Zenith stayed true to his word and as soon as Ardi ate his E-Soul and his signal disappeared, she became the owner of 15 million planets.
She blinked a few times as the rest of his administrative data entered her mind.
“Is it… over?”
Ardi turned around to a weary Meredith and since she had learnt that people didn’t like her smile, she simply nodded.
“Yeah! That was one hell of a transition of power!” Gudo cheered.
“This means more work for us, knucklehead! Who do you think is gonna manage Zenith’s territory after she leaves?” Tsuro elbowed the taller Archon but Ardi shook her head.
“Don’t worry. I will fulfil my role as the governor of this territory.”
“And what about the humans?” Tsuro tilted her head a little.
“If we play our cards right then they would have gained a very powerful ally.”
Meredith’s eyes widened.
“Now, I'm going to be honest and say that I want to take a break but I guess that’ll have to wait. Captain Gudo, send a message to all the other Captains. Tell them to gather on the New Genesis so that we can work everything out.”
“Yes, ma’am!”
Gudo dashed out of the landing bay as soon as he finished speaking.
“Tsuro, take us close to the New Genesis and take command of all of the Gravfold Canons in range. I’ve already given you the access.”
Tsuro’s head tilted further but she didn’t question Ardi and instead followed Gudo out of the bay.
“A-and us? Is there anything we can do to help?”
Meredith was now far too tired to try and sustain her stoic air.
She now wore her weariness clearly on her face, as if everything was taking its toll on her.
That proved that she was still very human.
Something which Ardi appreciated.
“If you want to continue with me along the path then you’ll need to be able to operate at the level of Archons, at least physically but the will come at the cost of a significant amount of your flesh.”
Meredith opened her mouth to answer but hesitated at the last moment.
“It’s alright. Give it some thought. There’s much work to be done and patience will prove to be our strongest weapon.” Ardi said while struggling to keep herself focused on her present self.
At this point, both she and her network of Ardinites were processing so much information it was starting to jump over the barrier she’d made between her higher and moderate processes.
She had erected the metaphorical wall to allow her to better connect with the world around her because it would be no good if she was only good at data gathering.
Data and statistics were only ever so useful once you were on the ground where deviations were abound.
Meredith’s eyes lowered a little but she visibly bit her teeth and gave Ardi a sharp salute.
“We’ll discuss and consider everything at length!” She said before leading Condor Unit out of the bay leaving Ardi by herself.
She took the opportunity to run an internal diagnosis and saw that most of her Nanites had already converted themselves into Ardinites which were twice as large as regular Nanites meaning that she was significantly heavier.
[Name: Ardi
Level: 35
Remaining Upgrade Points: 22
HP: 100 000 000/100 000 000
EN: 12 000 000/12 000 000J
STR: 34 000 000N
SPD: 2 388m/s (+928)
DI: 200%]
Even Ardi herself couldn’t help but gasp upon seeing just how much stronger she was.
With speed boost active, she could move at almost Mach 10.
But this wasn’t everything.
With 25 Upgrade Points, she could upgrade all of her core systems to Mark three and so that’s exactly what she did.
[1. "(Carbon Composite Skeleton) Mark III"
- Description: Advanced exoskeleton featuring self-repairing composites and adaptive structural changes.
- Effects: Maximum durability and dynamic adaptation to environmental stressors. (Adds 30% to maximum HP)]
[2. "(Electroactive Myofiber Matrix) Mark III"
- Description: Cutting-edge polymer technology for optimal strength and agility.
- Effects: Peak physical capabilities, instant muscle adaptation, and rapid recovery from damage. (Adds a 1.5x Multiplier to Strength and Speed.)]
[3. "(Aetherium Core and Nano-Tube Network) Mark III"
This novel's true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.
- Description: Top-tier core featuring advanced energy regeneration facilitation and self-adjusting nano-tubes.
- Effects: Optimal energy management, enhanced system stability, and extended operational capacity. (Regenerate 1000W per second.)]
[4. "(Advanced Optic Lattice) Mark III"
- Description: Cutting-edge lattice with adaptive optics and real-time augmented reality integration.
- Effects: Superior visual capabilities, dynamic environmental adaptation, and advanced data overlay. (Integrates [Scan] feature into Optic Lattice at no additional costs)]
[5. "(Nanite Fluid Reserves) Mark III" – Upgrade Unnecessary and has been made redundant by Ardinites.]
[6. "(PolyFlex Dermis) Mark III"
- Description: Advanced adaptive capabilities and self-healing properties.
* Effects: Maximum durability, and instantaneous repair of skin damage. (Integrates [Reactive Armour] into the [Nanitesuit Mk. 2] at no additional cost)]
Ardi gasped as her eyes took in the world around her in an infinitely higher resolution.
It felt as though a veil that had been covering her eyes had been lifted and every shade, every frequency, every wavelength and every spectrum became visible to her.
She let out a breath and while she could normally see at the molecular level, now she could see down the to microscopic level.
“Haa…”
A terrible dread crept over Ardi.
She had made a big fuss about how human she was but…
Just how much humanity was left after all this.
She gently placed her hand on her cheek and even as soft as her touch was, it felt like an explosion as she picked up on every single piece of data the action generated.
She had never seen herself in the mirror.
So maybe the reason why everyone was so scared of her was because she was just that inhuman.
An uncanny mockery of the defiant fragility that defined humanity.
A single tear began to form in her left eye.
A droplet that formed as a result of the turmoil behind her gaze.
She gently wiped the tear before taking a deep breath and sighing away the ache in her chest.
She ended up only spending 15 points so she had 7 leftover.
Ardi wanted a long-range offensive skill so she got one.
[Level 3: Ultimate Offense
- Skill: [Quasar Beam]
* Description: Fires a concentrated energy beam from Ardi’s palm.
* Effect: High damage output beam that has a range of 100m.
Energy Cost: 700J
Required Level: 10
Required ES (E-Souls): 3]
She also wanted a level 3 defensive skill so she also acquired one.
[Level 3: Ultimate Defence
- Skill: [Samson Matrix]
* Description: Generates a field that grants temporary invulnerability.
* Effect: Any damage taken reduces energy instead of HP until energy levels reach 1000W.
Energy Cost: 600J
Required Level: 10
Required ES (E-Souls): 3]
[Admiral, all one hundred and ninety-eight Captains have gathered on the New Genesis!]
Right on time. Ardi thought after hearing Gudo’s energetic announcement.
She had just finished her Upgrades and diagnostics so she had one less thing to worry about.
“Alright. I’ll need you to come with me to-“
[To shout your praise and sing your glory!]
“Uh… no. To-“
[I know, I know. To act as your mediator, haha!]
Ardi appreciated that Gudo always found fun in every situation.
She allowed herself to crack a smile before turning to the giant doors of the landing bay.
“Good. Now, onto the New Genesis!”
.
..
Ardi and Guro had borrowed the Hawk-14 which they landed in one of the New Genesis’s landing ports where they were greeted by two hundred heavily armed and heavily augmented humans who stood in two neat tows that led into the ship proper. They wore armour which was as white as the ship’s interior although bits of grey and black were dotted about.
The landing port was a vast brightly lit white space lined with tens of other small to medium-sized ships.
Ardi and Guro stepped out of the Hawk-14 and walked down what seemed like a procession line. While Guro still wore his mostly casual clothes, Ardi had adjusted her Nanitesuit to make it look more like an actual suit of armour instead of its usual grotesque appearance. Now it was covered in matte plates of armour that gave it a sleek look.
As she walked, Ardi could see all around her even without turning thanks to her Ardinites which quickly moved to gather new information although they were not as precise as her new eyes.
It wasn't that she suspected any of the soldiers would attack her, it was just interesting to see how her new perspective worked.
She could see all their faces at once but chose to focus on her main pair of eyes.
With loud and heavy steps, she led Guro into the ship and down a brightly lit path that led to a space that wasn’t as big as the landing port but was about as big as an assembly hall.
Filling this space of gathering were two hundred and forty Archons who stood in front of a stage where another Archon could be seen.
The Archons varied greatly in appearance and energy signals although none of them reached Nova class (1000W).
Some were really tall, some were the size of soccer balls, some wore clothes, others didn’t, some were humanoid while others were made of multiple bodies with the E-Soul being housed in one of the bodies.
One hundred and ninety-eight of them were the captains of the vessels of the fleet while the rest either accompanied the captains or were heavily armed guards.
Ardi and Gudo joined the sole Archon on the stage.
He was a floating sphere around the size of a fridge and while most of his surface was a matte black, some parts of it were also somewhat transparent allowing Ardi to see the faint glow of his E-Soul.
His large frame was enough to house the small Gravfold Engine that allowed him to float.
The Archon levitated up to Ardi and tilted slightly forward as if nodding.
“Allow me to extend everyone’s gratitude.” Vice Fleet Admiral Heatdeath said prompting Ardi to nod back.
“Consider your graduate humbly accepted.” Ardi tried her hardest not to smile as was customary when greeting people.
“Alright, I could tell from the transmissions that you’re not the type of woman who wastes her time with pleasantries and the like so let’s get straight to business. As it stands, you are currently the owner of the Zenith Fleet of Collectors and the territories within which we operate. Now, while I was hesitant at first, after seeing your display, I fully support your promotion to Admiral. That said, I cannot speak on behalf of everyone here so what do you proper we do to establish your status quo?”
“Thank you for the support.” Ardi nodded before facing the crowd.
“Greetings. Firstly, I’d like to share with you my vision for the future. After taking control of the Fleet, I plan on allowing you all to operate as you otherwise would with the caveat that we will be supporting the small human rebel faction known as Sapientia In Harmonia in the near future.”
Gasps and murmurs filled the air but before Heatdeath could float forward to silence the crowd, Ardi gently raised her right hand, silencing everyone.
“The Path I have set for myself will undoubtedly be arduous and the unwavering winds of change will be its motif. That said, I will not force anyone to walk alongside me. Those who are willing to, at the very least, work alongside me in some mutually agreeable way, are free to stand to my left and those who refuse are free to stand to my right. You will be allowed your autonomy although won’t be recognized as part of the fleet.”
More murmurs arose and it wasn’t long before the Archons started moving.
About 70% of them stood to Ardi’s left while the remaining 30% stood to her right prompting her to turn to Heatdeath.
“Are any close allies of yours to my right?”
“Umm… no. Do you mind my asking why?”
“I simply want to stay in your good graces,” Ardi said before stepping off the stage.
She then walked up to the group on the right, raised her hands, and activated her [Quasar Beam] Skill sixty times.
In the Blink of an eye and before any of them could even process what was happening. Sixty high-powered beams of energy shot through the Aetherium Cores of the sixty Archons who had chosen to stand to the right, killing them in an instant.