After a long time of preparation: multiple groups in which of one includes Bethesda, IF and Compa went to the graveyard to rescue the goddesses, but unfortunately the Sharecite that was used was too weak and only managed to rescue Nepgear, the group had to quickly get out when they got attacked by a powerful guard robot who the only thing that was able to at least damage it was a mini-nuke

The group then got back to Planeptune, Histoire explained to them that Nepgear have to find and use the mascots trough the nations to power herself up to beat that guard, she firstly went to Lastation then went to Lowee but their GPS got modified and they landed in the MOD territory instead of Lowee and they got captured by them but why?

Meanwhile Bethesda as usual work on his projects and it appears that Id now work with Planeptune in objective to find his adoptive brother to remind him about a promise he made long ago, after a talk between the Inventor and the Slayer. The same day when Histoire and Bethesda realized that Nepgear and her group vanished… A pro-ASIC media throw away on the internet the fact that Bethesda is a war criminal…


[Just after the Id got the news to Histoire and Bethesda.]

Histoire gets close to Bethesda "Did you tell her of what you done?" She whispers

"No." Bethesda responds back

"Uh, excuse me but I will have to ask you how you got these information." Histoire says to Id

"On saw on the news on internet. It was everywhere and a shit ton of people is talking about an article made by news site who I think is probably like the ASIC, looking at their other articles. Wait I'm gonna show you it."

Id show the page of the website on her phone to Histoire, she slightly lean forward to see better, there the article with the title written "Bethesda the war criminal!" but something else pick her attention and it's the name of the said news site named "Torrent news"

"Its definitely a pro-syndicalist news site." Histoire affirms

"And that's not all, there is also a shit ton of outraged people on the internet, its only a mater of time until it ends on the TV, Can we shut it down before it spreads even more?" Id asks

"If we do it, they are gonna complain about censor ship." Bethesda explains to the slayer

"It also gonna make it worse, one of the principle of Planeptune is that this nation is the pioneer of the freedom of speech, people will see that by censoring them they might really believe by that act that we are hiding something form the citizens and also protecting a war criminal, this will have dire consequences." Histoire adds

"We got 2 big problems now." Bethesda comments

"What the first one?"

"The candidate got captured by the MOD."

Id sighs "We do we do now?"

"I think I should wear my helmet like when I was declared dead. Until my problem is resolved"

"Good idea. I will attempt to make sure the bigger News channel don't talk about it. Id keep an eye on Bethesda, we can't allow him to get killed by an angry mob in case he get recognized. Since most of the people seem to trust the ASIC. They might also trust a news coming form a site aligned to them."

"Yes."

A Basilicom staff man enter in the room "Huh, sorry to interrupt your conversation but. Relic want to see Bethesda."

"Guess he want to talk about the news. Let's go Id." Bethesda says

"Hey!" a man says to the duo while they are on their way to the base

"Uh?"

"Aren't you that war criminal?"

"No."

"You look exactly like Bethesda tough."

"No, I'm wearing a helmet and he's not."

"Oh, OK."

Bethesda and Id continue their walk

"I understand better why you called them idiots, they are sure not sharp."

Id just responds by a giggle

"By the way, can you tell me more about your role in the war."

"I made the vertidragons that allowed to supply the city and I participated in some battles, not much more."

"And about the slave thing?"

"There was a strike that prevented us to build vertidragons who were crucial for the airlift so I had to find other methods to have them done in time."

[Later.]

The marshal is looking at a training of the troops inside of the base

"You wanted to see me Relic?"

He looks on his side and see Bethesda accompanied with a woman

"Oh hello Bethesda, I see there is the monster slayer with you."

"She's my adoptive sister."

Relic eyes widens "Wow! I sure didn't see it coming, less as the thing you did during the war with the ASIC."

"I knew you wanted to talk about it."

"Of course I would, and I just want to tell you that you did the good decision."

"Hang on… The news that says that is a pro-ASIC site. Do you believe it?"

"It not hard actually, I already wondered how you managed to build all of those vehicles in very few days and I in someways got my response. To come back on that, you were probably pragmatic."

"That and the fact that I have a hatred for the ASIC."

"Yes also that but by violating the conventions and causing the death of a dozens of war prisoner you allowed to prevent a shortage and by that you also prevented more deaths! Not only military ones but also civilians!"

"That's right but even if did that in pure pragmatism and I stopped when Histoire told me to, don't imagine that didn't took any pleasure form seeing these fuckers suffer."

"That doesn't mater. I shall talk to Histoire about it. that's still sad that people tend to forget what you did in the past, I was also looking on social medias that there is """"war experts"""" debating about your acts."

"What they said about me?"

"Well on one side there dudes who think that you are a horrible person some even to put into question your role in the victory against the invaders and in the other side, people who think you are quite "based". Since the support of the ASIC is so high, there is a way more people against you than supporting you."

"I know that, that's why I'm wearing a helmet."

"To avoid getting lynched?"

"One of the reasons. You got something else to say?"

"Nothing else, you can leave now."

"Well I have something to ask."

"Uhm?"

"I need a ride to Lowee."

"Why tough?"

"That's complicated, but its that the candidate got captured by the MOD and I need to tell the oracle to send troops to secure the mascot."

"Hang on! The candidate got captured?"

"If you want more details, ask it to Histoire. She the one who told me about it."

"Fine, the Nep force one arrived yesterday. I'm gonna ask them to sent you and Id to Lowee. Good luck there,"

Id steps in "Uh… the Nep force one?" Id asks

"Well let me explain..."

[Later.]

The Nep force one vertidragon is getting ready to take off, the group of makers are waiting on the side, Bethesda turns to Relic...

"By the way Marshal… I had something to tell you about."

"What is it?"

"When I went missing, I met your master."

"THQ?! That was years I didn't see him! How he is?"

"Well he aged well, I suppose. He trained me to learn magic."

"Did it work at least?"

"Partially."

"But why tough? He have the reputation to never fail at training other makers. When he trained me on becoming a good leader he succeed and you guess why."

"I know, he quickly talked about you."

"I gotta find a way to contact him." The marshal says while smiling

Bethesda sighs "I fear that it won't be possible."

The marshal relaxed smile almost instantly turns into a visibly confused face upon hearing this

The Nep force one takes off and head to the north, inside of it Id and Bethesda of course, Id turns towards Bethesda

"By the way, I was wondering… Since the news can be quite quick around Gamindustri, what you do if the oracle don't want to collaborate with a war criminal?"

"What are you talking about? She will accept it. With one of my invention, I prevented the death of countless loweans so she might be open to my request. Especially that as we talked about it with Histoire, it might more advantage Lowee than ourselves."

"Smartass."

"Its just common sense. But… There is something that worry me even more..."

"What?"

"They might not be friendly with a mercenary that fought their people."

"That's true I killed I lot of them… I hope they won't recognize me."

"Say to them that you were unto the order of your leader and you didn't have the choice to do it."

"I sure didn't, actually I don't enjoy killing other humans… Monsters on other hands."

"Yeah." Bethesda chuckles "I see where you are going."

[Meanwhile at Planeptune.]

Relic get in the Basilicom, its busy as usual, he takes the elevator and goes to the top floor. After a moment of The elevator door opens and he knocks on a door

"Enter." A feminine voice says

Relic enters the room, there is Histoire doing some paper work, Relic walks towards her

"Hi, looks like there isn't a lot of people waiting."

"Hello, It's a Wednesday afternoon, the only moment of the week where I don't take care of guilds operations. So you have something to ask or you just want to discuss?"

"I'm not gonna make you waste your time on some pointless discussion."

"So what is it?"

"About Bethesda. You were aware of the thing he did during the war?"

"...About?"

"The forced work thing."

"He didn't do anything."

"Yet he confirmed to me he slaved some war prisoners to make us win the war..."

"He told you?"

The marshal of the army nods "I also guessed that, it was impossible to get those flying machines that quick… Especially during strikes."

The oracles sighs "That's true… It was a horrific war crime that we had to hide. Nobody was supposed to know that information."

"You know, you shouldn't have. At the time of the war, most of the people still supported the goddess beside their sudden disappearance even if it was hard for them to believe in something they can't see, at this point they wasn't aware that the ASIC captured them and well that also mean that most of the people was against them."

"I see where you are coming, but even if the situation was very different back then: The ASIC would have used this occasion as a weapon of propaganda and use it against us. Also don't forget that Planeptune is the land of progress and we can't permit to give to the world that we used an old barbaric practice. It was sure something necessary at some point but we better don't brag about it..."

"And now it leaded us into something even worse!"

BANG

Relic says while he slam is fist on Histoire desk "Sorry."

"We couldn't have expected that the ASIC would convert our population that easily."

"It could have been prevented for sure."

"I don't say the contrary. But the situation could have went chaotic if we used terror tactics on the people."

"That's true. But now its too late, I really hope that Nepgear managed to raise up the shares before she got captured."

"Bethesda also told you about Nepgear and her group?"

"Bingo. I was also about to ask you about that. Apparently he wanted Lowee to secure the mascot during the time we rescue Nepgear right?"

"That's the plan."

"Lowee is surely gonna take profit of the situation. The power of the mascot could go to the candidate of Lowee instead."

"Unfortunately that's the best option. The other one is letting the ASIC taking it down."

"Can't we just sent our troops instead?"

"Impossible, Lowee would never let us do that. Remember that there is centuries of rivality between our two nations, even if it calmed down after our victory against the great eastern war, its still here."

Relic chuckles "Yeah, but this is history by now… but let's just not ask their permission and prepare a covert operation to secure it."

"It will degrade our diplomatic relation with them if they discover that so its even worse."

"Your are probably right then..." Relic then get up and start to leave the room.

Histoire returns to what she was doing until something comes to her mind… "Did Bethesda also told you about THQ?"

"Yes and i want to contact him."

"About that. I have to unfortunately inform you that he found his demise..."

A shock hit Relic hard as a lighting as he suddenly realize the feeling he had months ago's "Huh?! How?! You got any clues at least?"

The Tome shake her head form left to right "No… Bu-"

"My master is one if not the strongest maker that ever existed. Against who he could have lost!" He start to lift his arms in anger

"Against the same person who defeated the goddesses."

"Oh... Can you explain me in details?"

"The ASIC that searched for Bethesda since a moment, somehow they found that he was with THQ in their annexed territory and sent patrols to find them. They both of them fought one but shortly after the Leader herself found them. THQ told to Bethesda to retreat to Planeptune while he hold her."

"That doesn't prove he's dead! He might have survived."

"For sure, Magic, their leader is still alive. Yet the moment where we talked about some speculations on ASIC next moves, you felt the felling that someone important to you dies. Which made me think that."

"It was just a felling tough."

"..." Histoire deeply thinks about what to see to Relic for a minute "I'm sorry to say that only the worst must have happened to him… My condolences."

Relic leaves the room and takes the elevator, he's alone, he remove his officer cap, revealing his short dark brown hair, he then remove a gray and red ribbon and look at it in a deep think full of nostalgic memories… He then in the evening, returns to his apartment and moments upon entering, he find an old picture of him when he was a young teen among other kids and THQ on the right side...


19 Years ago

Somewhere in the highest mountains of Gamindustri

An isolated monastery...


A kid is getting thrown on the ground, he breathes heavily and so does he sweat, shortly after someone but a blade under his chin

"Enough!" A man says

And then the girl that was holding the blade of a pickaxe, make it disappear and then hand over her arm to the boy "Did I went too rough on you?"

"Jeez, I think so." the kid says while scratching his head and then grab the girl arm

The boy then gets up with the girl help, the boy then pick up his boltgun

"Now I see why you told me it was a bad idea to let you train with your actual weapons." The man says to the boy

THQ who was known to be train makers to become the best in their personal specialties was the headmaster of a monastery dedicated to the training of the said makers, he takes cares of his pupils of age ranging to 8 form 14, after the age of 15 passed, they are transferred to an adoptive family or they work for the monastery. There is an adapted planing for the different depending on the kids but there is obligatory ones like the combat training

"But master THQ! If we continue training with some training stuff we will never know our true potential." The boy responds

THQ just turns his head away while just breathing "Helixe! Kaos! Its going to be your turn to do sparing… And take training weapons."

The boy and the girl get out of the training ground and go sit nearby with the group of kids

"Hehe, gonna cry Relic?" Another kid barely older than Relic mocks

"I'm not even hurt!" The concerned responds angrily

"I'm going to beat you easily anyway."

"Bet?"

"Yes because THQ is my father!"

"Stop telling such idiocy blue!" The same girl who beaten THQ says

"Thanks Volition." Relic thanks her

"That's simply isn't true." The kids notice THQ talking at them "I'm the Father of all of my pupils."

"...Yeah." Relic says while looking down

THQ looks at Relic knowing that something is wrong, just by looking at him and his sad face, THQ then looks back at Helixe and Kaos on the training ground "Start!"

[After the training.]

The kids enter in the monastery, its the start of the evening and everyone is tired after the sparing and various other training. Relic on his way inside hear a voice

"Relic!"

"Yes Master?"

"You seem depressed. What its about?"

"Its about my family... Is-s my m-mom really gone forever?"

"...I'm sorry to respond to you that, but yes." Relic start sobering and then THQ get on his height by crouching "But worry not. Even if I can't change my gender, you are my child now with everyone else as I said sooner in the day."

"So you are my dad?"

"Yes."

Relic stops sobering and light appears in his eyes, THQ smiles and get back on his feet

"Let's get inside."

The Master and the pupil walks inside of the hall

"You wanted to go at the Planeptune military school after your training if i'm right?"

"Yes."

THQ chuckles "You I will make a perfect general."

"You think?"

"Of course, I still remember that time you and the other kids got lost in the mountain for a week, if they survived and they didn't got eaten by some fenrirs its because of your leadership."

"...If I graduate form the military will you come to the ceremony?"

"Of course I will."

[Around 10 Years after.]

Years of study later. Relic who is now a young adult is with other cadets of the school. He is in the first lines he waits that his name is called, he move his eyes around trying to find THQ but he don't seem to see him form where he is.

"Next! Cadet Relic Entertainment!" A announcer says trough a speaker

Relic focuses back on the ceremony, he takes walk forward in step, he turns right and get up the stairs of the platform and comes to a man standing in front of him, he see by his decorations and at his old age that its the Marshal that is giving the degrees, he is smiling and seem like a nice grampa. Relic stops in front of him and salutes, the Marshal salutes the Cadet, he then give the degree to the now graduated Cadet

"Look like i found my successor." The old man says

Relic smiles with some satisfaction and salutes back and then leave, still walking in step. On the way back to his ranks, he quickly notice THQ in the public

[After the ceremony]

THQ and Relic are together

"You must be the only pupil that graduated form a military school, I'm proud of you." THQ says he then drink a bottle of beer, Relic is just happy to see him after a long time

"The Marshal told me that I might be his successor."

"That would be better than I expected. You won't just by a general that will lead a part of the army but all of the armed forces."

"What happened to the other pupils?"

"To make short: Volution, Big, Incinerator, Rainbow went in a adoptive family, the other's are still at the monastery, working with me."

"I wonder how much it changed since I was gone."

"A lot, its even bigger now and there is the technology level of Planeptune there. You should come visit us when you got time."

"Not sure if I will have a lot of time."

THQ just laugh "Well I have to go. Until we see again."

Relic never saw THQ again

[Back in the present.]

The morning is rising on the city of planeptune, the people are heading to their work, but in an apartment THQ is sitting on a chair with the picture, he didn't sleep of the night...

Relic who had is fist clenched for hours suddenly rise it

BAM

And slam it on a table "Fuck it! I can't just stay here and wait!" he yells

He gets up and go to his closet, there is is good old bolter, there also a chainsword


PLANEPTUNE

BASILICOM

IN THE MORNING


"Histoire?"

"Yes?"

"Relic is gone."

"Uh? But why?"

"Not sure why but he left a letter for you."

Lady Histoire, There is currently one and only way to know the truth about the demise of THQ but I will prefer to search it by myself instead of just asking you to send an agent to search for me.

I will also attempt to create a military alliance between the nations against the ASIC, I'm not sure they might refuse, they have their own problems for sure but the criminal syndicate is a threat for every nations anyway. We must stomp the snake before it attempt to bite us again.

Its how we will avenge the victims of the ASIC and our goddess

-Relic Entertainment

"I see." Histoire says "Send a agent. Try to get him back at Planeptune, he is playing with fire."

"And if he don't want?"

"I will attempt a communication between Relic and me, if this also fail, then I can't stop him."

The guild staff man leave the room and another one move in

"Lady Histoire."

"Yes?"

"The convoy that was supposed to transfer the captured Candidate form the MOD territory to the ASIC territory got attacked."

"By who?"

"We have no idea." we just got the news form an infiltrated agent

"What's going on there?" Histoire wonders on what could have attacked the convoy, Lowee military? Rogue monsters? Bandits? She can't find a response…

Well it won't be obivious


An inventor tales Vol5: Preventives measures


So here we go for a new volume, i wanted to expand more Relic flashback but its probably going to be for a extra.

The next chapter will reveal who attacked the convoy and their motivations.

I also started studies now so since i expect a shit ton of work i might post less chapters.


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A man hiding is face with tissues is walking trough the mountain, in background, he see the mount Reginald: the highest mountain of Gamindustri. He grab some binoculars and looks on a precise area of the mountain: There is ruins of a monastery, warth is the only thing that could describe his reaction