Chapter 305

Ytakan Scrublands, Archduchy of Rebirth

Darthar-Asaria trade route

"I hope you do not bring further tidings of doom." Said Manson Estogan, duke of Sarth, as Alexandra entered the command tent.

The dungeon core's gaze swept the room, and only saw grim, taunt faces. From Philia to the commander of the desert rangers, all looked like they were heading to the gallows.

"It depends on what one qualifies as such." Answered the Earth-born.

"Another apocalypse." Said the knight-commander, drily.

"In which case, no. Good news are, the UDC is currently heading for a deadlock."

"There is a lot of blood on the ground for a deadlock." The duke met Alexandra's eyes. "But I think I take your meaning. Few would take kindly to the dungeons marching to war once more, especially through their land. And divided, they can no longer impose their will upon nations."

"Exactly. Problem is..."

"The Republic and the Kingdom are in no position to stop them. For some parts of both, have no interest in doing so either, since what remains of the Council wishes for your head."

"Exactly. But attacking Rebirth directly would be...hazardous at best. Not to mention a bad look. And as the archduchess pointed out, they have a much more palatable target on hand."

"Us." Said Philia, bitterly.

"Yes."

"What do you propose we do?" Finally spoke up the commander of the desert rangers.

"Us? Oh, it's simple. We walk straight into whatever's prepared for us, with both eyes open."

Everyone nodded at that. It was the best way to deal with an ambush.

That, and nuke the ever living crap of the ambush site ahead of time. But they weren't there.

Yet.

That might change soon however...which was why her other self was currently busy getting their second warhead up and running, having put the Flickerlight project on a small, momentary hold.

"Then we continue our march." Finally said the duke. "Can we expect reinforcements?"

"Given the circumstances, it would be foolish not to send some. I was already planning to send a converted recon carrier, at the archduchess' suggestion, so we may have more recon flights."

"That would be a great asset. Particularly given the, ah, circumstances."

"Yes, it would. I'll divert more resources to the project. Otherwise...I have a fair few new armored units I could bring forward. Prototypes, to be clear."

"Of what kind?"

"A few spider tanks. And a...Mackie."

"A Mackie?"

Alexandra smiled as she leaned forward.

"Let me tell you a tale..."

*****

"This was...unfortunate." Said the Adjudicator to the hologram before her.

"Even we cannot govern the whims and diktats of chance." Answered the Custodian. "Chaos must, however, be controlled."

"Of course." The Adjudicator silenced the once quiet, now almost screaming voice of doubt within her mind. "What are your orders my lord?"

"Track down the Order. They know we are on their tail, and with the UDC shattering, the Purge has begun."

"What if this was their doing?"

"We are investigating. So far, however, it does seem to be due to random chance."

"And the destruction of Unification?"

"The plan, however hastily implemented by our people there, went remarkably close to what was expected. Most of the avatars never made it off. Laria's survival appears to have been mere chance."

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The Adjudicator nodded, though the quiet voice of doubt was once again rising within her.

"Then it appears all is well on the path to salvation."

"Yes. But we must remain vigilant in keeping it there. How goes your investigation?"

"Their commander is competent. And highly paranoid. I will give them that. But our noose tightens. The Republic's civil war slows us down, however. Chaos favors those who wish to disappear, and we simply cannot rely on the local authorities for support and obeisance. Not when we do not even know who is going to be the local authorities by the next dawn."

"An unfortunate consequence. Do you require reinforcements?"

The Adjudicator grimaced, her face bending in inhuman ways briefly, before she brought it back under control.

"Can any be spared from other fronts, now that the Purge is underway?"

"...No. We've already stretched ourselves to the breaking point sparing you and your contingent."

"Then no. I will make do."

The Custodian nodded.

"Very well then. Remember, the fate of all Creation may hang in the balance. Glory be His Name."

The Adjudicator shivered, at the oblique reminder of what their true charge was.

What could never be allowed to be used again...or destroyed.

Especially not by the heirs of the Firstborne.

"Yes. It may. Glory be His Pyre."

The hologram flickered and vanished as the connection was cut, and the Adjudicator took in a deep breath, taking a few seconds to center herself, before opening the door, greeting the Inquisitor guarding her room with a nod, before wordlessly making her way out of the building, the bodyguard following her.

She had work to do.

*****

"Are you alright?" Asked Emilia as she sat by Alexandra's side.

The dungeon core looked at her girlfriend and sighed.

"I...I don't know."

"...What's happening?"

"I don't know either. I just...I'm starting to have hallucinations."

"Hallucinations?" Said the vampire as she hugged her girlfriend, putting her head on the taller woman's shoulder.

"Flashbacks." Alexandra shifted, to get her advisor a more comfortable position. "To...back on Earth. Or Alpha Centauri. And then...I think I fell asleep, and dreamed it."

"Dungeon cores...don't sleep." Said Emilia, her concern evident as their gazes met.

"No. No they don't. But AIs do. And I...I don't even know what I am at this point. I've been rebuilt by Ghost, but there's not telling what kind of damage may be below the surface."

"You're you, and that's what counts, right?"

"Right." Alexandra sighed. "I guess I should be going back to work."

"There's much to do." Emilia cleared her throat as the dungeon core untangled herself and got up. "Alex?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm with you. No matter what comes, I'll be with you. Okay?"

Alexandra smiled.

"Thank you. That means a lot to me."

"No problem." Emilia slapped her thighs, before getting up. "Now, let's be about it."

*****

Alexandra tapped her fingers on the guardrail of the catwalk overseeing the shipyard.

Necessity was the mother of invention, as they said, and there was necessity aplenty. With the entirety of the UDC's remnants breathing down her neck, as well as Gods knew what could be spawned from the Order and the Church's shadowy dealings, her recon carrier had gone from an interesting fix to a minor logistical hurdle that could become bigger in the future to an absolute priority.

Because she knew what to expect of Sunrise, but she had very little idea of what the UDC could throw at her. Oh, she had intel about the various dungeons, thanks to her own allies that had now left the organization in blood and fire, but there were too many possibilities and combinations.

The only thing she knew for certain is that, once, the UDC had made the entire world kneel before it. Put a sword before the throat of every realm and made them foreswear the means to enslave dungeons as well as interference within their matters. That hold may have withered over time but as someone who had faced the UIS when it was a shadow of its former power, devoured from within by bureaucratic incompetence and corruption, even a withered a failing giant could crush you...and be reborn anew.

She really hoped she was Ciel in this scenario. Damn, when had she ever compared herself favorably to the UIS' dictator and her archnemesis? That bitch had caused the death of her siblings. Even if it was arguably indirectly in Leah’s case.

Alexandra shook her head as she let go of the railing, and stepped back into the observation room.

"Status?" She called out to Seraph, who was overseeing the construction alongside Subtlety, the former using a plain golem and the latter an ambassador, overlaid with a hologram of her avatar.

"We are on schedule." Said Seraph. "So far, at any rate."

Alexandra smiled at the AI, almost despite herself. Finally learning cynism? Atta little robot.

"Alright. Composition of the new wave?"

"With no need to supply our allies with more vessels for the purpose of arming them, some production capabilities have been diverted from the Freedom-class assembly to mainline fleet production. The partially complete vessels have been recycled for the new Eagle-class recon carriers."

"Which is good, otherwise this would take forever. How are the other ships?"

"As previously ordered, Raider production has been decreased in favor of more Corsair ships. Two Corsair vessels, three Raiders and two Eagle-class should be ready to be launched together. They will join three Freedom-class, refitted for heavy armored unit transport."

"And the Tetsudo?"

The AI shrugged.

"The Tetsudo-class are proving complicated to manufacture. Three more are underway, but they will be delayed."

"That's to be expected, I suppose." Alexandra sighed. The escort light cruisers, and their combining shields, were one hell of a marvel for the level of tech she was restricted to. But they were also not strictly necessary here. Three should suffice in guarding the So Much For Subtlety for now. "Well, it'll have to do. Subtlety, how are we on ammunition?"

The other AI straightened.

"With little to no usage, our stockpiles are at an all time high. So much so that I have ordered much of the new shipments deposited in Darthar, lest they slow the main army down."

"That's good. What about more specialist ammunition?"

"The first enchanted missiles and shells are exiting the assembly line as we speak. They are...satisfactory."

"Still don't trust them?" Alexandra didn't need to precise who the 'them' were. Subtlety regarded the vampire enchanters Freya had brought as little better than an enemy formation.

"Given their affiliations, and current events, the possibility of a spy or saboteurs within their mist approaches unity."

"Agreed. Which is why they're still here. Keep your friends close..."

"As much as this proverb may prove apt, it is still a significant risk."

"I know. But let's face it, if the God of Fire or his servants want to spy on us, he could just order us to house an Adjudicator and we'd have to acquiesce. Better to let them sneak around and think they're being subtle, blunting their own efficiency with their fear and caution."

"Affirmative."

Alexandra looked out, through the heavily armored, and shielded, window.

"Do you have any assessments to share."

"Glitch would be a better construct to ask." Subtlety hesitated, then sighed. "This situation is deeply suboptimal."

"You mean it's royally fucked."

"Affirmative. The reaction to the collapse of the UDC is one of shock, but the ripples are small due to the limited scope of the engagements."

Alexandra nodded.

"I know what you mean. Both sides killed each other in their bases and installations. No collateral damage."

"This will change. Any attack upon another dungeon de facto means attacking a dungeon town. A major economic, industrial and cultural hub in any nation. Usually a seat of power for local or regional governments."

Alexandra nodded again. There was a reason the capitals of all six of the Asarian duchies, including Asaria itself, the King remained the Duke of Asaria after all, were on top of dungeon towns.

"And once that happens, their authority might collapse, causing their underlings to vie for control."

"And if other dungeons are slain, it will create a gigantic refugee crisis. On a large enough scale, it could create a chain reaction."

Alexandra nodded. The only 'good' part about the Terran Hegemony was that its bioweapons killed people quickly enough without treatment that there hadn't been a refugee crisis. Anyone who escaped the initial attack and tried to run would be caught up by the engineered pathogens and eliminated. It was also why regions like the middle east had been utterly wiped out, with no major pharmaceutical industries of their own, and trade routes annihilated, there simply had been no possibility of importing the medicine and treatments necessary to stave off the horrors unleashed from the genius of the Hegemony's scientists.

"Which is probably exactly what they're aiming for." Simply answered the dungeon core. "One more fucking domino falls."

The AI hesitated.

"What...do we do, ma'am?"

"For now? We play the game with the hand we have, and stockpile our aces. Once we're ready, we go all in, whether they know it or not."

"That is a risky play."

"This entire game is risky! We have no choice." Alexandra sighed. "I need to talk to Emilia. Get an update on her efforts to get the advisors together."

"Will you tell her?"

"That I'm planning to rewrite her fellows' nanotech, turn them into trojan horses to break the shackles her God has set up? Fuck no. In this case, I think I'll beg for forgiveness later." The Earth-borne once again looked out the windows. "You're doing good work. Keep it up."

"Thank you ma'am." Chorused both AIs, and Alexandra left.

So many things were in motion. But at last, she was starting to fully glimpse the board she was playing on, and who was in the game.

She dearly hoped, at least.

Because if she didn't...then there was no telling what would happen.