Amazon Apocalypse 5: Chapter 39

With an army behind us, Reluna and I spent the rest of the day destroying the surrounding landscape. Unlike Reluna’s original explosive talismans, the redesigned talismans were actually an implosion. Instead of destroying everything in a fiery burst that was satisfying to watch but very destructive, the implosion inverted space in a small area around the talisman.

While the resulting implosion was almost as spectacular as a regular explosion, the spatial inversion meant that significant portions of the enemy golems were thrown into an alternate spatial dimension, where I could comfortably disarm them. Once I had, I pulled them back into real space, where Mimiko trained portions of my army in the noble art of stealing everything that wasn’t riveted in place, then stealing the rivets as well.

I also helped out there. Although I’d already taken apart scraps from these golems, seeing how the subcomponents fit together was still illuminating.

“Hmm... now that I see it all, everything looks relatively simple, like the enchantments were stamped out by a machine. Were the big C-Grade construction golems like this as well?” I turned to Reluna curiously.

“Uh...” Reluna’s cheeks flushed.

I chuckled. Naturally, those golems had been reduced to piles of rubble beneath waves of magical explosives.

“Nevermind. But I did hear somebody mention a golem production facility nearby? I would be curious to see that.”

Reluna seemed eager to change the subject and leaped at the opportunity. “Yes! It’s that way! I figured we were going to go blow it to pieces sometime next week.”

“I don’t know about that. I think we’ll find the best loot wherever these golems are made.”

At the mention of loot, Mimiko perked right up.

“If you bring me with you, this one would be pleased to be of service,” Mimiko said.

“Sure.” I shrugged. Mimiko was pretty handy at raiding facilities of ancient technology.

“I’m coming too!” Reluna said. “Should anything go wrong, I will leave a trail of explosive talismans that will reduce the enemy encampment to rubble.”

With the two of them accompanying me, I figured we had all the firepower we needed to take the facility. I put Kerrie and Rick in charge of the soldiers and asked Sir Sandon to lead a band of warriors to scout the nearby area. I didn’t think anything would be coming for them now that the area was already clear, but it was better to be safe than sorry.

Luckily, Reluna had already done a lot of scrying on the factor we were looking for, so she knew just what to expect. For all her passion for explosions and looking mysterious, she was a capable diviner and had this area well scouted long before the invasion began.

Having someone like her on campaign in Ladwick would have been nice. Someone with her skills could probably have helped us set up a few great ambushes. But at C-Grade, she wouldn’t be able to freely come and go from Crownhill until the integration was a bit further along.

I circled the facility, which boasted C-Grade defenses. They’d be an insurmountable foe for my people, or even me before my off-world adventures. Now, though, they weren’t nearly so scary. A quick trip through the shadow realm would let me bypass most of them, and I trusted in my Kindling Architect abilities to bypass the rest.

“We’ll shut the place down. I think given a few days to work on it, I can make these golems work for us. But first we need to clear the shard,” I said.

“Excellent. Onward, my noble drake. Care us onward toward glory and victory!” Reluna said as she rode on my shoulders as we flew. I would have put her behind me, but Mimiko was already clinging there.

Thanks to Shadowrealm Stride and Reluna’s scrying, I found a good entry point to bypass the bulk of the factory’s security. It sported some of that same impermeable architect metal, but not nearly enough to keep me out. Inside, the facility was much the same as a factory from Earth before the integration.

It was a wide open space where raw materials were turned into hulking golems. Parts traveled along an ancient conveyor that telekinetically levitated components from one process to the next. Raw clay and stone were pressed into shape by a massive bronze mold. From there, animating runes were inscribed on various pieces of refined metal, then inserted into the forming golem, which was then pressed into shape again.

All the assembly lines were covered in a thick layer of dust, though I could see only the guardian and pest control golem assembly lines were operational. There were three other assembly lines beyond those two, but they had either broken down or utilized subcomponents that the automated factory we were inside could no longer find sources for.

I half expected some of the guardian golems or pest control golems at the final stages of assembly to spring to life and attack us.

“The golems are fully crafted, but docile while within these walls.” Reluna rapped her knuckles on the back of a towering guardian golem, which remained still despite her close presence.

“These heaven-defying formation plates of levitation seem quite valuable...” Mimiko said as she bent low to inspect the factory’s components.

“Reluna, don’t plant explosives on the non-functional golems. I hope to capture these intact. And Mimiko, don’t loot scraps from the factory. I want the whole thing in a functional state. The bits and pieces are worth far less to me than a fully functional golem factory.”

I was rubbing my hands together, imagining the implications of a fully functional facility like this one. I wouldn’t need to make mannequins for the Governess anymore! The guardian golems might make decent front-line combatants too, though D-Grade level golems didn’t feel as powerful as they used to, given the scales I worked at these days. Perhaps the big construction golems could be turned into mobile weapons platforms, though it looked like those weren’t produced in this facility.

We circled the factory floor a few times before I found the door that led to what passed for a facility control room. There was a small office with a glass panel overlooking the factory floor, and when this place was operational, it probably had an overseer monitoring and maintaining the machines from here.

“Look! It’s another potion of surging might! Truly an incredible find...” Mimiko said as she pulled another half-drunk energy drink from the counter.

“So it seems. This must have been a popular brand back in the day.” I inspected the bottle Mimiko handed to me. It was of a different style from the one we’d found in the facility on Ladwick, so perhaps the two bottles were manufactured a few centuries apart. The symbols matched though, which was confirmation that the creators of both this ruin and the one on Ladwick were one and the same.

What was the story there? Were these simply countryside vacation homes? Or were these cottages a refuge for a galaxy that had turned against the architects?

Unfortunately, the only living architect I had to ask was Mimiko, and she was convinced the energy drinks were potions of mystic might. Perhaps this civilization’s secrets would stay lost, despite my best efforts.

Near the energy drink was what passed for an Architect computer console, and this one reminded me of the one the System had sent me to interface with and repair. Like before, I noted that the computer’s technology was not all that spectacular by Earth standards, and before the integration, Earth was probably ahead of the Architects when it came to producing semiconductors.

But the Architects had access to profound magic denied to the humans of Earth, so they made up for what they lacked in technology with a whole lot of mind-bending spatial magic.

After examining the console, I determined it was active. It seemed to be receiving instructions from some sort of crude intelligence, largely akin to the Governess who controlled my own golems, but not as sophisticated.

I cut the power, and everything in the facility ground to a halt.

“Well, that’s that. No more golems are coming out of this place. I’ll have to come back with the proper tools if I’m to take control of this place, but I’ll hold off in case there are more of them.”

“Should we plant explosives? Just in case?” Reluna asked hopefully.

I considered that, then shrugged. I supposed if it that was what Reluna wanted to do, it wouldn’t hurt. There was a small chance the System would be able to reset itself and reactivate, since anything that had been running for who knew how many centuries had to possess profound self-diagnostic capabilities. Rigging the place to explode would be a good back up if we needed it.

So, in a bit of a change of roles, Reluna skipped around the factory while Mimiko rummaged through some sort of magical refrigerator and cleaned out everything in stock. I studied the Architect computer systems and grew more familiar with their design and how I’d interface them with a human computer system, which was what I’d need to do if I wanted to take control of the place and have it reprogram the golems for my own uses.

***

We left the facility behind after disabling it. I’d come back later with the proper tools. I suddenly stopped when I realized we weren’t the only ones to meet with the people from Crownhill.

“Look ahead. More survivors from this barren land come to us for sanctuary,” Reluna pointed toward Rick, Kerrie, and the others.

I followed her finger and narrowed my eyes at the supposed group of survivors. Even from a distance, I could tell they were a lot shinier than they ought to be. The nearby sunlight glinted off metal helms and breastplates. As I got closer, it became clearer that we were looking at a group of knights wearing full armor.

Neither Reluna nor Mimiko were all that concerned since full armor was common enough across the Arcadia Multiverse and even outside it. But it was fairly unusual for survivors from Earth, where such armor had fallen out of style long ago.

But I had a good feeling about this group. From the jade crests on their shields, these might be the Omikyr knights I was looking for! I’d been ready to return to the Goddess in Jade’s shrine and demand better directions, but now it seemed the people I was looking for were right before us.

That excitement lasted right until I saw the leader of the knights draw his sword. Rick hefted his war axe, and Kerrie notched an arrow.

My heart dropped to my stomach. A fight like this was exactly what I didn’t need right now. I was confident in winning just about any battle, but these knights had an important artifact I desperately needed. A diplomatic incident with them could delay my comrade’s resurrection by months, and who knew what might happen to their souls by then? The System might decide it had enough of them lurking around its dimension and decide it wanted to reincarnate them.

“Hang on tight, ladies. I need to hit the gas.”

“I, too, consumed excessive beans with my lunchtime rations. I think-- ah!” Reluna started, then cut off when I suddenly accelerated.

I shifted to the shadow realm and continued at full speed until I covered the distance between the factory and our camp in just a handful of seconds.

Once I realized the fighting hadn’t actually started, I appeared at the back line of my people so I could emerge from their midst more naturally, like I’d simply been deeper into camp. I knew from experience that Sir Sandon’s people were generally what one might expect from a culture stuck in the Middle Ages. They weren’t particularly fond of obvious magic, at least when it wasn’t a miracle performed by the Goddess in Jade.

While pushing my way to the front, I caught a brief glimpse of my group and the knights exchanging words.

“We have a guy who can explain everything. Just wait for Sir Sandon to return with the scouts,” Rick said.

“And give you time to chant more wicked dark magic? I see what you’ve done to these lands! I will not have the sacred ground my temple has guarded for hundreds of years be defiled so!” spoke the lead knight.

“We’re not defiling anything. We’re dealing with a very hostile group of nearby golems and making this entire area safe,” Kerrie said.

“At the orders of the fiendish blue sorceress! My scouts have seen her cackle with cruel delight as she burns all before her to ashes!”

By the time I made it to the front, I was pretty sure I knew the problem and how to fix things, so that was where I started.

“Hold on! Put your swords away. Weapons down, everyone. There’s no need to fight. Good sir, knight, I’m the lord of these folks. I understand your concerns, and while there’s magic here, none of it is dark or unholy of any sort.”

“I know magic when I see it!” the knight protested.

“As do I. Now, please, let’s not come to blows. We have one of your countrymen with us, but he is scouting with some men. He’s best suited to explain things to you.”

But just as I thought my calming words would talk the knight into sheathing his sword, he laid eyes on Reluna.

“There she is! The foul blue one! The harbinger of destruction! She is the sorceress!”

Reluna’s expression morphed into a scowl. “Sorceress!? I’m no witless sorceress who doesn’t know the difference between spell and incantation! I earned the name 'Wizard' at the Dragon Lodge.”

To emphasize her point, Reluna snapped her fingers. Shining streams of light shot forth from Reluna’s fingers and formed symbols in the air all around the hapless knight who’d just insulted her. They flashed brightly, and suddenly, both the knight and his sword were bound in place as though by invisible chains.

Reluna strode toward my side, but Mimiko beat her there.

“Insolent cur. How dare you, weak as you are, stand while in the presence of my esteemed master? Kneel now and beg for forgiveness,” Mimiko said. She strode forward, posture instantly shifting from meek servant to imperious empress.

A second magical force wrapped around this knight and all his fellows as surely as the first, though this seemed less structured. It was more like gravity amplified many times over, as Mimiko extended the presence of a nascent soul cultivator over all the knights.

I ran my hands through my hair. I’d been about to rebuke the two of them for causing an incident, but as I gazed down at the group of knights firmly bound in place, I realized this was probably easier than talking the knights down. Myrina might have devised this solution, but Bridget, Sakura, and I would have never thought of it. We were simply too new to the Arcadia Multiverse and its mysteries.

“Damn... the boss’ new ladies have no chill...” Rick whispered in Kerrie’s ear, though it was still loud enough for me to hear with B-Grade senses.

Kerrie nodded along to that, and I found myself nodding too.

I let the knights go . I finally took the time to examine them and found they were all D-Grade or lower, with many of them only E-Grade. No wonder Reluna and Mimiko could take care of them so easily.

After letting the knights sweat a little and realizing the gulf in power between our two forces, I waved Mimiko and Reluna to stop.

Mimiko responded instantly, and she went from overbearing to obedient in the blink of an eye.

“By your will, they are spared.” Mimiko bowed her head to me, then retreated behind my right shoulder.

“Be grateful for this reprieve,” Reluna said as she dismissed her magic with a finger flick.

The lead knight, a D-Grade, was the first to climb to shaky feet.

“I’m sorry about all that. All the shouting and pointing weapons were just a hasty misunderstanding. We’re all friends here, aren’t we?” I held out my hand.

The knight wasn’t stupid and knew how completely outmatched he was. Whatever he thought about dark magic, he wasn’t so dogmatic that he’d throw his life and the life of his men away at the sight of it. I’d originally feared that might be the case.

If I really needed to, I still had my holy saint title as a card to play, though I wasn’t sure how I’d prove it if these guys weren’t using examine on us. If they had been, they would have realized we were vastly higher level than them.

Reluctantly, the lead knight took my hand and shook it.

“I’m Carter. And I’m something of a local lord.” I tried my best to put things in medieval terms for this group of knights.

“I am Knight Commander Trellis of the Holy Order of the Goddess in Jade. I guard a sacred site near here. Your power is clear to my eyes, Lord Carter, and I would avoid conflict with you if possible. If you require tribute from us, we will attempt to meet it. But know that if you intend to defile our sacred shrine, we will give our lives in its defense.” The knight commander shook my hand.

He looked like he wanted to give me a good squeeze, and Sir Trellis seemed to be the sort of guy who’d pulled that trick more than once. But when he saw the expectation in my eyes, he backed off and left me with only an awkward gauntleted handshake.

He reached for his head and pulled off his helmet, revealing a stern but surprisingly young face, given his rank.

“I mean no ill will toward your shrine, Knight Commander Trellis. Quite the opposite, in fact. I would dearly like the chance to pay my respects there. I’m told you have a rather astonishing artifact that allows you to converse with the dead?”

Knight Commander Trellis eyed me strangely.

“You mean to say you are one of the faithful? Forgive me, but we have encountered folk of your sort before amidst these strange lands, and never have any spoken of our goddess.”

I shrugged. “I wouldn’t exactly say I’m one of the faithful, but I’ve visited another shrine and things went rather well between me and the goddess.”

Knight Commander Trellis’ gaze flicked to Reluna and Mimiko. He was clearly still wary of them.

He turned back to me, and I was worried he planned to quiz me on his religion. Despite being a holy saint, I knew little about the Goddess in Jade’s holy order.

Thankfully, I was saved a moment later by Sir Sandon’s return.

“Squire Trellis? Do my eyes deceive me, or is that you standing there?” Sir Sandon asked.