You'd think the Zeuritzans would make tracks and evacuate as soon as their lift was fixed, right? Well, as per tradition in Durin society, they weren't leaving until all the damage done to the city was repaired. Now I see what Catch meant by "dressing" Zeuritza. Leave it nice and tidy so when the coast is clear, it would be as if they never left. So yeah, the last part of our vacation was beach cleanup. Stitch dealt with the last of Quaritch's mooks with his personal drone. They, along with the remaining security of the Basilisk, now work for the new Aquapit the Durin built-in Acahulla.
Because the representatives, Tomimi, Spider, and Inam were the only ones to stay back. The best thing for Tomimi was to just keep her out of this. She was doing better, thankfully, but it was Doctor Gavial's orders. Spider refused to leave her side, so he remained as well. Inam... I missed a very important detail with her. Acahullan isn't completely detached from the rest of Sargon. They need someone to keep a close watch on the jungle in case the tribes get any funny ideas. Inam is the spy. The Acahuallans didn't mind, because rebellion against their overlords was never an option when the only things they had were spears and fists. Damn lucky that the Sargonions took Inam's word and didn't personally investigate the shebang with Hell's Gate, or paid much attention to a population boom of pint-sized men, otherwise we'd be in deep shit. They wouldn't just kill us. No, they would kill us, raise us back from the dead, and use what's left to fuel their super soldiers.
Yeah, the RDA wasn't the only threat. All it takes is them tipping off the Lords for Acahuallan to become one of those African slave mines. They already had a refinery somewhere in the desert, so an alliance was potentially in the works. Inam's job while we were gone was to get to the bottom of this. Figure out if they are in cahoots with the RDA and do everything in her power to keep their noses away from the jungle.
Meanwhile, Gavial, Zumama, Avdotya, and I were the storm chasers. The plan was to link up with Rhodes Island, as the leadership was taking refuge on one of the Grand Dukes' warships. The goo monster, the same one that was impersonating the Durin robots, was something called a "Damatzi." There's only on thing that Sarkaz can't intimate; the dead. Everything else, is fair game for the Commssion's all-in-one espionage expert. Kicked in Rhodes's teeth well enough that they had to turn to the very same people who invited the Sarkaz in the first place. At least I heard Logos dealt with it.
As you can see, it was a total shitstorm, not including the literal weather weapons. Don't worry, it gets better from here.
"Restricted airspace? The Duke of Windimere gave us permission to land. We're flying on behalf of Rhodes Island!"
That's our pilot, Dylan. He's the only man who is trusted to pilot the land ship's experimental aircraft. Sure, it was just a slightly smaller Osprey with jet engines, but it beats a chopper for when you need to get from point A to point B in a flash. Tomimi shot him down when he was bringing Gavial over to the festival. They got over it a long time ago, but I had a hunch that this time, the fire isn't friendly.
"I recall that she is the most militant of the Grand Dukes, victor of countless naval battles against Leithana. They are fickle, nobles, even beyond Ursus." Avdoyta sighed.
"Pozyma it's not the Duke." Dylan took off his headset briefly. "We are not within range of her AA. Two unidentified aircraft on my left and right are threatening to shoot us down."
"Jake's old pals are already coming for us?" Gavial growled.
"I dunno. Their transponder signals are all funky. They don't line up with what the Administration typically uses. I have no clue who or what I'm flying with."
"Where are they again?" I quickly ask.
"They are basically on top of us. A couple of feet off to the sides. Check the windows!"
I looked out one of the windows and almost lost my breath. There were only 2 models in the RDA's service. Or really, just 1. Samsons were used for transportation, and if the situation called for it, just slap a couple more rocket pods on and now it's a Scorpion. Pretty standard issue stuff for urban warfare, ever since they started cracking down on terrorism and "rogue regimes". But there was no way in hell the Military would deploy them in a naval situation, as they couple easily be swatted down by surface-to-air defenses. AA guns are not quite as advanced in the Victorian fleets, but enough to shoot down glorified helicopters. This battlefield requires something faster, faster than sound.
What I'm getting at is that the RDA knew well ahead of time that they needed a plan for the land ships. And now the solution was before my very eyes.
An F-35 flying parallel with us.
"Son of a..." I smacked the glass.
"Are they... are they really flying those giant rockets?"
Zumama's face was plastered over the other door's window. Gavial joined her side to see what the snake girl was squealing about.
"Pffhahaha! The real question is who would be dumb enough to fly them?"
She was laughing at one of the finest pieces of aerodynamic technology. Atleast she picked up on the kind of people who are willing to pilot them.
"Those jets basically fly themselves." I quickly corrected Gavial. "The human is only in there incase the computer freaks out and nosedives the aircraft."
"Sully, are you saying that they each have Master Lancet on board?" Zumama plucked her face off the glass.
I nodded my head. Zumama gasped, just like a highschool girl. She's head over heels about A.I ever since she met one of Rhodes machines, Lancet-1. When she's not tweaking her big stomper, she's unironically having full on conversations with the robot like it's a human. I need to show her Terminator sometime before she accidentally invents Skynet.
"Called it! The bad guys have more of 'em, but we have Dylan." Gavial responded. "Quality over quantity!"
"Nope," I spoke louder to make sure our pilot hears. "They can fly twice as fast as sound and have weapons that can track for 5 miles. We're sitting ducks!"
Gavial's expression soured, and Zumama straightened herself up.
"Preposterous!" Avdotya protested. "There was such tests in Columbia. Every attempt ended in a spectacular disaster! And the amount of raw talent with Originium Arts required to guide a projectile so far..."
Dylan cut her off, turning around to shout at us. "They dont need it, Pozyma! There wasn't a single trace of the rocks within their choppers! Ugh, someone come up with a plan before we are blown up!"
I got this.
"Dylan, put me on comms."
The pilot handed his headset to me. They weren't a great fit due to my pointed ears.
"This is Jake Sully. Kill the aircraft, and Ardmore loses her fugutives."
After a slight delay, the Maverick on the other side gives a dry response.
"You are cleared to land. One of our representatives will be meeting with the Duke shortly. Surrender by the time our man arrives, unless you want to make things harder for us."
The comms channel was closed. On the planes radar, the two nondescript dots disappeared off the sides.
"Did you plan that out?" Dylan stuttered.
"Improv. General Ardmore wanted us alive."
"And if she didn't give a shit?"
"Its the most mercike way to go out when Enhanced Interrogation is the other option."
"Riiiiiight..." Dylan then laughed his fears away. "Well, I'm glad that you are on our side, Jake."
After the close call, we arrived to the battleship without any issue. You have to seem em to believe it. The captain of an Amphib I served was ticked off about the "hosiptal on the go". Twice as large as his, didn't have the sea to support its weight but can roll at a cruisers pace, and was only used for medical purposes.
Meanwhile, this Duke's warship would've made the Rhodes Island look like a dinghy. Getting off the plane, her vessel was roughly 3 times longer than a carrier. The guns, huge, doubled barreled railguns, were installed on the extreme starboard and port sides. Only 4 of them in total, spread out evenly amongst the ships length. A long gun battery was all the way up by the bow on its separate plate. Each barrel was far longer than anything in an Admiral's wet dream. Thing is, none of the weapons were placed in the middle of the deck like how the blue boys on Earth do it. When the seas aren't a concern, and loosening the laws of gravity with Arts, you really can make these ships as big as you want. Just don't bother asking Terrans to sign the Washington Treaty.
"Ah, you've arrived, Rhodes Island." A cat-eared officer approached us. Victorian uniforms were essentially modified trench coats, but even the footsoldiers with him wore them. It was really feeling like I accidentally stepped on a WW1 set or something.
Anyway, the Big Cat didn't waste time, and led us to the bridge. Just as if I were on a CV, it's often short in supply. Oh, but there was plenty of Originium in the air. The crap was scraping my nostrils with every breath, and made the whole place reek of sulphur.
The bridge, like the main guns from before, was elavated on its separate deck. Climbing up tge ladder, I can see that all of their AA was to protect the bridge, which wasn't unreasonable. Zumama got a bit frisky with one of them, so a grunt shooed her away.
Finally, the officer opened the doors to the command tower. The room was ventilated, so I didnt have to deal with that rotten egg smell anymore. Amiya, Kal'tsit, and the Doctor were already seated. Amiya had that serious look she typical had, but seemed even more concerned. Kal'tsit was real banged uo after what happened while I was gone. Forehead was in bandages and she wss tge only one in a wheelchair. Also, she looked 10 years older for some reason. Meanwhile, the Doctor's face was concealed by his hood. I assumed he was brooding like the rest of Rhodes.
They were sharing the table with a an older Feline. Compared to her men, her attire was much more bold, but at the same time, over-the-top. Black leather boots, countless medals, a big-ass saber holstered on her waist, and an eyepatch for good measure.
Everything about the "Victorians" of Earths past were probably true with Mrs Windimere. But one thing is certain, she isn't no punk.
"Never had i thought it would come down to a couple of Sargonian savages." Her accent was thick. Disarmingly so. I wanted to close my eyes and pretend that it didnt belong to a literal warmonger.
Avdotya... well, I guess you could say shed rather stay outside in the Originium dust than share a room with the Duke. Her tail was wagging back and forth, and I've lived here long enough to know that certain habits from animals transfer over. A few other Lupines did the same thing when they are flustered. She was also cursing under her breath in Ursus.
"If you really dont want us here, I see no reason to bother ya." Gavial turned around and started for the exit.
"Gavial... don't push it..." Amiya muttered.
"The hell is your..." I caught on. The Officer and his troops formed a human barricade around the doors.
Gavial whistled sarcastically. "Oooh, so you do care!"
"I can extract all the necessary intell and throw all of you in the brig for your defiance." The Duke snapped back.
"Ok, I get it! We aren't looking for trouble."
Gavial turned around and approached the table. She briefly winked at a distressed Avdotya, and the uptight woman smiled. A small one, but earnest.
"Here's the scoop." Gavial slammed both palms on the table and smiled devilishly. "Bad guys from another world have been causing problems in Acahualla. We kicked them good, but they've setup shop in Londinium with the Sarkaz."
"Then why haven't my spies reported on these ghosts?" Mrs Windimere raised an eyebrow. "Dublinn is being led by the Iron Duke at the moment."
"Underground. They unleased a metal sandworm against Acahualla." Zumama started. "But with further inspection, it was really a large scale excavation vessal that can exploit the weakness every landship has, the treads. The one we found Acahualla had a few drill headed missles designed to score a critical strike against the antigravity units. Like, one or two of those could take down a warship, while staying out of sight."
The Dukes eyes widdened. "Impossible... Have tge Durins joined the conflict? Is this what the ruckus is about?"
"Not willingly." I quickly added. "The Resource Development Administration doesn't even think Terrans are people! You're nothing but resources, and they will do anything to secure them. They won't follow your playbook, Mrs Windimere."
She paused. Ears twitched. Breathing slowed.
"I see no other choice but to charge in. Surely the moles you speak of cant hit our ships at full speed. I'd best tell the Iron Duke about these developments. " The Duke sighed, and shuffled over to one of the command terminals.
"Your Excellency! We received word from the Military Commission." A staff member reported back.
"Speak, soldier."
"They are demanding our surrender!"
The Duke growled, sucking out any moisture in the air. Kal'tsit raised her head. Guess she finally decided to take interest in the conversation.
"Put them on the speakers." She said through clenched teeth.
"...To the Grand Dukes of Victoria, this is your very last warning. You have trespassed on Kazdelian territory with several military grade warships. Reverse course from Londinium immediately before the storm consumes all."
"They want peace, after holding the Aslan Queen's hometown hostage. They know nothing but war, but want peace! Ha!" She laid her had back and laughed. The Duke, in the same breath, told her officer rather coldly: "Round up the rest of my men. We going fullspeed ahead, and I will not stop until Her treads are covered in demon blood."
The officer pulled a switch, causing klaxons to blare. He tgen took his troop outside and onto the deck. From the sides of the bridge, more and more were pouring out.
"Are you boarding or not? This isn't a cruising vessal, sonny!"
Her sharp words snapped me out of my trance.
"So that's what all that space is for. It's for your boarding party, Patches."
Mrs Windimere sucked up a huge gulp of air.
"The deck must be secure once we get close. What, you think you know better?" She was acting offended, and unlike Gavial, I really didnt want to continue to smack talk the angry cat lady with the sword.
Just cut to the chase and warn her about the planes. But I then heard the sonic booms. Everyone else heard them to. We were too slow.
First, the main howitzer up front went up in a massive fireball.
"Damnnit! We aren't close enough for Londinium's to guns to hit us, unless those Sarkaz tweaked them." She grabbed a brassy microphone from the terminal and shouted into it. "Main guns are ablaze! Get me the Extinguishers on the bow deck asap!"
The staff manning the other comms were drowning out everything, even my own thoughts. I could only make out what rge Duke was yelling.
"Auxillary batteries down!"
"...Castor and Wellington are under attack? ...Just the flagships?"
"...Their artillery is far too precise! Victoria's best gunners can't... oh my... Wellington, you say they aren't using Arts? ...Not part of the storm, too? ...That's it!"
She practically roared into the ships PA system. "All troops, into the landship at once! We are being hit at..."
Too late. Several ground-to-airs, autocannon shells, and bombs from above the clouds struck at the troops stationed on the deck. They... didn't stand a chance. Blood, bones, even a few ears and tails... Dammit! Who am I kidding? It was the attack on Zumama's tribe all over again, paving progress on the bodies of hundreds.
Gavial looked down at her stave with shame. More people she couldn't save in time. Zumama tried to avert her eyes, once more seeing her passion twisted into efficient weapons of war. It was the first time I heard her cursing in the Acahuallan language. Avdotya folded her ears, pacing around frantically. The Durins were next after the RDA was through with Terra's superpowers. Doc whispered sonething to Amiya. She friwned, and got into a heated argument with Doc. And Kal'tsit? I dont if it was my brain suffering from the rush kf emotions I was feeling, but I think i saw a tear run down on of her eyes.
Mrs Windimere wasn't moved, at first. Pulling out a telescope, the Duke surveyed the skyline. Up, down, left and right. No evidence, besides the mess outside.
"Bloody hell..." She retracted her eyepiece and sighed. "Do we have a visual?"
I could sense the fear in their voices.
"N-Negative, your Excellency."
"The other Dukes?"
"T-They aren't responding, your Excellency. "
Her expression soured, and her eyes narrowed with doubt.
"What do the radars say?"
"Only a few small blips from above. Nothing approaching the size of an aircraft"
"What a load of shite!" Her men flinched. "If you dolts had been paying attention, our fleet isn't within Londinium's striking range. The artillery struck from the skies, yes? I want answers on how the Sarkaz did so. Their airships are of great size, and cannot be missed."
"Stealth fighters."
The furious Duke's rage was directed to myself. "Speak up."
I cleared my throat. "Aircraft that can fly high and fast. A real pain in the ass to track if you aren't also flying one. The best part is that they are invincible to most forms of radar, hence the stealth part. In reality, they are Invincible up until the point they are right on their target, which by then, said target doesn't exist."
The Duke scanned over the deck. Up and down, with intent. Then she stopped, focusing her telescope on a certain patch of the landship.
"Holes... The bombs burrowed straight through... No... Daphne!"
Mrs. Windimere gasped, and fled the scene via the elevator.
"Doctor... Do we have a plan?" Amiya practically whispered.
"You should be asking Sully that question." He pointed dramatically at me.
Off to a great start, as you can see.
Leviathan-class Terrestrial Aircraft Carrier, Victorian Borderlands
3 Samsons landed on a dedicated strip of the GDY Drennek. The platform lowered itself into the hanger of the Leviathan.
Their side doors slid open. Occupants, 8 per aircraft, were forced out by Sec-Ops footsoldiers. Arts suppression devices cuffed their hands, angles and necks. Only notable Castors was an Ursus lady, who's Arts fell under the catagory of Pyrokinetics, and another Pythian woman who can manipulate plant matter. A rather useless ability on a ship made of several tons of steel, but security procedures were enforced nonetheless.
The rest of her group involved several Ursus and Lungmenite insurgents from a failed revolution against their home countries. They attempted to start a coup among the Londinium workers, but were caught by the Kazdelians' intelligence division. The surviving co-conspirators were detained with "Neo-Reunion", and flown over to the Leviathan.
The Lead Executive Officer of the Leviathan, Admiral Chrisford, greeted them politely, but not without a detachment of SKEL Suit troopers. Other than the Pythian and Ursine, codenamed "Nine" and "Talulah" respectively, the leadership included the youthful Ursus "Red". Gave Sec-Ops trouble when told to take off his bandanna for security purposes, but "Nine" talked him down.
They were to be escorted directly towards the holding cells, but the Drennek easily dwarves Earth's supercarriers in size. The hanger bay alone was roughly 600 metres in length. Tranversing the place without a Mobility Platform would be a tall order, but the Admiral refuses such commodities, using only a cane. Pilots were returning from an airstrike at around the same time, so the hanger bay was abuzz. Forklifts hauling supplies, Sci-Ops reporters recording first hand experiences, and aircraft stowed away with airtight coordination. Plenty of sights and sounds, which ment an equivalent amount of questions.
"...Hey, Captain." Red pointedly asked. "How much are you paying the Victorians to fight against their country? Treating them nice?"
Strikecraft crews were mixed, for the most part. RDA personnel conducted maintenance checks, while able bodied Victorians did the heavy lifting. In particular, a Vouivre make hauled a fresh missle to a jet and hooked it on the undercarriage. It would've taken 4 human men alone to accomplish the same task.
Not all of them were from the factories. The Levianthan-class warships would have not been possible had the Sarkaz not compelled lower Victorian nobles into working for the RDA. The Drennek, like it's 3 sister ships, was originally constructed under the Victorians before the deal was struck. The RDA took the groundwork and transformed it into the first aircraft carrier to operate on an exosolar planet, and named it after the RDA's first female CEO. The sponsor of the Drennek, Duke Copperbottom, doubted the practical changes to his warship, until field tests displayed the potential damage a wing of 120 Lightning II's can accomplish. Firepower, when projected far and from any direction, could blindside even the Grand Dukes! The Noble's personal army is now stationed alongside the Sec-Ops. They are restricted from piloting aircraft or operating Mobility Platforms, but are otherwise treated as RDA employees.
"It seems you have the Elafia closely monitoring that large aircraft..." Nine abruptly stopped to gawk at the machine. "Snowpriests? What on Terra..."
A SKEL Suit operator kindly reminded the Pythia to keep a move on. Center of the hanger bay was where the Valkryie shuttles were docked. The Drennek has several channels of escape should a need to abandon ship arise, including several hundred feet of steel ramps to get from hanger to ground level. Valkryies are the the only avenue towards the complete safety of space, so they where heavily guarded. However, 1 Valkryie was part of a different contigency plan. Should the situation in Victoria deteriorate to the point where company assests are jeopardized, the Admiral can athorize the Valkryie to take off and release its payload. Codenamed "Pandora's Box", it's not a weapon, therefore, exempty from the Arms Treaty. The mission of Pandoras Box is to merely transport a lifeform from Terra's North Pole, "The Crater", and release it over the drop site. Polar Operations devised a procedure to contain the lifeform by submerging it in a casket of liquid nitrogen. Liquid nitrogen alone cannot achieve the required temperature, so several Samese have been brought aboard to cool down tge payload to Absolute Zero. True Samese are the only option, as attempts to replicate their Arts with the RECOM program have brought less-than-optimal results. Their cooperation is only needed as Pandora's Box is on standby. Once the Valkryie takes off, the liquid nitrogen will hold the lifeform in statsis long enough until it reaches the drop zone. The Admiral, General, and Polar Operatives have clearance, but the bomber is otherwise indistinguishable from a typical Valkryie.
Few Terrans even know about about The Crater, but a couple who had a vague idea just happened to cross pathes with the RDA. No problem. Reunion had attempted to take down Ursus and Yan, 2 imperialist powers who threaten future operations on Terra. Copperbottom was effortlessly swayed by the Drennek, and any terrorist on Earth would have loved to rule the seas with a carrier. Surely, Reunion is the same?
"Infected." Talulah raised her voice, gazing intently at another group of Londinium workers. "You marked them, as if the crystals lining their faces are not enough proof. Just where are you dragging them off to?"
4 Felines, each of their visible ears pierced by a black tag bearing a biohazard label. They truely were nothing more than helpless kittens as the SKELs hauled the kicking, screaming Felines out one of the aft-side doorways at the end of hanger bay. No one else caused further commotion, as the procedures regarding "Infected" were laid out the day She was first deployed. Anyone with an Blood-Originium density of a certain percentage had to eat, sleep, and work within designated sectors to isolate them from the uncontaminated staff. In larger rooms, such as the hanger bay, Infected are divided up into crews and are assigned to specfic patches of the storage racks. At no point are they allowed near a fighter jet or its pilot. Crews that work directly adjacent to carriers have to wear Exo-Masks. Otherwise, as not an insignificant portion of them claim, conditions obaord the the Drennek are atleast 300% better for Oripathy Infectees compared to Londinium's dank, dark workshops.
For the few who forsake the ethical treatment of the RDA: Any Infectees who disrupt operations of the Drennek are to be properly dispatched via Accelerated Originium Assimilation. Oripathy, even with drugs developed by top medical minds, has a 100% mortality rate. We are merely putting the sickly to rest. The remains are then transported to the nearest Sci-Ops facility, or are used to fuel the Drennek Originium Matter-Antimatter reactor.
Admiral Chrisford marched the group through the same doors. Centrally placed in the aft auxiliary hallway is an elevator that provides access to the lower decks, and a stairwall in an emergency scenario. To the left is the beginings of the holding cell block. If negotiations go smoothly, Reunion won't spend more than a single night behind bars. To the right, the hallway adruptly ends with two, horizontal blast doors lined painted with caution lines. Beyond doors lie the facility where the Infectees are euthanized.
He recognized the look on their eyes. Hateful, spiteful. No different from that of the Venezuelan dictator, who would rather die to spite his attempts to bring the bastard to justice.
"Lock them up."
The Admiral spoke lightly, but gravely. He shuffled towards the elevator on his cane, abandoning his security detail.
"But sir? The interrogations..." One of his fellow officers questioned, but was swifty intercepted.
"I will let Ardmore do the talking from here on." The elevator doors closed on his stern, disaproving scowl. Its destination was to the command bridge.
At that moment, any hope of a deal was dashed. Execution would proceed first thing in the morning. Some would say that the Admiral was incredibly rash for his decision, brought upon by decades of propaganda. Post-mortem analysts said that Admiral Chrisford's intuition bought the company enough time to pull out what they could, and minimize further damage.
Without Benedict Chrisford's stalwart devotion to Earth's Tomorrow, the Victorian Incident would have ended it all.