Men and women started trickling into the command tent in twos and threes. As they entered, Aidan saw a clear division between two groups forming. The hardened combat professionals numbered a little more than a dozen on one side. On the other, twice that number was reflected in civilian personnel representing most of the camp’s people.
When Guzman, Gray, and Yanovna all entered and silently indicated that everyone had arrived, the camp commander clapped his hands and stood.
“Welcome, everyone. I’ve had the pleasure of speaking to some of you already,” the commander gave a friendly nod to the various lieutenants that led the combat teams before turning to the other side of you.
“For the rest of you, this will be our first meeting that doesn’t include me sweating under the sun on top of a wooden platform.”
He received a light chuckle for his efforts to break the tense atmosphere.
“I’ve brought all of you here to assign formal leadership roles and set the direction for the camp’s development. With the new technology we’ve acquired, I expect our growth to be rapid, and I’ll be relying on all of you to ensure we get as much accomplished as possible within the coming weeks or months.”
Aidan was about to start handing out assignments and asking for volunteers when one of the civilians raised their hand. Aidan noticed that it was a short Asian woman with short-cropped hair and a notable grease stain on one cheek.
“What’s your name?” Aidan asked while silently asking Astra to record all the names he heard in the room for later retrieval.
“Agano Hiro, Commander” As the woman said his rank, he felt the woman’s distaste for the word.
“What’s your question?” He asked.
“We’re in a military dictatorship. Do you intend to subject all of the camp’s civilians to military authority?”
Aidan awkwardly chuckled before answering. “Well, yes and no. Yes, because you’re right. This is a dictatorship according to the System. Assigning ranks gives attribute bonuses to the people they’re bestowed on. So it would be detrimental in our development not to use the tools the System gives us.”
He saw the woman’s face clouding, so Aidan quickly explained. “No, because I’m not going to subject you to military rule. In fact, I plan on making you a part of the leadership structure within the camp. I have some limitations based on the number of people under my command, but I intend to distribute the roles equally as possible.”
He didn’t see approval or disapproval on the woman’s face, so Aidan expanded his explanation.
“I’ve assigned the rank of Lieutenant to all of the leaders of the various combat teams, and I’d like to do something similar with the civilian personnel,” Aidan explained. “Could anyone tell me the functional areas the civilians have been categorized into?”
There were some whispered words among the civilians until, finally, a lone man separated himself from the crowd. He introduced himself before speaking.
“Andre Pierre, Commander. I was the unofficial second in command to Dr. Smith.”
“A lot of that seemed to be going around,” Aidan quipped.
“Indeed, Commander.” Andre nodded his head. “The Camp hasn’t been organized well under Dr. Smith’s tenure. However, our camp has experts focused on xenobiology, medical science, agricultural science, material science, and various other engineering disciplines.”
Aidan frowned as he noticed a distinct absence in the list. “Was there anyone focused on weapons or equipment?” He asked.
“Ah, no,” Andre admitted, and the commander swore under his breath. “Dr. Smith directed us to work on unlocking the science behind the Codex, understanding the System’s effects on materials, and understanding the System interaction with our biology.”
Aidan glanced around the room and saw that the combat classes had looks of stunned realization on their faces. He had to admit he was shocked himself. It was no wonder that despite nine months in the System, they had equipment wildly inferior to their opponents.
The communicator was a perfect example. The Chinese had equipment that charged itself while in a person’s inventory. Meanwhile, Camp Plymouth had no power or materials and had to write things down on old-fashioned parchment.
Aidan steepled his fingers and stared at the civilian. “It didn’t occur to anyone that equipping your combat teams would help you complete missions and get engrams, which would then help you progress with the Codex?”
The man shrugged. “Some of us had that opinion, but Dr. Smith was the one who discovered the meaning hidden within the Codex in the first place. Her opinion is highly respected in our community.”
“That’s unfortunate,” said Aidan darkly. “Because Dr. Smith was the one communicating with our enemies.”
The commander tossed Andre the communicator and then pointed at it. “That communicator was found in Dr. Smith’s inventory. We discovered she had communicated regularly with a Chinese-backed think tank she used to work for.”
A dawning horror crossed the man’s features as he inspected the device. Aidan narrated what the researcher discovered to the rest of the group. “I think you’ll find it powers an advance carbon nanotube battery from the zero-point energy found in a System inventory system.”
There was a gasp from one of the civilians in the crowd. Aidan was glad someone understood the full implications of the technology because he sure as hell didn’t. He just knew that his enemies being so far ahead was a Very Bad Thing.
“I think everyone is fully aware of the stakes,” the envoy commented. “So, with that said, I want to set up the leadership structure for the Camp.”
Aidan canvassed the room with his eyes. “First, I need someone who can work with the other departments to determine staffing levels. This is with the understanding that I want to radically increase the number of military personnel in our population. I’d like twenty-five percent of our entire force actively scouting for more engrams.”
There was a moment of hesitation before a blonde-haired woman from the civilian side raised her hand and stepped forward. “Kari Ostlund, Commander. I’m an analyst with the CIA. I think it’s well within my abilities to get a census together, understand our current needs, and project the forces we’ll need. I’m used to doing that sort of analysis on adversaries.”
Aidan nodded, “Great. Ostlund, you’re now my Director of Personnel and ranked as a Lieutenant.”
The commander already knew he was going to appoint next. He looked over at the inquisitor. “Gray, you’re my Director of Intelligence and Security. You’ll also be ranked as a Lieutenant for now. I don’t think I need to describe your duties.”
Gray just nodded. “Not necessary, Commander,” he agreed.
I need a combat class to serve as my Director of Operations and Training.
This time, the bearded man Aidan had spoken to raised his hand. Aidan struggled with his name for a moment before Astra bailed him out.
Sukhjeev Kuhar, Envoy.
Thanks, Astra.
“Thanks for volunteering, Kuhar. Although you might not like my task for you. In fact, none of you will.” The commander fastened his eyes on the non-combatants because he was sure that was where the most outcry would come from.
“Starting now, all non-combatants will be added to the guard and patrol schedules.”
He was right. As soon as the words left his mouth, the civilians started arguing. Only a few didn’t seem to care, and Aidan figured those were the spooks among the group. He held up a hand for silence, and it reluctantly came.
“Skills increase levels; the higher your skills, the faster you level. Further, if the camp gets attacked, I need to be confident that you will be able to defend yourselves and the camp. Make no mistake, this is an outpost on the frontier, and every camp member is required to pull their weight to defend it.”
The group was quiet, but Aidan knew he still hadn’t won them over. He could feel their tumultuous thoughts through his psychic senses like the waves of an acrid ocean. As they watched, the commander pulled out a small chip. He had earned the engram for catching the spy in the camp.
“This,” he held out the chip in hand as he spoke, “is an engram for a ‘localized System jammer.’ While the details are beyond me, the function seems pretty clear. It’s a way to trap people within the System. If you can’t access the System, you can’t log out or check your character screens. It probably locks your inventory too.”
The commander waited for everyone to realize the nefarious implications before continuing.
“If we possess an engram like this, considering how behind the power curve we are...” He trailed off before delivering the final blow.
“What does that say about our adversaries?”
Andre was the one who finally responded. “Point taken, Commander.”
The envoy nodded and then tossed the engram to Gray. The new Director of Intelligence and Security looked at the tiny chip before nodding and placing it into his inventory. The action wasn’t missed by anyone in the room, either.
“Moving on,” Aidan acted like nothing had happened. “I need someone to run our logistics system.”
This time a surprising figure stepped out of the crowd of civilians. Aidan hadn’t even realized the erstwhile armorer, McKay, numbered among the non-combatants. “I have plenty of experience in the area, Commander.”
Aidan nodded. “Thanks, McKay. I’ll have to trust you to fix the mess we’re in. I’m firing you if you ask me to clean my rifle more than once.”
The armorer laughed. “As long as you slip a twenty into the barrel, I don’t think we’ll have any problems, Commander.”
This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
The other combat classes laughed along with the two men, but the civilians looked confused. Aidan decided not to let them in on the joke. They could figure it out themselves when it was time to issue or return their weapons.
Aidan looked back at his new Director of Personnel. “Ostlund, I’ll need someone to oversee strategic planning. I want this role to include infrastructure, resources, and scientific development. The person will need to be able to work across the other areas of our command structure to make sure we’re moving in the right direction. You know someone?”
The woman’s ice-blue eyes looked around the room before returning to her commander. “No one here, Sir, but I have someone in mind who will be perfect in the role.”
Aidan nodded. “Excellent. Have them report to Guzman or to me for an official designation.”
The other areas of authority went pretty quickly. Aidan appointed a network architect named Alanzo Diaz to be responsible for all communication or other networks in the camp. He was officially titled the Director of Command, Control, and Communications. He was given the quantum communications engram and the handheld communicator to get started.
Afterward, Aidan put Andre Pierre over all the camp’s researchers as the Director of Research and Development. The man already held an unofficial leadership role in the base, and Aiden didn’t wish to rock the boat more than he already had. Hopefully, officially appointing Andre and giving him a rank would show the rest of the non-combatants that he would listen to their needs. Aidan gifted him the nuclear fusion engram and asked him to start working on a power source for the camp.
His last appointment went to a man by the name of Amir Aswad. Aswad’s day job in the other world had been as a software developer. However, he had been picked up by the Federal Reserve for his work in cryptocurrency, smart contracts, and distributed financial systems. Aidan tasked him as his Director of Finance and Resource Management. His first trial would be to negotiate the terms with the coming gnome caravan with a long-term goal of creating a currency within the System for the camp to use. Apparently, it was a task that the man was excited to perform. It appeared he had been underutilized under Smith’s regime because he thanked the commander profusely for the opportunity.
According to the System, Aidan still had one open position to give, but he didn’t know what else he needed. As the commander, he served as a dual diplomat and military leader and didn’t need departments for those functions. The envoy decided to let the position rest for now. Inevitably, when a problem arose, he would find a use for the open position.
He felt satisfied as he looked out over the men and women before him. The commander likely wouldn’t need to pick the last position anytime soon. The group of leaders pulled tables into a rough circle which Aidan sat at the head of. They chatted or shouted at one another about which priorities should be placed where. He saw his new directors strike deals to collaborate, get resources, or ask for more personnel. It was precisely what he wanted to see. The camp would have a new life, especially with these capable people in charge.
With a sigh, Aidan stood up and went to leave the tent. The others were so occupied that they didn’t even notice his exit. He ducked out of the tent and prepared to head toward the chow tent when a hand on his arm stopped him. He looked back and was surprised to see a strange sight. The petite Asian woman…
Agano Hiro, Astra supplied.
…Agano Hiro had a hand around Aidan’s arm, but she was frozen because a combat knife held by Yanovna was pressed to the engineer’s neck. Aidan saw a bead of blood on the blade’s edge.
“Uh, what’s going on, guys,” Aidan questioned.
“Guzman told me that I’m to keep watch over you at all times,” Nikita’s cold voice was an implied threat to the engineer.
Aidan frowned. “I don’t need a babysitter, Yanovna.”
The icy woman didn’t even move her knife as she shrugged. “Orders are orders, Commander. Even if you tell me not to, this is one where I agree with Guzman. You’re the leader of our faction, and you need to be guarded.”
The commander sighed but realized his friend was just looking out for him. He decided not to argue the issue for right now. “Well, Hiro isn’t trying to kill me, right?” He glanced at the diminutive engineer, and she very slightly nodded with wide eyes. The woman looked too afraid to speak for the risk of cutting her throat.
The knife practically disappeared, and its wielder left along with it. It was almost spooky how Yanovna could be invisible when she wanted to be—even in a crowd full of people. Hell, especially in a group of people.
Aidan didn’t worry about the shadow trooper and instead focused on Agano. “Come on, let’s talk on the way to chow.”
Agano nodded and followed Aidan down the dirt path that served as one of the camp’s major arteries. The woman didn’t seem like she would initiate the conversation, so Aidan took the lead.
“What’s up, Hiro? What do you need me for?”
The woman gave him a glance and said somewhat mutedly, “I’d like to join your team.”
The declaration, soft as it was, still made Aidan stop short and take a complete look at the woman. “Why would you want to do that?” He asked, genuinely curious.
“Your team is the best in camp, right?” The woman asked her own question.
Aidan shrugged before answering. “Probably, but only because they have special positions right now. Whenever we shift away from being a military dictatorship, they’ll probably have the same attributes as everyone else.”
“I don’t see that happening,” the woman said plainly. “I can recognize a movement when I see it.”
Aidan didn’t bother arguing with her about the future. Things would happen, or they wouldn’t. It wasn’t worth worrying about right now.
“Even if we’re the best, what does that have to do with you?”
“I’m the best engineer in the camp,” Agano answered. Her tone didn’t betray a hint of arrogance. It was a simple fact that she thought everyone was aware of. Seeing that Aidan hadn’t been convinced, she continued to explain.
“Your team will need someone to design and create special gear for you. You will have the most demanding requirements, the most experimental equipment, and the biggest challenges to overcome. Not only am I the best option to build what you need, but I want to be in the place that’s going to challenge my skills the most.”
Ask her about the neural interface and the modified skin suit. Astra quickly prompted him.
Yeah, if she can make headway on those projects, that will help us. Aidan agreed. But don’t forget, we need new armor, and we have a bunch of drone parts that can be repurposed into armor and weapons.
Well, ask her about it all then, Astra replied. If she’s confident she can make all those things, having a dedicated crafter on the team would be worth it.
“Alright, let’s go back to my tent. I want to show you something.” Aidan told the woman. He immediately regretted his choice of words when a look of disgust crossed the woman’s features.
Aidan quickly raised his hands. “Woah, Woah. Sorry, that’s not what I meant. My team picked up some interesting Progenitor drone parts in our last patrol. I want to show you and talk about the equipment I want the team to have.”
“I apologize, Commander.” Hiro slightly bowed her head. “I thought you were talking about something else.”
Aidan coughed awkwardly and led the woman to his tent. He reached into his inventory to pull out the drone parts when they arrived. He laid samples on his cot and introduced their background to Agano.
“We cleared out a progenitor listening station close to the gnome village of Stalakmitzil. We fought these drones that were practically immune to laser weaponry. Not only that, but the boss had a personal psi-shield that made it practically immune.”
The Asian woman picked up various parts and scrutinized them. She finally spoke when she had methodically looked through each one and placed it back.
“What are you wanting for your team?”
Aidan was practically giddy as he listed his full wishlist. “First, I’d like better skin suits. These are damn good at what they do, but I think they’re only one part of an overall design. I’d like a superconductor layer embedded in the skin suit to directly communicate with the outer layers of a full defensive system.”
Agano nodded. “I already considered that. We’re using the skin suits as armor, but they’re intended as comfortable clothing to be worn under everything else.”
“Exactly,” Aidan agreed. “After that, I think it gets more complicated. I think we need something that takes advantage of our superhuman attributes. We’re stronger, faster, more intelligent, and have faster reaction speeds than the average human outside of the System. We need a layer of armor that protects us and enhances our natural gifts. We need our bodies to react as quickly as our minds do.”
“You want to reduce the ping?” Agano clarified.
“The ping?” Aidan asked because he genuinely had no idea what she was talking about.
“The ping is the time it takes for your brain to tell your body something to do.” Agano clarified. “I think we could make something like a neural interface that spoke directly to a layer of synthetic muscle. We could incorporate force multiplying and reactive circuits. That would allow you to hit harder and move faster than anyone with equivalent attributes.”
Yes! Astra heartily agreed. That’s exactly what I want! Envoy, tell her we need this right away.
Aidan smiled at his companion’s excitement, but he wanted to be sure that Agano could actually manufacture something like that.
“Is that something you can do?” He asked the engineer.
The woman didn’t scoff or make a bold claim like the envoy had expected her to.
“Not by myself, no.” Agano carefully replied. “The schematics to create something like that are incredibly detailed. The camp doesn’t have the materials to create something like that in the replicator. However…” the woman trailed off and picked up some of the artificial musculature that Aidan had salvaged off of a combat drone.
“With this, I can design a full suit that works off of the same principles, and if you have enough of this material, I can have the replicator break it down and use it to build the suits. The hard part for me will be to design the schematics and the circuitry that will have to go along with it.”
“What about the neural interface?” Aidan questioned.
“That’s actually the easier part for me,” the short woman said. “I went to MIT for a dual degree in biomedical engineering and mechanical engineering.”
Something must have shown on Aidan’s face because Agano continued to explain. “I had a brother who suffered from Lou Gehrig’s disease. I went to school in an attempt to save him. After school, I worked at a company called Metalink. We worked on implants in the brain to help people with disabilities. After that, I was recruited to work for DARPA to do the same things.”
Despite Agano’s impressive credentials, Aidan could sense a deep sadness. He guessed that for all her success, she had never been able to save her brother in time. He was diplomatic enough not to ask and turned the conversation back to more practical concerns.
“How long do you think it will take to create the schematics for something like this?”
Agano didn’t answer right away. Instead, she picked up the milk-colored armor plating from a combat drone and studied it carefully.
“I’m confident that with the System’s help, I can get schematics built for the skinsuit, bodysuit, and neural interface in just a few days of constant effort.” The woman’s tone didn’t have a hint of pride or arrogance. She sounded like a doctor delivering a diagnosis. She rapped a knuckle on the armor and continued to speak while studying the material.
“The armor will be a bit more complicated. I’m less familiar with that sort of thing, but I’m sure someone in camp can help me. Let’s say I can have the suits and interfaces created and installed within a week. That will make you stronger and faster and slightly more bullet resistant. After that, it’ll take another week to get specialized armor created for the various specialties of your team. You guys will also need helmets.” Agano added the last part as an afterthought.
When Aidan remained quiet, Agano glanced back up at him and noticed the stupid grin on his face. She shared a small, dimpled smile in return.
“So, do I get the job?” She asked.
“Absolutely,” Aidan agreed. He was worried about not being able to add her with the System restriction on the number of team members he was allowed to have. However, the System clearly didn’t identify her as a combat class, and she was immediately added to the Diplomatic Security Service.
“The DSS?” Hiro asked. “You couldn’t come up with a better name?”
Aidan shrugged. “Technically, I’m a diplomat. If I become a true military dictator, maybe I’ll change the name to something more fear-inspiring.”
Better start thinking of names, Envoy. Astra quipped.
What? You too? Why does everyone think I want this job so badly? Aidan groused.
It’s not that you want it. It’s that you’re the only one capable of holding it. Astra took his question seriously. Not just in your faction but in the world. You’ve got an AI helping you, you’re already a psionic powerhouse for your level, and things will only improve.
Aidan sighed but decided not to argue with his companion. He felt like he was doing that a lot lately.
“Alright, here’s access to my stash.” The envoy told Agano. “Take what you need. If you need more, ask Guzman for it. He’ll get you everything you could ask for.”
Aidan was about to elaborate more, but he was interrupted by a polite cough. Aidan looked back and jumped through his skin as he realized that Yanovna had entered the tent without either Agano or him realizing it.
“Christ,” he swore. “Can you warn someone before you do shit like that?”
“That’s why I coughed,” Yanovna said in her usual flat tone.
Aidan could swear that the woman was laughing at him, but he couldn’t detect a hint of amusement on the woman’s face. Nor did he sense it through his psychic powers. The woman’s iron control over her own expression was formidable.
“Alright,” he finally said. “What’s up?”
“A gnome caravan has arrived in the camp,” Nikita informed. “The guards can’t understand anything the gnomes are saying, and they’ve leveled weapons at our guests.”
“Fuck,” Aidan swore as he pushed past the trooper and left his tent. He broke into a sprint toward the front entrance of the camp. On his way, he bemoaned their timing and that he didn’t have a translator built already.
“Why are they here already!?”