《Embrace the Ether》[Vol 1, Chapter 17] A Frightening Quandary
Advertisement
"Correct. Host body currently contains slight modifications matching Co-Transfer data from prior to Transfer. The reason is unknown, the eventual result of the modification is also unknown. Will require a more thorough scanning device for future evaluations."
Deus stood up as he contemplated for a while, not knowing what any of this meant for himself in the long run. The fact that he was still the primary controller of his body was probably the only good point out of all of this. What he did know, though, was that he needed to look into this more to make sure he wouldn't run into an issue in the future.
"Archive, how about the scan results for my third question about how I should keep you charged? You said you found a solution to that?"
"Affirmative. According to all known information regarding location known as Midnight, the best source of power would be either one of two things. Option one; Experiment X-Z-001 takes power from below the city of Direfell, as there is one large operational room below the ground, the current function has been calculated as being smelting and forging. Option two; Experiment X-Z-001 takes advantage of current priority mission, labeled 'Heist' to gather electric energy from what has been filed as 'Electrical Storm', which is capable of creating a massive amount of reusable energy, similar to the energy generated upon capsule's arrival."
"Hah, so either I break into one of this city's most secure places to steal power from one of the most guarded machines in Midnight… or… I have to harness lightning from a literal electrical storm. Hah. Hah hah!" Deus coughed out in laughter, his head shook back and forth in frustration as he pondered the two options laid out before him. "Lightning storm… or underground factory…"
"Ahhh!" Deus screamed out as he clenched his forehead, "Fine! Since I'm already heading for the electric storm, I might as well go get myself electrocuted."
"Deus, what's wrong?" Droh asked as he slowly walked over, "You regretting everything now?"
Advertisement
"Regretting the job? Not really. Heh, my problem is something different… you know how I need to find a way to charge this damn thing?" Deus showed the Archive to Droh, "According to the scans, either I have to break into Direfell's factories or I have to find a way to harness literal lightning to keep the damn thing charged."
"Lightning?" Droh questioned, "You mean the storms? That's a horrible idea… even Roland would avoid getting too close to the storms when they were happening… he'd take a huge detour and everything. From what I've heard, only the military captain has ever survived being struck by it."
"Wait, that captain Roch fellow has been hit by the lightning… and he survived? I figured the electricity was dangerous but to think only someone like him could survive… Ah hell, I'm in a bad spot. What do you think I should do?"
The two of them sat in silence for some time as they wondered what they would do. Droh had Roland to worry over, but Deus had not only Elias to watch out for, but he also had to steer clear of Direfell's most dangerous man, Roch.
Deus spoke up, "We'll figure something out though, no doubt. In the meantime how about we try and think up a plan just in case that Elias guy backstabs us, you know since he doesn't seem like the kind of guy who'd just give up after everything."
Droh nodded his head in agreement, "So far Elias hasn't told Roland about me but that's probably only because he wouldn't be able to benefit from doing so… however, once this job is over there's nothing really stopping him from telling Roland and watching what happens next."
"Right. I don't really know what sort of drama you have with this Roland guy… but it's clearly not good. We need to plot ahead for him, too. Question is, how? Roland is in charge of a major clan, right? Besides the military itself, who has enough power to hold him off?"
Advertisement
"In Direfell? Nobody. He runs probably the biggest clan around here, not even the trading groups dare to offend him. As you said, the only ones who can truly hold him at bay would be the City Lord's army, but that's a dead end."
'A dead end? Is it?' Deus thought to himself, 'I don't know why but that military captain, Roch, seems to be interested in me for some reason or another… maybe he knows I've killed someone… whatever the case, maybe I can use this to catch Elias off guard…'
"Hey, Archive!" Deus called out, "Would it be possible to deliver a message to someone? Hell, a broadcast even?"
"Broadcast?" Droh repeated in confusion.
Beep.
"Affirmative. System battery charge will be disabled upon broadcast, however, a single message can be sent." The computer Archive beeped in confirmation, to the pleasure of Deus.
"Hah, that's great news! Droh, we may actually have a way out of this." Deus proclaimed, "Hey Droh, you don't mind what happens to Elias and Roland when this is all over with, right?"
"Huh? Elias and Roland? I can see how you could mess with Elias… but Roland seems untouchable. What are you planning to do with a simple message?"
Deus smirked, "Well normally it would be impossible to do anything to both of them… especially that Roland fellow. However, I've thought of something rather nasty. There are quite a few people in this city that I can rely on, not because I'll benefit from it, but because they'll benefit from it."
"I'm still not following…" Droh scratched his forehead in confusion.
"It's simple my little Faun friend. We just have to announce to the city that Elias is planning to rob the military. I imagine even Roland won't want to let his second in command come to conflict with the army… especially since Elias has been talking nonstop about the military captain Roch like he's the damn devil himself."
"Wait, won't that simply get us into trouble? After all, we're the ones involved in the job, to begin with… I'm not sure you've thought this all through." Droh grumbled out in concern.
"Nonsense. That military captain will intervene, I just know it… he's too interesting not to. Hell, he's already gotten himself involved with me according to that asshole Elias, so it's not a longshot to have him take action." Deus tried to reason.
"Interesting? Is that really all you're betting this on? From what I've heard, Direfell's captain is the sort of man who could watch a thousand people die without even blinking… why do you think he'd do anything to help us?"
Droh clearly wasn't convinced on the plan, and for good reason, too. He didn't know what Deus knew, and in fact, from Droh's perspective, everything that had been happening seemed almost all a bit too coincidental.
Pondering to himself, Deus thought about his connection to Roch, Direfell's captain, and what it meant for his future. 'From what I can tell, captain Roch will want me alive. Hell, he probably knows something about me that even I'm not aware of… there's no other reason for him to draw attention to me as he did before. The main issue is if he simply was caught off guard by me… or if he did what he did intentionally. I'm betting my life on this… I can't afford to just randomly wing it.'
"How about this, Droh." Deus reasoned, "I'll send out my broadcast, but I won't rely completely on it. Instead, the two of us should spend some time thinking up a plan, just in case. We can't just keep dancing in other people's hands."
With a smile, Droh nodded in approval. "I can do that."
Advertisement
- In Serial54 Chapters
Transient - COMPLETED!
A Fresh Take On Some Of The Most Well-Loved LitRPG Staples - And A Whole New Original World To Explore! Alex is a twenty-something college dropout who's not going anywhere too fast - but not for lack of smarts. When he faces jailtime for using a stolen credit card number, he's given a seedy but interesting alternative: Delve into the virtual reality world of Elderpyre and provide the developers with anonymous playtest data. Things, however, are never that simple - are they? A love letter to the genre as a whole, Transient breathes new life into some old - and, arguably, tired - tropes and staples, and takes them for a wild ride into a fresh, original story. Combine that with a vibrant fantasy setting, a lively cast of characters, and grammar that actually won't make your eyes bleed*, and you got yourself a webnovel that's definitely worth checking out! *The author does not bear any responsibility with respect to breakdowns or damages, including but not limited to those resulting from bad puns, 4th wall breaks, surprisingly dark twists, and the occasional typo. Consider yourself warned.
8 316 - In Serial328 Chapters
Alfheimr Renaissance
This is a story about a somewhat normal human, on a hike on Hardangervidda in Norway, that end up walking out in Alfheimr instead of Earth. Alfheimr is one of the nine realms of the old Norse religion, home of the light elfs. Its quite a culture shock, and he don't really know the language, culture or religion. The decisions he make have consequences, and some will change Alfheimr. He decide that if he's ever going to get back to Midgard he have to travel to a bigger town, try to find information, make money and so on. So he's trying to be smart, and pretends to be a mysterious wandering magician. Should be easy to fake right? ... and thats the first decision with gigantic consequences, since he doesn't know that only women do magic. A man doing magic is automatically unmanly. Oops. Be warned; English isn't the Authors primary language, and its mostly written in first person view. The story progress will be slow.
8 465 - In Serial16 Chapters
Monsters Paradise
A/N: On Hiatus. Once I'm ready to invest more time into this story again, it will resume. Alterra has turned apocalyptic. The earth shifts and shakes as it’s moulded toward a new purpose. Strange boxes appear in the faces of the natives and they find themselves rudely awakened from their idealistic peace as they are hunted and slaughtered. Alterra has entered the global stage, willingly or not. For now they remain unknown. A small blip in the expanse of the universe. But who can say how long that will last? Fight by grit or steel. Survive, and grow. Peace is a luxury for the victorious. Author Note: There will be three main characters. They start separately but join up together as the story progresses, and will be together for the larger part of the story. Book Cover by Nico Melba: https://www.deviantart.com/nicomelba
8 155 - In Serial11 Chapters
Where we are Parallel: BTS X Reader
Namjoon is in a nightmare of his own creation. Will you be able to save him in time? Story inspired by My friend Dee's poem.
8 158 - In Serial20 Chapters
My Mate, My Omega, My Luna, My Best Friend's Brother
Kyle is a gay omega. His dad abuses him because his mom died during his birth. His only salvation is finding a mate on his 16th birthday, in 6 days. His older brother (Kade) is the soon to be beta of his pack, and actually stands up for him. His brother's best friend, Jordan, is he soon to be alpha. Jordan has been given everything he wants in life, and is about to be given the alpha title. His father, the alpha of the Red Moon Pack, abuses his little mate constantly, as well as his mate's dad. Nobody knows that he has a mate, and nobody will know.... Until his mate's 16th birthday. Or will he tell someone? Will someone figure it out? What will happen when Kyle finds his mate? Will Jordan be rejected? Will Kyle finally be happy? Will Kyle and Jordan's past come back to haunt them or make them happy? And who are the mysterious Royal Twins that only want their mates? Will they do anything to get them? Started: 07-15-19Finished: 08-22-20 🥰There will be weekly updates until I get through the entire book. Usually on mondays unless I forget!
8 153 - In Serial58 Chapters
Melody of Time -Naruto-
My name is Harmony Kakureta Merodi and to say it simply; my life is screwed up. Just a couple of days ago I was on my way to fight in the war with my teammates/friends, but today, I'm some how a genin again, with a different squad, but that's not the kicker. My best friend, who just turns out to be the only person left on our squad that's alive, is now 13 years older than me! Fate must either really hate me or really love messing with my mind because along with that little fact and some other shit that happens later one I'm surprised I haven't gone insane yet! Well, isn't my life just lovely... Or filled with lovely madness.--------------------Completed, but still editing
8 158

