That’s right. This room was filled with people who just heard all of that. How embarrassing!

I slowly turned around to face the beastmen around the table. “He’s a—what’s the best way to put this—information hub of sorts. You can ask him questions, and he gives you answers.”

Rethan perked his ears up. “Could he help us with this war?”

My eyes darted from side to side, hoping to find some possible answer. I don’t know why I thought I had to look around when I knew that the answer wouldn’t be there.

“Uh, it wouldn’t hurt to ask him.” I slowly raised my hands in a shrug.

Orlow made a strange cooing sound. “This, Gary, may be why we’ve been struggling so much in the war against the undead. Maybe this isn’t such bad timing.”

Shadara walked up to the table. “If you’ve been struggling up to this point, how do you plan on taking this fort that they’ve increased the garrison? What do we do to change the equation? How can three of us make a difference?”

“Your little stunt earlier today has been insightful.” The tiger beastman placed his finger in the center of the model fort. “We’re sending you in to pull their attention so we can get past their heaviest fortifications. I doubt they will expect an attack on them so soon after they attack us.”

Shadara glared. “That sounds more like a suicide mission.”

“You only need to buy us ten minutes,” Lyra huffed. “You’re good at surviving, aren’t you?”

Do they really expect us to live surrounded by undead for ten minutes? “That’s evil.” I slammed my foot. “Why are you trying to kill us?”

Rethan smirked. “You’re expendable. I’m not about to use my men for this mission. Besides, tit for tat.”

“Make it five minutes,” I grumbled.

He shook his head. “Nope. Ten is the lowest we can go.”

Killa pulled me back. “Are you seriously considering this?”

I turned to my friend. “We have to reach Gary. What we need is on this floor. I can’t let it take any more souls from others.”

Shadara grabbed my hand. “Will you give us until tomorrow to decide?”

The bear beastman growled, but Xantoxu grabbed his elbow. “That’s fine. But you can’t leave this fort. And you’ll have an escort everywhere you go.”

Shadara pushed us to the doorway. “Fair enough. We’ll be back here tomorrow with our answer.”

Lorrean followed us and guided us to a small building. She stood by the door. “This is where you can stay for the day. If you need food, let us know, and we’ll send someone to get you some. You’ll have to pay for it, of course.”

I raised an eyebrow. “Okay, we’ll need food for the day.” I created a soul gem for two thousand shards. Holding the yellow gem out for her, I said, “I’d expect at least fifty meals with this.”

The wolf woman swiped the gem and huffed as she stormed off. Before she got out of sight, she ordered another raccoon soldier to collect our food.

Killa pulled us into the building, away from the guards.

Shadara was the first to speak. “Is Gary that important? Like, is he really worth dying over? Rina, we can always leave this floor.”

Killa nodded. “The way you described it, the Gary on the floor above us will be able to tell us what this one can too. Then we can wait for the lady to catch up to us. She could also try to head on to the next floor before us while we’re doing this.”

I leaned against the door, keeping it blocked. “Do we face the devil we know, or do we brave the unknown, hoping for the best? It might be worse on the next floor.”

Shadara then started pacing. “Then the more important question is: can we even succeed?”

I closed my eyes. There’s no easy answer. Orange, do you have any thoughts?

The most sensible choice is to stay here and face the fort. Although we suggest that you take the time to upgrade yourself further. This will not be easy; additional equipment and augments will be critical to your success.

I pushed off the door and opened my eyes. “My vote is we stay.”

Killa chewed her lip for a moment as she wrung her hands together. “I’ll follow Rina. If she says we stay and attack the fort, then I will.”

Shadara stopped and hung her head. “Then we’re going to do this, aren’t we? I won’t leave you now.”

We all then found ourselves migrating to the table and sitting around it.

“If we’re doing this, then we need to figure out what you two need to maximize our chances.” I exchanged glances with my friends. “Also, do you two have any input on whether I should focus on offensive or defensive?”

“Defense,” both of them replied simultaneously.

They exchanged glances with one another for a second.

Shadara spoke up again. “We all will need to get the strongest, heaviest armor we can afford to survive this. They will outnumber us, and if all it takes is one lucky shot to bring us down, they’ll likely find one in ten minutes. The undead will be too powerful to kill quickly.”

Killa shook her head. “No. We need magic items to create barriers against their magic and ranged attacks. Rina can use her nanites to make herself faster. If we can get something to make you temporarily invisible, that would be ideal for repositioning yourself.”

The panther woman slammed her hands on the table. “Rina doesn’t need you to tell her to get more augments. New weapons and armor will be enough.”

Killa placed a hand on her chest. “I can’t wear armor, and Rina is a speed-based fighter. Heavy armor will only slow her down. If that’s the style of combat she’s chosen, she needs to lean into it as much as she can. She can be faster than everything else so that nothing can hit her. Her nanite augments are the best way of doing that given our current time limit.”

Shadara threw the table to the side with one hand before storming up to Killa. “Of course, you would suggest that Rina subject herself to more transformations. You slimes don’t have a true form. There’s nothing sacred about a body to you. Any body you want is at your beck and call for as long as you want.”

Killa held her arms out, presenting herself. “Jealous?”

I dashed and tried to push them apart. Shadara didn’t budge, and my hand just squished into Killa’s chest. Regardless, I got their attention.

“Enough! Both of you stop.” My words got Shadara and Killa to take a step back from each other. “Killa, improving our equipment will help. My jacket and breastplate have been helpful many times already. And even if it’s for this one time, I’m sure we can find you some magical armor that’s as flexible as you and protect you from magic.”

I turned to Shadara. “This situation calls for drastic improvements. You’ve accepted my recent changes, even the most extreme one, my mana battery. What’s changed?”

Shadara sighed as she went to pacing again. “I know. It’s just that I want to explore every route first. Using your nanites only after we’ve exhausted every other option. I don’t want you to do something that you’ll regret for the rest of your life.”

Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.

I held up my arm and extended my blade arm for a couple of seconds. Shadara stopped and stared. I retracted it back into my forearm. “Just because I make one poor decision doesn’t mean I will regret it. I can figure out another augment to change it so that it works better for me.”

Killa walked up to Shadara, slowly. “We don’t need to agree over personal beliefs. I’m sorry for riling you up.” She held out her hand. “Truce?”

Shadara looked at the extended hand and then at the slime woman’s soft smile. She took it and gave it a slow shake. “Yeah. I’m sorry for being dense and for profiling you like I did.” They let go and Shadara placed her hand on the back of her head. “Our first step should be pooling our resources together, shouldn’t it?”

I let out a breath I hadn’t known I was holding. Thank goodness they’ve calmed down. “Then I’ll leave you two to it.” I waved my hand as I headed for a bedroom. “Come and get me once the food arrives.”

“Where are you going?” Shadara asked.

“Someplace to think.”

I closed the door behind me. I leaned up against it and slowly slid until I was seated on the floor. My heart was beating heavily in my chest. The room felt suffocating.

Taking a deep breath, I closed my eyes, trying to clear my mind and focus on Orange.

Do you wish to talk?

What do you think? Should I focus on defense or offense? What will give us the best chance of survival?

Given the circumstances and the limited time frame, prioritizing defense seems like the most prudent choice. Enhancing your defensive capabilities will provide you with a better chance of withstanding the onslaught of the undead and buying the necessary time for your mission.

My question would be: How? Do I choose Shadara’s advice over Killa’s, or vice versa? Opening my eyes, I gazed down at my hands, my fingers trembling ever so slightly. It feels like I have to take a side, and whoever’s side I don’t choose will be upset with me. I don’t want either one to be upset.

Would you like to run a simulation?

How is that going to help?

I have a clear estimation of both Killa’s and Shadara’s capabilities. In the simulation, you can test various strategies against enemies and find the option that you believe you need. The parameters will be set to beyond a deadly scenario, as this situation is expected to be.

Alright. It can double up as training. Can you make the training space like the fort where we will be fighting, please?

Understood.

My body slowly slipped into a sleep-like state as my mind interacted with the nanites, using my brain as a biological computer, as Orange tried to describe it to me once. I was standing in the middle of the open space, where enemies would be able to attack me from every direction.

I held up my arm. “Orange, wait. Let’s talk for a little first.”

My doppelganger, with orange hair and a maid outfit, materialized next to me. “As you wish. I’m sure you have questions or augments you wish to explore.”

I rubbed my hands together. “Well, I have armor for my arms and chest. I imagine I can afford the epidermal plating for both my legs and head at level two, correct?”

Orange nodded. “You can, and it is an option to exchange your sub-dermal plating on your chest for the epidermal plating augment. You will have to pay some shards, but that is a route you can take. The epidermal plating augment does provide greater protection.”

I rubbed my chin. “Interesting. But let’s start with previewing the level two augments for epidermal plating on both my legs and head.”

Epidermal plating (legs) level 1 upgrade available:

Cost: 22,500 shards per leg.

Epidermal plating (legs) level 2 upgrade available:

Cost: 40,500 shards per leg.

Preview?

Yes.

Epidermal plating (head) level 1 upgrade available:

Cost: 18,450 shards.

Epidermal plating (head) level 2 upgrade available:

Cost: 27,000 shards.

Preview?

Yes.

The change was near instantaneous and painless, unlike what it would’ve been if I had accepted them in reality. I removed my pants to inspect the changes. Black metal replaced the skin on my legs, the faint sound of shifting metal fading away as the augmentation settled into place. As I shifted my weight and moved my legs, the familiar near-silent glide my arms possessed was now attached to my legs.

Running my hands along my legs, I noted the smoothness. Organic flesh was replaced by flawless, rigid metal felt warm beneath my touch. My feet, encased in the same dark metal, now also bore a polished metallic finish, their appearance matching that of my arms. I flexed my toes experimentally, feeling them respond effortlessly to my movements. The seams around each joint were barely visible and left me with the full range of movement I was used to.

I replaced my pants and slowly raised a hand to my face. “Orange, can I have a mirror?”

A full-body stand mirror appeared before me.

As I stepped closer to the mirror, my reflection stared back at me with an intensity that sent a shiver down my spine. The face staring back was a blend of familiarity and strangeness. I still looked like me, only I looked beyond alien.

My eyes, glowing green, now seemed to pop even more against the black metal of my face. The contours of my face had shifted subtly, giving me much sharper features. The soft curve of my lips, which were also made of metal, didn’t move. My fingers glided along the seams that split my cheeks horizontally, starting from the corners of my mouth. Those were the only seams on my entire face.

I opened my mouth and opened my lips with a subtle metallic slide. I closed my mouth, and my jaw snapped shut. Then I ran my fingers along my neck and felt a small ridge. The metal had sunk under the skin to my torso’s sub-dermal plates.

But one thought ran through my head. “I look like a robot.”

Orange waved her hand and dispelled the mirror. “More accurately, an android. I had assumed you wanted to keep your hair, so I made sure to keep holes for the follicles to grow out of.”

I face-palmed myself. A metallic ring sounded through my head. “Not helping. Yeah, that’s an augment that we can just take off the table forever.”

Orange nodded. “Understood.”

I sighed. “The legs I can live with, but I don’t know how much improving them is worth it except for the stat bonuses.” I was guessing it was twenty for both toughness and resilience, like my arms. “Did you have any other suggestions? Can we use all this mana I have for energy?”

Orange folded her hand in front of her and shook her head. “We apologize, but the cost is far beyond what you can afford at this time.”

Mana conversion crystallizer augmentation available:

Cost: 1,234,987,654 shards.

Insufficient funds.

Preview?

I placed my hands on my hips and hung my head. It was worth asking, at least. “Can I just give my shadow magic mass and consume that? Could you turn magic into energy?”

The AI blushed. “No.” Before I could ask why, she continued, “Just because something has mass, that doesn’t mean it has any nutritional or caloric value. It wouldn’t be any different if you tried to consume gas. Magic has to be converted to energy before you consume it.”

I sighed. “Any other ideas?”

Orange took a step forward and bowed her head. Her hair covered her face as she did so. “We have one last suggestion.” She stood up. “Your speed—if you were to improve that, your offensive and defensive capabilities would improve. However, you need to improve your torso’s muscles too. If there’s too much of a discrepancy between your arms and legs and your torso, you risk internal damage.”

Synthetic muscle (legs) level 2 available:

Cost: 60,140 shards.

Synthetic tendons (legs) level 2 available:

Cost: 52,200 shards.

Synthetic tendons (arms) level 2 available:

Cost: 43,920 shards.

Synthetic muscle (arms) level 2 available:

Cost: 59,580 shards.

Synthetic muscles (chest) level 1 available:

Cost: 44,887 shards.

Preview?

“The total cost is two hundred sixty thousand, seven hundred and twenty-seven shards,” Orange said flatly.

I let out a wry laugh. “That’s most of what I have. And before you suggest it, no, I’m not asking the other two for shards to buy more augments. They’re already at each other’s throats over this; asking for money will just push them over the edge.”

Orange tilted her head. “If it were not for the current circumstances, I would suggest that if it was detrimental to your progress, you leave those two behind. Or at least one of them.”

I crossed my arms and glared at her. “That’s not going to happen. If you suggest that again, I’ll… I’ll…” I don’t actually know how to punish her. I spun around. “Just don’t suggest it again.”

“As you wish,” Orange replied. “We should get back to deciding what to do. Would you like to preview the previous augments to your muscles and tendons?”

I rolled my shoulders. “Might as well. And you might as well remove the preview of the epidermal platings too while you’re at it.”

“Understood. We will begin the first combat simulation when you are prepared.” Orange’s voice sounded more distant.

I turned around, and she was gone. Surrounding me were around two hundred skeletons, each armed with various weapons, some including guns. I moved my arms and could tell the augments had been installed for the simulation.

“Let’s get this over with.”