Chapter 117: Advance Preparation
The Codemasters let out a small smile behind their helmets as they watched the progression of the repairs. The portal was quickly fixed. The wires they had found connected together perfectly.
Now, they just needed to get the right energy crystal to start up the portal. Still, that would take some time to get the right size. Too much energy might break the portal and not enough, it wouldn't work.
They weren't alone. The rulers of Perim, except for Maxxor, were present and listened to the report of the Codemasters.
Crellan told them, "All we need is to wait for the right amount of energy in the portal. Then, we will be able to open it and send you to Earth and stop the M'arrillians once and for all."
Imthor sighed, "And so many things will come afterward. I don't know what will happen next. Nevertheless, the main priority is to stop the M'arrillians."
"What about Kazzy?" Chaor growled, "Anything bad happened to them? I know the M'arrillians attacked another city."
"Everything is fine with the four humans. As for the M'arrillians, they didn't get anyone in the other town. For some reason, they immediately returned to Summervale and didn't leave for two days now. They are searching for something."
Theb-Saar guessed, "It must have something to do with the evacuation of the city. If I were to attack a town and it turns out to be empty, I would naturally conclude there is a spy among my people."
Chaor grumbled. He had the same thought as Theb-Saar, "Right. You think they are hunting that spy down?"
Aszil crossed her arms, "Then that spy needs to evacuate now."
Imthor interrupted them, "There is no spy. We simply watched them from space, thanks to the satellites… I'll explain what those are later. Crellan, more on the report."
"Right. Tom, Kaz, Sarah, Peyton and their families are safe in the military base. Of course, this isn't the best environment for teenagers. They are obviously getting bored, but for their safety, they shouldn't move. Except for that, there is nothing else standing out on Earth."
"We still need to get on the Cothica and crush the M'arrillians quickly!" The ruler of the Underworld growled.
"And we still have no news from Maxxor and the others," Crellan commented.
"They are surely fine," Chaor replied with a small smirk. Still, he didn't sound as confident as he was before.
"And we don't know where that tribe might try to infiltrate, and they may damage the portal permanently. If they come and try that," Imthor reminded them of that potential threat.
"We shouldn't bring the energy source until we are sure everything works," Theb-Saar suggested.
"We are thinking about that. We will increase the security, but there might be other locations where the portal is vulnerable, but we don't know yet. Their tribes were the ones who built it long ago. We have no idea if they still have that knowledge or not," Crellan commented.
"We will figure this out when the time comes," Azsil told them. She let out a small grin, "They need to pass through us, by the portal platform. We will all show up there."
The Codemasters were still nervous about it. If they managed to pass surveillance, then it could be dangerous. Still, they didn't intend to drop their guard. The surveillance system was working. The creatures of the other tribe surely had no idea they had eyes in so many places.
Imthor sighed, "Even so, we don't know what they can do. Maybe they will bring some battlegear with them, or something else. We don't know anything about their tribe. Just that they built portals that connect Perim to Earth. They might have something terrifying under their belt."
The three rulers wondered about it too. Theb-Saar didn't let that bring him down though, "Even so, they only have one or two Telebracers on them. There aren't enough for them to pull a full-scale invasion. Even if they have powerful battlegear, they cannot just transport them here that easily. We also don't know if they have a way to reach the top of the mountain. I wouldn't worry too much about them, but we also should not drop our guards."
"We need to have the portal ready as quickly as possible. The Cothica might hold on against the M'arrillians, but they still don't have any mind protective battlegear," the Danian queen commented.
"Those are advancing quickly. The lack of some specific materials that can only be found in Perim is what prevents us from having functioning ones," Imthor replied. He sighed, as he had to agree, "They cannot keep retreating forever. Eventually, they will have to make a stand," he remembered something at the back of his mind, "Although, Tom managed to make Aval'par say a few things."
"What did that M'arrillian say?" Chaor growled.
"Milla'iin and his tribe cannot control the mind of every human. There are too many of them," the Codemaster answered. He raised his hand, "Eight billion is too much for them to handle. Too many minds. We cannot really use this to our advantage right now, but it is something to remember."
"E-eight… bi-billions," the three rulers whispered quietly. They were now more than certain it was the Cothica, if a tribe could reach such a high number.
The humans were rivaling the five tribes together in sheer numbers. It was extremely impressive and showed them how life grew easier in the Cothica, compared to Perim. It also explained why they weren't that powerful, in such a safe environment.
Chaor was the first one to get over it, "I have to go. There is nothing else to say and the four are still safe. When Maxxor is here, I will have a few things to tell him," he showed his fangs before he left the room.
Hotekk sighed, "I have a feeling he will antagonize Maxxor when he returns."
"I just received something from them. Maxxor had a means to communicate with us, and he recently did," Crellan told them.
Theb-Saar chuckled, "That means they are out of trouble?"
"Not completely. They escaped them and sailed back to the continent. It will take a few more days before they can return here safe and sound. That should be enough for us to finish fixing the portal… If there isn't any problem arising between then and now," he told them. The Codemaster sighed, "Because we cannot afford to waste time or let that new tribe endanger the Earth with their plan."
"That's good for us," Aszil commented.
"And they bring with them one of the elemental creatures with them. The one who helped them bring the wires for the portal," Crellan added.
Now, the two rulers were interested. The blue Mipedian was the one who expressed his thoughts out loud. He let out a small smile as he scratched his elbow, "One of them. Maybe he can share a few things about their tribe. Maybe we can even guess and prevent any of those creatures' plans from taking place."
"Depends on when they arrive here. We will need to watch that creature carefully. We cannot just blindly trust him," Hotekk warned them as he continued to check on the situation.
"I am ready to put some faith into him. He did turn his back on his tribe to help the Cothica," Theb-Saar left the room.
Aszil chuckled quietly, "And don't worry about security. The Danians will make sure no one passes us."
She also left the room, leaving the Codemasters alone together.
Imthor voiced his thoughts, "I agree with Theb-Saar. Still, we don't have the full details of what went on. Chaor told us about how that creature helped them, but the others came at the right moment to capture them."
Crellan sighed, "It can be a bad luck, or that elemental creature was playing a double role, or they foresaw this. Maybe the usage of the Melody Of Vision."
"It's really annoying that they can see the future with a Mugic. We can only calculate the probabilities. We aren't 100% exact," Hotekk commented.
"We are quantum I.A. We still have our limits and the future they can foresee does change," Imthor replied. He crossed his arms, "Still, we need to be ready for anything. The good and the bad."
Meanwhile, Najarin observed the result of the few tests they did with the fragments of the crystal. They had made a lot of progress in how to safely calculate the size they needed to repair the portal.
There were many fragments of the crystal on the ground. The creatures observed them.
"I believe we can make a good estimate of the energy contained in the crystals. The Codemasters will have a more answer about it," the High Muge concluded.
Taffial nodded, "I believe we have done everything we can here," he observed the walls. He wanted to study the hieroglyphs, but now wasn't the time. He was also excited, "Soon, we will witness the Cothica with our own eyes."
Frafdo sighed, "Good. Because it was getting extremely boring to watch you two doing those tests. Why did we have to stay here?"
Takinom crossed her arms, "Because, there is another tribe who might try to do something against us. We have to protect this," she pointed at the crystal, "Or the Cothica will be lost forever."
"I know. I just wanted to complain about it," Frafdo grumbled.
"Maybe the creature who is with Maxxor knows how to read it. He might give us some details that can help us, or even the history of the other tribe," the Mipedian wondered out loud.
Frafdo and Takinom shook their heads, as they heard enough of that.
"I am curious about it, but we need to focus on saving the Cothica. Anyway, we have done what we could. We just need to protect this until we can bring it to Chaotic," Najarin said before the group entered into an argument.
"That information could help us understand them and find out a way to defend ourselves against them," Taffial said before he stopped talking. He sighed as he watched the wall. He closed his eyes and was in deep thought.
Meanwhile, Chaor walked into the main room of Chaotic and ignored the other creatures who were talking together or arguing. He was still in his mind. He wondered if his Kazzy was okay. He also wondered the details of what was going on in the Cothica. If the M'arrillians went on their destructive rampage, it might cause a dangerous effect in Perim. Maybe their mugic would stop working forever if they did something extreme.
He stood near the port deck. He wondered if the elemental creatures would show up there, or use another way. There were so many unknown variables involved in the matter. Some of them could disappear when the creature who helped them arrived. For now, they only had uncertainty. The many what if. Those questions that could doom them all if they failed to answer them.
"How long before they find Kazzy again?" He wondered. Time was against them. He knew the boy and his friend. They were adventurous and curious. They might try to do something. Even if they didn't have codes anymore. He pushed some darker thoughts away. He couldn't let the negativity get to him. He didn't want to turn his fear into reality.
"Thinking about the boy?" Theb-Saar asked as he approached the creature. He got a growl as an answer, "Thinking about those humans too. Still, we focus on what we can do. I will organize a patrol to watch around Chaotic. I suggest you do the same and make sure those elemental creatures have no chance to cause damage."
"Don't tell me what to do, Theb-Saar," he grunted at him.
"I gave you a suggestion, not an order," the blue Mipedian replied, "Tomorrow, I'll try to have a chat with the humans and find out how they are doing."
"I'll need a report from Agitos," Chaor replied.
The Mipedian nodded and left Chaor with his mind.
AC: This is the end of this chapter.
Next: Another Capture.
After a few uneventful days, the military spotted a lonely M'arrillian with a human. They captured him and brought him to the base.