Now

True to his word, Prime Custodian 3 saw to it that the facility that Cal had spent many months imprisoned in was transformed. Well, not in a physical sense. As far as Cal could tell it looked exactly the same. Spotless metallic surfaces everywhere he looked and lighting that mimicked the natural light outside.

The main difference was the power armored Threnosh that Cal encountered in the corridors. That and the fact that he wasn’t stuck in an alien sarcophagus, staring into darkness. He supposed the latter was the biggest change.

“Hey! Good morning! How’re you doing!”

Cal greeted each Threnosh he came across. For their part they merely looked at him and inclined their heads hesitantly before resolutely walking away.

“Meh.”

The awkwardness was expected and Cal didn’t let it get him down. The two fingers on his left hand drummed out the tune to the song in his head on the surface of his PID. He felt better than he had in a long time. The wonders a few weeks of uninterrupted sleep on an actual bed couldn’t be understated. No patrolling for monsters, no pushing your mental powers to their limits on a daily basis. Just rest.

He reminded himself that he needed to thank Fabricator Riverport 11725 for the bed. Apparently the Threnosh didn’t do beds. From what it sounded like they basically slept in their power armor. The job Riverport did with just a verbal description and some bad drawings was nothing short of amazing.

Recharged and ready for the next step Cal couldn’t help but grin as he made his way to the facility’s vehicle hangar. He had some new recruits to greet.

The flying van, as Cal called it, slowly hovered into the hangar accompanied by a soft humming sound. As soon as it landed the side door slid open and the group of Threnosh he was waiting for immediately filed out.

Cal could immediately tell why they were different. For one they weren’t wearing power armor. What they had on was cruder. Thin metal rods ran along their limbs. These connected to small round disks on the outside of their joints, wrists, elbows, knees and ankles. With his superior hearing he detected the whines from tiny motors inside the disks. He’d classify these as exoskeletons. They’d give the Threnosh the strength and stamina to move around with ease that their frail bodies were incapable of, but provided little else in the way of offensive and defensive capabilities.

From their dossiers he knew why they were different from the normal Threnosh. They were classified as Defective. On sight he could tell right away that they didn’t have the uniformity of what was considered the standard. Being genetically engineered and grown in artificial wombs Threnosh were supposed to be essentially identical to their fellow creche-mates. There were slight differences in size or skin tone depending on which region or clan that a Threnosh was birthed into.

While major physical differences weren’t acceptable to be mentally different was anathema.

“Greetings!” Cal said brightly. “Welcome to T-Base.”

“That nomenclature was not mentioned in my orders.” A surprisingly tall Threnosh, tall enough to look Cal in the eye frowned. Unlike their companions’ patchwork gray skin this particular Threnosh’s was a smooth light gray.

Cal didn’t bother concealing his smile, nor did he need to peak into the tall Threnosh’s thoughts. They were visible on their face. They were annoyed.

“It’s more of an unofficial thing. Thought it up just now. Maybe you guys can share your ideas? We still need a name for this project.”

“You are in charge, that is your duty.” The tiniest Threnosh Cal had ever seen said in a squeaky voice. They barely came up to Cal’s waist.

Cal was positively tickled by the challenging tone he detected in the Threnosh’s words.

“Designation: Honor, have our trueskins arrived.” The speaker clutched their hands together in what looked like concern.

Cal noted that this Threnosh had five fingers, rather than the normal four.

“Yes, they came last night.”

“When will our next task begin?”

Cal lightly scanned the Threnosh’s surface thoughts. This one was almost desperate to get back in their power armor. That wasn’t something he had seen in the other Threnosh. Although, to be fair, only the Defective were prevented from wearing their armor constantly. He frowned, he really needed to come up with a better term.

“Actually, later today. We’re going to do some training. I want to see your capabilities firsthand.”

“Has Prime Custodian 3 not provided you with recordings of our previously performed tasks?” The tall Threnosh actually narrowed his eyes. “Designation: Honor.” He added hastily.

“You can call me Honor and yes he did,” Cal held up a finger, “before you ask, I watched everything that PC3 provided. However, I’m a firm believer in seeing things for myself.”

“Can we begin now?” The five-fingered Threnosh said.

“Nope, why don’t you get some rest, relax, sort out your things. Your PID’s have your room assignments. Maybe get some of that nutrient paste drink at the cafeteria.”

“We are Defective,” the tiniest Threnosh bared their teeth, “we have no belongings.”

“Well, that changes now, I’m making it a part of my command. Henceforth, you may collect… things.” Cal turned to leave. “Oh yeah, almost forgot, as your first task I want you to pick out names for yourselves. There’s no way I’m calling you ‘D’ plus that long number they assigned you.”

All the Threnosh, including the two that had remained silent suddenly stiffened as one and stared blankly ahead.

“Are you serious?” Cal muttered.

A few seconds later the Threnosh turned to him with stunned looks on their faces.

“So, what did the quest say?” Cal sighed.

“It is as you ordered, Honor,” the tall Threnosh said. “We are to choose our own names, if we meet your approval then we gain Universal Points.”

“Yeah, I know that hasn’t been how it’s worked for you guys, but like I said things are going to be different from now on,” Cal smiled at the five Threnosh. “I’ll see you all armored up outside of the facility. Your PID’s will have the time and location. Dismissed.”

As the Threnosh walked away on understandably unsteady legs, Cal was left with his thoughts.

“I didn’t see that coming, but it couldn’t have worked out better. So, why does that make me suspicious?”

“Right, so you’re all going to attack me,” Cal said.

He had taken the group of Threnosh a good distance away from the facility. They were in a wide clearing. A pleasant breeze ruffled his hair. It had grown long enough to flow down just enough to cover his ears. He gave himself a reminder to talk to Riverport about getting a hair clipper fabricated. It was going to be difficult, for the hairless Threnosh surely had no idea what that sort of thing was about.

The five Threnosh were now clad in their power armors. Each one was unique. Cal had already seen them in the dossiers he had received. Three he had viewed in action, since those Threnosh had been utilized in combat. The other two had not.

“Honor, I do not understand?” The tall Threnosh cradled a recoilless rifle in their arms.

“This is going to be like an icebreaker game,” Cal smiled. “I get to experience firsthand what you can do and you can experience firsthand what I can do.” He spread his arms out wide. “Respect will be gained by all.”

“With our weapons?” The tiniest Threnosh’s voice was projected through a speaker from within their enormous power armor. “Threnosh do not purposefully injure other Threnosh.” They sounded a little bitter.

“Only in the gravest instances do the Threnosh risk such a thing,” The tall Threnosh said.

“Well, good thing I’m not a Threnosh,” Cal said. “So, don’t worry. I want you to do your best. Besides,” he tapped his chest plate, “I’ve got the best armor your people can make.”

“Designation: Honor?” The Threnosh in a power armor with what looked like speakers recessed into various spots spoke hesitantly. The words were difficult to understand. It sounded to Cal like how a person born deaf tended to speak. It made sense when he remembered the dossier.

“Go on.”

“I am uncertain on how to operate my trueskin.” They spoke the word with a reverent tone.

“Right, the administrator in charge of you didn’t allow you to use it.” Cal shook his head. A unique, potentially powerful resource left to sit in a crate, because of prejudice. For a species that valued logic and pragmatism above all, the Threnosh were cutting off their non-existent noses to spite their faces when it came to their treatment of the so-called Defectives. “Why don’t you just stand aside and watch for now. I promise we’ll get you started as soon as we’re done.” He then turned to the Threnosh in a sleek power armor that didn’t have much in the way of visible armor plating and a helm with a recessed portion in the middle of its forehead that resembled a satellite dish. “You were in the same situation, correct?”

“Yes, Honor.” The Threnosh practically vibrated in place. “But I am ready to participate.”

Cal could see their eyes were wide open behind the transparent faceplate.

“Okay… sure, why not. Any other questions?”

“Rules of engagement?” The tall Threnosh said.

“Just keep it in this clearing. There’s nothing but wilderness for many miles around us. Collateral damage isn’t a concern. Oh, keep in mind…” Cal pointed at the Threnosh with the speaker-like devices on their armor. “Don’t hit… oh yeah, almost forgot. You need your names. Why don’t we do that first, so you get your Universal Points and I get to call you by proper names rather than pointing.” He pointed to the tall Threnosh. “You first.”

“Caretaker.” The tall Threnosh said with his head held high.

“Good,” Cal said. He was liking the way these individuals were emoting. It almost reminded him of being around other humans.

Caretaker’s eyes grew unfocused for a few seconds.

“Got the quest… er… task completion message? How many points?”

“100 Universal Points.”

“Okay, you next.” Cal pointed at the Threnosh in the enormous power armor.

“Primal.”

“Interesting, why’d you pick that?”

“My reason is my own.” Primal’s tone was challenging.

Cal suppressed a smile. “No problem. Passed.”

Primal was ensconced within the torso of his power armor, so Cal couldn’t see his face. He waited a few seconds. “How many points?”

“The same,” Primal said.

“Your go,” Cal pointed at the Threnosh, whose matte black-colored power armor was covered in sharp blades and pointy protrusions.

“I am Shira… after the region where my creche is located.”

“That sounds nice.” Cal pointed to the next Threnosh without waiting to see if Shira got the quest success confirmation.

“Frequency, for my trueskin.” The Threnosh with the speaker-like devices on their armor nodded reverently.

“Well chosen.”

“Kynnro, my creche-city.” The wide-eyed Threnosh in the sleek power armor spoke quickly.

“I like it!” Cal said. He waited for Kynnro to come out of her blank stare. “Alright, so everyone got the hundred points?”

There was a chorus of affirmatives.

“Alright then, time to spar… er that means practice fight.”

“Designation: Honor?”

“Yes, Frequency?”

The Threnosh spoke haltingly. “I wise to join in the testing.”

“Okay,” Cal said without hesitating. He was confident that he could keep things under control. His research gave him a good grasp of what their power armors were capable of. “So, you guys get a strategy together. You’re to treat me as if I was a spawn point boss monster. Don’t worry about hurting me, just do your best. Why don’t we synchronize a five minute countdown.” He placed his helmet over his head and subvocalized the command. He waited for the Threnosh to get ready. “On my mark… mark.” The timer was displayed on his faceplate. Intellectually he knew that the numbers displayed were in the Threnosh script, yet what he saw was what he knew. How did the spires even translate visual numbers and letters? “I’m going to start walking over there,” he pointed at the other end of the huge clearing, “once the countdown hits zero, we begin. Good luck!”

Cal had a few minutes left on the countdown, so while he watched the Threnosh huddled together some five hundred yards across the grassy clearing he quickly ran through what he knew of their power armors’ capabilities.

Caretaker had the same power armor as the baseline infantry warrior, which put them slightly in the neighborhood of an extremely athletic human in terms of speed and strength. The durable armor afforded decent protection from all sorts of physical damage and even a little bit from environmental hazards. What truly set them apart was some kind of predictive algorithm that they obtained from the spire. It was essentially a combination of hardware and software that had the potential to turn them into an unparalleled fighter, particularly when it came to a one versus one scenario. Multiple enemies made it tougher for the algorithm to produce accurate predictions.

From the dossiers Prime Custodian 3 provide, Cal knew that Shira had worked on several tasks with Caretaker for the prime. They were luckier than most in as much that Prime Custodian 3 didn’t share as harsh an outlook on their kind. As a result the two had plenty of time logged in their power armors.

Shira’s power armor was certainly strange. Its fingers ended in claws and it had actual toes, which were also clawed. There were numerous blades running along the arms and legs. These were accompanied by many sharp protrusions that were scattered over nearly every body surface. The helm was perhaps the strangest feature. It didn’t have the usual rounded face-plate that was either transparent or opaque depending on the setting. It resembled a beastly version of a Threnosh face. It had a working mouth with sharp teeth, the four canines being noticeably longer. One could only tell that a Threnosh was inside when they saw Shira’s eyes behind the lenses.

As far as its capabilities, well that was also weird to Cal. Apparently, it needed to somehow take in liquid biological matter in order to grow stronger and faster, to utilize the automatic repair functions. That’s correct. A mechanical power armor somehow drank in the blood of living things to reach its full potential. Cal chalked it up to some more spire bullshit.

The massive eight-foot tall power armor belonged to Primal. It was a behemoth of a machine. Thick, barrel-sized arms were attached to a heavily armored torso on a pair of comparatively short, stubby, tree-trunk sized legs. From the specs Cal knew that the feet also had thick tank-like treads for faster movement over long distances. It lacked an external head. The Threnosh sat safely within the torso. Going by Primal’s tiny size, he was a secure as a diamond in a bank vault.

Primal’s main weapon, aside from their size and strength was a giant spire-produced bow made from the finest in super science mumbo jumbo. Unknown metal alloy for both flexibility and indestructible-ness, meant it shot javelin-sized arrows as if they were missiles. Cal was going to have to be on his toes if the Threnosh was planning on bringing it into play.

The last two Threnosh were not previously allowed to use their power armors past occasional testing as dictated by their respective leaders. From such woefully limited testing, all Cal knew was that Frequency’s power armor did something with sound waves, hence the name choice. While Kynnro’s had some kind of laser emitting capability. The nerd in him was looking forward to seeing what they were capable of once given the chance to actually use their spire-given equipment.

As soon as the countdown hit zero a tremendous bang reverberated across the cool, clean air.

Primal doesn’t play around, Cal thought at the same time that he dived to one side while throwing up a telekinetic shield in front of him.

The solid metal arrow was similar in dimensions to a javelin and loosed from the aforementioned super science-y giant bow it might as well have been a missile. The loud bang of it impacting and deflecting off of Cal’s telekinetic shield was deafening.

While Cal picked himself up off the ground, Caretaker and Shira rushed toward him. The former firing rounds from their recoilless rifle. Most of them were on target, but Cal’s shield easily blocked them.

Cal noted that the pair left a wide space in between them, a firing lane for Primal. Behind them he saw Kynnro and Frequency taking a wider route to his position.

Another loud bang had Cal instinctively strengthening his shield. This time the impact send a stab of pain into his brain. The shield held, but he wasn’t going to want to keep taking those kinds of hits.

Caretaker and Shira had covered about half the distance across the field.

Cal didn’t want to make things too easy, so he purposefully avoided using his telepathy on the Threnosh. An instant win would’ve defeated the purpose of the exercise. Instead he used it to speed up his own perceptions.

As soon as he heard the third arrow begin to break the sound barrier he leapt up hundreds of feet in the air with a telekinetic assist. For fairness sake he dropped the telepathic assist to his perceptions, also doing it for too long brought on the stabby brain needles.

Below, Caretaker continued to track Cal with automatic fire. Without the telekinetic shield he felt the impacts sting through the Threnosh made armor even if most of the rounds weren’t fully penetrating. He was going to need a new set when he returned to base. His skin was bulletproof, but it still didn’t feel good, so Cal threw a wave of telekinetic force at Caretaker.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the Threnosh was already dodging out of the way. They just barely avoided the force which pounded a good-sized imprint into the ground.

At the apex of his arc, Cal suddenly shot down in a straight line toward Primal. The abrupt change of direction caught the Threnosh off guard. Their fourth arrow flew harmlessly over.

Cal collided fist first with Primal’s armored chest with a deafening clang. The metal on both his gauntlet and Primal’s chest dented. The impact knocked the massive power armored Threnosh to his back.

Cal landed punch after punch on the downed giant. All the while rounds plinked harmlessly off the telekinetic shield he had created to cover his back.

Primal roared in a decidedly un-Threnosh like display of anger. A huge metal fist swiped at Cal, but he had already rolled forward off the giant.

Cal waited for Primal to rise. He maneuvered so that the Threnosh’s bulk shielded him from Caretaker’s impressively accurate fire.

Primal charged at Cal, their bow was forgotten on the ground. They attempted to smash Cal into the ground like a bothersome cockroach. He jumped out of the way with ease, letting washing machine-sized fists pound deep holes into the ground. Cal knew from the specs that in terms of raw strength Primal’s power armor was roughly in his same neighborhood, which meant he definitely didn’t want to take a clean shot.

While Primal sought to turn him into a pancake, Cal dodged with all of the concentration he could muster. At least that’s how he made it look. Subtly, he used his telekinesis to pull a pair of palm-sized disks from one of the compartments attached to his belt.

Unbeknownst to Primal, while he made a show of just barely dodging out of every earthshaking hit Cal placed one then the other disk on the inside of each of the Threnosh’s legs.

A telekinetic push on two buttons and Primal’s legs suddenly slapped together and they pitched front first into the ground.

Poor Primal. The magnetic disks had enough power to hold their legs together for somewhere in the neighborhood of five minutes. They were out of this fight.

The Threnosh gave an inarticulate cry of frustration and anger as Cal went off to face the rapidly closing Shira.

Shira moved quickly, but nothing that Cal couldn’t handle. They’d need fresh blood to truly show what they were capable of and Cal wasn’t about to let them get some of his.

They struck at Cal with sweeping slashes and spinning kicks. There was some technique, but it was mostly wild and left a lot of openings.

Cal was content to dodge and block while keeping Shira’s body in between him and Caretaker, who tried to maneuver for a clear shot.

Figuring that he had given Shira enough run, Cal punched them in the face then grabbed them with his telekinesis, there were too many sharp and pointy bits built into their power armor to do it by hand, and sent them flying right at Caretaker.

Just like earlier, Caretaker was already diving to the side before Cal had sent Shira flying. The tall Threnosh kept firing the whole time. Some of the rounds impacted on Cal’s armor.

“I’m bulletproof and that still stings.” Cal shook his head while putting up a telekinetic shield to block the rest of the shots.

He moved toward Caretaker at a walk. He was doing his best not to commit to any sort of action until the last possible moment. He wanted to see how good the Threnosh’s predictive algorithm was. He was fairly certain that it couldn’t do anything against a telepathic attack, but that wouldn’t have been a fair test. He was about to test what its reaction to being grabbed by an invisible telekinetic grip when the Threnosh shouted.

“Now!”

There was a pop and Cal found himself enveloped by a sparkling cloud. Before he could even think he felt searing pain against his skin. He pulled his telekinetic shield tight to his body, less than an inch from the surface of his armor. The pain vanished. He could feel something striking against his shield.

Cal resisted the urge to use his telepathy. He had purposefully avoided scanning his surroundings to keep tabs on all the Threnosh to give them a chance. Against the odds he had given them, they had managed to surprise him.

He couldn’t move and maintain the shield in this form at the same time. So, while stuck inside the strange cloud, he carefully looked at his surroundings. He saw Frequency and Kynnro standing some thirty yards to his left. Both had looks of concentration on their faces, beads of sweat on their smooth foreheads.

Cal sped up his perceptions.

He saw what was happening. A pencil-thin beam of red light shot out from the small dish-shaped emitter on Kynnro’s helmet. It struck the many tiny, reflective particles that comprised the cloud that surrounded him. The laser bounced and multiplied randomly. It was potent enough to cut right through his armor. He’d have to wait till after the fight to see what sort of damage it did to his skin.

He wondered how the pair had snuck up so close to him without him hearing them.

“Oh, duh, sound waves,” Cal muttered.

Cal blew the cloud of particles away with a telekinetic push. He then rushed the pair of Threnosh, thirty yards in a second.

They tried to scramble away, but Cal held them in place with his telekinesis. He felt a little bad about the looks of fear on their faces, but he reminded himself that a monster wouldn’t. “Frequency, Kynnro, nicely done,” he tapped a finger to each of their helms, “but you are now dead, take a seat.”

The two collapsed to the ground when Cal released them.

“Alright, Caretaker, let’s see what you got.”

It turned out the Threnosh had about twenty seconds. The algorithm was for real, but compared to Cal’s quickness, strength and durability, Caretaker was too slow, too weak and too easy to put down.

“Okay, that is that,” Cal said. “Why don’t we all go gather by Primal and we’ll go over how that went. I’ve got some input to share and I’d like all of you to do the same. Remember, constructive criticism is what we are looking for.”

The five Threnosh were a study in contrasts. Caretaker and Shira looked disappointed. Frequency and Kynnro actually had what looked like slight grins on their faces. It was creeping Cal out a little bit, seeing as how his mental picture of the Threnosh precluded the capacity to show emotions. Primal’s display was just as jarring. Their power armor’s torso was open and they were glaring at Cal.

“Good job guys! Thoughts?”

“You are too powerful,” Caretaker said. “The outcome was never in doubt.”

“Maybe, but I’m a firm believe in there always being a chance, no matter how unlikely. For example, the maneuver you pulled off with Kynnro and Frequency actually caused some damage. It feels like I’ve got some nice burns,” Cal grinned. “Tell me, Frequency what exactly did you do?”

The Threnosh hesitated. “I used my trueskin to produce a combination of sound waves to cancel out the noise we were making to get close enough to you for Kynnro to attack.” Their voice was difficult to understand.

“I think I got it,” Cal said. “Kynnro, was that your optimum range or maximum range?”

“Maximum range, Designation: Honor. My laser is thin and loses cohesion past that distance,” Kynnro said.

“Just a little under one hundred feet, decent.”

“Yes, they performed well under the circumstances,” Caretaker said. “While the three of us with the most experience failed to provide efficient impact on the combat.”

Cal held up a hand to forestall Caretaker, who has no doubt about to launch into a critique of the remaining three’s failures. A glance at Primal’s face showed that they wouldn’t have taken kindly to Caretaker’s criticism.

Cal didn’t want any rifts forming between the teammates before the team was even off the ground.

“Primal, you shouldn’t have abandoned your bow. From my understanding it is essentially unbreakable. You would’ve been better off using it as a melee weapon to increase your reach and keep me at bay. You could’ve played defense and let me come to you. By chasing after me, you enabled me to control our relative positions, which let me use you as a shield from Caretaker’s fire.”

“What did it matter?” Primal frowned. “They couldn’t hurt you.”

“Kynnro certainly did,” Cal smiled. “If I wasn’t able to neutralize you and Shira before Kynnro and Frequency caught me off guard, perhaps together all of you could’ve capitalized on that and did more damage.”

Cal turned to Shira, whose shoulders were slumped and head was hung low. “Good job. I know you weren’t at your best without access to fresh blood, but you gave it your all regardless, which is what matters.” He turned to Caretaker. “Your combat algorithm is impressive. Against a powerful opponent, such as myself, you’re held back by your basic equipment.”

“I am aware. However, I do not have access to anything else,” Caretaker said.

“The prime prevented you from using a better weapon?” Cal was taken aback.

“It is a matter controlled by my immediate superior. The prime has greater responsibilities. Furthermore, I do not gain enough Universal Points to make use of the god hairs like the elites and other favored individuals.”

“That’s part of what we are going to change,” Cal said. “I have you for the next twenty-eight days until the next group arrives. My plan is to train you and take on small challenges for the first twenty-one days. You’ll gain more Universal Points than you ever have before. You’ll improve your skills. You’ll get better equipment from the spires. If that isn’t possible then I’ll make sure that the engineer and the fabricator makes it happen.” He paused. “The last seven days will be spent in a spawn point… zone… whatever you want to call it. We will farm the hell out of it and depending on your progress, individually and as a team, we may even attempt to kill the secret boss to clear it. After that, pending my authorization, you will be given the autonomy to tackle other zones within Prime Custodian 3’s region. Our goal is to turn you into something more than your elites. All you have to do is give me and my methods a chance.”

Caretaker narrowed their eyes. “Why do all this? Why does the prime put so much trust in an outworld invader.”

“There’s no one else on your planet that can do what I can,” Cal said.

“If we refuse to cooperate?” Primal’s voice was a squeak.

“Well, Primal, you can always go back to what you were doing. Although, if you stay you have a chance to be part of something different, better. Not to put any more pressure on you all, but your world might be riding on our success.”

“Then it is true,” Caretaker said. “Intelligent upworld invaders have appeared… aside from you.”

“I can neither confirm nor deny,” Cal said. “That’s for the Prime to answer. I mean they literally told me to not speak of such things and in the interests of our continued amicable relationship I have to play along… for now.”

“Then what does that make you? If you are not from the upworld,” Shira said in a barely audible voice.

“Stick around and I might tell you that story,” Cal smiled.