It was a peaceful day at the Xianzhou Luofu
The sun was shining brightly, the mechanical birds were chirping the loveliest of tunes, and the peaceful streets of Starwatcher Avenue were as bustling as ever. Filled with plenty of lively children playing around, stores selling a wide variety of goods, and smiles all around which truly gave a peaceful ambiance...
However, that didn't last long
Because soon, multiple starskiffs began to zoom in to the central fly-way which created a sonic boom that was so strong it nearly blew everyone back a meter or two and caused quite a ruckus. Starskiffs weren't exactly an uncommon sight considering this is one of the primary areas of the Lofu, but those particular starskiffs were far from normal...
All of them were used for military transportation purposes. And to the best of their knowledge, only the vilest criminals who were charged with the highest degree of crimes were to be brought into starskiffs like those in order to be brought to the divination commission. So the fact that there were that many created an ominous vibe that totally had everyone worried...
After all, a terrible incident had recently happened with one of the Xianzhou starships. Almost everyone was anxious to their cores. Something like this happening was basically an omen for something bad to come...
...And they weren't wrong...
[***]
In a dim interrogation room in the Cloudknights central headquarters was a figure of a man in a suit, who was heavily restrained. A single ray of light shined upon him, which revealed that he was currently being guarded by the knights with their spears pointed at him, ready to thrust at a moment's notice.
Yet despite seeing such a sight, the man felt no signs of fear...only indifference...
The man looked around as he carefully analyzed the limited information that he could get. In mere seconds he had already figured out where he was brought, and why he was brought there. Other than that, he also noticed that his masterpiece was confiscated, and the restraints wrapped around him were so tight that he probably can't escape here without thinking of something up...
But that can just come later
nThe Cloudknights didn't respond...
The man was curious if they were actually awake behind their helmets so he moved a bit. Mere seconds later the spears were trusted, being halted just mere inches from piercing his skin. He lets out a sigh as he sat back down in the original position
"I see you guys don't have a sense of humor"
"I'm actually surprised that you still retain yours after everything that has happened to you"
He heard the voice of another man echo from the room, it was charming yet gives off a feeling of authority and strength. What followed after was the sound of his footsteps, and soon the sight of the white-haired man with a smile came into view...
"Sir Chronos, the weaver of reality. It's a pleasure to finally meet an esteemed member of the Genius Society. I've heard many tales of your achievements in the past and I truly do admire them. It's really just a shame that both of us had to have our first encounter like this"
"Hm, you've got quite the silver tongue there...From the way you look and conduct yourself, I'm assuming that you're the head general of this lot. Let's see, I think your name was...Jing Yuan? The Dozing General of Lofu. I don't know why, but I could tell that such a title is fitting for you..."
"Hoh?...you know of me? This is surprising. Not to be rude, but I was under the impression that most of you Genuis Society members had egos higher than mountains, which affects your ability to remember names"
Chronos couldn't help but smile...
"You're not wrong to assume that, even I would occasionally experience such unfortunate lapses in my memory. But exceptions do happen if I find the person to be interesting enough..."
"Haha! I'm quite honored..."
"I'm simply stating the facts. Now enough flattery and let's get down to business, shall we? I may have lots of it, but time is precious so I don't want to waste any more of it. Could you free me from these restraints and just let me go about my business?
"I'm afraid that won't be possible, Sir Chronos..."
He had already expected such a response, but hearing it still made him really disappointed...
"Is this because of the recent explosion that happened at one of the Xianzhou starships?"
"If you know then this would save me the time of explaining. Sir Chronos, under the orders of our supreme command, you are currently being taken into custody for charges of being the primary suspect that caused that catastrophic incident that just happened. Until further notice, then you are to not leave this building"
"Could I at least ask why I was painted as the big bad villain here?"
Jing Yuan then tossed a couple of folders down to the ground, to which Chronos began to read all of the contents at lighting speeds far beyond human limitations...
"That's the full report of it. To summarize, there were traces of machines that you used for your quantum research located near the vicinity of the explosion. Upon investigation, each of them was enough to create and compress massive amounts of energy that could combust to an astonishing degree. The fact that you were also present in that starship during the incident is also a factor"
"Oh, please. You've got all your info twisted up, General. Those buckets of scraps are a failed experiment on my part. It's true that they could theoretically produce enough energy to power a small planet, and that could theoretically cause an explosion, but it could never cause destruction of that scale. Something like a stellaron is more likely but I can't make something like that...not yet at least"
"I won't usually do this, but I agree with you, Sir Chronos..."
Jing Yuan stated firmly without a hint of hesitation. Even his subordinates seemed to be caught off guard by this...
"Then-..."
"But the fact remains that your machines are conveniently placed around the area of the explosion and that you don't really have a good alibi for the time of the incident other than... and I quote; I was testing if a pickle that could travel the speed of light be used as a substitute for a celestial missile "
"I was actually close to finding that out until you guys busted into my office and took me away"
"Anyways, the point is that until you're proven innocent you will remain here. Don't worry, our divination commission has ways of conducting a swift and accurate investigation"
"Ah, I heard that you guys have a little sage who can predict the future and see the truths from the lies. Well, that makes things quick I guess. So what time will she be doing her thing?"
"Unfortunately, she is currently away on another Xianzhou starship. Though she will be making her return as soon as possible"
"...What? Assuming that she's on the nearest starship, that's still thousands of lightyears away, it'll take at least a week or two for her to come back"
"That does seem to be the case, yes"
For the first time, Chronos seemed to be offended...
"You're seriously asking me to spend weeks sitting down here, doing absolutely nothing? Jing Yuan, we members of the Genuis society value our time above all else. Even if you did pay me millions of credits, that's not enough of a compensation for the research ideas and experiments you all put to waste while forcing me to be here"
"I'm sorry, but we don't have any other choices. I can't risk you roaming around the Lofu as you please until we're absolutely certain that you're clear"
"...You folks of the Lofu are proud of the predictions and foresight of your divination commission, but allow me to give you a prediction of my own, General. In a couple of hours, this cage that is holding me will turn into shambles. And even with you guarding the Helm, you'll be left helpless as you watch me leave this place"
"You seem confident despite your beloved masterpiece being in our possession"
Saying this, Jing Yuan took out a purple orb from his pocket...
"This is the machine that allows you to manipulate reality as you please, right? I wonder if you will still be so cocky if we used your power against you..."
"Oh, please. Are you seriously playing this bluff on me, Jing Yuan? You should know better than I do that you can't hope to use that machine. It's layered with so many security protocols that not even the greatest of hackers from Punklorde are capable of doing anything to it"
"Hehe, I suppose I can't deceive you so easily like this. But the fact that you can't use your powers with this in your hands still remains true. Without this, you're as vulnerable and as helpless as any man. So please do me a favor and just behave yourself until all of this is over..."
Saying this, he turned his back and began to walk out of the room. He whispered something to one of the guards before the sound of a metallic door opening and closing echoed throughout the room. And the only one left there is Chronos, still surrounded by dozens of well-trained cloud knights
"...Oh, you're wise General. But it's clear that you haven't done enough research on me"
He muttered to himself with a smile as he waited for his opportunity...
.
.
.
.
Hours passed, and his state still remained the same. He's been dozing off for the past few hours, which is an incredibly rare occurrence in it itself. Chronos rarely has the chance to sleep due to all of his experiments, so he hasn't had a chance to indulge in the pleasure of resting like this...not that it was much of a necessity for him...
"Uh...water...can any of you get me a glass of water?" He turned to look at the Cloud knights who were still pointing their spears at him. Their discipline was amazing if nothing else. He had memorized their positions before he dozed off, and it was still the same one they were taking right now...
The Cloudknights looked at each other, seemingly hesitant about what to do...
"Come on, you guys seriously won't give me something as simple as that? Are you afraid that I'll turn it into a sharp blade that'll cut my restraints? Come on, you know I can't do that. Just give me the water already, my throat is dry as a desert..."
After a bit of a debate among themselves, one of the Cloudknights moved into the dark parts of the room before returning with a glass of water. He moved carefully and gently held the glass so that he could drink...and after he was finished, Chronos lets out a sigh of relief as he sat back on his chair
"Ahhh, that hits the spot. You know...you guys seem to be real nice so I'd like to make a deal with you all. Just remove these restraints, and let me leave, and I'll pay you all of the credit and treasures that you desire. Just name it and I'll hand it over to you once all of this mess gets cleared"
The Cloudknights didn't respond to this, in fact...they seemed offended at the very idea of Chronos bribing them for his freedom
"Come on, at least think about it. I can give you all the things you desire, a small planet? All the fortunes that this universe has to offer? Oh, this one is sure to get you interested...eternal life. I'm sure that you folks are interested in that, right?"
"Do not insult us, Sir Chronos" The knight who seemed to be the leader spoke up, his tone clearly laced with annoyance
"Hm? Insult? I'm pitching a good deal here..."
"We Cloudknights have sworn our loyalty to the great Lan. And our duty of following the hunt in its quest to exterminate all abominations in this world cannot be swayed by temptations of money or treasures"
"Hoh...that sure ise admirable and all, but I'm not an abomination though?"
"That is not for you to decide. Should you be proven guilty of your crimes then you are better than the monsters that we fight against. So please, in order for things to go smoothly just cooperate with us and sit here quietly..."
"Ahaha...wow, your loyalty and honor to the Lofu sure is admirable. You know...this reminds me of an encounter that I had with a third-world planet in some unknown galaxy. You see, there was this woman, right? A really beautiful woman that had the looks of a goddess. She was kind, wise, and was one of the greatest warriors that the world has ever seen..."
Chronos paused as he looked up at the ceiling
"She served this one leader who was at war with another more powerful leader who was fighting for complete control of that planet. It was a hard-fought battle that lasted for centuries, but soon it became clear that the tides of war are not in favor of the side of this woman. And as time passed on they were pushed back to nothing more than a single city...with all fronts surrounded, the leader of the other side reached out to the woman, with his arms spread wide and a smile on his face"
"I think that you should stop if-"
"Sssshhh, just hush for a minute. We're getting to the good part, okay? So the leader of the other side came up to her and asked her to join his side. She would be provided with all of the riches in the world and a powerful position that would last for the rest of her life. Basically, it was a one-way ticket to a rich and comfortable life...but you know what she said to the enemy leader?"
"...She refused?" One of the Cloudknights answered...
"Well, It's quite obvious, isn't it? The woman refused and literally spat on his offer, claiming that she'll rather die in the service of her leader than claim his offer. She truly was a loyal woman. And as expected, that's exactly what happened to her. Their side lost the war and she was brutally executed on the gallows..."
"..." All of the Cloudknights suddenly seemed speechless, and the grip of their spears started to be a bit lose
"I was there watching as she took her last breath, and while I watched I really couldn't help but wonder if loyalty to someone was truly worth it if she was met with an end like that. Maybe it's because I'm self-centered but I really couldn't comprehend her actions to this day...while I do respect her honor and loyalty, It really irks me the wrong way to see someone make rash decisions..."
Chronos smiled bitterly as he looked back at the knights
"Ahaha...quite ironic isn't it? My life has always been filled with rash decisions. It's the very thing that landed me on the Genuis society in the first place...welp, this is a long and roundabout way of saying this, but basically, the lesson here is..."
Boom!
A loud explosion resonated throughout the building. The earth suddenly began to shake. And the ceiling trembled, causing small pieces of rubble to fall to the ground...Seeing this, he smiled from ear to ear before he confidently said-
"Learn to take a good deal sometimes"
"-! Watch out!"
And before anyone knew it, a ship crashed into their room. Most of the Cloudknights were able to dodge it, but the impact of a massive object like this suddenly crashing blew them several feet away, crashing to the walls which knocked most of them unconscious. The Cloudknights that do manage to get up were tranquilized by one of the ship's turrets
Once all of them were knocked unconscious, the ship began to scan the restraints that were wrapped around him, and after a while, they were all unlocked. Chronos began to slowly walk towards the ship while carrying an unconscious body of a Cloudknight
"Alrighty Avalon, open up!"
After voicing his command, the shuttle doors slowly opened, and he jumped in with the unconscious Cloudknight. Contrary to the simple appearance on the outside, the interior of the ship was filled with plenty of complex controls and machines that far surpassed the ones that any normal military spaceship possed
Once he tied up the knight to the side, he sat at the only chair which was at the center. An intercom then appeared in front of him...
"[Good afternoon captain, It's good to see that you're still alive and kicking. Though I had prayed to the aeons that it wouldn't be the case...]"
"Nice to see you too buddy, I see that you're still as punctual as ever. How did the Lofu knights treat you by the way, were they gentle?"
"[They had assumed that I am nothing more than an economy-class ship that was rented somewhere, and didn't even bother to put some countermeasures on me. While I am deeply offended, that is one of the reasons why I was able to easily break in here]"
"Hehe, just like I told you...simplicity is sometimes best. Now enough chatter, the rest of the guards will probably swarm us. Be a good a.i and take us out of here, yeah?"
"[Affirmative. But where shall we go? The rest of the Cloudknights would surely hunt down for us no matter where we go in the Lofu]"
"Yeah, don't worry about that. Just lose the guys who are after us now and take us somewhere, I'll handle this. Hmmm, I reckon we head toward the main Starskiff road and we could blend in with the rest of the trafic from there"
"[Understood. How shall I deal with the approaching bogies?]"
"Code stigma" Chronos smiled from ear to ear as he fiddled with the intercom
"[Orders received. Initiating code stigma]" Avalon began to rev up its engines as it zoomed into the sky at sonic speeds. The rest of the Lofu military starskiffs chased after it in pursuit. From the way they were flying their ships, Chronos could tell that they were incredibly skilled
They began to fire shots in the hope to take down Avalon, but their shots merely bounced off its tough armor. Chronos figured he'd hack into their communication systems to see their reactions, and true enough, they did not disappoint
"[High command, this is captain Yukong speaking. We fired multiple shots at the ship, yet it showed no signs of damage whatsoever. At this point, I think it's going to get away without us being able to do anything...what are your orders?]"
"[Gagh! Seriously? Come on, that was a high-class anti-ship weapon, how is this thing still in one piece?!]"
"[Captain, I've detected that the ship has begun accelerating at rapid speeds. Kgh, at this rate even our ships won't be able to keep up!]"
"[This thing isn't even fighting back...damn it, is he mocking us?!]"
"Ahahaha! Yes, that's it. Praise me more for my genius! See Avalon, this is exactly why I love being smart...it allows me to do things like this...the feeling of superiority! Hahahah! It's a better feeling that any drug in the universe!"
"[Captain, please don't stand up without your seatbelts on. Oh...one moment, captain. I've received a message from someone calling themselves...the head general of the Cloudknights? Would you like me to play it?]"
"Nah, Jing Yuan will probably just say the same thing...Oh, but I do want you to send a message back to him. Let's see...tell him that; Getting holed up there is boring, so instead of wasting time let's play a little game of hide and seek shall we? A game with the entire Lofu as our playground...Hehe, I was wondering if my stay here is gonna be dull, but I'm glad that we can have fun like this..."
His chuckling echoed throughout the ship as it surpassed the speeds of its persuaders and disappeared among the Starskiff traffic...
[A/N: Damn, I just realized that this thing is really long...had fun writing this chap though
Anyways, see you next update lol]