272: A Plague of Phantoms: Dueling Competence II

"HEEELP MEEEE! AAAAAHHHH! AAAAAAHHHHH!" The screams of yet another challenger echoed through the biome as he was dragged through the water by the evo he was supposed to be attempting to bond with.

The evo in question was a Mer-as-folk, a naval anti-sea craft type evo that specializes in attacking larger transport type evos. I designed the based off the ancient sailor myth of the mermaid, only these weren't exactly beautiful women. They were made with human and swordfish DNA and had the lower body of a swordfish and the upper body of a human. Each one looked human enough in the face that they could pass for one of just their heads were sticking out the water.

"You have to yell: you surrender!" I yelled out to the challenger as I watched the Mer-as-folk drag him around the biome by his ankle.

"I SURRENDER! I SURREEEEENDEEEEER!" He bellowed. The Mer-as-folk thar was dragging him around let go and the man flew into one of the walls and bounced off it before floating down to the biome's floor.

The Mer-as-folk's biome always surprised me. It was a giant coliseum that was completely submerged underwater. It had a clear crystal dome that sunlight and moonlight shined through depending on the time of day which was linked to real-time so it was easy to keep track of time.

"Ouch!" Haws groaned and covered his eyes.

"Major Quill!" A English soldier screamed and swam past me towards the Major.

"He'll be fine! That wasn't enough to kill him!" I called after the soldier. The Mer-as-folk that threw the Major swam around me and made a loud clicking sound.

"Too weak! Not fit to claim me!" The Mer-as-folk huffed.

All evos have a hierarchy or some sort of structure that determines how they interact with members of their own kind, these structures determine how splicers can form bonds with them. The Mer-as-folk were a very confrontational evo that loved fighting and training, so the only way to form a bond with one is to beat if in a fight.

For the last hour or so I have been inside the Mer-as-folk biome allowing people to try and form bonds with them. It's been about three hours in total since the execution of Reagan and Anders and in that time I've spent time showing off both the Mer-as-folk and the Lunar Liger Shark. Only one person other than Viola managed to form a bond with a Lunar Liger Shark; a captain from the Welsh navy; and nobody has managed to form a bond with a Mer-as-folk as of yet.

"Master Kingston!" Someone called out to me. I turned towards the sound and looked at the group that I took into the Biome with me and Haws. There were thirteen of them, military officials from various countries, all but two has tried to claim one of the ten Mer-as-folk in the Biome and none of them succeeded.

"Yes?" I asked. The woman that spoke swam forward and frowned at me.

"Master Kingston, is this all a joke? A game for your amusement?" The woman asked. I frowned back at her and crossed my arms.

"No? Why would you ask that?" I asked. The woman pointed at the pod of Mer-as-folk swimming above us.

"There is no way any of us can defeat one of those things underwater! They're too fast and if it wasn't for the spell you cast on us we'd all drown!" The woman exclaimed.

"It not that hard." Haws said with a shrug. The woman shot Haws a glare.

"I understand that you are under the employ of Master Kingston and an American but it is considered rude in my home country for a normie to comment on matters of splicers. Please know your place!" The woman said sternly.

"Oh no…" I muttered.

No sooner had the words left her mouth did a trident come sailing through the water and slammed into the ground in front of the woman. She shrieked and tumbled backward, spiraling until one of the men in the group caught her. The woman looked up and saw the entire pod glaring down at her with tridents poised to strike.

"How dare you insult Overseer Haws!" The alpha Mer-as-folk exclaimed.

"Wait what?!" The woman exclaimed.

"Weak woman! Overseer Haws is the strongest!" Another Mer-as-folk exclaimed.

"Geez! Guys! What did I tell you all! No throwing tridents!" Haws yelled up at the evos.

All of the Mer-as-folk flinched and their tridents shattered in their hands. The Mer-as-folk could channel two mana attributes: Freeze and Whirl. They created tridents using freeze attribute mana and whirl attributes to alter the water currents around them to trap their targets.

"Before you go throwing around accusations and start telling me that the prerequisites for buying my evos is too hard, you should know that Haws has managed to beat every evo in this Biome." I said then motioned to Haws. The woman's eyes widened as she looked at Haws then back to me.

"Wait that normie!" She exclaimed. Haws snorted and shook his head.

"I couldn't call myself a evo handler if I couldn't beat a couple of greenhorns like this sorry lot!" Haws huffed and shot the Mer-as-folk a glare. They all flinched again and looked away.

In truth Haws was able to win thanks to the modifications I made to his body when I fixed his arm. Particularly his body's ability to generate electricity which he used to electrocute all the Mer-as-folk at once when they first tried to test him. Now they see him as an unbeatable warrior beyond their reach.

A loud ringing sound echoed through the biome, alerting me that the communication ring was being used. After a moment Jane's voice echoed through the Biome.

"Chase! It's time for your meeting with Justice Technologies to receive the Ancient Liger Shark." Jane informed me. I groaned and pinched the bridge of my nose.

"Got it! I'm heading out now. Inform Nate and Sin to have Orkand and Ogarai squads to start packing up the cage gateways. Please work with Jade to pack up her stall too." I said.

"Understood." Jane replied and cut the connection. I looked at all the military officials and sighed.

"Well that means visiting time is over." I said.

***

I stood at the entrance to the harbor with Alberto and Damon at my side. I was here to get the ancient liger shark from Beaufort, I'd rather have done this by myself but Jane and Iris were absolutely against it. After the fake execution of Reagan and Anders they knew the American's would be very angry and bitter. The information that Madilyn gave us earlier didn't hell in that regard.

"Isn't this going a little too far even for you Chase?" Alberto asked as he looked out at the bustling harbor.

"I'm going to have to agree with Alberto on this one…" Damon agreed. I rolled my eyes at them.

"Compared to all the shit these fuckers have done to me and splicers like me, a fake execution and the death of a few dozen soldiers who were prepared to kill a small family is nothing really." I said casually.

"When you put it like that…" Damon muttered. I looked at the both of them sternly.

"Listen both of you. I am doing the talking, if anyone talks to you deflect the question to me. Don't let anyone goad you. Any pride you have in being a splicer, bury it! They all just lost people so they will be looking for any reason to retaliate." I warned them

"I understand." Alberto said. Damon nodded in agreement.

With that I turned headed started walking into the harbor. Alberto and Damon stick close behind as we weaved our way through the busy sector. The space was mainly occupied by splicers getting their naval evos ready to ferry the royals and Military officials to the staging area for the combat demonstration and Viola and mine's duel.

We finally saw some Americans at a pier near the back of the harbor. And sadly I recognized a few of them. First and foremost I recognized Logan, he stood with a near blank expression that I recognized as his thinking face. Beside him was that young private Oliver who was his biggest fan boy. Cross was a good distance away from everyone else, leaning against a rope railing on the pier. There were also two others from Logan's squad there but I didn't know their names or cared to learn. To make a bad ensemble even worse Beaufort and Thomas were there as well, standing at the edge of the pier and looking over the evo that would be our ferry.

Logan was the first to notice the guys and I as we approached. He stood up straight and hos hand immediately came to rest in the buy of his sidearm. Seeing this change everyone in his squad became alert and quickly noticed us as well. I heard Cross shout something at Beaufort and Thomas and the two of them turned around.

[We'll someone looks on edge…] Alberto said through the manacite communication rings.

[Quiet you…] I hushed sharply.

Beaufort and Thomas walked down the length of their pier and meet my party at the beginning of it. Beaufort's face was a red as a tomato as he looked at me, while Thomas looked ashamed.

"Chase Kingston…" Beaufort spat out as the guys and I came to a stop.

"President Justice…" I said then glanced over at Thomas but didn't acknowledge him. "…So where's this old ass shark you owe me?"

"Old ass shark?" Thomas muttered then frowned. "Really Chase? I know your mother and I taught you better manners than that!"

[Could have fooled me! I thought he'd been raises by gorillas.] Damon said through the manacite communication rings.

[Or bears!] Alberto chuckled.

[HA! HA!] I said in a deadpan voice to the two of them then addressed Thomas. "It seems that in the years you and that harpy of a mother abandoned me and left me in Grandpa Seamus care I forgot some things about manners and etiquette. Forgive me."

"That explains a lot…" Damon muttered. Without looking I elbowed him in the stomach making him groan and take a few steps back.

"Shut up." I grumbled which only made Alberto chuckle.

"I see you brought guards with this time…" Beaufort said eyeing Alberto and Damon.

"Yes, these are my classmates turned employees for the duration of Evo-cution…" I said then turned and motioned to the guys.

"Alberto Silva." Alberto said in a firm voice.

"Damon DeCharles of the lords of Ashwolds." Damon said as he stepped back into place behind me.

"DeCharles? As in the lord Admiral of the English Royal navy DeCharles?" Beaufort asked. Damon nodded.

"That is my father." Damon said puffing his chest out a little.

"I see…" Beaufort said softly then turned motioned for us to follow. "This way, the old ass shark you won is in a sea dock container a couple miles off the island."

"Really…?" Thomas muttered under his breath as he turned to follow the president.

I didn't take a step until Logan and his squad had surrounded Beaufort and Thomas and were escorting them down the pier. I followed a respectable distance behind them until we reached the end of the pier and the evo we'd be taking to the sea dock.

It was a strange looking evo, like a giant manta ray that was enlarged several more times and flattened like a guppy or some other bottom feeder fish. It had a flat top and broad fins that looked like wings. It's skin was smooth and colored to match the color of the waves so in the right light it looked nearly invisible. I hadn't seen a evo quite like this before.

Beaufort, Thomas and the others all stepped onto its back and walked towards the what I assumed was the head of the evo. The guys and I stepped on but stayed more towards the middle. There wasn't any seats so all we could do was stand around and wait to depart.

"Where's the pilot?" Damon finally asked. Cross turned to look at Damon then sneered.

"He's coming! Don't get your pampered panties in a bunch!" He snapped. Damon bristled at that and opened his mouth to retort but I quickly covered his mouth and shot him a look.

[This is what I warned you two about. Don't. react!] I warned through the manacite ring. Damon let out a breath and looked around me sheepishly.

[Forgot…sorry.] He replied.

"Geez! What crawled up your ass?" I asked shooting Cross a shit eating grin. Cross narrowed his eyes at me and strained his jaw.

"It would be smart to not talk to me…splicer…" Cross said. I couldn't help but smirk at that way he spat put splicer like a curse.

"Not the talkative type…no wonder you and my brother seem to get along so well." I said sarcastically. I saw a tick begin to form in Cross' jaw and private Oliver ball his fists.

"Chase!" Logan snapped in a harsh tone. I arched a brow and him and chuckled. Which only seemed to piss him off more. He started towards me only to be stopped by Thomas, who grabbed him by his shoulder.

"No…" Thomas said in a soft but firm voice. Logan gritted his teeth but stepped back.

[And you were worried about us?] Alberto said.

"Sorry to keep you waiting!" A man exclaimed. Everyone turned towards the sound of the voice and saw a fisherman running down the pier towards us. A splicer, if the crystal on his earlobe was anything to go by.

"A local?" I muttered. The man reached the end of the pier and jumped onto the back of the evo then reached down and petted it when it started making a low whining noise.

"Its alright Gozi! I'm here! I'm here!" He assured it. Once it calmed down he looked to Beaufort and Thomas. "Ready to leave when you are!"

"Then git!" Beaufort exclaimed and pointed out to sea. The fisherman nodded then walked over to the head of the evo and said something in Japanese, the evo quickly started to move.

It flapped its massive fins and started gliding through the water. Seeming to float just over the waters surface. The guys and I were all very surprised. While Beaufort and the like all looked like it was old news for them. It didn't take long for the evo, Gozi, to clear the harbor and was out to open sea. I couldn't help but notice that Beaufort and company quickly found the head of the evo uninviting with its splicer nearby but didn't want to pass the guys and I to get to the rear, so they were stuck between us.

"Very smooth ride, I've never been on a evo quite like this before." Alberto commented. Damon nodded in agreement.

"My family is basically made its name on the open seas and even I haven't seen one quite like this." Damon said.

"That's because it's a Japanese specialty!" The fisherman spoke up. "Created by the Amaterasu Paragon herself!"

I arched a brow at that then looked at Alberto and Damon. They both seemed impressed by the fisherman's statement if for no other reason than the mention of a Paragon.

"Lady Amaterasu came up with these?" Alberto asked. The fisherman nodded and puffed his chest out.

"Yes! Introduced them about five years ago for the labor classes! They're called Sky skimmers! A little temperamental but the best for island to island transport and fishing." The fisherman said.

"Hmm…" I muttered and scratched my chin.

"Oh gods no…" Alberto and Damon both groaned in unison. I frowned and looked back at three two of them.

"What was that for?" I grumbled.

"Chase, every time you show interest in something, particularly something involving a Paragon trouble happens and bullets start flying!" Damon groaned.

"Oh gods! You guy were only preset during one of my Paragon interactions!" I replied then paused and thought about it again and said. "Okay, four times! But only one of those four ended in trouble and bullets!"

"That was enough! We nearly died!" Alberto exclaimed. I rolled my eyes.

"Only because you idiots didn't have enough common sense to not poke the sonic viper corpses." I retorted. They both opened their mouths to say something then immediately closed them.

"Chase…? As in Chase Kingston?" The fisherman asked, looking over his shoulder at me. I nodded.

"The one and only." I said. The fisherman's eyes widened and he nearly lost his balance and fell into the ocean. He quickly righted himself and gasped.

"The Revolutionary Paragon himself! Riding on my Gozi!" He exclaimed. I frowned and scratched my temple.

"You've heard of me…?" I asked.

"Of course I've heard of you! Who hasn't heard of you! An american splicer who posses a star farm crystal that has revived the lost art of creating enchanted items, a young and talented splicer that is already on par with several paragons! Who rumor has it turned down an offer to become a Paragon for Egypt and Scotland! There rarely isn't a person who hasn't heard of you!" The fisherman gushed.

"Why do you look like that is news to you?" Alberto said arching a brow at me. I shrugged.

"I figured only Nobility or those connected to Andromeda knew about me, its not like I put out a ad in every country." I replied.

"Well to be honest Master Kingston nobody really learned about you until about a month ago when rumors about your involvement in that attack at the Egyptian royal palace started circulating." The fisherman said then shivered. "The most common one was that it was a blood bath and a massacre, that you walked through hallways of blood in order to save the crowned princess."

That description earned a chuckle from Cross and two of the unnamed privates. I ignored them but the fisherman looked at them with a scornful look then looked back at me.

"That sounds like something Chase would be involved in." Alberto said with a rueful groan.

"Especially with his monster evos." Damon added. I frowned at him and crossed my arms.

"Considering that you now have a 'monster evo' created by me I would think you'd stop referring to them as such!" I said sternly. Damon shrugged.

"Just because I have one of your shaped evos doesn't make him any less of a monster." Damon said. I rolled my eyes and looked to the fisherman.

"Do you know if Amaterasu is here on the island?" I asked. The fisherman shook his head.

"Not sure, though I'd wager she'll show up sooner or later. It's well known she gives council to the Shogun on which evos to buy." The fisherman said.

"Are we there yet?!" Logan snapped suddenly. I arched a brow at him then chuckled.

"Seems I'm not the only Kingston who's forgotten their manners…Dad." I said looking at Thomas. I spat the last part out like a bitter poison. The word dad and father sounding like a boldface lie when used to describe Thomas Kingston. Thomas didn't say anything to my remark though and instead looked to the fisherman man.

"Can we please hurry up. We have other places to be." Thomas said. The fisherman looked insulted but didn't say anything about and instead nodded.

"We're almost there! Another couple minutes."