POV: Will of the Four Realms (3rd Person)
The Empire of Gallos was the second largest independent power within the Four Realms, second only to the Celestial Palace that controlled the entirety of Pangea and the surrounding solar systems. Their success was not only due to the distance between them and the Celestial Palace, The Empire of Gallos controlling most of the outer reaches of the Mortal Realm, but also due to the fact that many hundreds of thousands of years prior to them becoming an empire, their society gave birth to a Dao Progenitor - a person who had proven their personal Dao to be worthy of hanging in the canvas of the starry sky. Only five had ever accomplished such a task, the first being Tian, the reincarnation of the Immortal Dei, a Fae of such legendary status that he even has his own religion. Of the others, three more hailed from the lands of Pangea. Only one cultivator from the outer reaches had become a Dao Progenitor.
Simply because of that, regardless of the fact that said Dao Progenitor had not returned to their homeland in countless years, the Empire of Gallos was allowed to continue its existance and grow underneath the Celestial Palace. Not even the Celestial Empress, with all her might, was willing to offend a Dao Progenitor after all.
Hence, the Empire of Gallos was allowed to grow - within reason, of course - but only began to truly expand and flourish with the advent of something unseen by normal cultivators; technology. Since The Empire of Gallos' expansion in cultivation was suppressed by the Celestial Palace, its leaders decided to look in another direction to gain power, and eventually it was the mortals who stumbled upon the solution of technology. With guns, a mortal could kill a cultivator of the Second Stage, and once space travel was achieved...well, shuttling vast quantities of mortals, cultivators, and supplies across the known universe at speeds attainable only by those above the Immortal Stage was an indespensible resourse.
Although technology has yet to advance far enough to truly threaten the Celestial Palace, especially since they themselves have begun to research the subject, it has greatly expanded the exploration rate of the Mortal Realm. Although the more powerful are capable of exploring all the Mortal Realm has to offer, those maps are retained by only the powerful simply because that information would do no good in other hands. Mortals must be allowed to grow, after all, and much growth is done through exploration and adventure.
Which brings things to the current situation. Most planets are unpopulated by cultivators capable of travelling through the void of space, much less holding societies that are advanced enough to permit space-travel. Especially in the far newer outer reaches. Which makes the outer reaches perfect for exploration, experiments, and the introduction of new species.
The E.G.S.S Marlain, a research vessel commissioned by the research and development division of the Empire, hovered over a recently discovered life-sustaining planet. Multiple research posts had been placed strategically around the planet so as to gather information and discover whether or not the planet, designated as OR-1123b, was colonizable or had sentient races already on it. There were laws against interfereing with tribal peoples, after all, even if they were all variants of Fae, Karae, Avians, Elementals, or Dryads. New species were very hard to come across - impossible until the deities made more really, but mortals did not know that.
Unfortunately for one particular team of soldiers, this just so happened to be a planet with a new race inhabiting it. A race that requires a level of tact seemingly missing from many in the ranks of the Empire's military.
Sergeant Leonard MacClaod, a Fae born on the homeworld of the Empire of Gallos, suited up alongside his eight-man squad, stepping into his combat armor and readying his rifle. The green-camo painted suit of armor that made him look far taller and broader than he actually was, was a recent addition to the Empire's technological achievements. It was strong enough to withstand blows from cultivators of the Second Stage and survive strikes from cultivators of the Third Stage, as the stages of cultivation were called in the Empire. Of course, the price tag for such suits was ludicrous, and as such only the most elite could be outfitted with the best suits.
"Lady Xu," Sergeant MacClaod said, drawing the attention of the only other cultivator in the room. She was a Fae of the prestigious Xu clan, said to be decendents of the legendary Leo and Celene Xu, though from a branch family and only at the Second Stage of cultivation. Even though she was part of a branch family, and not even all that important status-wise within said branch family, all others treated her with respect and called her Lady. Such was the power of the name of the Xu. "I want you playing Jack on this trip." He ordered. The young cultivator nodded, adjusting her warhammer around her back and setting her feet. As a cultivator of the Second Stage she didn't wear combat armor - that was beneath her, and her body was as tough as any combat armor anyways.
"Understood," The young Xu said. Playing Jack meant she didn't have a specific role in the squad, only running to where she was needed. She would be the Jack-Of-All-Trades. Normally she was the vanguard, but seeing as how they didn't know what was down on the planet below, or what it was that wiped out all life in the labs, the Sergeant didn't want to risk losing their most powerful member because she was in front. It was most likely an unnecessary concern, but one MacClaod was willing to listen to.
"Alright squad, let's move." MacClaod said, making a waving motion as he settled his helmet upon his head, the HUD flickering to life on his glass visor and pinpointing his squad's location on the map. His squad immediately left the room that contained their gear and headed to the hangar, where they boarded a troop transport alongside five other squads - each heading to a different outpost/lab. There were no survivors on the planet below, only videos of something tearing the researchers and guardsmen to pieces, and vague reports of the outpost guards firing at strange shapes.
The trip to MacClaod's assigned outpost was a long one, taking a total of four hours from the hangar of the E.G.S.S Marlain to the jungles of the southernmost continent, after, of course, dropping off two other squads.
"C Squad, you're up! Prepare for halo jump!" The pilot announced, slowing the craft down to a reasonable speed to prepare to drop the squad out of the ship. MacClaod's squad silently stood, stepping forwards from the seats lining the walls of the trasport to stand above the "bomb-bay" doors. "Three...two...one...jump!" The floor slid out from under the group's feet and they all dropped out of the transport ship, hurtling towards the red desert sands below. For a moment the group did nothing, simply allowing the distance from them to the ground to decrease before Lady Xu waved her hand, wind whipping up and slowing their decent enough that it would be survivable while in combat armor.
However, since this was partially a stealth-mission (which was another reason why the transport hadn't landed), Sergeant MacClaod could not allow them to simply crash into the ground in the manner he was so fond of. It was always intimidating to see someone just drop out of the sky without a parachute or jetpack. Which makes it disappointing that they couldn't do that this time around.
"Now!" Sergeant MacClaod barked, slamming his fist into his breastplate. Small jets popped out of the bulky back part of the armor, flaring to life and all but stopping his fall as little as ten meters from the top of a sand dune overlooking the low, rectangular lab. The rest of his squad was the same, landing at varying distances from him.
"Form up," MacClaod said, his squad immediately falling into a diamond formation with him at the head and Lady Xu in the center. Only one, the scout, fell out of position, instead moving just over the crest of the sand dune and lying down, his sniper pressed against his shoulder. He would watch for any hostiles approaching the lab while the rest of the squad was inside. Slowly, the squad moved towards the lab, their armor protecting them from the worst of the heat. Except for Lady Xu, she was powerful enough and had a high enough body cultivation that only the most extreme of weather conditions would bother her. As for this desert? It wasn't nearly hot enough.
Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
Still, though. It did have quite a bit of fire essence energy, which was great for her body cultivation. She had been lacking in fire essence, as she cultivated all elements equally to forge her body, and as such her body cultivation was stagnating with a lack of fire essence. She figured that she'd put in a request to be stationed here for a few months after this mission was finished. She might even get to the Third Stage in her body cultivation.
The trip down the sand dune was a long one, the distance from the top to the lab being deceptively far. Sergeant MacClaod couldn't help but feel uneasy as they tromped down the sand dune, the motion detectors and thermal scans in his helmet not picking up anything other than the natural heat of the desert. Not even his senses picked up anything, and he was a cultivator of the First Stage, which meant his senses were sharper than the average mortal.
"I don't like this, Sarge," One of MacClaod's subordinates, an Earth Elemental, voiced his concerns.
"Neither do I," MacClaod responded, tightening his grip on his rifle. It comforted him, knowing he held a powerful weapon in his hands. More powerful than the magic he could currently use, at least. "Keep your ears peeled." Little did they know, but the feeling that was putting the soldiers on edge was their sixth senses telling them that they were little more than prey. It is not something they run into often, what with magic beasts being generally suppressed within the Empire, the feeling that something out there is not specifically hunting them...but is still their natural predator.
"Breach and clear!" A soldier shouted as he kicked down one of the doors to the lab. The squad was greeted by the sight of eerily empty halls and flickering lights. "What is this, some kind of cheap horror movie?" The same soldier scoffed, flicking on the headlamp installed in his helmet, illuminating the hallway properly. White-washed tiles and green doors lining the hall was all that was visible, up until the hall split into two different paths.
"Focus, Anders." MacClaod scolded, following said soldier into the hallway. Anders was on point now for one reason and one reason only - he carried a shotgun. In close-quarters combat, it was hard to beat something as devastating as that.
"Hai, hai," Anders muttered, switching to his native dialect for a brief moment as he walked down the hall, glancing in windows and doors whenever he passed. The rest of the squad did the same, of course, as they moved down the hall. Their objective was clear for the moment - get to the center of the outpost, retrieve the security and research data that hadn't been streamed to the E.G.S.S. Marlain yet, and get out. If possible, discover what had caused the extermination of all life in the lab, but that would also be revealed via the data and reports in the lab's databases. Their evac would be a transport ship located in the lab's hangar, one that none of the previous inhabitants got the chance to use.
"Guys, stay sharp! Two unknown entities are about to enter the lab. They appear to react to our communications, one of them nearly found me until I turned off my radio. Appear insectile in nature, but do not appear to be magic beasts. I will be limiting contact via comms." The scout alerted, he himself unaware of the danger he was putting himself in by speaking over the comms. Ironically enough, he would not be killed because of the viciousness of the Arachions - he would shoot first, thus earning the ire of the local desert tribe, and wind up killed. His death throes and the single shot he managed to get off would go unnoticed by his companions.
They had troubles of their own, after all.
"What the hell...?" Sergeant MacClaod muttered, looking at the locked metal door. This room was not one they were supposed to investigate, however, the amount of damage done to the surrounding walls was clearly indicative that there was something in there. The tiled floors were cracked and the walls themselves slashed open, wires and lights hanging out haphazardly from the long gashes in the white walls. Even the door, made of solid steel, had long gouges in it and deep punctures. Nothing properly penetrated the door, obviously, but this level of damage was...impressive.
"Lady Xu, if you would." MacClaod ordered after attempting to open the door via the keypad. Unfortunately all the electronics were torn to shreds, leaving the door permanently locked. Which left good old-fashioned brute force as the only option to break it open. The cultivator stepped up to the door and investigated it, running her hand along the metal before muttering a slight chant and pushing an incantation gesture towards it. Then she stepped back and hefted her warhammer - just as the first of the two Arachnoids that were chasing after the intruders to their territory was about to round the corner.
At this point, the Will of the Four Realms decided to intervene. This being the first real contact any sentient race has had with the Arachion's, besides the ones that previously resided in the labs and outposts, it was important to have at least one squad with a more...peaceful interaction with the new race. Of the other squads, three had been annihilated already while the others sustained severe casualties before beating a hasty retreat.
With a bang Lady Xu smashed the door down with her hammer. The spell she cast prior was one that weakened the door itself, allowing for her increased strength to directly break down the door. In the interior of the room, chained to a table and breathing shallowly, was a young Arachion. Sergeant MacClaod blinked and lowered his rifle, looking at the IV drip that was leaking a tranquilizing drug into the being's bloodstream and cursing slightly. It didn't take a genius to figure out that whatever had attacked the outside doors clearly wanted to get to that.
"Looks like we pissed off some rather dangerous natives." One of the soldiers remarked, only glancing at the instecile being once before looking back down the hall. He was a jaded old man, having worked as a mercenary for years when he was younger, and as such understood some of the experiments the Empire ran on native species on new planets. Thankfully said experiments were...limited, but it was generally accepted that any new species must be fully understood to prevent unwelcome surprises in the future.
This time around, such a mindset backfired, and earned the researchers the ire of the Arachion tribes.
Chittering noises and the sound of metal scraping against tile caused all attention to suddenly shift towards where the infiltrating Arachion was slowly approaching, attempting, and failing, to appear non-threatening. After all, in that room was its offspring, and those intruders did have some terrifying weapons.
"Shit...that thing is terrifying. What the hell is it?" MacClaod muttered, leveling his rifle at the insectoid being. Lady Xu, however, was the first to act. A wind whipped up around her as she stepped forwards, infusing her voice with her cultivation base and shouting at the Arachion to stop where it stood. The blastwaves from her voice rattled the Arachion a bit, causing the insectoid to blink and then screech furiously at Lady Xu. The grating sound caused the entire squad to nearly double over in pain, thoroughly disorienting them. In a blur of movement the Arachion shot forwards, stabbing viciously at Lady Xu with its tail. Before she could even react Lady Xu found herself pinned to the wall, groaing in pain as the Arachion hissed angrily at the rest of the soldiers, stabbing towards the room with one finger.
Sergeant MacClaod, seeing the Xu be pinned to the wall with competuous ease, paled beneath his helmet. After a brief moment of consideration, he whispered orders to the squad. "Anders, go get that thing off the table. Be gentle with it." He said. Without a word Anders complied, slipping into the room and carefully unstrapping the young Arachion from the table, removing the IV drip from its arm. Then he slipped his shotgun over his back, picked up the Arachion in a princess carry, and very slowly exited the room under the watchful eye of the adult Arachion.
Lady Xu groaned in pain, clutching at her shoulder and attempting to remove the stinger from her body but failing miserably. The adult Arachion was far stronger than her, and didn't even budge as she struggled. Anders slowly stepped in front of the rest of the squad, laying the young Arachion on the ground a few feet away from the adult. With a sickening shlick sound the Arachion pulled its tail from Lady Xu and scooped up its offspring, chittering to it softly before shooting a glare at the soldiers and vanishing down the hall.
The Will of the Four Realms felt a flicker of approval in its dull, almost non-existent conciousness. It couldn't be a considered a complete success but at least now the Arachions have a bit of leeway for when the Empire really begins to investigate them. They will be seen as not being completely beyond reason. Its conciousness then drifted away from the planet, focusing only for a moment on the four Dao Progenitors floating above said planet.
"The Four Realms are changing." One of them, an elderly-looking man said in a tired voice.
"There are new Trees, and now these things..." Another, a blue-robed youth said with a sigh.
"These things in particular will make waves." A beautiful female water-elemental said, toying with the gaseous form of a Dimension Creator.
"We will need to make plans..." A middle-aged man contemplated, rubbing his chin. The four of them looked at each other and nodded respectfully, turning away and disappearing into their preferred meditation spots, each contemplating the great changes happening in the Four Realms. As soon as they left another being stepped out of the shadows, a twinkle in her eye as she gazed at the Arachions below.
Kei opened her mouth and sung a few words that she had heard the Creator sing before; "The times, they are a'changin'," She hummed clasping her hands behind her back and looking at where the Will of the Four Realms was most condensed. Then she just smiled and swished her nine gorgeous tails, the essences of the Four Realms condensing around her. "I'm looking forward to it."