Misa continued onwards after leaving a crater from her sudden Nanite explosion. The threat still loomed nearby, unable to mask its intensity but instead of interfering with her work it concealed itself. She had no choice, she supposed. Highly important VIPs and micro-managing supervisors strolling through the workplace were common within all Company hours. This fact applied both on and off the clock, since the Company operations never closed. This overbearing energy damaged her systems though it backed off presently. She could not even detect the entity it belonged to other than the fact that if it wanted to wipe her off the planet, it would have done so by now. With a powerful yet highly unstable Artifact in her possession, Misa couldn’t simulate why the threat did not simply destroy her and steal it for itself.
Therefore, she was back to what she was when she lost to the Second Sister: Crawling away like a Black Dog with its ugly tail between her legs. Misa’s Host felt a bit embarrassed that she had to resort to such a cowardly negotiation. She gritted her teeth though the Swarm was berating itself as she quickened her pace.
The stakes of securing this place for Black Wolf Company were rising and Misa’s human Host felt worried for the first time. Mental stress due to overwork, huh. She attempted to stifle its inconvenient effects on her nerves and continued deeper into the jungles. From deserts and cliffsides to thick trees and tangled vines. From her aerial scans, there were no main gathering hubs. She avoided the zones with more intense concentration of negative Wagner energy, since they also would cause damage to her Host. Perhaps she could develop a new detection component in her Swarm to help with quantifying Wagner energy better. With Neoma’s platforms being constructed within her, she was beginning to feel the Overwatch’s interference already.
It began to scan surroundings for her, which was helpful at the moment. Misa strangely had an urge welling up inside of her. She did not want to lose control of this Human Host of hers, which surprised her Swarm. They rebelled, but currently the emotions were not enough for her to infect the MK1 Swarms. Unfortunately for her, she could only review the details she missed. The first example of her own inefficiency was her initial theory on karmic energy. While the Transcendent Seal inside of her did not care about the elements within Feng Shui as long as they were all present, she failed to notice the opposite effects of their proximity together. Negative energy flows also needed to be taken into account.
Water traces to Wood which traces to Fire which traces to Earth which traces to Metal which traces to Water… #%Loop.Repeats%
Her system detected more gentler energy flows towards each other labeling elemental traces in mundane objects like trees and puddles of water. There were also opposing flows, like shards of minerals poking against twigs. The energy interacted as two different forces, either working together or against each other. The energy’s interactions generated enough data for the illogical factor file in her Swarm’s database. While negative Wagner energy sounded like a bad thing— like all things, too much of it would only lead to unauthorized damage to Company property.
Water overpowers Fire which melts Metal which overcomes Wood which overgrows Earth which controls Water which overpowers… #%Loop.Repeats%
The second issue she had followed the first issue like a falling domino. She needed to gather more of these elemental materials in order build a machine that can analyze the energy surrounding the Dragon Seal. She wiped sweat off her hand while adjusting the box slung around her neck. It felt like she was lugging around a cumbersome camera. A streak of blue crossed its shimmering black surface. Misa tilted her head, checking her hand. Blue blood? Those Demons were clearly beast-like creatures, unlike the red skinned ones she encountered at the Jade City’s gates. Animals generally had red blood, she mused as the self-cleaning protocol processed the grime and blood off her skin. A new notice was delivered by a stream of her Swarm’s scouting Nanites, as well as the chime of the ones analyzing the Dragon Seal.
First milestone analysis of the Artifact’s containment materials has been concluded. This metal is unlike anything found in Earth’s reality. Based on its mineral composition, it appears to have come from deeper within this planet’s surface and naturally occurring. Synthesizing it with other chemical compounds and materials or even primitive processes such as smelting could yield significant breakthroughs in learning about Wagner elemental component systems.
Misa theorized that based on its translucent appearance, it could have been some type of thermoplastic. She was wrong about the box, though that was within acceptable bounds of Company standards. The Artifact graded Seal was made out of an untouchable material at the moment, so she might as well scan for more of the containment metal in order to optimize it. If she could acquire more, she could construct a variable resonator for her lasers like her old Great Chain possessed. She smirked to herself. A plasma rifle in a prehistoric era sounded ironic and also quite amusing. This Dragon Seal could be the answer to that Second Sister.
Misa paused her march. An exposed deposit of the newly dubbed “Jackson” metal or “Jacksonium” was discovered nearby a tremendous body of water affected by Wagner energy. Spencer Jackson, a Black Wolf Company partner, in Earth Year 2079 made a generous contribution towards the execs by buying a massive stake of the Pacific Ocean’s remaining water banks. He did so in order to secure more cooperation projects for the Company and thus a beautiful exploitative partnership between him and the execs was started. Even the Chairmen DIRE at the time himself introduced him in one major meeting once, supposedly. The name generator’s spinning wheel in her head landed on Spencer Jackson and gave Misa the general information about him. She also started to suspect the naming generator randomizer was actually rigged.
Triangulating its location, Misa discovered it was directly in an intersecting line with the target location set by her Phase One parameters. She had guessed that was why the Life Support would be constructed deep underground, planted directly in the center of ideal Feng Shui affected locations. This source of Jacksonium metal was located under a massive waterfall coming off a mountainside eight hundred meters away. The mountain was a part of a range covering a fault that extended quite deep below the surface and led to an ocean. The volcano that she scanned was further up its spine. More strange landmarks could be detected by her Swarm’s surveys, but she did not know what exactly they were. She could see the images, but their illogical nature confused her systems. Floating… rocks and stone formations stretching past clouds?
No, her Human Host decided to ignore those potential issues. Procrastination…? How utterly alien that feeling was to her. Misa shook her head out of the fog, but the temptation of being lazy lingered. She pursed her lips and pressed onward.
As she came up on a hillside overlooking the body of water where the Jacksonium was located, Misa decided to survey the area via drone. She clicked her tongue when the results came back to her. Of course, the metal deposit was situated where the scans showed. The main issue was a glowing image of an exceptionally huge blue skinned Demon, apparently guarding the metal. Wait, she zoomed in on it. The Demon remained still and in a perfect pose even as her drone flew by, seemingly unbothered by the waterfall crashing down on it.
Meditating? How utterly ridiculous. There wasn’t even any Wagner energy centered around his pentagram’s centerpiece. His Feng Shui formation was horribly flawed. Misa also felt ridiculous for reviewing that. Has this reality messed with her subroutines? She scanned herself repeatedly several hundred times in a furious minute. Nothing wrong with her Host’s vitals, though the original brain seemed like it was damaged prior to her arrival. Perhaps she was dropped at birth? Some humans are not good at taking responsibility during the early development of their young. Such mishaps lead to inefficient meat, yet was important to make up the bulk of the bottom line in Black Wolf Company.
She analyzed the energy traces when her feet approached the lake. She scooped up some mud and learned that the energy was mixed in with the sand. Surprisingly, the lake was not actually deep and at its “hypolimnion” reached up to her knees. The water’s bordering beaches were actually edges like street curbs. To Misa, they seemed like this area was manmade and carved in the mountain’s face. Presumably, this area was carved out by the massive being meditating inside of the waterfall.
“Balance in life under the sky, balance in war in the waters,” thrummed a deep voice. “For everlasting peace, defeat the unbalanced.”
Platitudes? It appeared that the Demon noticed Misa’s presence. The Wagner energy inside the drenched cave was rising and the light above reflected from the rippling waters into her optical systems. She strapped the Dragon Seal tighter to herself and stepped into the pool of water. The live combat exercise was going to begin. She already her started smart movements and awaited the new threat to Black Wolf Company. The tremendous energy she shot at awhile ago quieted down, like a supervisor watching over her shoulder. The large shadow under the waterfall finally shifted, revealing a horned demon’s massive frame. His grin reminded her of Mist’s: Ready for the joy of combat.
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“And you—“ He raised his left foot in a crane style and aimed it at her. His claw was as wide as her arm and his legs were thicker than trees, but Misa realized the Demon’s arms were actually bound by a metal restraint. It reminded of the times she spent in metal cuffs during weapon testing. “Are the most unbalanced of all!”
“Unauthorized hostility against Black Wolf Property is severely discouraged,” Misa warned him. “Step aside.”
The Blue Demon laughed as if she said something funny. How odd, Misa determined he was wrong and simply a hooligan itching for a fight. The tingling sensation of the water lapping against her legs gave her a sense of balance in her energy’s rising positive karma. Every movement the Blue Demon made sent more ripples of Wagner energy through the waters, raising the hairs on her neck. Metal begets water, she reminded herself as the shadow began his attacks. She raised her hands in a block aware of the slow moving Demon’s kick barreling towards her, but this newfound energy aided her own Swarm’s propagating center. Water fell atop like a rainstorm over her head as she skidded back a few feet. Her lifespan dropped to 48% from the hit, making her chuckle. The unauthorized damage to her systems matched to twice the damage she recieved from that other demon’s punch in the Capital’s alleyways, yet with her new body it meant nothing. The Demon jumped back and forth in a grinning anticipation, splashing the water like a toddler flailing in a tub. He was clearly pleased she survived from the blow.
“Crush chaos!” He lashed out like a tsunami. A black dragon of water and Wagner energy rose as he moved, seemingly unstoppable. Misa ducked under his swing and then lept over his sweeping kick as she scanned for weakpoints in his blue meat suit.
Water swished around in crystalline droplets, sparkling in the daylight beneath her. Such flowing movements had a grace to them, but unfortunately for him she had 8 Military Graded martial art hand to hand combat programs installed in her systems — the same ones they handed out to all Company execs at the time. After missing her several times, the Blue Demon laughed.
“What is wrong?” His jumping stances never ceased while he awaited her response, a stark contrast to his peaceful meditation from before. “Are you denying the Way? Fight!”
Obstacle elimination 7.1A response protocol has been drafted and expedited to immediate approval. Though the data suggests gathering Earth elemental compounds would disrupt the obstacle “BLUE DEMON’s” absurd Wagner energy levels, depleting the water will deprive Black Wolf Company of precious resources. Therefore, blocking off energy paths and brute force is recommended. Blueprints for energy absorption pillars have been created for this purpose as a temporary measure.
“Calculations completed. Combat sequences activated. Ethics procedures bypassed, no body cams available,” Misa finally muttered. "Engage."
“Fear not the unknown,” the Demon lunged again. “Come at me!”
Misa sighed. The Demon’s footwork was excellent with blue skinned legs with waves of muscle like the rapids stinging her face, like a professional footballer or Muay Thai kickboxer. Misa attempted to maintain her distance as she released nanites. She was backed into the western side of the pool and solidified them as a metal pillar. The loud hum from its construction would have split a human’s ears, but it intercepted the Blue Demon’s thunderous headbutt instead of her guard. His pained face reminded her of the tough Oni artworks depicted from her old Earth’s reality. A hiss escaped him and his eyes went cross as he wobbled away.
Target’s elevated Wagner energies have been altered slightly due to cutting off one flow thanks to the Swarm’s pillar construct. However, smacking it with a weapon will only make its emotional stress levels increase and not annihilate it. Construct additional pylons… Erm, pillars.
Confirmed, she supposed she had to block off all auspicious paths of karmic energy to weaken and eventually break the Demon’s meat suit apart. This pillar was made with Black Wolf Company’s security technology mixed in with the strange metal that her Core generated. It would not break apart by a simple headbutt. Additionally, her own body was more than capable of beating a thug up even if he towered over her. The Demon had his foot crashing down at her heel first like a thunderbolt. No genitals, she scanned him. No free weak spot on this meat suit.
Sidestepping the axe kick, she struck first by aiming for his knee with her elbow. An explosion of misty water splattered her skin, but a satisfying crunch followed the reverberations in her elbow upon contact, and the Demon yelped in pain. That leg would have been disabled, but he once again hopped back with a focused roar. She kicked off of him before he could swing down upon her head with his locked arms. The waters launched into the air and showered her like meteors. Misa avoided the energized drops and landed at the east side. The production of Nanites had processed in her Core, enough to construct a new humming pillar. Another positive Wagner energy flow has been severed, weakening the demon. The effect of the energy being blocked distorted the pool of disturbed water, surprising her. Could the Demon feel it?
He roared another platitude as more energy filled him, but it was like he was gasping for air. The bones she broke began to pop and crack as her scans revealed their restoration. The energy was healing him. How strangely efficient, Misa thought. However, his aura was now less bright as her own. Brute force was a go. Sensing her hostility, the Blue Demon rushed at her and ignored the pillars sapping his energy.
“You who disrupt balance! Come!” He roared. Misa rolled her eyes. “The Way awaits our judgment, and victory is the Way!”
“Metal begets Water. Controls it. I am made of it,” she scolded him, then shot an armor piercing round at him. The energy surrounding him was still formidable, making him able to stop into a pivot and guide his arms fluidly in a swift block. The bullet sliced through its target, but the Blue Demon grunted. A quick scan revealed that he shifted his weight just enough to avoid it from hitting his spine. Figures. She freed him from the restraints.
“Destroy the Unnatural!” He roared. With his arms free, he seemed like he gained energy. She detected vocalizations similar to Mist’s when he harnessed that 10 Metal Swords attack. “Furious Water Fists!”
The fists of his glowed blue and became cloaked in bubbles, yet heat was gathering around them. Significant property damage would occur if she sustained a hit, but Misa calculated she was agile enough to dodge. His strikes and kicks jabbed at her, each releasing chaotic energy and contributing more disruption to the water’s positive energy flow. Foolish creatures with emotions would not be able to calculate karmic energy if they enjoy combat. This desperation was the reason she was able to split them away from her like an unmovable stone against a rushing river. Being smaller than him was definitely a disadvantage, but she needed to buy time so her Swarm could build enough Nanites for a new pillar. He made a swift motion, launching spheres of Wagner energized water. As she tumbled towards the north section of the pool, Jacksonium spears emerged from the Demon’s Furious Water Fists. What an utterly bizarre name for an illogical fighting stance! Without her intervention this time, the third pillar made the humming into a scream. Energy was rising, and steam began to make both her Human Host and the Demon to sweat. His jumping stance became frantic as his legs were becoming white from the heat, but she remained still. Temperatures were regulated by the Swarm, allowing her to do her job.
He winded up a brutal punch, without the flourishing jumps and platitudes this time. Misa prepared herself, but was alerted that the strike was a bluff. The wind from his passing fist blew heated shards of Jacksonium against her body, but she felt the waters solidifying as it was giving way to his skillful sweep. Her visibility was limited through a blurry film of foam and heated metal splashing against her, but Misa could hear him start again.
“I must protect the serenity of this place! Come, all Mortals, all Immortals—“
She intercepted the sweep with a heavy stomp and released more armor piercing shots sporadically through the energized waters. The “lake” was in disarray now, with the three humming pillars constantly causing vibrations and the Demon’s howls of pain. New blood leaked into the pool, but soon the waterfall’s crashing noise accompanied the wailing creature. The obstacle was subdued, thanks to the energy blocking pillars.
“You,” he did not attempt to escape as she approached him with no expression on her face. His hands and body were so shredded by the bullets she was amazed that he was able to survive. Mist escaped with his ragged breath. “Your Way is stronger.”
“You should have stepped aside,” Misa shook her head, but shot the Demon with a powerful exlosive bullet. It was time to see how these things operated their meat suits.
Misa immediately regretted it after the smoke and water cooled off. There, splashing and flailing around in the shallow water was a large centipede-like bug attempting to wriggle itself out of the headless suit. Despite her Human Host’s screaming instincts, she fought against her chilopodophobia and pinned the wriggling thing underwater. It felt like she was grasping an arm, except it had a hundred fingers scraping and groping at her wrists. Utterly terrifying, but everything about it resembled a nightmarishly huge centipede that apparently replaced the Demon’s spinal column. Breaking this thing would certainly kill it, but the obviously rest of the meat suit was designed to protect it with many layers of reinforced muscle.
Alert: Overcharging rate has increased to critical levels. Lifespan is at 68%.
Misa realized in her fear that she forgot that killing an “evil” being would affect her karmic energy levels. She strengthened her grip on the squirming centipede Demon and hurled it into the air. A crunching, gutteral sound of flesh tearing mixed in with the Blue Demon’s squeals trailed skyward, but by now Misa had succumbed to her Human Host’s irrational fear. She shrieked, then releashed the Nanites into the Dragon Seal’s containment box and launched a laser at the bug for at least half an hour.
“Nope, nope, nope, nope,” Misa muttered and trembled in the lake while she waded towards the waterfall. “That thing, and all things Demon, do not deserve a future position in Black Wolf Company’s development here.”
The thing had already been instantly vaporized by the Dragon Seal’s laser, but now she had stabilized the rising karma levels back to an acceptable state. The Jackson metal was hers now, but for some inexplicable reason she now feared the potential presence of anything looking like a centipede approaching her.
System sweep: Raising security levels beyond the current user’s privileges requires proper Supervisor authorization. MISA’s security protocols are at the maximum level and cannot be accessed. (Attempt limit reached and a lockout has been imposed.)