City-21 “Kyiv”, UNSA Protectorate, Avril Dominion
Sky Bastion “Queen Lamarck”
Jurgen von Scholz, August 16, 8:41 AM
Jurgen von Scholz stood up from his desk and walked over to the window. He stopped, hands clasped behind his back, grimly watching as another pair of super-heavy cargo trucks descended from orbit, docking at the Internal Security Service’s docks.
image [https://i.imgur.com/RwmvVQK.jpg]
“Directive 9/00, huh? I doubt the other… sides are letting this slide. The all-wise Templars will be wavering, debating the impossibility of it all, and how nothing will come of it, just like every time before. Meanwhile, our ‘partners’ will jump into the fray. Because even a ghost of a chance at gaining such power is worth the most active involvement.”
“I wouldn’t be surprised if TACTA is already in the game. At least the Imperials are out of the picture this time, thank the Great Father. Though they’ll undoubtedly try to claim their piece of the pie as soon as they get wind of it. Whereas predicting the response of the Shaiszu’s Supreme Intelligence is another matter. With no Reapers or Matriarchs detected yet, we have a little time. I hope… But those creatures are too cunning and intelligent for their behavior to be easily forecasted.”
“Oberst-Protector, Major Bianchi on the line,” the soft voice of his secretary sounded in his ear.
“Just in time. I hope he has good news,” von Scholz thought, returning to his desk, and selecting the mediaglyph “Answer Call.”
“Eternal Sun, Jurgen!” An absolutely bald young man appeared before him in AR, seemingly no older than twenty-five, dressed in a white and rather shabby lab coat over a lightweight black-and-red combat jumpsuit. On his head, from the back and almost all the way to the middle of the forehead, were several rows of ports, most of which had cables connected to them that went somewhere off-screen.
“Eternal Sun, Saverio. What are the results?”
“Task assigned too late, deadlines too tight. Resources insufficient…”
“I know that,” von Scholz interrupted habitually. “So, what are the results?”
“We tracked this vehicle from the starting point, an underground parking lot near the Palace of Sports. It crossed the Kyiv Ring Expressway shortly after curfew, heading south towards the town of Bila Tserkva,” Saverio nodded his shaved head and even raised an index finger. “During the journey, it made one stop within the KRE and six outside, each about ten minutes. The longest was the fourth — thirteen minutes forty-three seconds. The locations for all stops were chosen to be covered from above by roofs, without cameras and lighting. Twelve minutes after the truck left the last stop, it was spotted by a patrol drone.”
“Ours?”
“Unfortunately, not. An Earth-built ‘Owl.’ Quite an old model with a noticeable imbalance — powerful missiles, enough for a hundred such trucks, but its ‘eyes’ are just old low-resolution cameras, narrow-range IR sensors, and a fairly selective search radar. No introscopic capabilities.”
“Was the target destroyed?” The Oberst-Protector stood and walked back to the window.
“Barbarically. The locals recently had a nuclear war on the continent, and before that, years of armed conflict. As a result, almost all requisitioned military-patrol equipment is outdated but very powerful. We’re left with a truck burned to ashes and minimal remains suitable for investigation.”
“That’s too bad,” von Scholz sighed, clasping his hands behind his back again. “We’ll have to dig deep.”
“Yeah, I understand. The search team is already formed and departs in ten minutes. If there were people in the truck, traces will be found… but that won’t help us much.”
“I don’t harbor illusions that anyone was alive in there,” Jurgen nodded. “We’re up against a quite skilled team. They’ve set so many false targets that we’ll lose a week checking them all.”
“Regrettably, yes,” Saverio scratched his bald head, avoiding the implants. “You’d better rely on the psychologists and sociotechnicians. Otherwise, the targets will escape. We estimate a twenty-five percent chance they’ve already left the Second Perimeter.”
The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.
“The first independent cities are already developing in the south, giving us a rough direction of their movement. But even if our targets are still in the City, they’ll try to break out in the first few days, before the Wall is built and defenses get at full strength…”
At that moment, a short beep sounded, and the secretary announced: “Oberst-Protector, an incoming call initiated by Kriegsherzog Adalbert von Lamarck. Connecting in one minute.”
“That’s it, Saverio, I’m disconnecting. Looks like it’s time to begin active work. Stay close,” von Scholz smirked.
“Oh, where would I even go? I’m only sleeping two hours a day… Call me when you’re done. Long Sun!”
The Oberst-Protector returned to his desk, quickly scanning through the key points of the report he had just sent personally to the Kriegsherzog.
“In the next version, I need to include preliminary conclusions about this vehicle. Dispatching task forces to the truck’s stops will still be necessary, just as investigating leads in the city — especially in the underground parking lot. This might help us better understand their route. All of this must go into the report. For now, it's standard procedure. Awaiting the call...”
A message flashed about establishing a highly secure connection, and a large screen unfolded before von Scholz.
General Adalbert von Lamarck sat at a massive table, the active surface of which could freely transform, allowing him to work with various objects in reality. From the physical visualization of information structures to the full management of high-level GT-constructs.
A glance at one of such GT-constructs in the center of the table showed the Oberst-Protector that the Protectorate was in for serious trouble. A massive ring slowly rotated, seemingly woven from hundreds of thousands of small pulsating colorful threads, spirals, and jagged lines. This was the physical projection of a Supergiant-class portal descriptor.
“True Sun, Kriegsherzog, General von Lamarck,” Jurgen stood, raising his hand in a military salute.
“Eternal Sun, Jurgen. I can see from your eyes that you’ve already figured it out, so I’ll be direct — yes. First Circle Templar Analysts have detected a portal opening.”
“Far from us?” von Scholz frowned.
“Much closer than we’d like. Just over a thousand kilometers to the southwest.”
“Is it the Queen?”
“The analysts are confident it is. And unfortunately, that’s not all. Look here.”
Von Lamarck’s fingers danced over the projection, zooming in, and literally flipping a small section inside out. Within a minute, a small structure resembling the number ‘8’ became visible.
“Incredible!” The Oberst-Protector allowed himself a touch of emotion in his voice. “So cleverly hidden… How did you even manage to spot it?”
“Pure luck. If such a thing can be said in our current situation.”
“I understand. This must be one of the First Ones, right?”
“Yes,” the Kriegsherzog replied curtly. “But the TACTA denies everything, those schemers!”
“The appearance of the First Ones significantly tilts the balance of power in TACTA’s favor,” noted the Oberst-Protector, examining the shimmering figure-eight that had been uncovered.
“In response, the Protectorate has dispatched the Third Bearer of the Sun from the Great Spheres, accompanied by the full circle of High Templars,” von Lamarck said, revealing a new ring under his fingers. This one was significantly smaller than the previous, composed mostly of white and gold threads, with rare streaks of red.
“Even that might not be enough.”
A bright silver star flickered in the projection.
“Possibly. Therefore, it has been decided,” von Lamarck continued, “to send a Titan-class flying fortress to support our sector. This will cover the shortage of modern equipment and provide good maneuvering capabilities.”
“The Templars and the Third Bearer of the Sun should be enough to bog down the Shaiszu Queen in a prolonged positional war… Meanwhile, I can focus on what I do best…” von Scholz said, gazing thoughtfully at the shimmering lines of the projection.
The subsequent thoughts he didn’t dare voice to the Kriegsherzog, despite their old friendship:
“…You’re so afraid of heresy accusations that you can’t even say it out loud, let alone think about it.”
“That’s understandable — the Great Father is very stern and would ‘summon’ you for merely entertaining the thought of his rival.”
“For now, you stay calm, pretending that nothing happened, that this is just another false alarm under Directive 9/00. You think sending a small squad to eliminate the target will suffice, just as before… Only to ensure nothing significant happened this time either…”
“But in reality, I am utterly convinced we have truly discovered a being, who possesses the power, speed, and potential of artificial intelligence while also being human, a Geist-Token bearer… If Iris interferes with the self-awareness and evolution of such a being… A New God will be born, no less. That’s what everyone is afraid to say out loud! Especially since, in that case, the ‘Alisa’ entity will undoubtedly surpass our Great Father!”
“We should mobilize maximum forces — the Protectorate must prevent this event at all costs. Yet, the Templar Analysts remain silent, and it’s unclear why.”
“Meanwhile, the Queen is already here; the shaiszu have long dreamed of evolving their Supreme Intelligence. Perhaps that’s why she arrived in this world so unexpectedly and so early, regardless of the energy costs.”
“The Empire wants this Force on its side and will intervene actively as soon as they find out what’s happening.”
“And TACTA… TACTA wants a second Iris, at least as a ‘High-Level Independent Partner’.”
“Well then,” concluded Adalbert von Lamarck, “You now know the balance of power and must incorporate this into your plans. By the authority vested in me by the Great Keeper, I order you to find, capture, and deliver the entity codenamed ‘Alisa’ to the Sky Bastion ‘Queen Lamarck.’ Use every available resource at your disposal. Recruit agents from the promising local population, leverage the capabilities of the Bastion, and employ the approaching Titan.”
“I cannot provide you with unlimited resources, von Scholz, but I will do everything in my power to ensure Directive 9/00 is implemented as soon as possible. Fulfill this mission, Oberst-Protector.”