CHAPTER I: Prologue
We may be small right now, but we're still young.
Little clumsy Alisa could still teach the world new ways on how to fly.
—
Busy, busy, busy. That was the life of chairwoman Alisa Reinford. Right now, she was pouring through damage reports of the most recent and splendidly spectacular terrorist attack on the mines.
Head, meet desk. "Ugh… five torims of iron stolen, fifty-five steel containers dented and unusable, three employees with minor injuries and one resigned mine chief. What else?"
"Four industrial cranes and half-selge worth of railings for the freight train, milady."
"Thanks, Sharon."
"It is my pleasure, milady," the robotic voice said from her laptop.
Sharon Kreuger bit her lip as she placed the cup of jasmine tea beside the blond woman's head. "Y-your tea, milady."
"No thanks… Hey Sharon, what's the status on the EXA?"
Before Sharon could reply with the exact details of her report, 'Sharon' spoke from the laptop once more in her cybernetic monotone. "Lady Tita Russell has received the plans, and is constructing the new core as we speak."
Sharon trembled. "I-in addition milady, Director Tio has informed me she has the communication modules ready for— "
"I've already forwarded it to the ZCF. It's compatible with the current communication tech in the Soldats so no problems there," Alisa said without even looking up. "Isn't that right, Sharon?"
"Yes it is, milady."
"Oh yeah, how's Mom? Will she be able to…"
"Chairwoman Irina— "
"She has just arrived in the Sachsen Iron Mines. Estimated time of her return is forty-five minutes."
"Just in time for dinner… does she ever slow down? It's like every single minute of the day was planned in her head or something." said the stressed daughter of said woman.
Alisa shook her head. "So anyway, we've got some time before she comes back. Let's finish these while we can, Sharon."
"Yes, milady," the robotic voice beeped.
"...Unacceptable— "
"Hm? Why are you still here, Sharon? I thought you were going to prepare dinner— "
The maid slammed her hand on the desk. Tears stung her eyes while her fingers quivered.
"Milady, this is simply unacceptable!" Sharon shouted. "I have endured this for long enough, a-and I feel I must express my disdain over being replaced by a, a mere compassionless ROBOT!"
Alisa's brow quirked. "SHAR-0N isn't a robot, Sharon. She's an advanced, highly adaptive artificial intelligence capable of learning and analyzing information given to her in a split second. Developed by us, if you remember. Her connection to the orbal net makes her incredibly convenient."
"B-but, regardless— !"
"Alright, let me test you both," the chairwoman said. Taking out a specific document from her drawer, she eyed her two assistants. "How much liquid iron, in exact decimals, was transmuted to manufacture Originator Zero 73's third body?"
Sharon the Maid answered first. "3.768023 quarts of iron."
"Incorrect."
"...!"
"3.94033 quarts, upon Lady Millium's secret, last minute request for more volume, milady."
Alisa sneered.
The shock of being bested by her rival broke The Severing Chain's stoic mask. She slumped to the floor in cold, hard defeat.
"M-milady, I can't accept this! I— " Sharon choked out. It looked like she was out of a job.
A hand chopped her gently on the head. Alisa's beautiful rouge eyes regarded the older woman. "Silly maid. Of course, I'm not going to replace you. I mean, who ELSE is gonna bake me those sweet, sweet apricot cookies?"
"L-Lady Alisa…"
"And besides, with SHAR-0N helping out, we'd finally get more time to spend with each other just as sisters. Don't you agree?"
"Alisa…!" That completely reinflated the glum servant. With a sparkle in her eyes and tears streaming down her cheeks, Sharon stood up, dusted herself off and hurried to the door. "I shall do my very best to make tonight's dinner one we truly won't forget!"
"Please do~."
Another elegant bow and the devoted maid left, leaving the chairwoman alone in the comfortable silence of her office.
Alisa grinned with half-lidded eyes. "Idiot."
She had compiled another set of documents into a folder when her ARCUS rang.
"Incoming call from Gaius Worzel. Should I forward it to your laptop, milady?"
"Yes, please."
With a meaty cha-chunk of her keyboard, the friendly, dark-skinned facial features of her Nordic classmate appeared on the video feed.
His spindle blue eyes widened. "Alisa…?"
"Yup… it's me." Twirling her short golden locks on her fingers, Alisa looked away with a slight tinge to her cheeks. "Don't like it?"
Gaius chuckled. "It looks good. Sorry, I never expected you would cut your hair as short as that. I must admit it's quite the refreshing sight."
"Heehee, thanks." Twas better not to mention that she only cut it after a freak accident involving lots of fire. Suffice to say, that bird had it coming.
"Oh yeah," Alisa said. "Thanks for the gifts the other day. The flowers were lovely~."
"You're welcome. Consider it as thanks for taking care of my family."
"I can't wait to see them again."
"Then I better make sure they're there to greet you. You'll arrive here tomorrow morning, right?" Gaius asked.
"Yup. Before sunrise, just so I can have enough time to visit. What about our escorts?"
"The Lieutenant General informed me that she and the representative of the Bracer guild would be arriving at Zender Gate shortly before evening. After breakfast at the settlement, we'll drive towards the rendezvous point."
Alisa nodded. Her fingers tapped on her desk as her expression turned serious. "Has there been any movements recently?"
Gaius' face steeled as well. "None. The orbal communication towers are still functioning, and there hasn't been a pulse detected since the last."
"I see… I should still check on them individually, just in case."
"You have my gratitude."
"Do you guys think it's an artifact?"
The Dominion shrugged. "That remains to be seen, but it does appear to be some sort of relic from the Dark ages— maybe even older than. Its ability to interfere with orbal energies is similar to that of the Orbal Shutdown Phenomenon in Liberl."
"But what's most worrisome about it is that it's located right at the borders between the Empire, Nord, and Remiferia."
"That is correct," Gaius said. "Because of the possible international ramifications, everyone is in a panic. The Remiferian government is silent as of now, but it could only be a matter of time."
His gentle demeanor returned a moment after. "Which is why I must thank you again for representing the three leading orbal technology manufacturers. Your input and knowledge here will be of valuable assistance."
Alisa returned his smile with her own. "Don't worry about it. It's part of the job after all."
It wasn't as flashy as when it was still long and flowing, but Alisa dramatically flicked her hair. "With two members of the GREAT and LEGENDARY Class VII, we'll solve this crisis in a flash!"
Gaius' smile broadened at the cheeky display. "I can't help but agree. I'll see you later then, Alisa."
"See you later, Gaius!"
The call ended with one last laugh from the man. Almost as soon as it did, Alisa's smile disappeared. She twirled her pen as a piece of 'The Thunderbird's core appeared on her screen.
The incident at the mines wasn't the first time she's had to deal with new, seemingly science-bending archaisms. Mysterious technological wonders, far different from those made by the Gnomes, had been popping up all over Zemuria ever since Ouroboros fell off the radar. One even as far back as the southern borders of Calvard.
It appears it would've not been the last.
A sense of dread overcame her, but she shook it away. Her proclamation earlier wasn't from mere bravado. They really will solve this together, as a class.
But it would put her mind at ease if there were some… drastic measures installed, should the need arise.
"Sharon, I want you to send a follow-up regarding the EXA suit."
"As you wish, milady."
The A.I.'s monotonous approval brought the grin back to her lips.
Okay... maybe it brought just a tiny bit of excitement too.