant two-metre-long sword hanging on the wall behind him. Other than that, he was like any other Terran or Playaar vendor in this district.

"Thanks, Master Saph! You know, Kevin always wanted to go see the ocean with his own eyes. Well, we couldn't quite wander our way to an ocean before, nor did Ursus have one, so…this is sort of the best we can do for now." Ethan replied, evidently acquainted with the owner here. There was an air of simplicity in his actions, a simple, honest life that Kevin was trying to find himself. Yet, he couldn't see himself like Master Saph, something about the food industry not quite appealing to him.

"See the ocean? Hm, I understand that feeling, the salty breeze, the calm, or raging tides…the first time that anyone sees it is a sight to behold." Master Saph had a melancholic expression, perfect for the quiet streets around them. They were in one of Nadezhdagrad's newer districts, though rapidly filling up, it was in that twilight zone between technically having people around them, and feeling completely empty. All they heard for company, aside from companions of course, were the sounds of the food stand, and the passing trains every so often.

"There is an ocean biome nearby, though there are no roads there, and the path is not safe for most Terrans to traverse. It is where I get my stock of fish, the best produce is the one you gather by yourself, can't trust those companies these days with their practices, they're almost as bad as those ones from the End…here, yakitori, and kushiage for my armoured friend."

A plate of skewers for Ethan, and for Big Bob, a plate full of fried things on sticks. That was another good thing about living here, novel experiences were present nearly every day, even if they were somewhat weird, such as those noodles in chocolate soup being advertised downtown. Villager news said the resulting incident caused fifteen arrests.

"See the ocean…maybe I just might go and do that someday…"

It was a dream of Kevin's, a distant one, since for Infected travelling around the country, or even Terra freely, was considered dangerous, or unattainable. Even then, he'd only heard stories about it, the deep blue, stretching endlessly over the horizon, alongside animals he had never seen before. Even the water was different, unlike lakewater, the water in oceans were all…salty. He told Ethan about it one day, while they were freezing their asses off together next to a dying campfire, but he was glad to be reminded of it again.

"Master, didn't you say something else earlier? Agreeing about what exactly?" Big Bob asked, the more astute of them, probably why his rank was technically higher than his for most of the time while in the combat forces.  

"Retirement. Or more accurately, a change in careers. It is not something to fear, after all, change is neither good, nor bad. Take this city for example, I understand that you came here seeking a new beginning, and found it here, as have I too." Master…Saph, as Ethan called him, said in a sage-like manner, almost as if he was reading a poem.

New beginnings, well, it was accurate if anything. No more of those bad old days, those old Terran conflicts and prejudices, swept away by the new, albeit square dawn everyday in Nadezhdagrad. Just like how people didn't question why the sun was square here, neither did the people here revert to their old ways of thinking…most of the time.

"Oh? Then what were you before becoming a humble restaurateur? A soldier like us? That blade behind you seems to be more than a wall decoration." Big Bob asked, somehow already eaten half of his dish already, helmet still on.

Master Saph on the other hand, waved him off, shaking his head in a casual manner. "Nothing of the sort, nor did I have any desire to join any clans. I joined the fighting because it was for the common defence of this city, it would be dishonorable for me to leave it for the others while I could fight. It almost made me want to take up my blade once more, almost. "

A wandering mercenary? Someone who had a life of fighting, and then decided to retire and-

"I was a Hero of Humanity."   

Kevin paused mid drink, and so did the others stare at him. Did…they hear him wrong? There was no way he was-

"I fought until the end of the world…and failed. So! I am here as a humble chef, running an Izakaya for weary midnight travellers such as yourself. Those hectic days of fighting are behind me, though I still have my blade sharp for unwanted surprises." He said it as a matter of fact, no room for doubt or any indication of lies.

"The…end of the world?" Ethan asked, not quite believing what he heard, as did Kevin and most likely Big Bob too.

"But…we are still here, so how could it have been the end of the world?" Kevin then asked the obvious, only to get another equally baffling reply.

"Ah, it happened on another ser-var. This world is still safe, worry not."

There were a lot of questions Kevin wanted to ask, but he then remembered the golden rule regarding Playaars. Don't ask them too many questions, and you'll generally get along fine with them. He was going to exercise it now, otherwise he might receive some cosmic knowledge that might cause sleepless nights. There was a friend of his in the engineering corps that had a long conversation with someone named Erin from the HBU, he resigned from the position a few days later.

"So, I guess even heroes of humanity can retire…"

"Technically, I didn't choose to retire so much as the decision was made for me, but yes. Retirement from one thing, is not the end. Change can be good, it gives variety in life. As is accepting things as they are when needed, stubbornly clinging to change may get you kidnapped by dragons after all, like that unfortunate ruffian a few weeks ago. Hmph, not believing swords are a form of Katana, the audacity…"

Someone got kidnapped by a dragon?!

"Though, I would advise that you find something worth doing, personally. After all, we have many chances to change, but not infinitely. Now then, give me a call if you need anything else, the night is still young, and I expect many more to fill those seats-wait, what is that fox doing…?"

Turning around, Master Saph squinted at a cart behind them, somewhat far down the street. Some Vulpo in red and white robes was peddling a charm or two towards some highschoolers, Kevin recognized her from the battle, doing some similar 'fortune telling' for the defenders before the main camp was destroyed by a Dragon attack. Did anyone actually believe those things? Well, there were always those that did…

A rustle was heard from the kitchen, and Master Saph was now armed with his sword, a melancholic expression on his face.

"Forgive me, but the duty of a Hero never rests, I shall come back soon. You would think being exiled would cause her to reconsider her ways… Raitō! Cease your deceit at once! With the heavens as my witness, you will not lead astray the young!"

The Vulpo pushing the cart jumped at those words and began to flee, but Master Saph followed closely behind, and was catching up rapidly. Always something going on in this city, apparently. Kevin stayed on his rapidly distancing form for a while, until Ethan nudged his shoulders with a grin.

"Want to be like him? As some hero of justice?"

"Pffft, no. Nor do I want to be in the food business, my talents would only let me become a soda seller or something. As for what I want to do…”

There was a reason why he signed up to be that test pilot, who wouldn't pass up the chance to fly? A shame that there wasn't anything similar to being a pilot or...

Kevin hit himself on the head, wondering why he didn't think of it sooner! Fishing out his phone, he quickly dialled the number of someone he met during the victory party, someone who, like him, fought in the skies of Nadezhdagrad, only not quite under Reunion's banner. He dialled the number, and it connected soon after, the sound of howling wind on the other side verifying the identity on the other side.

"Hey…Miss Moth? I have a question about what you do and was wondering…"

Flying was where true freedom existed, and if he didn't want to fly under a banner, then he could at least fly for a purpose.

Once the call was over, and he had his newfound direction, Kevin put his hand on Ethan and Big Bob's shoulders, a plan most genius hatched in his mind, alongside an iron will to make it come to fruition.

“So...I know we just got here, but how about helping me design my new company logo? I think I'll be needing it soon.”

“N-Now?!” Ethan exclaimed, still in the middle of his fowlbeast skewers. Big Bob on the other hand, decided for them.

“Horosho. The night is still young. Come with me, I know where we might find materials this late into the night. I can also do with thinking of a logo and business name too…Bob's Foods? Nyet, too simple, it needs mass appeal…”

Hastily finishing their food, and leaving enough emerald bills for the Master, the three stumbled away, off to turn their new futures from dreams, to reality.

That said…wasn't there a Dragon in that battle they didn't end up killing? It flew away before anyone could catch up, and in the ensuing chaos, no one did end up following up on it.

Oh well, if it came back, their new Air Force could take care of it, they had Playaar flying machines called ‘planes', much larger machines, and more importantly, no need for only jetpack troops like him to take care of the slack. Wherever it was now...it wasn't Kevin's place to worry about anymore, there was a life for him to live, and he was going to soar through the skies for it.

They ended up getting arrested for breaking and entering.

To hunt the Andskotarnir, one had to adapt to the changing landscape at a moment's notice.

Any change in the area, the air feeling heavier, flowers that sprouted without roots, or even the obvious black wounds in the earth that were the hallmark of those otherworldly beasts needed to be considered. To be a hunter among the Sami, those were the skills needed to keep the encroaching Andskotarnir at bay from their homeland.

And so, when change came for the frozen, inhospitable lands once more, a young, purple haired huntress was…puzzled, to say the least, at the latest developments.

(Source: BeiYang_1's World for Neo-New Projects pls don't copy or u will be cursed ok~)

Slinging her massive warbow on her back, the young huntress inspected the ruins before her. Change had come once again to these parts of the frostlands, in a way never thought to be possible. It had somehow turned warmer.

Make no mistake, it was still very cold in some areas, but the howling winds, blizzards that had no end, and even presence of the Andskotarnir had seemingly lowered itself considerably. She hadn't even encountered any of them on this trip, when usually there would be signs. Now, the land was thawing, some plant life visible again among the endless white. Some of the shamans among the tribes were concerned, seeing it as a sign of the impending apocalypse some believed, while others saw it as a sign of the All-father or Ammataru blessing them with new, safe land.

Stepping carefully around these ruins, their origins a mystery to the Sami, and the researchers who rarely came across them, she shifted through the cube-like stones to find what she needed.

A box that could split into two, and in it, holding vast amounts of things, a 'shuul-kher'. The ancient name for it, as passed down among her people for generations, never shown to outsiders. However, while some saw it as taboo, others saw it as precious and valuable, one of the few things that could reasonably be taken away from the corrupting influences, and not cause catastrophe.

Some shamans saw them as extensions of the demons, their ability to warp space evidence of their connection, while others cited their special, non-hostile nature as proof that prior peoples living here had tamed the corruption. These ruins had to belong to someone after all. However, she saw nothing of it, no need to disturb these ruins for some vain promise of treasure or worse-

"aaaaaaaaaAAAAAAA…"

The huntress paused. There was…a sound of some sort coming from a vague direction above. Drawing her bowstring back, she prepared herself for anything, either wild beasts, or even those demons-

"I HAAAAATE DRAGONS!"

WHAM

Only two metres away from her, a dark figure landed on a conveniently placed high mound of snow, likely absorbing much of the fall from that height. Hearing a roar up in the sky, the young huntress turned her attention back above, and saw a massive dark figure flying away, further in the direction south. At this range, she couldn't shoot it, the rapidly retreating form too far for her to take any decisive action.

However, she now had another thing to deal with. Arrow still drawn, she checked on the dark figure that had fallen on the mound of snow, hearing it ramble in…Columbian?

"Ow…feels like I've been flying for a month! Damn lizard, it was lucky I didn't have my edge of dawn, lament or even that fell star with me! By the Ivory Serpent Princess, it is a miracle I didn't get thrown down, didn't have a water bucket with me. I would have turned it into experience and extra parts if it wasn't…oh, hello there!"

The figure turned out to be an Elder Savra, very rare to see in Sami, but she did see them once or twice, usually working as bodyguards for the Columbian researchers. Then again, the number of Columbian researchers here have been fewer lately, something about their funding being reduced heavily. The Ursine ones were still here, along with their soldiers. Typhon remembered some of the former, including a Mister Murray who went missing weeks back, even other shamans and hunters hired to find him found no trace. Another one lost to the frostlands.

Slowly, she put away her bow and arrow, seeing that this man was…likely not a threat.

"Are you…alright? And did you just fall from-"

"The sky! Yes, yes I did! And it seems I have travelled a long way, oh, excuse me, need to eat something, haven't had anything in a while and my hunger bar is absolutely decimated." Taking out of leg of ham from nowhere, he began to consume the entire thing in one go down to the bone. She knew a few hunters who were fast eaters, but this was something else entirely…

"Much better…ah, do you want some? It is a bit bland admittedly, but with some sauce, I guarantee it tastes at least fifty-percent better."

"No, thank you, and you also ate it to the bo-" She cut herself off upon seeing the leg of ham in pristine condition again, as if never been eaten before.

"Alright then, suit yourself. Let me just get up from this snow…"

Helping him up, the young huntress quickly pinched herself to check if this was some demon hallucination, the pain was real, and a man really did just randomly fall from the sky this deep into the frostlands.

"Thank you! Now, if you could direct me to the nearest Reunion base, that would be most appreciated. I have a battle to get back to, friends to help and a city to save and all that…say, you wouldn't be a scout, are you?"

"What is…Reunion?" That was all she could say to him, clearly mistaking her for someone, or part of something else. In return, the Savra man squinted, and then looked to his upper left.

"These coordinates seem…far. Would you happen to tell me where exactly I am? I may be a slight bit lost, just a general location will do."

A lost explorer? Or…it could be another demon form, trying to gain her trust. Yet, her warbow did not react, this was no such demon, but most likely a lost traveller from the air, somehow. Flying machines existed in other countries, not that Sami ever had them come in on account of the extreme weather, but it was possible.

"You are in Sami lands, near the icefield. Normally, the hunters and guards restrict anyone who tries to get in this deeply without a guide, but you seem to be…"

"A weaponsmith, blacksmith, or an artisan. You see, I did not intend to come to…what is this place again?"

"Northern Sami lands, the nearest town is quite far from here."

"To Sami lands, I assure you, I am not part of anyone, or anything. Now, on this map, could you perhaps point to where exactly I am, for reference?"

A large paper map appeared out of thin air in his hands, showing Ursus in the south, a city called 'Nadezhdagrad' and 'Neo-New Elysium' in the north…beyond the infy icefield. That was ridiculous, no settlements survived beyond this point, if the cold didn't get them, then the demons did. However, to humour him, she pointed at the bottom left corner of the map, Sami lands just barely printed on it.

"Oh…oh dang, I am far…"

"Did someone sell you this map? If so, then I am afraid you were scammed, Mister…?"

"Doo-Hickey, master blacksmith, and one of the only reputable ones out there! As for the other thing, no, I was not scammed, I really do hail from the north, beyond the frozen wasteland. You see, for there is an entire civilization just beyond the frostlands, I know you Terrans must have your minds blown right now…I think. Wait, was there some protocol for this? Ah forget it, I didn't pay attention to those pamphlets anyways."

The purple haired huntress believed about…absolutely nothing from him. This man was either insane, or insanely misled, and was trying to mislead her too.

"I…see. In that case, I hope you…find safety, Mister Hickey." She was about to say return home, but that would basically be wishing for his death.

"The nearest town is thirty kilometres to the south, you can find safe passage back to Columbia that way. I can take you back with me, these lands are…dangerous for first time travellers."

She took ginger steps away, hoping to start coaxing him into following her. Leaving someone out here to die was not good to say the least, even if some of the shamans would rather she did that. Unfortunately, Mister Hickey had something else to ask her.

"So…anything fun to do in Sami, perhaps? Since I'm here I might as well visit a true Terran society before making my way back, who knows? Maybe I'll find something worthy of bringing back, or better yet…a new weapon."

Suddenly, she moved her bow away from his prying eyes. No, none could ever lay their hands on it, out of danger, and for her own, personal reasons.

"Ah, but if only I had a guide…stumbling into things is not my style. Say, how about earning a few Emeralds? I guarantee you that working for me is worthwhile…even though all my assistants before never lasted too long…"

"I-I am not sure, and I have my existing duties to…"

Shing

A bright green light assaulted her vision, but it was not from an attack, but from the gleam of a precious gemstone. Reflecting the sunlight onto her, she was struck by its size, bigger than even the palm of her hand…

"And if that doesn't work, I also have diamonds, gold, precious metals…and if you desire, I can even create a brand new weapon, just for you, no additional cost from you at all. So, how about it? Will you be my guide, for this lost traveller?"

Such a gemstone could…pay for hundreds of arrows, equipment, and even leisure items from the general store, imports like sweets or books for entertainment. She'd heard of their prices going down immensely over the past few weeks, not that it was still affordable for her in any way. But with that gemstone…

Well, a few forward looking shamans in the south offered their services to any who sought it, acting as guides for tourists and researchers. Some were…unscrupulous, she had to admit, and they were not representative of the norm among her people, yet as a simple guide…

Sure, she had never done anything remotely similar before, but how hard could something like that be?

"…very well. And the rate is…?"

"Twelve Emeralds a day, I know that's basically minimum wage, but I don't have that many with me so…" For good measure, Mister Hickey showed her more of those green gemstones, causing her eyes to slowly widen. Yes, gemstones were still gemstones, fetching a high price and barter for…anyone really.

Twelve?!

"That is…acceptable." She held her hand out to 'shake'; a custom learned from the foreign travellers to Sami. A scaled hand took it, and a pact was formed.

"My name is Typhon, and I will be your guide to my homeland."

The hunts were not constant, and between them, Typhon could be part of her homeland's outreach efforts to the wider world, no?

(Source: https://www.planetminecraft.com/project/sochi-railway-station-6506463/)

"Just a tiny bit more to your right, gotta get the right shot for the thumbnail…"

In the subclauses for Rhine Labs directors and senior employees, there was a subsection there labelled ‘public activities‘ that were somewhat puzzling as for what they did. While it was first and foremost a research institution, the nature of working in Columbia, with its entertainment business meant that the directors couldn't just hide behind the walls of their laboratories. No, they had a minimum number of hours required per year in doing things ‘visible by the public’.

Most were academics, and just decided to hold a guest lecture or two back at their respective institutions, while others had more public speaking roles. There was a rumour circulating around that Nasti, head of Rhine's engineering section had appeared on a television show, but it remained as such for a long time, simple rumours.

“Murray, dude, stop giving us that dog-ass expression, come on, bright smile!” Spring shouted from behind the camera, a miniature filming setup done just for a thirty second advertisement. This was no Wrankwood production, but a simple shoot for the local television advertising new connections to cities deeper into the Overworld.

And Murray was the unfortunate Terran representative here, chosen for his quote ‘completely average appearance' and also the fact that Spring didn't want to hire an actor. Forcing his face into a smile, he continued to give a thumbs up, secretly hoping to never see the actual advertisement for himself, lest he die inside. The worst part of this was that it had to be filmed early in the morning, still in his drowsy early self where smiling felt physically impossible.

“...and that's good enough! Alright, Erin! Scene two, you're up...” Murray let himself go, his part was just a few seconds long, literally a still shot of himself about to board a train. At the very least, he wasn't like poor Erin in that ridiculous outfit...

“C-Can I reconsider? I will do literally anything else, just don't make me go out...”

Spring, ruthless as she was, showed her subordinate no mercy. “Boo-hoo. If you didn't want to do this, then don't make stupid bets next time. Play stupid games, win stupid prizes, now get onto the damn scene!”

Coming out of a train cart used specifically for filming today, Murray did his best to show solidarity with her, though even he couldn't help but cough and look away. Then again, she did lose the bet, and quite spectacularly. A promise was a promise, and going back on it wouldn't have worked on account of Erin's honour.

“This'll do numbers on the homepage...” Spring whispered out wickedly, an evil grin on what could be seen on her face.

“Y-You're uploading this on your channel?!” Erin cried out, her gun taken out in response.

“I mean, numbers for the city! It'll attract more visitors to the city! You're overthinking it, now unless you want more people to see you like this, we better shoot it! Three, two...one...and action!”

(Source: Thanks to Toyamasu for drawing this comic of his OC.)

For one, he did not know Erin actually had pink hair underneath that helmet of hers. Honestly, he thought there wasn't anything underneath that helmet of hers until now. That was quite the surprise for him, not that he would ever let them know he was surprised. Besides, Erin's face was redder than beet soup now, just waiting for Spring to finally end it.

“Damnit, there was some light in the lens, I think I know the answer but how do you feel about a take two?”

“Verpiss dich!”

Murray didn't need to know Leithanien to know what she told Spring.

“Ugh, fine. That's a wrap! You know, you could be a voice actor with that kinda range instead of being stuck in that IT job you hate so much...and she's gone.”

Erin was there one moment, and gone the next. Murray began looking around them, trying to find exactly where she might have disappeared to.

“Don't bother, Erin left the ser-var to change her skin. She'll be back once she manages to get through the queue, we're apparently getting an influx of new Playaars. It must cost a fortune to run the damn thing, wonder how she manages to run it without lagging everyone out…" Spring said as she fiddled with her camera.

"There are only a finite number of Playaars at any given moment?" Murray asked, since that was what she implied. By this point, he was categorising them as extra-dimensional beings, who instead of using their almighty powers for…almighty things, they primarily used it to mess with Terrans. Okay, that might be a bit mean, but to Murray that was how he felt working in the HBU. They did a lot of good for the Infected, no doubt about it, but their use for such an ability was underwhelming, in his opinion.

"Yes and no, populations fluctuate depending on time and…interest, but there is no hard limit. Don't know how HyperGryph affords it, but this is the most stable ser-var I've ever been on, any connection issue is all apparently client-side. Though, the queue is kind of annoying. Some youh-tuuber, more subs than me, talked about this place, and so we have yet another influx."

"I don't think I'll ever understand all of that, but the bottom line is there are more Playaars now, right?"

"Basically, but they're all going to be at the starting region for a while, we won't be feeling the effects anytime soon. Hey, uh, thanks for doing this, I really needed some new content. My channel views have been dropping lately, and the money is even tighter this month…" Spring sighed deeply as she finished packing up, acting exactly like him during college. His family was not well off, and between the student loans and the cost of living in Trimounts, Murray also sighed similarly upon opening his wallet.

"You are my boss…but I do find it depressing that beings from another dimension still require money. I…kind of assumed that wouldn't be the case."

"Alternate beings from…bro, just think of us like Terrans with a more unique state of existence. Quantum equilibrium, heard of it? In the theory of probability, there will be randomness between two data points, randomness essentially, but there are still constants. And in this case, taxes and bills are unfortunately constants between different states of being…"

He continued to stare at Spring, trying to figure out what she just said. Make no mistake, he learned things about his field, and in other sciences that were thought to be far beyond or impossible Terran standards just by being in Nadezhdagrad. However, he was only human, and couldn't learn everything at once.

"Look, don't worry about it. Just know that out of all the places in Terra, it sounds like Columbia is the closest one to my own, aside from me, Moth, Columbo…and even that Klein you heard before, Defy…don't tell her I said this, but we're actually quite close, culturally. No-Cal ain't that much different from Apuh-laychee-uh. Most of us used to be in Shackleton, but you know what happened to it."

"What about Miss Alex? She sounds…"

"She's a Kan-uck, doesn't count. Besides, we're not exactly on the best terms…well, we were never on the best terms, especially given recent events but that is for us to worry about. Just know that our struggles are the same as yours, like getting cut off at a green light, only having enough money to eat instant noodles for months or getting fired from your job. I might be your boss here, but…"

Spring looked at him, her bangs parting slightly to reveal brown-coloured eyes, the first time they made true eye contact.

"Back home? I'm kinda a nobody, sure, I went to an Ivey league school, got good grades to please the old man, had a teaching assistant gig for a bit, and now I'm stuck making clickbait content hoping to strike it big while working part-time in fast food so I don't starve. Real good use of my aerospace degree…"

From his understanding, there were always two Playaars, the one in front of him, and the one in the dimension called eye-arr-ell. Both were mutually exclusive existences, yet knew the experiences of each other. If you asked him, it sounded torturous. Murray could barely handle this life, now imagine if he had to live another one simultaneously?

He didn't envy the Playaars, not one bit.

"Sorry if I'm going to offend you, but can't you move back in with family? If your counterpart is anything close to the south in Columbia, they'll likely…"

Spring chortled, as if he had said a joke out loud. “Not a snowball's chance in…look, thanks for worrying about me, but that's not an option. Long story short, my dad was a bigshot scientist, nuk-lear physicist. Worked in Los Alamos for a bit, then went around the whole country in various universities and institutes, travelled a lot while I was a kid, never stuck to one place for a long time. Had…let's say big expectations for me, hoped I would join his field. I didn't quite take to it the same way."

Director Saria, and Kristen immediately came to mind. Being one of the earliest members of Rhine Labs, he was aware of the rumours surrounding the most senior members. The former had a strict upbringing, while the latter, well, he looked up to Kristen's parents while in university. Whether or not the cost outweighed the benefits however, that was for them to decide, as it was for Spring's decision.

"Actually, I did take his field in first year…then switched to aerospace after that. Grandad flew for the air force during the war, so we're sort of a military family too. I won't give you the soap opera here, but I haven't spoken to him in a while, in Terran time that's around three-hundred years."

He understood a grudge, but to have it for three hundred years just seemed petty…then again, their passage of time was felt differently.

"Last thing I wanna do…is go back and give him the satisfaction. Get what I mean?"

Murray nodded, he was stubborn like her, then, trying to prove something in the Infy Icefield back then, consequences be damned.

"Great, that's enough Spring lore dumping for a day. Don't get used to it, I'd never tell Erin this stuff, poor girl hates being around me too much already. Since she isn't back yet, anything else you want to know? We're getting some new transferees in from other HBU branches, some guy called…Red…leg? I think? And an actual architect, that Dirt guy doesn't need to be our sole builder anymore."

"Can I ask about Project Sunburst?" Murray tried to ask again, knowing it was in vain.

"No." The reply was as expected.

Spring was serious about the details of it not leaking in any way. It was her secret, and of that Miss Klein who was slated to take over the city's new spaceport in operation soon. He found it ironic that some city with just over a hundred thousand people had a working spaceport over Trimounts or any other large Terran city. Hopefully when news of this civilization did break out in wider Terra, it wouldn't be the cause of a new war.

Though, he wasn't going to hold his breath over it.

On the platform behind them, a regularly scheduled train stopped and unloaded the passengers. In addition to trains from other cities, this station also acted as the last stop for the local city railway, unloading people commuting for their nine to five jobs. Among them however, was someone Spring recognised quite easily.

"Hey, isn't that…Yelena! Heya girl, what's good-"

"No time. Late."

A frosty chill washed over him, as a white haired Cautus in school uniform dashed by while holding a piece of rye bread in her mouth.

She leapt through multiple platforms, and then proceeded to make a mad sprint towards the exit. Murray checked the time on his watch.

"Assuming first period starts soon, she has…nine minutes to make it to her school."

"It's the new one, uh…might be cutting it close. Even if she is late, who is brave enough to punish the general's kid? Not me."

Not long after, Erin had returned as well, popping into existence out of thin air in her usual pilot clothing. A shame Anastasia wasn't here to see it, the Ursine officer was very close to Erin whenever he saw them together.

"Ach! The damn queue is getting longer, this ser-var should really set up a whitelist for us veterans…did I miss anything important?"

"Yeah, all of Oktoberfest. You could have flown from earth to Talos with how long you took. Come on, we've still got the new turret systems to test and set up, now that Talulah is giving a chunk of funding, I don't want to lose it!." Despite the grumbling from her, they soon got back into their pickup truck, and drove off into their next project.

This was familiar, just the few of them doing projects that were entirely out of their scale. It was the old Rhine Labs, back when their offices were just a single cramped apartment…

Murray was going to have to return someday, but for now, he could enjoy this mostly mundane lifestyle.

Five minutes until mission failure.

Tight schedules were nothing new to FrostNova, running missions with the Yeti squadron meant that a few seconds late to mission objectives could mean a successful raid, or a fighting retreat. Thankfully, those did not happen everyday, usually only during operations where a few set of objectives needed to be met.

School, on the other hand, required you to be there for 5 days per week, at exactly the right time.

And today, just two weeks into the start of this school year, she overslept her alarm.

"Oi, watch it kid!"

Somersaulting over a group of delivery drivers, she continued her sprint without delay, plotting the quickest route from here to her academy. It was bad enough that her father woke her up for school today, she did not need it to be brought up in the next parent-teacher day, not at all.

Eating the last of her rye bread her father prepared as breakfast, she passed by the downtown area nearby the parliament building, if her guess was correct, another street and she could-

"L-LET ME GO! NOOOOO! YOU'RE BETRAYING ME!"

That voice sounded…familiar. Slowing down slightly, Yelena was about to go to its rescue, until she saw exactly what the voice calling for bloody murder was going on about. With her Cautus ears, she couldn't help but focus on it, just for a bit…

"It's for your own good, Alina, you need to stop freaking out everytime a Ghast appears nearby…right, Ch'en?"

"Uh, yeah, what my sister said…"

"I can, and I will! Those monsters can't be trusted!"

Alina, their wonder Minister of Administration, was being dragged against her will towards the Nether Portal in the centre of the town. Her arms were bound by Talulah and Ch'en respectively, while her legs were bound by Alex and…Leda?

"L-Leda! I thought you fought for righteousness h-how is this helping me?!"

"Among the social sciences, facing thy fears is an excellent way of moving past them, ergo, I am helping thee. And in honesty, Lady Artorius is allowing my companions to stay here, I am certain to repay this debt."

"And what about you, Alex?!"

"I'm just doing it because it's funny, what did you expect? Come on, our favourite pharmacist gave me a bunch of fire resistance pots, you'll be fine! We're gonna go find a happy Ghast, and then you'll realize it's all been a huge misunderstanding!"

"Ah, I should find one too for Maria…"

Leda was back? That was news to Yelena, though they could have used her during the fighting, someone with her skills could have allowed them to hold back the tide, it was not good to rely on a single person. With only seconds away from entering the portal, Alina somehow managed to glimpse Yelena from the distance, calling out to her for one last desperate salvation.

"FrostNova, save me! You're my only hope! R-Remember that time we went together to Neo-New Elysium?!" That made her stop for a moment, seriously considering intervening on her behalf…

Talulah gave her one look, and according to the rules of seniority, her daggers were bound. Yelena got the message and ignored the anguished cry behind her before it ceased for good. Sprinting for the final leg of the journey, the soon to be late highschooler finally made it.

Mainkura Gakuin High School.

(Source: https://yuushya.com/townscape/download.html)

Damn the gates, Yelena was not going to be caught by those zealous student council members in her third week of school!

Climbing the side wall, she easily cleared the first obstacle. Making a dash toward her class window, the stairs were the more dangerous option, potentially running into her homeroom teacher on the way up or worse, being caught by those public moral committee members. She found their entire existence an affront to Reunion's values, personal opinion-wise. 

Expertly climbing the outside walls with her daggers, she soon made it to the third floor window.

Good, she isn't in yet.

(Source: https://www.planetminecraft.com/project/japanese-school-5508168/)

Gently sliding open the window, Yelena slipped herself in, undetected by her fellow classmates. Tip-toeing herself in, no one had suddenly realized she had suddenly appeared in her window side seat. Taking a good look at her full class, everyone in there was around her age, but a mixture of all different kinds of races and origins. You had Ursine students with Kuranta from Kazimierz, Liberi from former Gaul, Elafia from Sami and more all present in this classroom, no separation or special consideration of any one particular group of any kind.

The importance of it was something their dear leader promoted immensely during the school's opening speech. In fact, a copy of the quote hung right on top of the white board…

Schools. The lifeblood of a just society, to those Infected with dreams once denied its appearance, to you, I say no more. - Talulah Artorius, Mainkura Gakuin Opening Speech, 1094

It was much less impressive when you were very close to the leadership, and found out that Talulah made it up on the spot. The crowd still cheered loudly for it however, as Yelena saw on the opening day. She leaned further into her chair, her uniform, called a 'sailor' style by Talulah's mother feeling unnatural on her. It was not optimised for combat, offering little protection, few pockets for holding gear and...was too soft.

Months ago, she was still a decision-making member of Reunion, literally voting on important decisions as part of their makeshift council. Since someone decided that ‘children' like her shouldn't have that much power however, that role had been taken away too. At the very least, Yelena was still leader of the Yeti squadron...even though she had to attend school regularly now and couldn't be part of regular operations.

I can still fight, I'm not...

Yelena wanted to be out there, in the field and as part of the forces heading abroad. Her father saw it differently however, and all but made her attend this school for at least two years, until she was old enough. The last time she saw combat was during the invasion, personally freezing scores of the forest, alongside dozens of enemy combatants. To be reduced to this, and not part of the cause anymore…

“Uh...I think you're letting out a bit of your Arts...”

Yelena blinked at the voice from her side, coming from a fellow student. Checking the floor, she had inadvertently froze the legs of her chair, and was spreading ice throughout the floor. Quickly reigning it in, a small shade of pink appeared on her cheeks as she looked away in shame.

“Apologies...you saw nothing.”

“Too late for that, nice landing over the fence by the way.” Yelena slowly turned her head around to her classmate. She was a Sarkaz, around her age and had her black hair tied into a bun. For two weeks, that was honestly all Yelena had noticed about her, she didn't really interact with the others here all too often, preferring to instead silently look out the window whenever a break came.

"Oh, I saw the whole thing. Smart that you evaded them by climbing the side gates, but you could have been spotted while you were running across the field, so points off for that. You're lucky we weren't assaulting a compound or something."

"I wish we were…"  

Her classmate laughed in response, chuckling at her. What was so funny about it? Her talents were wasted here. Their talents were wasted here.

"Ah…those rumours were right about you. I mean, I get it, feels like you're learning useless things here, right? My parents forced me to attend when I wanted to join them in the army."

Yelena looked at her hands. They were calloused, like hers, they were used to holding a weapon. She was likely part of the Sarkaz who had came here recently, still settling into life inside Nadezhdagrad. Her father was involved in their integration efforts, while many joined the army, many also settled into civilian roles and lives. With all the troubles that came with such a drastic change, even with the promise of a land where they could be free, actually getting used to it took effort and time. 

"So…you prefer being here?"

"I mean, two months ago I was still fending off Originium slugs and bandits from my tribe in the border between Ursus and Kazdel so…yes, I'd take being in school for seven hours a day over fighting for my life any day. Feels kinda silly to want the other thing now that I think about it…"

Yelena's lips thinned, she had nothing to say. She was right of course, those were the things Reunion fought for, what she fought for…

Maybe, she just never expected to be forcefully part of it, while the others got to continue their existing roles. Even Alina got a promotion or something, which to be fair, she did go and actually do things unlike her.

"I…" Before she could reply to her classmate, the doors slammed open, revealing their homeroom teacher.

"Ohayō! Phones away, books out, let's get ready for another day of learning. We have a lot of basic algebra to get through today!" As always, their homeroom teacher waltzed with all smiles and a good spirit, ignoring the small groans that came from her classmates. Yelena was at first wondering who exactly could control students like her, with a good portion of them being trained for combat any teacher would be hard pressed to control the class…until the first day when she walked in with a sword nearly her own height.

With a first impression like that, and with her victory in the Nadezhdagrad gladiatorial tournament, no one was going to show any disrespect. Even with the massive height difference, every student in this class was taller than her.

"Here we go…" Yelena was prepared for her brain to turn into mush yet again, followed by endless thoughts on how learning these archaic symbols and runes that weren't even useful in Arts could be possibly beneficial for her.

"Make sure you write this down, this is called the quadratic equation, and you'll be needing this in the end of term exam…" Their teacher began writing down yet another equation, on a stand that allowed her to reach the whiteboard. Before she could finish, Yelena felt a poke on her right with a pen. Turning around, she wondered what the brave fool was trying to do now…

"Hey…you know there's this new library thing where you can pay a villager to have any question of yours answered. If you don't like that, there's also the new store selling all sorts of weird goods like an actual plant that shoots peas at zombies. Wanna go check it out with-" Despite whispering, she, being a newcomer, likely did not know why the Playaars were often so feared, and so reaped the consequences pretty much immediately. It might have worked on Terran teachers, but not this one.

"Sadie! Pay attention!" Yelena noticed it too late, but a small piece of chalk flew through the air for one target in particular.

Thwack

"Ow…sorry Miss Alice…" Bullseye, right on her forehead. Yelena pretended to not know her, lest she too be the victim of a chalk-based projectile.

That did not stop a paper-projectile from landing on her desk soon after however. Opening the crumpled note, Yelena was not impressed by the handwriting on it.

Hang out after school, yes/no? Pls circle

This was…new. Secret messages were part of military operations, coded messages and other forms of communication like this routine. But for one to be sent like this, just for hanging out after school?

…what's the harm?

Wordlessly, she circled a letter, and discretely threw the note back at her. Who knows? Maybe she could ask why Alina started rambling about higher beings after the battle, and that they were secretly running the world…  

Turning to…Sadie, yes, that was her name, her Sarkaz classmate gave her a wink, then proceeded to have another small piece of chalk impact her cheek.

For the rest of the class, the Yeti Princess, now a highschooler like any other, had a slight smile on her face.

Maybe school…isn't so bad after all.

(Source: https://arknights.wiki.gg/images/Background-RI_Doctor%27s_Office.png?6f297d=&format=original)

"A-and that's everything important that happened while I was there…i-it's all in the mission reports…please don't fire me…"

Kal'tsit did not look up from her computer screen, going over the most important lines of the digitized report to make sure she didn't miss any detail. Sighing, she could see the poor girl inside her office flinch at her action, and so quickly moved to calm her. This was not her fault, the situation was just too…complex for an Operator like her to handle, some of her Elite Ops should have been sent for this, but they were all preoccupied for the occasion, nor could they get there in time.

"You did well, Operator Ada."

"Eh?"

"The situation was complicated, but you diligently recorded everything of note. Good work." Kal'tsit meant every word she said, a rare occasion.

"You've earned yourself a break, go and take some time off, the journey back to the landship must have been exhausting."

"O-Oh! T-Thank you, Doctor Kal'tsit! I'll go and retire to my temporary quarters, thank you for…" The liberi girl trailed off, torn between saying proper goodbyes, and immediately bolting for the door. Instead, she calmly exited her office, allowing the doctor inside to slouch.

What a mess. A Major disrupted, a golden tree in Kazimierz, and above all, even more evidence of their return.

So far, she had three names. Alex. Yuè. Leda. Beside the first two, none of them had any connection to the other, appearing essentially across Terra. She was sure the rumours in Ursus, about a decimated army and Minister Witte disappearing for weeks had something to do with their appearance again.

Yet, what was she to do? Omnipotent, she was not, nor was there anything she could use to gleam answers with…

Unless.

"PRTS."

Kal'tsit made sure there were no others with her. This was a longshot, and she had no expectation of its success.

"Identity, confirmed. What do you need help with, Doctor Kal'tsit?"

"…verify entrance permissions, level B3. Restricted area."

"Level B3 is currently off limits for all personnel currently in system."

Currently in system. The Doctor was not currently in system, so it was correct, in the most annoying way possible. Retrieving him from Chernobog was…not an option she wanted to pursue either, no matter how much Amiya would have wanted it to happen. Forced to wait and see, not even the Emperor knew exactly what was going on that far up north in Ursus. Until her contacts there came to her with something actionable, she wasn't going to risk an incident by going there herself. The Blades and her had a history, best not to make it even worse.

"…might as well."

With nothing better to do for now, she began to check her mail, company mail. Flipping through the letters, most of it was routine, follow ups on contracts, letters for negotiations, old friends checking in, and also the usual junk advertisement mail. She didn't care about whoever this Saint Trina was, how did they even manage to mail this junk to her? Tossing in the trash, she looked at the last letter before moving onto the packages.

"…Gryphline Frontier Network Technologies LLC?"

She'd never heard of this company before, but the letter was stylized, in some new age type face that Rhine Labs liked to use. It was addressed directly to her however, so she could at least open it and check if it was a scam or not. Carefully tearing it open, she found that it was just a piece of paper, alongside an attachment enclosed inside.

Dear Doctor Kaltsit,

Greetings, I hope this day finds you well. I apologize for not sending this letter to you sooner, my duties in the outer reaches of the cosmos have occupied my time as of late. Some foolhardy adventurers decided that a distant moon was far enough to conduct 'exploits' without my knowing, thus devastating the landscape. However, the offending parties have been punished accordingly, and the land is slowly being returned to its natural state.

Your recent business expenditures and ventures have been under observation by interested parties, some of Terran origin such as yourself, and others not so much. Unfortunately, due to company policy, I am unable to render direct aid to Rhodes Island, and indeed, your personal goals. However, as Gryphline Frontier prides itself on its professional moderation standards, I have decided that you can be granted our very own Moderator Ticket(s). For use to request information, or change an aspect of the world within reason.

Simply hold the ticket, and speak out loud what you desire. I have gone ahead and kicked out a potential complication already, just so that you are not surprised when you do eventually see it. You may use it for any reason, I trust in your judgement, Doctor Kal'tsit, for you share a dream with us, remember?

"Best regards…Hyper-Gryph."

Kal'tsit stared at the two 'moderator' tickets in her hands, looking more like some street food voucher than the miracle it promised to be. There was even a cute drawing of presumably this 'Hyper-Gryph' on it, winking at her as printed on the paper. It didn't quite exactly give her much confidence. This reeked of a scam, some pyramid scheme to get her into some health supplements or worse. She couldn't feel anything special about the paper either, no Arts, simply just mass-produced garbage.

However, she had to give this Gryphline company credit, it was a very elaborate set up. About to chuck the two tickets into her bin, she let out a self-depreciating line, and to remind herself about the dangers of trusting in make-believe miracles.

"…as if you could get me into the abyss…"

The moment she said that, a voice in her head began to speak.

Server System: Support Ticket received.

Server System: Username data updated.

Server System: Forced teleportation in three…

Server System: Two…

Server System: One…

(Source: https://arknights.wiki.gg/images/Background-RI_Abyss_Closeup.png?a58b18=&format=original)

"Ugh!" Kal'tsit landed flat on her rear, one moment her vision was seeing her office on the landship, and the next, she was here watching…

"…what…?"

She knew this place. Thirty-thousand years ago, and more, but she knew this place. The surrounding area, the dimensional ripples, this was precursor technology. Thirty-thousand years ago, she was here with her creators, watching as they discussed how might they avoid the apocalypse.

Quickly getting up, and summoning Monst3r for caution, Kal'tsit took tender first steps forward in this chamber. This was the core of Rhodes Island, the sole part of the original space-faring vessel that survived to this day. Access was denied to everyone, and even Doctor Steve didn't come back here since being awoken by Theresa-

The Ticket. She stared at her hands, one ticket was missing, out of the original two. She held the remaining one in her hands, now unwilling to part with it as she originally planned to. Monst3r began growling at the structure in front of them, prompting Kal'tsit to stop it. The gemini cycle should have prevented her from going in here, but seeing as how there was no active purge…

"Stop, sentry mode. Do not fire unless I give the command."

The crystalline construct heeded her call, and floated closely by. Kal'tsit did not know enough about what was going on, but she'd be a fool to waste an opportunity like this. Continuing to step forward, she went towards the mainframe, the same system that the landship plugged itself into haphazardly. Standing right in front of it, she immediately recognized the block powering PRTS.

A command block.

There were precious few of them left on Terra, and those that still existed, tended to already be…occupied. Laterano's secret, and whatever was going on in Columbia right now was tied to these things. Kal'tsit suspected PRTS had its core as one, but to see it firsthand verified her suspicions neatly. She could go in and check the data…

"No, too many potential complications…"

Best to leave it alone for now, however. Trust it, she did not, but need it, she did. Rhodes Island still had need of an AI like it.

Moving on, she went to arguably the most important part of the chamber. Years ago, when the original Rhodes Island was being dug up in Rim Billiton, she made the choice to support Theresa's cause, by informing her of the Sarcophagus inside it. Promising the key to understanding Originium itself.

Tragedy resulted next, and Kal'tsit did not want an even larger catastrophe to befall Terra if the other Sarcophagus opened. Yet, the other coffin was likely in this chamber, though unless opened with specific protocol, it was to stay shut indefinitely. There were some other things in here, personal effects, chests of ender, withering stars, and not to mention the machinery here was also built from Netherite, ensuring its longevity.

For peace of mind, she walked over to it, perhaps verifying that the protocols for it sealing shut would be followed without-

The lid was opened.

"No…"

Sprinting over, Kal'tsit got down onto her knees, staring into an opened, but empty Sarcophagus. No sign of the inhabitant inside, when there should have been…

"The records…"

Clamouring over to the mainframe, she checked over the access logs, pouring over every minute detail of it until…

"Opened…four hundred years ago?! Who…but if it has been that long, then surely-"

The letter, the contents inside mentioning that this Hyper-Gryph had 'kicked out' a 'complication', with what she saw now, could that have actually been referring to…

Monst3r poked her side, finally making her breathe again. Priestess was gone…but she was also not a threat to Terra, if so, no nation, or Terran for that matter would have survived the past four centuries. She sat down on the Sarcophagus of her creator, honestly feeling overwhelmed for the first time in centuries. Change was on the horizon, after these long thirty-thousand years…and she still did not know if Terra was ready for it.

"Thank you…" She rubbed its crystal snout, her eternal companion to count on indeed.

She was tempted to use the remaining ticket, yet something told her she was going to need it for the coming future. Looking at the small, somewhat cute representation of her, she couldn't help but ask a question. In her mind of course, still cognizant of the Ticket's effects when spoken out loud.

Who are you, HyperGryph?

Omake: Woes of sentience

‘For the last time, I’m not trying to hog her all to myself, it’s just that she’s much better with a bow than with a sword, if you’re such a mighty warrior or something, you must understand that, right?!’

A battle ended, and a new era approached. Such was the things Chi Xiao witnessed time and time again, the emperors may change, but the halls around the throne always remained the same. There could only ever be one ruler, and for Chi Xiao, only ever one weapon its wielder could ever have.

‘Foolish. Your paltry arrows will never be comparable to the might of a blade.'

'As if she needs some mighty blade…brute.'

Chi Xiao would scoff if it could, instead slightly unsheathing itself, though even that was noticed.

"Huh? Did Chi Xiao just…"

"Is something wrong, Ch'en?"

"Oh, nothing, my sword just got a bump, so I thought it hit something over. Hey, I think these look nicer as a display piece…"

Though Chi Xiao had hoped to never see another like it again, the heavens could not grant it this reprieve. Currently in some flower or plant store, a mother and daughter were picking out flowers for their home. Such a thing was not possible before, for when the Third Princess, Yan Jing was still alive, there were long months when she loathed her children as much as she loathed her brothers and unwilling betrothed.

Betrothed, and not husband, because she never did quite accept the forced arrangement. All because of a younger brother's rage, that he too came to regret later. Violence and the ways of war were common to Chi Xiao, and yet, those days were ones it did not wish to see again. No honour, or any redeeming qualities in viewing that dark past, not that the daughter(s) wished to revisit it either.

'You know, if they could actually hear your words, I wonder if their opinion of you could get any lower…' The infant beside it chided, too bad it had heard much worse before.

'Silence is blissful when it exists.'

'Why you barbarous-!'

What a brat, these new young'ins think that just because they went through a battle or two, they got to act on equal footing?

 'Alright fine, you don't like me, and I definitely don't like you either. But can we at least agree to put aside our differences during battles?'

'I thought that was obvious, runt.'

'That's…gonna be the only thing I'll get you to agree on, won't it?'

If Chi Xiao was going to agree with Chang'e on anything, that was likely it. Everything else was up for grabs.

'Wait, do you feel…'

'I feel it. There is another.'

Grimacing, Chi Xiao, and Chang'e for that matter could feel yet another one of their kind approaching them. They did not have to wait long, for it proudly proclaimed itself upon approaching their wielders, likely another acquaintance of theirs.

'JUSTICE HAS ARRIVED! REND ALL EVIL! DESTROY ALL GREED!'

'Gah, this one's so loud…'

'Agreed. You, be quiet. It is bad enough with the bow around, we do not need another sword here.'

Meanwhile, Chi Xiao's current wielder talked to…

"Officer Lei? What are you…"

"Officer Ch'en. Yuè. Greetings, Good flowers today?"

Just where did all these powerful weapons come from? Were they all just hiding somewhere, and decide that now was a good time to come out and start being annoying? There was peace in these lands before they started polluting the area with their voices, Chi Xiao wanted them to cease.

'Nay. I, Tiantui, the fell star of red heaven, is still searching for worthy foes…yet all I see are those lacking.'

Oh great, one of those types. Those zealous idiots usually got them, and their wielders killed early on. Rare, but knowing that were rare didn't alleviate their loud and boisterous nature by any means.

'Be careful, whelp, attitude is the silent killer for blades such as yourself.'

'Silent killer?! Where?! I shall render JUSTICE onto it, at once! REND THEIR FLESH FROM BONE!'

And also insane. The bow however, decided in its naivety that reasoning with it could work.

'Uh…hello? So, I'm not sure if you know how this works, but usually we introduce ourselves and…I mean you already did, but how about you tell us about yourself? Any reason why your wielder brought you here today?'

'SIMPLE! I am here to apprehend a master criminal…'

Chi Xiao perked up, ready to unleash its energies onto this interloper. 'I would like to see your wielder try.'

'Hm? No, not you. In fact, we've already met before in the End! You were not talkative however, so I only revealed myself now. Nay, I am here to apprehend…that tax cheat! Over there, in the business suit.'

A few paces behind them, pointing at a green-skinned man in a business suit, talking with someone made of literal dirt in farmer overalls in front of a fully green-painted masterpiece of a 'house'. Chi Xiao may have appreciated Yanese architecture the most, but it knew masterworks when seen. Only in this city could you see something like that and consider it normal. Their conversation however…

"I asssked for a greenhouse! Not a GREEN! HOUSE!"

"Well then, you should have made it clearer!"

"HOW WASss THAT NOT CLEAR ENOUGH?! I SssELL PLANTss, THEREFORE, I NEED A GREENHOUSE!"

"Damn it, uh…what did the employee manual say again? Oh, right! NO REFUNDS!"

"YOU SssON OF A-"

Chi Xiao sneered. 'Yes, awfully strong foes for you to bring to justice…'

'The blades of justice are for all. Now, if you don't mind, I shall be on my way to do something useful to society, instead of being…freeloaders like you two.'

Better a freeloader than some whackjob, it thought. If Chi Xiao ever ended up with someone foolish like this Tiantui, then it better be put out of its misery, otherwise…

"Well then, it was good meeting with you again. I should get going to apprehend him. I will have colleagues ready to intercept him the moment he lands back in the EoE, I trust that you will not act in his defense?"

"Uh…that might be a problem, Officer Lei. To my knowledge, Creeper has a tax free stipulation signed with the government here, I am unsure if your jurisdiction may clash with Reunion law."

"…that sly criminal…"

Tiantui's wielder was barely repressing her rage, Chi Xiao knew the type, and could easily see through her. Tiantui itself on the other hand…

'DEATH TO CRIMINALS! WE ARE THE LAW! APPREHEND, AND KILL HIM ANYWAY!'

'You know, I wonder if the personalities we get are determined by our wielders, if so, I am so glad mine is normal…' Chang'e commented wryly, in the same manner its wielder often did.

Unfortunately, or fortunately depending on point of view, after a quick call from Tiantui's wielder to someone, she confirmed that there was indeed, a complication in their pursuit of 'justice'.

"…this is not over. I will return once negotiations have concluded. Mister Creeper will face justice."

"If you are so inclined to pursue it, then who am I to say otherwise? Who knows, perhaps he might even be struck by karma for his actions in the meantime?"

"Then I will be that karma."

And so, Tiantui left unceremoniously, neither justice or violence netted out today, much to its continued delusional screaming for blood. All Chi Xiao learned however, was that these new weapons from the new lands were odd, to say the least.

'I hope I don't run into anymore of them.'

'Actually, there's another sword here, I call her Yama, who likes to take care of…'  

Chi Xiao hated this place already. Why, in the name of Sui, couldn't it have just been left in the former Emperor's corpse all those years ago…

AN:

This is just an Interlude, not the official start of the next arc, though you get some nice sneak peeks about where things will be going soon®.

Happy Lunar New Year! I'm a few days early, but it my hope you'll have a happy new year full of luck (and money if we're all being honest here). 

As always, be civil in the comments below.