《The Wolfram Chronicles》Chapter 16 - Lara
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Dragon Marines, a simple but accurate name to describe the role in which the unit he had in mind would play. The idea was to form a highly trained, disciplined, and multi-role unit able to operate anywhere in the world-- air, land, and sea. It was an ambitious plan, but one that Vance was sure he could pull off with the help of Marshal Franz and the individual he had sent him and Estrid to go find to get the plan underway. Who was this person? Neither knew beyond what Franz had told them before leaving his office, paperwork in toe. All they did learn from what they were told was this individual was a highly talented Quartermaster that had been snubbed in much the same way Vance was due to their lack of social and economic standing. Apparently, it seemed right to not only build up the reputation of Vance but this individual they would meet soon. Either way, they'd need all the help they could get if he were to found the Dragon Marines.
Thus far, all Vance had was the commissioned officer rank of Lieutenant Colonel in the King's Royal Army, with Estrid holding the rank of Major and Richard's rank being that of Captain; the former having a higher grade due to her past service. The senior ranks would help give them the means to command some respect from their fellow's in the Royal Army, but little else until they had a reputation.
"Well, we're here," Estrid noted, prompting Vance to shake his head clear of all thought as he looked up at the brick house.
Looking up, Vance would note how the building in question seemed more like a mini-factory than a house, but that was likely intentional given how the nobility around here was likely preventing who dwelled inside from going far.
Walking up, Vance rapped on the door a few times with the back of his knuckles. "No point waiting around then. The faster we get through this, the faster we can get the unit formed and armed." Vance said.
No sooner had his hand returned to his side did the thick wood door swing open, with a single young blonde-haired woman looking none too pleased to see either visitors. "Yes?" she greeted coldly.
"Ah, sorry if we're disturbing something, but we have your new orders," Vance said, passing the woman Franz's orders.
She quickly grabbed the orders, giving them a brisk read. "Oh?... OH! Oh shit, sorry, I'm so so sorry, I thought..." Facepalming, the blonde seemed to do a complete one-eighty in mood and personality.
"Thought we were the nobles?" Estrid interjected.
Nodding, she stuffed the small letter into her back pocket before looking up at the two, now far more friendlier than before, "Again, I'm sorry, I'm just so used to those vultures trying to take more of my things... so I just assumed."
"It's fine; besides, you didn't do anything?" Vance replied quickly. "But, cool if we come in?"
She quickly moved aside, ushering them both in, "Of course! By all means!"
Upon entering, the blonde would close the door and rush to her tiny kitchen. "Please, please, take a seat, make yourselves at home." She started, "Do either of you want something to drink? I don't have much besides water... Hope that's enough?"
As they took a seat on one of the long worn out couches nearby, Vance couldn't help but feel something strange coming from this woman. He couldn't quite place it, but she seemed important? He wasn't sure, but before he could really think more on the matter, she returned, water in hand.
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"So... what are you here for?" She asked, placing the glasses in front of each.
Estrid spoke up first, "I thought the Marshal detailed why in the note we gave you?"
"This? No, it was just a small thing telling me I could trust you two and that I'm to assist and join whatever unit you're trying to start up." She replied.
Vance looked puzzled for a second, much like Estrid, but quickly pushed past it. "Well, truthfully, I suppose he didn't lie since the idea was that you'd help us get what we needed to found the new Regiment," Vance explained before taking a sip.
"Uh... right? I suppose I can do that for you, but I don't know what unit you're trying to get off the ground?"
"An experimental unit of sorts. Also, I haven't gotten your name yet." Vance replied before adding, "I'm Vance Wolfram, and-"
"Major Estrid Demoulin." Estrid finished.
Vance raised a brow, slightly amused at how she added her new rank in front of her name, seemingly beaming with pride. It wasn't too surprising, he supposed, given what she had told him before. The rank of Major was initially closed off to her when she served before, and now here she sat, a Major in the Royal Army that had once scorned and shunned her... relatively young too, he might add. Vance himself was also far too young to hold the rank he had, but that was a little bit of information he'd keep to himself for now, as it seemed everyone treated him as though he were older than eighteen.
"Lara, Lara Dunsman. Second Lieutenant, and Quartermaster in his Majesties Royal Engineers." She replied, extending her hand to shake her superior officers.
Vance and Estrid returned the gesture in kind, they were all relatively young, but it seemed as though Lara was the only one with the appropriate rank for her age. That little fact made Vance smirk.
"A pleasure. But, I hope you don't mind me quickly jumping into it?"
Lara shook her head, "Not at all. Please! I'm eager to know what you need me to do."
Vance promptly laid out his plan, pulling out some spare paper from his vest pocket to scribble down a few notes. Lara and Estrid watched, partial amazed at how quickly Vance jotted down and illustrated his ideas. What made them more impressed was how detailed they appeared to be.
"My plan is to create a new unit comprised of highly trained individuals who will ride Wyverns into battle, each-"
"Wait, wait, wait!" She pumped her hands as though hitting an imaginary break, "What do you mean, Wyverns?"
"Oh, uh, yeah... I guess we should clarify... Estrid?" Vance said, passing the question off to Estrid, who looked irked for a second before answering.
"As the Colonel said, we've managed to find a den of Wyverns that had remained hidden deep within the mountains near the tomb of the First Emperor. It's how we got here too." She explained.
That answer did little to squash the qualms of Lara, who looked more confused than before, "Right~ so... let's say I understand and believe what you say is true, what do you want me to do?"
Estrid nudged Vance with her elbow, prompting him to continue, "What we need from you is help. I have a few equipment requests and schematics I'm hoping you'll help us get." He answered, pushing the schematics towards the Engineer.
Lara glanced down, taking a look at the designs Vance had hurriedly written up. Although, given his heightened intelligence and abilities as a High Human, what was just a quick scribble to him was a complete detailed blueprint on how to develop the world's first rifled breach loaded carbine. The Engineer's eyes went wide with astonishment.
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"By the gods..." She gasped. "This... this is incredible!" Looking up at Vance, "and you just came up with this?" She asked.
Vance shrugged, "Yeah, it's been rolling around in my head for a bit, but it's a fairly simple design and won't require much in the way of crafting if we put our heads together." Vance replied casually as he took a sip of water.
Lara was still in disbelief at what her new commanding officer had just said and had to look to Estrid to see if she was the only one. Estrid shot her a sympathetic look, knowing full well what it was like to deal with Vance. Despite only having known him for three days, he had done more and achieved more than any other living individual she'd seen or heard of.
"Can you do it?" Vance asked, breaking the silence.
"Uh... yeah! I'm sure I can get a working prototype done in a few short weeks after we procure all the other items on your list." She replied quickly. "Things like the cuirasses, steel helms, and cavalry sabres will be easy to get since there's an excess of that stuff in storage. Lately, the Royal Army hasn't been too keen on using the King's Curaissers for battles lately, so there's a lot of stuff just sitting around." She noted while looking over all the stuff Vance had written up. "Umm... hmm... the uniforms will be easy as well since you stated here that you just want to reuse the Hussar's uniform with the added protection of the Cuirass and helm. None of this should be too hard to get."
"Good, that should make this whole ordeal that much faster than," Vance noted.
He was genuinely excited now, as he wasn't expecting things to move this fast, although this was likely going to be the first real wait since becoming a High Human and getting his memories back from his life on Earth. Hell, most of what he had written down was stuff he was only able to recall due to the gifts Julia had endowed him with. Most of the memories he recalled were pictures and diagrams he had briefly glimpsed back during his initial studies at the University of Toronto, so to recall them so vividly as though he had been looking at the page yesterday, which was a huge boon and would make forming and arming the Dragon Marines a lot easier. What would take time, though, would be the training.
"Now, as for what to do next, we'll need to recruit the actual Marines." Vance sighed, realizing that was his biggest issue now.
He couldn't give the honour of riding a Wyvern to just anyone, they needed to be people he trusted, people who knew him and were loyal to him and Julia's pantheon. Anyone or anything else could potentially betray and use all he creates against him.
"Why not recruit from Luna?" Estrid answered.
Vance glanced over at her, tilting his head in thought for a second, "That... will actually work. Yeah, we can recruit the Adventurers that are left to fill up the NCO roles and have those who helped lead the militia during the goblin raid assigned as officers." Vance said before using one of the few pieces of paper he had left to draft up more ideas on how to form the unit. "No more than a hundred... that's all we can field realistically. So we won't need very many officers, likely only four junior officers, three since you're now going to hold one of those posts." Vance explained further before pointing towards Lara, who looked more surprised at hearing that final statement than anything else.
"Excuse me?" She found herself saying.
"As of the moment we came to your door, you were placed under my command, and as such, are one of the founding members of the Dragon Marines, Lara." Vance smiled.
Lara rested her face on the palm of her open hand as she tried to comprehend all that was happening. "I'm an engineer though; I'm not-"
"Not a Dragon Marine? None of us are. But, the thing is, I see something in you, and so does the Marshal. And what better way to learn what the unit needs most than being directly part of it? Hmm? You'll also be moving your supply operations to Luna, where the Regiment will be based for the foreseeable future, as it's the only place the Wyverns feel safe and where we can reliably build bonds between the riders and them." As Vance spoke, he stood up and began to examine her setup.
The house she lived in was a small cramped place that could ill afford to house an individual, let alone the massive forge that took up most of the space, and separating the forge from the living area was a thin wall of stone that looked as though it had been placed there by the owner rather than the builders. Indeed, this was not an ideal place for one to call home.
"Huh..." Vance suddenly began to think on the forge, noting how well used it appeared from where he stood in the living room... or what constituted one.
Then, that same feeling he had when he first met her began to grow larger as though Julia herself was trying to whisper something in his ear. Snapping his head around to face Lara once more, he looked into her green eyes that seemed to shimmer like jewels.
"Question... do you worship the god, Bob?" Vance asked.
Lara scratched the back of her head, looking a little scared, "Uh... yeah, I do, why?"
Vance rubbed his chin, "Huh... and did you ever feel as though your hammer strikes were being guided? As if someone was watching over you or whispering instructions into your ear?"
"Yeah... but... that's the feeling everyone gets, don't they?"
"No, no, they do not," Vance muttered to himself.
"Well, never mind, for now, we'll need you to pack your stuff up and get ready to leave in two days," Vance ordered before he nodded to Estrid. "We have a few things we have to do ourselves back at Luna, but in two days, we'll return to bring you and your stuff to your new home. I'm sure you'll enjoy the town." Vance said as he made for the door.
"Sorry to cut our meeting short, but I just remembered something important back home, so before I forget again," Vance explained with Estrid exiting first ahead of him. "Remember two days. And don't worry about the forge, we have a better equipped one at Luna, and it'll leave you speechless when you see it." Vance said, a slight playful smirk tugging at the edge of his lips.
"Alright? See you then, I guess?" Lara replied, walking up to see the two out, but just as they walked out, she quickly added, "Oh! And I'll have the uniforms done by then, or at the very least your own."
Vance tilted his head, "Oh? But you don't even know our sizes?"
This time it was Lara who smiled, "I have a few talents beyond smithing." She winked before closing the door behind her.
Vance and Estrid looked at each other then back at the door. "Okay? Well, in any case, let's get back to Richard and head back to Luna. I think he'll want to hear what I just discovered."
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Katra
Kardin lived a happy and good life. That is, till he was given a strange orb by an even stranger man, maybe even a demon. He watches as his village is burned, the villagers slaughtered and his friend devoured. He escapes into the Jungle of The Gods, a place of ancient ruins and deadly animals. There, he is changed and his fate diverges from what should have been his death. Now he must forge his own path in a world of great beauty and power, where death lurks around the corner and battles between veritable gods are fought. Where nations clash and ancient beings destory civilizations on whims. But unseen cogs move under the surface, events transpiring beyond simple understanding. Strange and powerful items called Artifacts have started to reappear across the land of Auren, empowering their wielders far beyond what cultivation can give. The Traezar Empire and all of Auren are on the precipice of war and strange beings have started to emerge, all with an agenda of their own. Chaos is brewing, and Kardin must survive it, all while trying to attain vengeance and understand his strange and anomalous Katra. ***Current Schedule*** I am currently releasing 1 3,000(Sometimes I end up writing waaaay more) word chapter halfs every week. If there is not some sort of notice as to why I have vanished, then I'm probably dead. Let's hope I don't die then, eh? *Ducks under flying knife* I own this cover, put my own blood, sweat and an hour of my time into it. Ahahaha! This story is inspired (I stress this word, as because most of the story is different) by Will Wight’s Cradle. I highly recommend you read it! (Please for gods sake, if you have something to say, please do it in a curteous fashion. I don’t need any more maniacs flying at me and trying to stab me with sporks, I am already insane enough to fill that role.*Winks*) **What is This Story?** Think cultivation mashed with western fantasy, put into a pot to boil and then drunk while it's pipping hot. All the while a mad man(me) cackles insanely over the pot, stirring. It draws from xianxia lightly, which means no exasperated angry young masters. No “genuis” or “prodigy” MC, one that is not OP, or anything of the like. If you don’t like cultivation novels, this might still be up your alley. MC focuses on “Life Shaping”, see poll 2 for more Info. Warning! If your are squeamish, that gore and traumatizing content tag is there for a reason. I shall dive into both bloody and disturbing scenes and the questionable ethics of manipulating life, and some of it won’t be pretty. With a dose of realism added in. I do add my own evi- I mean despic- no, sorry, interesting twists aswell. >:) Also, I HATE info dumps! *Steps out of the way of a charging semi* Still not dead! Arc 1 (Kindling): Chapter 1 - 13 Arc 2 (Metempsychosis): Chapter 14 - 29 Arc 3 (???): Chapter 30 - ??? A disclaimer, I am new author and am still feeling out my limitations. This story is my hope of bettering my writing skills and to have fun. Buckle up and enjoy the insane journey that is Katra. (Pronounced as cah-tra)
8 222SteelStar
After years of waiting, Andy Gatlin is ready to follow in his father’s footsteps and become a superhero. His first day goes great at first, but then tragedy strikes when a veteran superhero, Spectramancer, loses control of his powers and goes on a rage fueled rampage. Not knowing what caused this well respected hero to go berserk, Andy tries everything he can to stop the other hero without hurting him. However, Spectramancer’s rage brings him close to Andy’s home, and Andy is forced to use his most powerful attack lest Spectramancer cause untold death and destruction. This move ultimately results in the veteran hero’s death. Andy is heartbroken by what he had to do, but his troubles aren’t over. A hostile news media and an easily riled up public label this new superhero as a murderer before learning the whole story. Meanwhile, Andy learns that Spectramancer was investigating a tragic event. A few days ago, Redwell City was destroyed in a mysterious explosion, and one of the suspects deliberately triggered Spectramancer’s rage to throw the veteran superhero off his scent. Armed with his knowledge, Any vows to get to the bottom of what happened, learn why Spectramancer’s rage was set off, and bring whoever destroyed Redwell City to justice. Andy will face supervillains, shadowy government agents, corporate spies, and angry news reporters in his quest to learn the truth and hopefully clear his name in the process. This is the story of a new superhero. A hero called SteelStar.
8 141I'm An Inutile
Abandoned and alone in a world that isn’t mine, I had to find a way to escape being a slave accused of molesting a princess. While finding a way to escape, the princess, the one who accused me, was the actual molester. The princess was planning on raping me, but after getting her occupied during sex, I found the perfect chance to escape. I eventually escaped, but now I am a fugitive that the whole nation will be looking for me as I was the most wanted male elf. How I will survive, I do not know. But, I’ve organised a mission, and that is to identify myself and recollect the memories I’ve lost while transferring souls. The future is blurry, but I hope to come out victorious and not cooked to starving dogs.
8 198KINGS✔
@rrosemayaa made my covers. Book one in kings series. Khloe Quinn. When her parents died, she found out that she was actually adopted. When she looks for her family she finds out things she never expected. Blake 'Ink' Hayes. Tattoo artist and a member of Kings. He wants love, the real kind.He didn't expect to fall in love with his best friends sister or the wedding planner.What happens when the Irish princess finds her real parents?
8 176Interactive Dungeon
Dungeons. From a lowly slime dungeon to the supreme and exalted hero-slaying dungeons, they are important. May it be for simple training of rookies to the sense of adventure for the S-Class. What type of dungeon will we be? I see a tiny square of a dungeon and you, as the dungeon master, will take hold of it and expand it how you see fit. What can you bring to this dungeon? From the author of Interactive Evolutions, comes another reader-interactive that will have everything up to the readers to decide.
8 117Rosewood x Station 19
What if the worlds of Rosewood and Station 19 collided?
8 209