14 - Moving Day
The flowing mass of Tier 2 system tech components moved across the gray dirt, bearing their two prizes like ants bringing back food to a hive.Maya watched as the amorphous blob moved the cores from the hole they had resided within to the angular assault craft that had been untouched since Shen’s defeat.
It amazed Maya, the whole aspect of Tier 2 system tech.It was sci-fi at the extreme, as in movies where one could shape and twist matter around them to be whatever they wanted, within reason.
Maya stood at a control panel, watching as incomprehensible readings and numbers crawled across the screens and touchpads.She understood the vast gulf of knowledge that lay between what she could do now with system tech and what the Tier 2 components could do.
At least, Maya thought, that damned Shen had a console she could use to connect to and control the components.It had also come with hundreds of programmed objects it could create on a whim.Everything from chairs, beds, and weapons.These were nano-bots, they could become anything. As long as she had a blueprint or knew what she wanted to build, down to thesmallest component.
The lure of just using the components to make weapons and machines to bridge the gap of everything they were missing was great. She could have done it and they could have had a lot more machines on hand, but the problem with Tier 2 system tech was wear and tear.
Tier 1 system tech was made to last the ages. If there was no mana present within the machinery, the components could last twenty thousand standard years or more. The Hanganathorie was testament to that.The old ship had been sitting derelict for eons and there was only minor degradation in most machines, well, the machines that the rogue AIs hadn’t salvaged.
It would have been easy to turn the Tier 2 components into the things she needed, but that would have severely reduced the lifespan of the components themselves.She needed them to create the dimensional cage.As with most things, the math and the science behind the dimensional cage was beyond her. Even Veskari admitted failure when trying to decipher the information. He was an administrator, not a scientist.
Every time she used the components, Maya estimated about one percent of the entire mass ‘died’.When not in use, they were stored in special containers that put them in a form of stasis and slightly helped heal them back up.
Delicate and costly; Tier 2 was awesome, but they required constant care and replacement.
Maya had no access to anymore Tier 2 components.There was another clock hanging over her head, counting down to when the components would reach a point where there weren’t enough to create a functioning dimensional cage.
If that asshole Shen could find Tier 2 components out in the world, perhaps she could do the same?
***
“I’m nervous,” Maya said.
“Don’t worry. I’ve done this before,” Veskari said, his voice had become oddly soothing since Yosi had awakened.
“It’s my first time, y’know. So… be gentle.”
“Blast! Get on with it already, my thrusters are aching,” Zono boomed. His hologram sat grumpily at a console, staring daggers at Maya.
“Hey, we had to do a lot of recalibration because of your thicc-boi-ness,” Maya replied. “Next time, don’t load up on the marsani. Didn’t you call it junk metal?”
“Free metal is free metal,” Zono snapped.“What kind of Trader are you? You’re leaving behind a wealth of material!You could make millions of credits from all of this!”
“What good is credits when you’re dead?” Maya demanded.
“It’s credits!” Zono shouted back.
“Well it-“ Maya’s replied choked in her throat as she felt the ship suddenly jerk.It was the feeling of falling or that stomach flop that occurred when going down a hill way too fast.Maya’s eyes widen in shock and then she began laughing.“Suck it, humanity. I’m the first person to fly in a stolen alien space ship!System!Give me a Title, First in Space, no ,wait. Pirate Queen of Dimension X!”
Nothing happened.
“What a crock of shit,” she muttered. The bridge was a round room, in the center Maya had fused a thick padded chair with a label ‘Captain’s Chair’ on it.“I see why they don’t have a captain’s chair.”Maya craned her head to see a holographic display floating on a wall to the left and slightly behind her. “Why can’t I move these windows?”
“Low grade, Tier 1, otherwise you would have been able to connect to the ship’s internal systems,” Tender said.He occupied a space behind her at another station.“I believe that this bridge was pulled wholly from another ship and just added onto this one.”
“Damn it, Shen.What’s with you and your Frankenstienian obsession?”
Maya pulled out her cutter and sliced off the armrest of her chair.She was planning on putting a swiveling one in now. She turned to see the image of the ground below them falling away.A small counter on the screen showed them at fifty meters.
A smaller screen showed the assault craft that had attacked the Hanganathorie so many weeks ago also rising off the ground.Underneath it, being held by cables were the two mana cores.Veskari was piloting the craft also, being able to multitask.Maya was very glad to have brought the golem back with them.
Another screen showed the one hundred meter long ship and below it, like some limp and sodden angry dog, was Zono. The large mining barge had a top speed of warp snail, but they had managed to create a harness to attach him to the ship.Apparently the Tosmapa Whomever had designs that allowed just for that kind of operation. Maya had, of course, to pay a thousand credits to buy them, which was bullshit because it was for Zono, not for herself.
“How’s the breeze on your undercarriage?” Maya asked Zono.
“Chilly.”
“We got everything? You remember to turn off the curling iron, Tender?” Maya asked, settling into the half a captain’s chair.She summoned a ration bar and chewed on it.
“Boss?”
“It’s Captain Boss, ensign. We’re on SRS Bonita’s Revenge, on a thirty minute mission to explore places we’ve already seen and hopefully meet nothing and no one, before we berth at the Hangy.”
“SRS, Captain Boss?”
“Sullivan Royal Skymersible, ensign.”
“Ah, you still plan on creating Roci a kingdom?” Tender asked.
“I got my whole life, now that I’ve had the time to think on it. I mean, two thousand years. I think I can swing a kingdom or two. Right?”
“Indeed, Captain Boss.”
“Do you hear that?” Zono asked, tilting his dog head.
“Hear what, buddy? A high pitched whistle? Because I did not make one yet.”
“No, it’s like music,” he said.
“Veskari, we picking up any music stations around here.Anything but Country, please.”
“I am not picking up any signals, country or otherwise,” Veskari said.
“You losing it, Zono? Big Snake knock a few screws loose?” Maya asked.
“Now it’s gone,” Zono looked confused.
“Probably just the wind blowing through your mass ejection ports,” she said.
“I keep those tightly close,” Zono said, giving her a wink.
The skymersible reached a cruising altitude of a hundred meters off the ground.Maya watched with fascination as she spotted the dual tire tracks of Bonita, the crater where Tender had crashed, and the buried remains of the old food truc; RIP.
When compared to space ship speeds, they were barely crawling, but Maya saw that they were already moving faster than Bonita or a Tender-drawn Bonita had ever moved.
“Look, there’s where we got you your second body, Tender,” Maya said pointing out where she had fought the ramming AI.
“Interesting,” Tender replied, obviously not interested.
“It was all fun and awesome, but now… Now it’s just sitting,” Maya said, leaning in her chair.There was a scrambling sound, the sound of tentacles slithering across metal, a moment later Maya looked down to see the purple eyes of Roci looking up at her. “I thought you were supposed to be secured for the flight?”
“Fly,” Roci said in an ear screeching voice.
“Not until you get your starship pilot’s permit, kiddo,” Maya replied.
“Hey, kid,” Zono said, a mischievous grin on his dog face.
Roci turned to Zono. “Fly.”
“Say ‘Kill all SIL’,” he said.
Maya grunted. “Seriously, Zono? What are you? A child?”
“It’s an abomination,” Zono said. “A System joke you’re taking too far.”
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“I can make this ship fly higher and then release those damn cables holding you. How well does your heavy metal ass fly?” Maya asked.
“We have an agreement,” Zono said. “The agreement prevents us from harming one another, but it does not include coddling some rogue AI System abomination.”
“Yeah, but dicks still get dropped from the sky,” Maya said.
“Dick,” Roci stated.
“Yes. That’s Zono to a T. Nice job kid, twenty points to Team Roci.”
Zono let out a growling chuckle. “One thing that was programed into me is that children have to grow up strong to survive.They cannot be coddled, they must fight for survival, for dominance, and to be feared and respected.”
“Awww,” Maya said.“Did Big Daddy Tosmapa tell you that before sending you out to kick rocks?Sorry to tell you this, Zono, but that there is straight up child abuse.I’ve watched plenty of post-apocalyptic movies and the theme is always ‘survival isn’t enough’.If you got a kid, you bring them up right, that doesn’t mean making them fight and turning them into a psychopath.”
“Newly Integrated SIL have no idea,” Zono said.
“I don’t know, Zono.I mean, how many Tier 2 SIL have you run into only after two months of Integration?” Maya grinned.
“Still.’
“Still, you gotta stop thinking in the paradigms of yesteryear, pal. It’s a new world, you’re in a new place, time to shed off the chains of old school thinking and embrace the new. This whole sink or swim mentality is a bit fucked up when you think about it. Whole civilizations work like this? How? Why?”
“Because it works,” Veskari said. “Because it is the easiest way to coordinate people, to churn out high leveled SIL to fight the constant battles against mana incursions.”
“Sounds like a real drag to me. Right now, it’s all about survival, sure. But later on? Next month? Maybe I can just hang out and let the credits roll in, take up knitting, maybe figure out a way to brew some scotch. I never did watch the Witcher.”
“You have it easy in this place,” Zono said. “In the real world, survival is an everyday thing.”
“Um, tell that to my hand, my eye, all the blood I’ve lost, and the literal shit that had to be made into food so I could eat,” Maya said. “I’m sure that it’s pretty bad everywhere, but this whole mentality of might makes right is fucked up.People are what makes things happen, not rulers. A swarm of ants can kill a lion and all that.”
Zono just shook his head and Veskari didn’t add anything else.Roci looked at Maya.
“Shit.”
“You’re right, Roci. It’s all shit and when you get strong enough, you’re lending a hand in cleaning it up.Life Lesson: When you’re a ruler and the streets are filled with shit, you pick up a shovel and get to work.”
“Shovel!”
“Damn straight, kid. Damn straight.”
***
“After much consideration I have decided upon the name Yosi Sullivan,” Yosi said.
“Bell put you up to this?” Maya demanded.
“Uh… he suggested that having a surname would make me a true SIL. Upon consideration, Huvano was the only name I could think of until your rogue AI Tender said Sullivan was a good surname.”
“Et tu, Ensign Tender?”
“It’s a good name, Captain Boss.”
“It is often the tradition to take the surname of your owner’s Family,” Veskari added.
“I’m not your owner,” Maya stated flatly.
“I understand,” Yosi wrung her hands in a very human way. Maya pushed away the urge to cry ‘how cute’ and hug the little dinosaur woman. “You saved my life, you’ve saved Veskari’s sanity, and you’ve freed me entirely, from Class Two status and from being a Slave.If you are willing, I would gratefully take your name as my own.”
“It’s just a name, Yosi.It doesn’t mean anything, it doesn’t bestow anything. It’s just a name given to my great grandfather.There is no history behind it, there is no great weight of granduer behind it, it’s just a name.”
“Names have power,” Yosi said, repeating Bell’s words. “You have seen the System, you have spoke with it, and you have asked it to change who I am on a fundamental level.Your name has great power.”
“Jesus,” Maya muttered. She looked at Roci who was sitting on her captain’s chair, watching the slowly moving landscape below. “I guess this infinite dimensional plane is big enough for three Sullivans.”
Yosi bowed deeply, her head nearly touching the floor. “Thank you.”
“Don’t do that,’ Maya said. She crouched before the woman, looking her in the eyes. “Sullivan’s bow for no one, got it?”
Bonded not by Blood, but by Loyalty
There are no stronger bonds in the Multiverse than those created by loyalty. Empires have risen and hardships overcome with loyal companions by your side.
+ 2 Foundation
+ 2 Fortitude
+ 2 Luck
+ 1 Loyalty Token
We Do Not Bow
We. Do. Not. Bow.
+ 100,000 EXP
“Nice,” Maya muttered as the message appeared in her vision.
Yosi Sullivan suddenly let out a gasp.Her large multicolored eyes watered and she sobbed, letting out small squeaks and sniffles.She tried to speak, but she choked on the words, instead she waved her hand and Maya saw a small box open up, displaying text that the System had given her.
Named
Yosi Sullivan, you are the first of your species to choose their own Name. You have chosen to tie your destiny with House Sullivan.
+ 1 Fortitude
+ 1 Luck
+ 1 Foundation
Sullivan
Yosi Sullivan has joined the Merchant House Sullivan. Due to your previous Class Two Lifeform status and the joining of a Merchant House (full member), you will be granted a one time opportunity to transfer your Skills and Abilities to those of a Merchant orientated occupational path.
Change? Y/N
We Do Not Bow
We. Do. Not. Bow.
+ 100,000 EXP
Level up! (Level 20)
“Wow, congrats on the levels, Yosi,” Maya cried. A moment later she frowned as she scanned Yosi’s messages. “What the crap? House Sullivan? What is this, some bullshit medieval Game of Thrones setup?
“Named Houses are a SIL Addition,” Veskari said.
“Of course, all the crazy ass bullshit stuff seem to be.” Maya swiped away Yosi’s messages and looked down at the new member of House Sullivan. “I don’t mean to dismiss what you’re going through, but it seems a bit much for this freedom loving American.”
“Bell said your ideas were strange,” Yosi stated. “That you did not… think like everyone else.”
“I’m sure he put it so nicely,” Maya smiled. “Welcome to the fam, Yosi.I’ve got an uncle you’re gonna have to watch out for, he’s always asking for money.”
Yosi nodded, wide eyed. “I have no money,” she said.
“You’re in luck. Niether do I!” Maya laughed and then bent down and hugged the little dinosaur. “I hope you like trouble, because a Sullivan is always getting into it.”
“I will try my best,” Yosi said, gingerly hugging her back.
“We have arrived,” Veskari announced.
Maya looked up to see the Hanganathorie in their viewscreen.They were a hundred meters up and she saw the hole that had been blasted into the trash pile to remove the mana core from the ship. It was a neat hole drilled into the trash.She hadn’t been able to see it when they had left days before.
“How’s the assault craft?”
“It is in a holding pattern,” Veskari said. Another window appeared, showing the angular assault ship moving in slow circles above them, the two cores dangling from it. The bright light of the unshielded Hangy mana core made it look like a flying beacon.
Maya paused, wondering if that would be attracting any attention. Then again, Shen had pulled the same core out of the Hangy and it hadn’t… well there were a lot of rogue AI attacks, but that might have been for other reasons.
“Alright, Zono, ready to learn to fly?” Maya asked.
“I’m good. Drop me about twenty meters from the surface.” Xono replied on the comms.
Veskari eased the ship down and after a moment, there was a shudder and Maya watched as Zono blasted out his thrusters, slowing his descent.After a moment he began moving toward the hole in the ship.
Maya had spent a lot of her remaining credits to get Zono to build them a mana shield.According to Veskari, there were certain minerals that were needed to create a real shield, but if the goal was to reduce the escaping mana, then any material could work, as long as it was thick.
As marsani was the cheapest and most abundant metal, Maya had decided to use that instead.An eight meter by ten meter block of polished metal plopped out of Zono’s dimensional container.He had used his manufacturing abilities upon it, those additional costs were not included in his discount, which was bullshit.
The assault craft was a multipurpose vehicle. It mounted some deadly weapons and was fast, but it also had been built for more than just shooting things up.From it winched down a thick cable holding the unshielded mana core, while the shielded core remained fixed in its spot.
Maya grinned at the sight. This opened up a lot of opportunities for them.If Veskari could pilot the craft, he could keep overwatch going for the area, ensuring that they weren’t jumped by surprise rogue AIs again.All that it required was occasional maintenance and swapping out the mana batteries on the craft. The cost on that was going to be high, but if the black goo and the cores around Earth worked then they would be golden on power.
With amazing precision, Veskari lowered the bright core into a slot on top of the block of marsani. Once it was installed, the clamps released and the cable snaked back up.Zono made a two meter thick block of marsani appear again and lifted the lid onto the block, sealing in the core.
It wasn’t locked away, Maya and Tender had worked on the simple design, allowing for them to tap the core when they needed. It was running at full speed now, nearly producing 9Mg in a standard day. The ship began to descend. They were half a kilometer from the Hangy, but that was to allow the core in the ship to not interfere with the now shielded mana core.Tender’s mechas exited the cargo hold and begin marching toward the spot they had chosen to place the third core. They were all within half a kilometer from one another, it caused a little overlap and interference, but not to much in the grand scheme of things.
Plus with the SRS Bonita’s Revenge in the middle of two cores, it could use it’s weapons to ensure that anything coming for the cores was immediately destroyed.Tender’s drones were also stationing themselves around the third core, since it was the farthest away from them.
“I think we’re actually looking like we’re on the right path,” Maya said looking at the diagram. “Words, thoughts, Yosi?”
The woman rubbed her hands and shrugged. “It seems good, Mistress Maya.”
“Just Maya.”
“Understood, Just Maya.” Yosi grinned, giving Nanaseto a run for her money on sharp toothed smiles.
Maya snorted. “That ship will be our home now, you got any problems with that? After all it was the site of your former slave existence.”
“No. I am fine with it. I was only on the Hanganathorie for a short time. I was… a replacement, due to one of Huvano’s… servants… dying.”
“I am going to find that god damn cat to shit in his bone dust,” Maya hissed. “Or a bone merchant.”
“Yes, Maya.” Yosi nodded.
***
“Home sweet home,” Maya breathed, taking in the sweet smell coming off of Junior.
“Ah, it is still alive,” Bell said, a smile appearing on his face as he moved toward the algae. “Growing nicely.”
Maya checked the battery and the lights. “Made it just in time. Another week and it would have run out of power,” she grinned. “This is Junior.” Maya lifted Roci from the satchel she carried. The purple eyes peered at the thick mat that was the algae.“He doesn’t say much, but smells awesome.”
“I shall begin arranging for the removal of the habitat,” Tender said.
“Hey, buddy,” Maya called. Tender stopped.
“Look I don’t know if it’s just System Fuckery, but I didn’t mean for Yosi or Roci, ha, they rhyme… uh… I didn’t mean for them to take on my name.I just want you to know that. If I could and if you wanted, you can be Tender Sullivan too.”
“I appreciate the offer,” Tender said. “But I am not SIL nor am I an AI altered by the System. I am just a program on a rogue AI processor.”
“Bullshit. You’re my best friend, my boon-est of companions, the one person I trust above all.I could not have done any of this without you. You are one of the four original partners of the Sss, you are the only other person I’d have at my back with the world against me.”
“Thank you, Maya,” Tender said.“I think… I saw the Named title given to Yosi. I think… I think I shall endeavor to choose my own Name.No offense to your Name, boss.”
Maya slapped him on the shoulder. “None taken!I’ll root for you, buddy. If you need help, need someone to sow some confusion, all you need to do is call me up.”
“Understood.”
Tender ambled off and Maya turned to Roci. “You can always trust Tender. Always.”
“Hey, Bell! Keep an eye on Roci. I got a big ass job to do, might take hours.”
“I am not a babysitter,”
“Hey, Roci will owe you on.When you’re old, decrepit, and your fam has abandoned you, you can call on Roci to wipe your butt and sponge bathe you.”
“What does that mean?” Bell demanded.
“Go to Bell,” Maya told Roci, letting the small figure slither its way to him.
Maya walked toward a corner of the mess hall and found her nest bed. She flopped down into it and promptly fell asleep.