Chapter 147 - Kingmaker 2

3 Days Later

Dawn

A decently large port 3 hours south of Vermilion City

If there was something that Theo loved about the criminal world, it was the ease of 'acquiring' new property.

At the moment, he endured the cold morning breeze while watching his men stuffed 3 MSC Class Container Ships with enough weapons, tanks, drones and ammunition to start a medium scale war.

4 months ago, one of Theo's pet projects hit both a substantial milestone and a fairly big roadblock.

This project the BFG, except it was to be ramped up to its full 150 meter long glory.

He hoped that this would replace his nukes as his to-go-to weapon of mass destruction. And based on the test firing of the miniature 20 meter BFG during the Hellgate Incident, all signs were very good.

There were still problems with the Doombringer rounds, but that's something they can remedy with time and research.

The main problem was firing the damn thing.

Theo's hideout has grown considerably thanks to the construction Reformant's constant desire to expand it.

This gave them more than enough space to construct the full scale BFG.

However, the problem was test firing the massive gun.

If they did that inside of Theo's hideout, it would inflict catastrophic damage to the structure, kill thousands of his Reformants and even cause an earthquake that could potentially reveal his schemes to the superheroes.

With that in mind, he decided to find an area far enough from Vermilion City to avoid prying eyes, but close enough to transport parts and materials to without raising suspicion.

5 months ago, Theo 'acquired' such an area via one of their many enemies in Hellhole district.

The port they were currently in was said area.

It originally belonged to a fairly large Triad gang that had ties with the Jade Empire. The facility served as a pit stop for drugs, weapon and other smuggled goods from the empire before they get distributed to the many Triad cells inland.

'Liberating' this area was one of many instances where the operation was planned and spearheaded by the Reformants only.

Theo had nothing to do with it.

He allowed such operations in order to test the Reformant's ability to plan, execute and adapt to the ever changing battlefield without his directives.

Theo could only fight in 1 battlefield at a time.

If he wanted to achieve his dream of making the world a better place within his lifetime, he needed to fight multiple fronts at the same time.

How did Theo grade his little army's performance in the port takeover?

A perfect A.

The Reformants did suffer a few casualties, but it was by no means worth fussing over.

The Reformants were designed to be disposable meat shields after all. Dying for Theo was one of their core functions. And it's not like there was a shortage of 'volunteers' to replenish the ranks.

As such, Theo showered them with praise for a perfectly executed operation.

Once the port was secured, his group slowly moved some of the most veteran builders to begin re-purposing the area to his specifications.

At present, the port was vastly improved compared to when the low lives were running the show.

On the surface, the port remained its dilapidated old self.

However, underground was another story.

There was a vast 1 kilometer cube area of relatively empty space where all of the construction and production was taking place.

The skeleton of the BFG and the floating platform where it was to be mounted on was starting to take shape.

It would take a fair amount of time before its completion, but Theo believed it was worth it in the end.

Aside from that, there were fabricators, an Archon generator, a few super computers and a lot of personnel carrying out orders.

This large concentration of troops was in preparation for his war against the Eldorado drug cartel.

While he was observing his men load his toys onto the boats, his beautiful bespectacled chocolate waifu approached him from behind.

"Report: Lord Alial Milza has called for a meeting. Suggestion: Husband, proceed to the conference room." said Pani in her signature monotone voice.

Theo gave Pani a deep french kiss in response.

"I've noticed that you dont stutter anymore when you call me husband." said Theo as the couple walked hand in hand towards the building where the conference hall was located.

"Theory: close proximity for extended periods of time resulted in overcoming discomfort."

"Ho. Not that you mention it, it's been almost a year since you came huh. Time sure passes quickly when you're having fun."

Pani was never the talkative type but that didnt mean she was any less of a sweetheart. She snuggled close to Theo as they made their way to their destination.

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If Theo wasnt so busy, he would have ripped Pani's clothes off and defiled her right then and there.

For now, he decided to keep his lust in check.

She'll get her 'reward' later tonight.

The conference room was located a few meters underground. This was because Theo expected that he would get beings of nocturnal nature in the future.

He didnt expect that it would be used right this moment though.

Within the room was Alial Milza with his guards along with a couple of unexpected visitors. These were Corlo Nosferatu with his Graveguard Unit, the drow Du Al Ryien with his creepy hooded bodyguards, and lastly, Lord of Vermilion via internet call.

"Alrighty then. You guys have been keeping me in suspense here. While I appreciate Mr. Milza for lending me his ships for my operation, I do feel a little squeamish that you guys are not letting me in on this plan of yours." said Theo as he sat at the helm of the rectangular table.

Pani stood behind him with her notepad ready like the good secretary that she was.. Just like Juno, she really seemed to enjoy her roleplaying.

Speaking of Theo's other waifus, Juno and Nichola remained in Vermilion City.

Nichola, sticking to her character of being a social outcast, vehemently refused to leave his lair.

He thought that she would become more possesive of him after the whole Hellgate incident, but apparently he was wrong. She may care for Theo more than before, but she'll never change who she was for him.

Theo wouldn't want it any other way.

Nichola would lose her Nichola-ness if she changed herself to suite his tastes.

Juno was coming with Theo to Eldorado to act as a mediator between him and her family.

Since they were taking a private plane lent by Lord of Vermilion, Theo had no problem with the pregnant Juno traveling.

On the other hand, the port was located in an area with rough terrain, a decently thick seaside jungle and a fairly humid location. Who knows what would happen to the babies if Juno endured these conditions.

As such, Theo firmly forbade Juno from traveling too much until she delivered the children safely into this world.

Juno was dissatisfied but obeyed nevertheless.

Anyways, back to the meeting.

"We apologize for that young Lorne. We were ironing out the details before approaching you with a formal offer. Which is what we are going to do right now." replied Alial Milza.

"I'm all ears then."

With a nod of confirmation from everyone in the room, Alial Milza smacked Theo with the most interesting proposal he has ever heard.

"In behalf of the partnership between myself, the one named 'Lord of Vermilion', Count Corlo Nosferatu of the Nosferatu Clan and Chief Skald Du Al Ryien of the Undertide Queendom, we formally request Theodore Lorne of Ex Machina Inc. to join the 'Commercialized Outer Space Transport' program."

"Well well well. You guys sure know how to hook me in with just the opening speech." replied Theo with great interest. "But I do have to wonder, what's everyone's stake on this. I understand Alial Milza and Lord's is mostly in it for the business, but why is Nosferatu and Du Al Ryien interested in outer space?"

"We'll get there. But I have to go first though since I am the one that approached everyone." replied Alial Milza as he cleared his throat. "As everyone already knows by now, I came from a family with a steep history in sea based transport. They say that space is the final frontier. If so then I want to be the one that delivers the goods in vast sea of stars. While the Superheroes may be the only ones that can traverse space, I hope to break that monopoly."

While many countries have their own space programs, only the Superheroes were capable of feats such as maintaining a space station with gravity control or traveling beyond solar system.

This was probably thanks to the small number of aliens within their ranks.

The reason why Superheroes hoard the knowledge of outer space travel from the rest of the world was because of the many dastardly individuals that would exploit the hell out of it.

"Theo agreed 100% with this decision."

It was better to keep humanity grounded for now, unless there was a fool proof plan to keep the scums of the world from abusing the power of space travel.

The Lord of Vermilion was next.

"My interest are simple. Make resorts, shops and other business in outer space. Since public space travel is probably a century away, I'll start with an extremely high class resort on the moon. All the details are in the folder right in front of you. Fu fu fu. Gentlemen, this is going to fun."

Nosferatu stood up for his turn.

"My friends, the future is fast approaching and I intend for my clan to adapt with the times. When the era of space travel dawns on the vampire kin, I want my clan to be ahead of the rest of my kin. My interest lies in compatibility research with outer space and my kin. Things such as 'Can we survive under the rays of a different sun?' or 'Is it safe to feed on alien lifeforms?' are questions that must be answered for my clan to prosper in the new age."

Theo was impressed. He thought that the ever whimsical progenitor was doing this for fun. It seemed that Nosferatu has given this some serious thought.

"But most importantly, I am doing this because there seems to be a lot of fun to be had." added Nosferatu, throwing all the respect Theo had for him down the drain.

And finally, it was Du Al Ryein's turn.

Theo was quite interested in why someone from a fantasy realm would be interested in outer space.

"I am certain that none of you know of the situation in Alfhiem. Allow me to enlighten everyone. Since the time of the Ancients, we Drows have been in constant war with our racial cousins, the Elves. We have long forgotten the reason, but the war persists still. Our Dread Queens may be to vain to admit it, but the Undertide Empire is losing. For some reason, everyone automatically allies with the Elves. Humans are especially prone to this. It seems like 'Elf' is synonymous to 'Good Guys' for some reason."

"Is it false?" asked Theo

"Naturally. There is no such thing as Good Guys in our war. Both are equally guilty of performing the most horrible acts possible. We Drows simply dont lie that we have blood in our hands."

"Hooo. Interesting. But what does this have to do with outer space?"

"2 reasons. First is something everyone knows of. We are headhunting for potential allies who are not poisoned by the 'Elves are Good Guys' mentality. Initially we wanted approach the Machine God for help, but he remains elusive. Theodore Lorne, you are also in our list of potential allies. Please give it some thought."

Theo squirmed at the mention of the Machine God.

Nosferatu, on the other hand, was doing his very best not to giggle like a school girl.

"The second reason is my own directive that is completely independent from the Dread Queens. When our defeat does come, I want an evacuation area prepared for my people. We already have the realm of Svartalfheim as a potential spot for relocation, but I would rather have a few back ups just in case."

"Oh. I see. And since outer space is till pretty much void of humans, it is the perfect place for colonization."

"As you say."

After everyone said their piece, it was Theo's turn.

"First and foremost, I am very interested and would like to take a part in this project. However, I do wonder why you guys approached me. Im sure there's some other morally flexible individuals out there that might be more useful to the plan."

"Depending on which portion of the project we're talking about, then you are correct about that." replied Lord of Vermilion. "However, out of the 3 means of space travel, you already have the technology to pull 1 of them off."

The 3 means that were currently available to humanity were the following:

Pure Propulsion- the classic rocket based method. The Superheroes' small ships were capable of this thanks to their miniature archon reactor technology.

Orbital Elevator- as the name states, it's a massive elevator that went all the way up to outer space. It is the most complex, time consuming and labor intensive method of the 3.

Theo finally realized why they approached him.

"Mass Drivers.... I see... Now I get it." said Theo.

Mass Driver- an electromagnetic slingshot that launched items at velocities strong enough to leave the earth's atmosphere. It was similar to the catapult used by aircraft carriers to launch their jets from such a short ramp.

In layman's terms, it was a gargantuan rail gun.

It may not look like a 'gun' per se, but it followed the same principles found in Theo's BFG.

"HAHAHAHAHAHA! Awesome! Okay, I'm sold! Consider me a part of this project of yours." said the ecstatic Theo. "But I have prior plans in motion. Is it fine if I start after my next escapade?"

"No problem. We still have tons of paperwork to go through anyway. We'll deal with the building permits, PR, HR, finances and whatever red tape that gets in our way. Once we're done with that, it will be your time to shine." replied Alial Milza.

"Fu fu fu. I cant wait."