“So, what exactly happened to Magistrate Ryles again?” I asked. Fernando had taken me to where he was, rather where his mangled and distorted body was. The sight actually made me sick to my stomach. It took a lot of force and creative thinking to mangle a body that badly.

“I did, Sir. I ensured we gained vital information on the local Magistrates he had business with as well as the layout of each settlement, his own included.” The fact he could say that without so much a single twitch at the sheer horror he had done to this man and his men was honestly frightening. Couldn’t really argue with his results though.

“Right, ok, no more of...this without me approving, yea?” He remained silent but nodded ever so slightly. Alright, moving on from this shit show. I sighed at the entire situation. I’d come back earlier than expected and he was already pissy over not having more gained to show me due to that.

He had defended Bastion though, done it splendidly against Ryles forces. No loss of life on our side, though I was concerned that would change with me actually present here now. More so when I took into consideration that our soldiers placed far afield were reporting movement by the other Magistrates within a days travel from Bastion. Nothing extreme, but these individuals apparently had a bit heavier hardware than Ryles. A few Vultures and some Marines mixed into the militia ranks.

They’d be here by morning if they continued at their current pace. It was more than enough time to get everything set-up to crush them at the wall. More so after I actually used these bloody cards. “Fernando, I want you at the wall with Janus. I have to see Swann about something and then go about getting my gains unloaded and ready for use.” I thought a moment, adding as an afterthought. “Have The Orion come down from orbit as well.”

“Sir, Swann is on The Orion and it will take two hours before they can arrive at Bastion.” Well, that was frustrating as hell. Nothing I could do about it right now though so I nodded and sent him on his way. When we left the Barracks Trenton and Nova fell in behind me.

“Sir, Kelper has a new leg and is ready to resume combat duties, he wishes to continue serving.” I glanced at Trenton then, wondering at just where Fernando had gotten them again before nodding. If he wanted to keep fighting I wouldn’t stop him at all. Though...I could make them a great deal better. ALmost all my Marines were being trained like them now, larger shields and everything, so this should make the Imperial Guard a bit more diverse.

Congratulations Player! You have successfully used a Unit Upgrade Card on the Unique Unit - Imperial Guard!

All Imperial Guard under your command may now be specialized twice!

The following armor modifications have been made available for use in Imperial Guard armor.

Heavy Plating 1 - Increased defense by 15

Tower Shield 1 - Increased shield durability by 25

Bayonet Attachment 1 - Increased melee damage by 10

Thrust boosters - Increased movement speed and reaction time

Increased armor frame - Imperial Armor now stands at thirteen feet and increases stability when using abilities

Visor AI - Imperial Guard now has a simplified AI to provide active tactical data of their surroundings.

Alrighty then! They just became my single most important fucking Unit for ground forces, infantry wise at least. Son of a bitch, really? I kinda wanted to steal their armor now. I’d deal with the second Specialization later.

Trenton paused a moment before shaking his head lightly and looking at me, at least I think he was. Kinda hard to tell when his damn visor is down. I imagined the three-foot height increase and the upgraded hug in his visor were the cause. The fact he stayed silent was interesting, did The System make it seem less...well...freaky?

Next, I went ahead and used my trait card. I needed to improve myself now.

Congratulations Player! You have successfully used the Random Trait Card and gained the passive trait - Mental Fortitude!

Mental Fortitude 1 - You are now able to resist, undermine, and prevent all but the most powerful forms of mental coercion. -WARNING- This trait is at its weakest and has a chance of failing if you doubt yourself.

Well then, I was excited and now I just imagined all the horrible things that would happen if I fought something that could take over my mind because I doubted the fuck out of myself almost all the damn time. I closed my eyes and breathed in deeply, trying to calm down a bit.

When I had managed that, I continued toward where this ‘Trophy’ should be located, rather would be located. I planned to place it right beside the monument to our fallen. When we got there, that is exactly what I did as well.

Congratulations Player! You have placed your first Trophy! You have received a one time reward of a Utility Building Card!

Congratulations Player! Ultralisks Fang Trophy has been placed within Bastion, the following perks have been added.

All damage done against Zerg by residents of Bastion increased by five percent!

All residents of Bastion are Immune to Zerg Infestation!

All residents of Bastion will feel more confident when fighting overwhelming odds

All attacking forces will feel a sense of dread upon entering your territory.

Now that I fucking liked! It countered the Regeneration, at least for Bastion, entirely and I could level it when able without to much worry. The problem would be if I expanded outward, but I’d worry about that later.

Increased damage was always a big fucking win, five percent would go a long way with enough upgrades to my weaponry as well. The confidence thing was odd, I think it meant overall morale. Which was always the desired thing when facing overwhelming odds like we were going to be. The sense of dread shit was confusing and would have to be witnessed to understand it I think.

I knew exactly what the damn Utility Card would be used for, time to get Caspian his damned Science Building!

Congratulations Player! You have successfully used the Utility Building Card and been awarded the Science Bay!

Science Bay - Increases the odds of finding cures, medical advancements, weaponry advancements, and facility modifications by ten percent.

Not gonna lie, I actually didn’t expect Science Lab to be in the Utility section because it was kind of a Primary building. Maybe because it was more for utility than anything it went in both? There were other buildings there as well but I didn’t really look at them. Next time I would.

I was using the Building Upgrade Card on The Orion, it was a quasi-unit while retaining its production abilities so I wasn’t sure it would still work or what changes it might give it, but I could hope it would increase its offensive capabilities and retain its Ghost Specialization as well. Had to wait a few hours to really go into that though.

The Unit Cards was something I was really looking forward to using. I had a plethora of Terran Units I could gain when activating one the list came up and I was slightly amazed at several of the options.

Congratulations Player! You have successfully used a Selective Unit Card! Please choose your Unit.

Marine - Possessed

Medic - Possessed

Marauder - Possessed

Firebat - Possessed

Ghost - Possessed

Vulture - Possessed - Turned to Unique Unit Condor

Siege Tank - Possessed

Goliath - Unowned

Mercenary - Unowned

Battlecruiser - Unowned

Wraith - Unowned

Science Vessel - Unowned

Raven - Unowned

Mule - Possessed - Modified

SCV - Possessed - Modified

Militia - Possessed - Made obsolete

Viking - Unowned

Heracles - Unowned

Medevac Dropship - Unowned

Banshee - Unowned

Reaper - Unowned

Thor - Unowned

Odin (Unique) - Unowned

Loki (Unique) - Unowned

Specter (Unique) - Unowned

Point Defense Drone - Unowned

Hellion - Unowned

Hellbat - Unowned

Liberator - Unowned

Cyclone - Unowned

Well then, that was a lot to choose from. The little notations seemed odd as well, but at least I knew what I had I suppose. The two Unique Units were what I honestly wanted but not all Unique Units could be created in large numbers. The Orion was proof of that, so I sadly took them out of the running for now.

I needed something for the air, something that I knew could still be made at The Orion with those neat little Ghost upgrades. I made my first chose and grinned as it came through.

Liberator has been chosen.

Liberator - Terran mobile siege aircraft capable of air defense and when deployed changes into a machine gun emplacement firing high-velocity Gauss Rifle rounds at all ground units.

System Announcement! Players Mobile Star Base, The Orion, as a specialized building will apply stealth abilities to the Liberator Unit when made there.

Player has obtained Battlecruiser!

Battlecruiser - Terran capital ships capable of missile barrages and the use of the Yamato Cannon.

System Announcement! Players Mobile Star Base, The Orion, as a specialized building will apply stealth abilities to Battlecruiser Unit when made there.

Now that is perfection on a stick right there. I upgraded my air abilities and more of my ground defense with the Liberator while increasing my ability to field a space fleet with the Battlecruiser. The next message was a little confusing but I welcomed the implication.

System Announcement! Battlecruiser and Liberator Units have been spawned above Bastion, each is fully manned and all individuals made loyal to the Player, Schematics have been downloaded to your settlement.

Apparently, that meant I had a battlecruiser and a shit ton more people that were all trained and able to pilot it, as well as the Liberator which had one pilot. It’d allow me to train more people to fill those roles as I made more. Resources shouldn’t be a big issue for some of it any longer either thanks to the last mission.

“Fernando, advise all units that the ships appearing overhead are friendly. They’re with us.” An affirmation and shouted orders ran across the com before I turned it off and grinned at the gaping Nova behind me, and Trenton who I think might be gaping as well. Regardless he was looking up into the sky at the ship that was half the size of The Orion, which kinda told me how massive that damn thing was in the grand scheme of things.

“Nice, right?” I said with a smile. Nova slowly moved her head down to glare at me, why I got a glare I had no idea but I was beginning to think it was just her time of the month. I kept smiling though, happy with my choices. The final thing I would be doing today was the Hero Card. I went ahead and had Trenton wait outside my quarters when I arrived there to use it and asked Nova to leave.

When she did leave, thankfully still having that lovely Reaper stuff on made it clear she left. I used the card then, the form of an elderly man in a crisp military uniform coming into view. The thick, southern drawl of his voice making me very aware of who it was. “Now look who we have here, I know you, Boy...You’re a traitor.” Oh fuck…

Congratulations Player, you have successfully used the Hero Card and gained the Hero Edmund Duke! Edmund Duke comes with the Unique Battlecruiser Norad II.

-WARNING- -WARNING - WARNING - WARNING - WARNING -

Edmund Duke is a loyal Confederate General. Being at war with the Confederacy has made him have -100 in both Trust and Loyalty. He will attempt to kill you.