20 Chapter 20:Insert Rocky Training Montage!
[3rd Person POV]
The light fades out revealing the regular sky, a smattering of clouds still remaining from the storm kicked up earlier.
People were starting to poke their heads out of their hiding places, cautiously looking for the final result of the conflict.
The street was silent, the horror of how close they were to nuclear fallout settling in. People scanned the sky searching for any sign of the unknown hero or the machine he was fighting.
The silence was broken by someone excitedly pointing out a falling object high up in the sky.
[Tavish POV]
Due to your proximity to the center of a nuclear explosion, new affinities and skills were unlocked.
Nuclear Affinity (Locked) (5/100)
The user can create, shape and manipulate the forces of nuclear reaction, including fusion and fission, which grant them abilities dealing with electricity, magnetism, heat, radiation, etc.
Skill Added!
Radiation resistance. (15/100)
Resist the harmful and often toxic effects of radiation. You can currently resist 15% of radiation damage.
The use of Fortify was good for surviving the initial force of the explosion, but did nothing for the harmful aftermath of the EMP caused by the radiation taking out a significant chunk of my nanomachines. I had EMP hardened my body, but not to the degree where I can resist a point-blank nuke to the face.
Thus, I was falling, my recently acquired wings hanging limp, while my thrusters were sparking weakly.
My mind was drawn to similarities of Icarus for a moment before I shook it off. I need to figure out how to survive the landing. Most of my tech was rendered inoperable so I was quickly sorting through my list of gamer perks.
One of the perks I had acquired, Stone skin, would allow me to store mana in my skin to reduced damage on a one-to-one ratio, but I don't think it would be enough before I get pasted against the ground.
I go ahead and start storing as much mana as I can anyway in the hope I could muster enough. With the current amount of mana I could muster, I might be able to reduce the impact by almost a hundred thousand HP.
Pulling up my stat page, I observe my ¾ empty health bar, my rapidly draining mana bar, and my completely full stamina bar!
Perk Activated
[Survivor]
Grants the Slayer the ability to redistribute his HP/SP/MP if one of these stats reaches zero.
One of the first perks I ever acquired.
I dump my absolutely massive stamina pool into my MP bar again and again.
[3rd Person POV]
The unknown object had coalesced into a recognizable figure of the armored hero, falling limply before impacting into the ground cratering in the center of the battleground.
Everyone watched with bated breath for a minute before a hand reached out and started pulling itself out of the hole, portions of his armor crumbled off revealing his healing abilities kicking in and repairing the damage he sustained. His leg remained a fleshy mass of muscle and bone, lightning continuing to arc around his form.
He starts struggling out of the hole before a woman that was riding a giant metal beast rushed down to help him out.
Hero association vehicles started showing up and pushing back the crowd to better analyze the situation.
[Tavish POV]
Quest Completed
[Big Problems in little Z]
Objective 1: Investigate the cause of the explosion[x]
Objective 2: Fight the unknown machine[x]
Bonus Objective 1: Conceal your Powers from the Hero Association [ ]
Reward: New Perks awarded, Random Perk Tokens x5, Gacha Tokens (Rare) x 10, 40,000,000 XP, $45,000,000.
New Perks Added
[Aspect of the Machine God]
"In the beginning, there was 0. And then there was 1." Your technological marvels are now capable of reaching new heights. Deus Ex Machina has seen fit to bless your work as you fight against these so called "machine gods". While the power of this aspect has yet to manifest fully, it grants you access to a small fraction of divine energy from the Machine god.
[ODST]
You fell from orbit and survived, and your body came away stronger for it. You can now fall from any height and retain 25% of your current HP after impact.
Fuck.
My body hurt all over from the impact with the ground. I could feel my remaining nano bots inside of me struggling to repair their colony and scavenge the remains of the busted cybernetics lying around me.
Reaching up and pulling myself out of the hole, I felt a pair of hand helping me up before a familiar voice broke the silence; "I wasn't sure you were going to make it out of that one Tavish."
Glancing up I saw the slightly watery eyes of V. It was always hard to discern people's true emotions in Night City, but I'm glad to see that she was worried.
"I wasn't entirely sure myself V. I had just left for a flight test. Hard to imagine it would have led to all this." I grunt as V helps me up out of the hole and hobble over towards Wolfe and Bear.
Now that the rage was coming down, pain was starting to set in as my nerve endings regenerated in the leg. I could feel my ribs being shifted back into place, causing me to wince when V wrapped her arm around me for support.
"Next time, I'm coming with. We're going to find a way for evening the playing field on these guys but you need someone to provide overwatch and back you up." She replied, watching the hero association clear away the crowd.
Pulling a health potion hypo out of my inventory, I jab it into my leg, flooding it with sweet relief as the regeneration continued.
New Skill Added
[Pain Resistance] (1/100)
Designates your ability to push through and work around pain. You can resist 1% of your current existing pain.
It's a wonder that I didn't have it before, but I'll take what I can get at the moment. The Medi gun was quickly deployed on a servo arm, focused on my leg as I let my flesh knit itself back together.
V pulls out her tether and jacks into my skull to get a reading on the damage.
"Jesus Christ Tavish! Well over half of your cyberware is flat-out fried, your nano core is barley functioning, and your leg is just barely capable of rebuilding itself!" She exclaims, reading my operating specs.
She gently taps a portion of the remaining nano armor, causing it to crumble into pieces.
"We're going to have to find you new materials for your armor, it's somewhat toast at this point. Open up your arms and let's take a look." She requested, prompting me to cycle through the various bits of arm cyberware that I had.
"At least this stuff is intact with all the punishment it goes through." She states, examining the cyberware before looking up at me.
"Tavish, promise me you won't jump into another fight like this without at least going through a serious upgrade first? We're dealing with some seriously powerful beings here." She stated, jacking out and turning by head so I was looking her in the eye.
I give her a lopsided grin in response; No worries, V. I'm well aware of how close that was. I have a couple of projects that I can put a rush on to increase my durability. But for now, let's just head back home." I reply getting a smile in return before she helps me up onto Wolfe's back.
"Good. While your healing factor may be insane, it might not help you pull through in this world." V commented gesturing at my almost healed leg. It had regained its original shape, and looked black and purple, but it was quickly regaining its original color.
Wiggling my toes experimentally, I was rewarded with a fresh stab of pain from the still healing tendons. I think I was able to walk on it a little but not much.
Glancing around at the surrounding destruction, I see one of the hero association members walking toward us.
"V and Tavish Byrne?" He questioned, slightly nervous.
"That's us! What can we do for you random hero association employee!" I reply cheerfully, receiving a half-hearted slap from V on the shoulder.
"My name is Glenn actually." He said halfheartedly.
"Wonderful to meet you, Glenn. I'll have you know I had a dickens of a time trying to get the names of your co-workers when I went in for my interview with the association last time." I stated, prompting a grin from Glenn.
"Now that I think about it, they were really cagey with me as well when I tried to learn names at my interview." V commented causing Glenn to laugh.
"I don't understand it myself, maybe they like the idea of a secret identity? Still, they manage to accomplish their work without using their names so I suppose they can get away with it." He states with a chuckle before adopting a more serious expression.
"The hero association would like to request your presence within a day or two if you can make it." Glenn stated seriously.
"Why what's up?" V answered, putting a hand on her hip.
"Today's events highlighted Tavish's combat potential as a hero, and the sheer number of casualties prevented by his actions is of too large a value to ignore. The nuclear reactor of the bot Mr. Byrne launched into space was calculated as a fifteen-megaton explosion. The fact that you're standing here a little worse for wear and recovering quickly speaks to your sheer durability, not even counting what your armor may or may not have absorbed." Glenn started out.
"The shock waves released by your strength and the power unleashed was felt throughout the city, and the hero association would rather have a working relationship with you rather than running afoul of each other." He finished.
I could easily pick up the subtle threat in that statement.
"I suppose I can swing by their when I get the chance." I throw out off-handedly, watching some of the remaining tension leave Glenn's shoulders.
"Thank you. Anytime within the next few days is fine." He replied, before wandering back to the rest of the unit.
"Come on Tavish, let's get you home." V stated hoping up behind me on Wolfe and we started making our way back home, Bear thundering along behind us.
[Time Skip]
Sitting at a terminal in the cauldron, both V and I were hard at work as I went back and forth between research stations.
The latest battle demonstrated how outclassed I actually was in this world. While Saitama was indeed a dangerous factor, and represented the greatest danger in this universe, he was largely apathetic to everything else around him.
However, it was the other beings that I was worried about. The likes of Boros, Homeless Emperor, and many others ranking among some of the most powerful. I would have to pull out every trick in the book if I and my companions would like to make it through this.
Giving V an infusion of sentinel energy was one of the many steps I would have to take along with various enhancements to increase her base durability and strength.
Since her muscle density went up, I was able to devise several long range and short-range weapons for her to handle with the new enhancements in mind. While she did shoot up a couple inches in height, her musculature didn't appear to have changed all that much, it wasn't until I examined the muscles directly did I realize just how dense they had become.
Setting some machines to the task of manufacturing her armor, I switched back to some personal idea's that I had sitting around for a while.
Ancient High Gallifreyan.
A language once said to have the power to raise empires, and destroy gods.
Part of my artificing skill was I could draw out spell diagrams with my mana on just about anything I deemed a surface. It was fairly impractical seeing as how artificing centered around creating magical items.
But this time, I was angling for something different.
Since old high Gallifreyan "once" had power, then what would happen if I gave it a little bit of a jump with my mana as an energy source?
Let's set the tone shall we Iris?
If this even remotely works, this will be so cool!
[BGM Start: I Am the Doctor]
Moving to an open area of the cauldron, I started writing on the air, my hands speeding up as time went on, the mathematical program of the universe floating around me. Each time a sequence was completed, it condensed into circular Gallifreyan, slowly floating and spinning around me.
Before I could only dream of making the appropriate calculations in the time necessary to pull this off, but after drinking the superpower serum, my mind was well expanded beyond its previous limitations.
My mana continued to steadily drain as I added more and more sequences, blue power circling around the room.
Once upon a time, I stated that it would require over twenty-seven million sequences in order to even conceive of the basic functioning concept of a TARDIS. I grin as my writing speeds up even faster, while I'm not quite up to meet the speed and precision for the first twenty-seven million, let's see what I can accomplish with half a million.
Time and spacing was everything in using these sequences. Each character had to be drawn and completed within the appropriate time and the appropriate space for the next character, or it would lose all of its power. One of the many thought processes flying through my head was to develop telekinesis so I could make this go faster, but immediately filed the idea away for later as I started writing out an extremely complex algorithm.
Bits and bobs of golden dust started fliting around along with blobs of inky nothingness as the words took hold. My writing continued as a portion of my mind tried to analyze these substances.
Due to being exposed to new and interesting energies,
New Affinities were Discovered!
[Time Affinity] (1/100)
[Space Affinity] (1/100)
Yes!
Objective reached!
I wrote the script to start gathering time and space energy, and the exposure worked! Now that I knew what the energy felt like, I could account for it in my experiments! Bringing the script to a finish would safely disperse the energies back to where it came from.
In theory anyway, it would be embarrassing if someone had to bail me out if I accidentally tore a hole in Space/Time.
Finishing the last sequences of the script. I step back out of the sequence to admire my handywork.
The inside of the sequence looked like the vastness of space as the gold dust fluttered through causing the two energies to mix. The High Gallifreyan serving as a beautiful wreath keeping these primordial energies contained.
As they intermingled, I saw stars form in a huge explosion of power, as a universe formed, I watch galaxies and planets pass by trillions of years in what seemed like an instant. Millions of possibilities of this universe passed before my eyes as I watched time run out to the end of this pseudo universe.
I watched the beauty of the energies interacting as I waited for the sequence to end, entranced by the entirety of what was created. The energies flowing throughout the universe flickering briefly amongst the vastness of space and time.
Luck Event Triggered!
The hell?
A distinctive grinding and whirring sound filled the air.
Is that what I think it is?
The space and time energies started to distort as they were absorbed into a small cube, coated in blue Gallifreyan writing.
No Fucking Way!
The cube impacted the ground with a loud bang, smoke wafting off the cube, its symbols flickering as the remaining space time energies dispel.
Walking closer and using observe on the cube, I confirm my findings.
TARDIS (Siege Mode)
Age – 1 year
Lvl - ?
HP –763,420/ 50,000,000
Thoughts – Terrified, Exhausted, In Pain
Description – A young TARDIS recently constructed by the Time Lords of Gallifrey. Impatient and briming with curiosity, this TARDIS decided to leave without selecting a Time Lord in search of adventure. Unfortunately for this little one year old machine, it ran afoul of many of the horrors within its universe, forcing it to constantly run, its power supply dwindling down to dregs as it tried to escape its pursuers, accruing damage all the while. Sensing a disturbance within time and space it flew through the "path" opened by an unknown source, to another dimension and took the opportunity to "refuel" on the energies gathered.
I gently reach down and cast repair on the quaking cube, making gentle soothing noises.
The little TARDIS stopped shaking after a bit finally settling into an exhausted rest in the center of the floor, continuing to draw in the remaining ambient time energy in this room.
Poor little guy. I realize he's one of the most powerful ships in the universe, but it still tugged on the heartstrings a bit when I saw it in its current state.
Leaving it to rest, not knowing what else to do, I let the repair spell continue its work and get back to work, keeping an eye on the TARDIS.
While I was waiting, I decided to snap my perk tokens to see what I got.
New Perks Acquired!
[Cover] (1/100) (Rare)
Enables you to instantly intercept attacks against your allies with your shield.
[Anchor Hold] (1/100) (Epic)
Draws the focus of all enemy combatants and shields you allies against their attacks. Enemies are physically incapable of directly or indirectly damaging your allies without going through you first!
[Sage of Mystic Arts] (Rare)
Unlocks Mystic Arts and provides a 25% experience gain for any mystic related research and discoveries.
[Pogo practitioner] (1/100) (Common)
Provides you with a Pogo Stick proficiency.
[Nerd Rage] (1/100) (Epic)
Intelligent people aren't immune to being consumed by rage. Your Intelligence stat serves as a multiplier for your rage, allowing you to calculate, then hit them where it hurts!
Huh.
Well, looks like I could figure out that sling ring if I wanted to. Also got yet another rage perk so that's pretty neat.
Some of the first perks reminded me of a great shielder type class though. As I was mulling over the possibilities, a whirring noise broke the silence.
The little Tardis had lifted up off the floor and was spinning slowly, whirring around the room investigating the various bits and bobs of tech being produced in the Cauldron.
I used observe on it again.
TARDIS (Siege Mode)
Age – 1 year
Lvl - ?
HP –9,756,483/ 50,000,000
Thoughts – Cautious, Curious, Relief
The little box swirled around the room investigating everything. Tech-priests working on various projects stopped to observe the curious being before resuming their previous tasks.
It finally came to a stop floating at about my eye level before making a weird beeping noise.
Analyzing what it was saying I raise my hand and create a basic symbol in circular Gallifreyan.
"Sorry, I don't believe there are any Time Lords in this dimension. I just happened across a book in my adventures that was written by them and experimenting with my findings." I responded to its inquiry.
It makes a sad beep and remained floating there for a moment. I started working on a new experiment for the alchemy grenades, this time trying a plant variation before I felt something bump against the side of my head.
Glancing to the side, the little Tardis had followed me over to observe what I was doing.
Taking the grenade, I toss it into the testing area to observe its results, the little machine watching all the while.
The grenade makes contact and bored into the earth. This was quickly followed by an explosion of greenery as trees and grass sprouted out from the epicenter.
Whirring in surprise, the Tardis quickly zoomed over and started analyzing the foliage still sprouting, albeit at a slower rate than before.
The cube zoomed back floating right in front of my face, asking a barrage of questions in its techno-speak.
"Whoa, whoa, settle down there. That is just something I figured out how to do on my travels. If you want, your welcome to learn with me. I always appreciate a fellow seeker of knowledge." I reply with a small smile.
[Time Skip]
After that, the daft little machine seemed intent on following me everywhere. From walking down the street, to cooking in the kitchen, this little being followed me no matter where I went.
When it tried to follow me to the bathroom, I had to put my foot down and set some boundaries.
It quickly became a part of my daily routine to feed the machine a dose of time energy every few days.
V found amusement at my plight, while Eleanor enjoyed the curiosity displayed by the little machine, as it constantly got up to mischief and periodically knocked one or two things over.
It continued to slowly heal over time under my carful administration of repair until it finally was back to full health once more, becoming common place floating about my head, observing everything.
The Tardis was especially fascinated when I took a day to snap some Gacha tokens.
[The Ten Rings] (Epic)
[Bag of Acorns] (Common)
[Master Ball] (Legendary)
[Nuka-Cola Quantum] (Rare)
[Halo Soundtrack] (Epic)
[Healing Shovel] (Epic)
[Chain-Chomp Flail] (Rare)
[Piranha Plant Seeds] (Rare)
The little box was examining some items while I observed the others.
[The Ten Rings]
A set of "mystical" hung gar rings of unknown ancient origin. Provides increases to strength, longevity, energy blasts, and psionic capabilities.
[Healing Shovel]
A shovel with the power of when it hits someone, it heals them of 25% of their health.
[Chain Chomp Flail]
A chain flail with a large spiked Chain chomp attached to the end. Able to give your foes a nasty bite, as well as a concussion!
My nanobots immediately took possession of the rings and started manipulating them, altering the base form. I was curious on what they were doing but I decided to mess with the other stuff right now.
The Tardis was scanning the Piranha plant seeds with a blue scanner of some sort while I pulled out the flail, watching it swing around in search of a target.
An idea struck me as I pulled out Stormreaver and fed the Chain chomp to the axe causing it to shift and adapt to a new form.
I was now holding a handle attached to a chain of sentinel energy, attaching to a black ball, its spikes and teeth replaced with the blue energy. Lightning occasionally arced between its points as I got a feel for the new weapon.
Picking everything up, and taking the weapon to the range, I take aim and lash out at the target, the chain extending to close the distance and impacting the target at the end.
Aiming at a new target, I flick the flail at it and the Chain chomp takes a massive bite out of it demolishing the target.
Grinning in triumph, I summon a Bosco, to take the piranha plant seeds and start cultivating them for possible future use, and then I checked back on the nanobots to see what they were developing and I was pleasantly surprised.
They were completely remaking the rings into something more useful.
The initial shape was being kept, but the original design itself was changing. The rings were slowly transforming, its initial designs replacing with Gallifreyan circles around the outside of the rings. The plane finished metal slowly converted to a more sci fi look as the nano machines consumed the rings.
This process continued for roughly two hours before I was alerted to the finished result.
[The Ten Cores of Power] (Mythic)
Upon acquiring the ten rings, Tavish Byrne's nanobots deemed them inefficient in their current form. Thus, the rings were converted into ten individual nanomachine cores.
Increases Technomancy abilities by 100%
Increases Mystic Arts by 100%
Increases Psionic Abilities by 100%
Increases Energy Manipulation by 100%
Increases Strength by multipliers of 5 for each ring
Pseudo-Immortality
[New augment detected.]
[Do you wish to integrate the new augment?]
[Y/N?]
Hell yes!
As soon as I select yes, the rings fly onto my arms and merge with my skin leaving glowing blue metallic Gallifreyan symbols covering my forearms like an arm band.
I knew I would get immortality at some point, the question was how. I was only long lived at the moment, but true immortality was the inability to die. I would probably live for a long time if I was careful about it.
My thoughts were sidetracked when I heard a weird squeaking sound, and the little Tardis flew in chasing a Bosco.
Grinning at the site I set aside the remainder of my projects to go play with the young machine.
The visit to the hero association a few days later was much less cordial. According to them, I had displayed enough power equivalent to a dragon-class being. Something I would continue to be classified as if we didn't reach some sort of an agreement.
Thus, an alliance of sorts was established.
In times of need, the hero association had the ability to call for my assistance, and in exchange, I would receive the S-class rank from the association with all the benefits attached.
Honestly, I could take or leave the association, but it was a second substantial paycheck, and it eased the minds of the higher ups. Plus, most of the S-class heroes could fuck off to wherever if something didn't interest them so it wasn't like I was being forced to do what the association wanted.
Leaving the conference room, I wander through the halls of the association, stopping by whatever catches my fancy. The Tardis, still in siege mode, floated along behind me as we explored. I really need to find it a name that it likes, the little guy has way too much of a personality to just keep referring to it by its machine type.
I walk past a training room where loud explosions are emanating from.
Turning into the room, I'm treated to the sight of several hero's sparring with each other throughout the room.
I spot some of Atomic Samurai's disciples sparring in a ring with spring mustachio watching on the side. Down the way, a man with a massive sniper rifle taking shot at a target all the way at the other end of the gym. A muscular woman was training like an Olympic athlete on the other side of the massive training area, while members of the tank top army were doing laps on a track nearby.
My eyes settled on the surveillance bot watching from overhead, its three-eye design informing me of who it belonged to.
Metal Knight.
A very pragmatic and cold hero, he is a technological backer of the hero association, often appearing as various robots and machines. He possessed a massive arsenal that no one knew the true extent of, and his knowledge of the association, definitely made him a dangerous opponent.
I knew that I couldn't survive more than one nuke at a time, but the number of missiles that he possessed made death a very real thing for me. So I had to tread with caution around him.
However, I am fairly certain that I won our first engagement. Yggdrasill was now making its way through Metal Knight's, The hero associations, and the organizations systems. Within a week or two, I would have access to every dirty little secret that they possessed. While all the systems were fairly good, they had nothing on the Megacorporation's servers. And the A.I.'s in this universe were mere babies in comparison to the rouge A.I.'s in Night City.
"Magnificent, isn't it?" A voice at my shoulder breaks into my thoughts.
A large man wearing a tank-top stood next to me observing the other tank-top runners.
"Their belief in the power of the tank-top truly shines in situations like this." He stated confidently as he continued to observe the runners.
It took a bit to determine if he was serious or not before realizing that he was. Did he really have his personality pulled directly from the manga? If that was the case, I'm somewhat terrified to meet Puri-Puri Prisoner.
"Well, they are fairly impressive regardless." I comment, diplomatically.
"Hm." He grunts before joining his disciples in his run.
Moving quickly out into the hallway, I head for the exit so I can head back to Fantasia. Currently there was a Nano Clone working as the chef, but I'd rather be doing that then run into any of the nutcases around here.
For whatever reason, some heroes seem to be a special type of crazy.
Now that I think about it, almost all hero's regardless of universe were a special type of crazy.
I already knew I was crazy so therefore I must not be completely insane. Using that logic, I wouldn't have changed since becoming a hero.
Once we were outside, I opened a portal to the restaurant and step through with the little box happily following along.
Was it really just content to follow and watch what I do? Pushing the thought away for a moment and opening the front door, I was surprised by the huge number of people in here.
Pushing my way to the front of the crowd, I'm surprised at who was sitting in my restaurant.
Pig God
Lvl- 342
Thoughts – Hungry
An alert flashed in front of my vision when I spotted the nano clone panicking in the kitchen.
New Quest Added
[Hero of Gluttony]
Pig God has arrived at Fantasia for lunch. Feed him till he is full within an hour.
Objective 1: Feed Pig God (0/500) Plates
Objective 2: Finish within an hour.
Reward:?
"Take five mate." I direct causing the nano clone to dispel.
Taking his place in the kitchen, I snap my fingers causing cooking implements to fly out of cupboards and to start igniting on the stove.
Quickly reviewing the data supplied from the clone, Pig god had ordered as much of the menu he could have within an hour. He was already on his fourth bread basket and his third pitcher of water.
Time to start cracking then.
[3rd Person POV]
The skillets fired up and started cracking eggs at lightning speeds, the knives becoming a blur as vegetables were chopped and sauces mixed.
Fantasia fell silent as everyone was distracted by the speed of the mixing ingredients, the frying meat, and the chef in the center of it all conducting everything like an orchestra. Even Pig god stopped eating for a bit watching what was happening.
Then the meals started pouring out as meat began to cook.
First to come out of the kitchen were several quiche's landing on the table in front of Pig god, breaking out of his trance at last as he started eating. Meals started appearing for other customers as the chef increased his speed further.
People were watching intently as items entered the oven and came out mere minutes later completely finished to perfection.
Feed Pig God (150/500) Plates
With thirty-five minutes left on the timer, Tavish kept ramping it up, the storm of his kitchen whirling in controlled chaos.
Plates of pasta, burgers, fried chicken, steak, croquette's, tempura, soup and hundreds of random items passed under his hands as he tried to fill the S-class hero to bursting.
Feed Pig God (395/500) Plates
Pig god was starting to slow down slightly with fifteen minutes left on the clock. The morbidly obese man continuing to consume anything placed in front of him.
Feed Pig God (489/500) Plates
With less than a few minutes to go, it was becoming a close thing on if the chef could finish the order.
Delivering another set of plates. The front of the restaurant was suddenly blown off causing the people within to scream.
A few humanoids ran in, two were holding rifles while the third was holding a rocket launcher. These people shared the unique characteristic of possessing sets of horns, bat-like wings and other demonic type features.
"Listen up! You are all officially hostages on behalf of the demon people. Now I'd like everyone to calmly fork over your valuables and no one needs to get –
*KABOOM*
The Speaker had vanished, and in his place, Tavish stood, anger burning in his eyes as he grabbed ahold of the other two, lighting crackling around his arms.
The other two demons vanished in a loud boom as he threw them out of the hole they created.
"I apologize for the interruption folks. Please return to your meals. I must resolve this issue." The Chef said shortly, hopping out the demolished front of the restaurant.
The customers eyes widened in amazement as the front of the eatery started repairing itself until it looked like nothing had happened.
[Tavish POV]
Those cocky, self-absorbed, pedantic, FUCKS!
Quest Failed
[Hero of Gluttony]
Pig God has arrived at Fantasia for lunch. Feed him till he is full within an hour.
Objective 1: Feed Pig God (498/500) Plates [ ]
Objective 2: Finish within an hour. [ ]
Reward:?
Their fucking grandstanding caused me to fail a quest!
I ran to where they had landed and continued punting the thieves across the city every time I caught them. They were surprisingly durable, and I'll be the first to admit I went overboard on my rage, but they caused me to fail a quest for the first time so I felt justified in my actions.
[Time Skip]
Fifteen minutes later, I returned to the restaurant, none the worse for wear and resume my duties as chef.
Pig god had already left, but not without leaving a substantial tip which I was appreciative of. My current income was predominantly some of the trees and tech I sold through the gamer's shop, so any momentary supplements to support my schemes was always appreciated.
My customers were somewhat in awe of me after the attempted robbery from these so-called Demon People.
Where the hell did those guys come from? Did they come from underground? If so, how many freaking races were residing under the surface.
Every time it came up in the anime, it was about how the "mole king" is trying to rule the surface! Or how the "bird king" is trying to rule the land. They all varied slightly but they all had the same shtick.
I sighed as I returned to my cooking. Why couldn't these idiots try some goddamn diplomacy for once. It would be less of a hassle if I dragged the monster association to the negotiation table. The problem resided in what they wanted. They all seemed to want to rule over humans in general, but their goals beyond that were rather abstract.
Not to mention how ridiculous some of these monsters looked. I mean seriously, some of them looked like freaking Pokémon . . . . .
Wait . . .
Pokémon . . .
Pocket monster's . . . . .
Creating a nano clone to take over for the last two hours, I head towards the Cauldron, a skip creeping into my step. I have some experiments to run, and I seriously hope I'm right.
[Time Skip]
[Four Days Later]
I finally got the chance to meet with Dr. Kuseno again and actually discuss some things.
He had developed an "Arms Mode" to increase Genos's combat capability. The tech itself was impressive, but it was lacking certain components.
"How is the power consumption?" I ask the doctor as he re-attaches Genos's faceplate.
"Less than desirable. I keep trying to adjust for better output on the weapons but I'm afraid that I may end up causing his core to redline." The doctor muses, as Genos sits up.
Could you attach two smaller separate cores in the "Arms Mode" case? That would help the initial draw from Genos's main core." I suggest, as Genos focuses on me.
"Tavish, your current attack output exceeds mine by a large margin, how are you able to perform such attacks with your current power stores?" Genos questioned, causing Kuseno to perk up.
"Simply put, magic." I state, drawing skeptical looks from both of them.
"Let me explain. My type of magic is integral to how I function as an augmented human. It allows me to swap parts, augment certain abilities and use it as a power source as necessary. It serves as a type of energy that I have been unable to quantify yet." I start, picking up the parts for a power core off the table.
"In this instance, I have multiple different sources of power installed within myself that supplement each other." I continue, the power core assembling rapidly before their eyes.
Grabbing Genos's arm and lifting up the completed core for installation, I manipulate the bicep to integrate the core; "You're reaching a point of restriction by modern tech, so you have to adapt to ways to overcome your advisories. Becoming strong as Saitama is an admirable goal for yourself, but it should be considered unobtainable at this time. Instead, focus more on adapt and overcome. Figure out a way for rapid field repairs in the midst of combat, as well as other ways of supplementing your energy or develop a new bit of tech altogether . . ." I trail off as I get lost in thought.
I actually did have an energy source that would fit the criteria now that I think about it.
"Hold on a sec, I have an idea." I state, gesturing in a circle.
With a shower of sparks, a portal opened displaying a workbench where I was working on a variety of projects.
Reaching through, I grab a sentinel power core off the desk and present it to Kuseno; "This is a power source I use on a significant number of my machines. Will it be compatible?" I ask, already knowing the answer.
Every machine that I have built with one of these power cores has gone on to grow and evolve to do amazing things. Bear, Wolfe, some tech-priests and Skitarii, all continued to grow and evolve without my interference, so I'm 99% sure that this would serve as a limit breaker for Genos.
The look of surprise on Kuseno's face didn't last long as he plugged the core in and started analyzing it, muttering and recording the new readings.
After a few minutes, he looked up at me, excitement sparking in his eyes.
"Such a mailable energy! Its power output levels are of the charts! I can definitely work with this." He said excitedly, laying Genos back down and opening up the chest cavity, exposing the old reactor.
Between the two of us, we removed the previously installed cores, and replaced them with ones that produced sentinel energy.
When we finished the installation and Genos completely powered up a popup appeared in my vision.
[Cyborg Unit: Genos, has reached prerequisites.]
[Upgrades available!]
"Alright, I think I found a solution to your field repair, do you want me to initiate the upgrade?" I ask Genos.
"Absolutely." He stated, Kuseno raising an eyebrow.
Selecting the appropriate upgrade, I leave it to its work as I explain to the doctor; "The energy serves as a catalyst for a multitude of different uses. One of the things is the overall experience of the item, machine or person in question. Once you meet certain prerequisites, an energy manipulator can go in and "unlock" acquired potential, increasing their overall potential exponentially." I inform the amazed doctor.
"Does it have an upper limit?" Kuseno asked, scribbling down some notes.
"Yes. You will eventually reach a threshold limit for power, but I have been unable to reach it as of yet. My experiment has been going on for 6 – 7 years now." I inform him as Genoa's upgrade completes.
"I don't feel any different." Genos comments, drawing attention back to himself.
"The change hasn't needed to trigger yet. Here, let's kick it off to demonstrate." I state.
Pulling a knife out of my inventory, I jam it through his arm, and rip it open, leaving a gaping hole.
Just as Kuseno went to protest he stopped as he observed the arm repairing itself until the evidence of the hole had vanished.
"The energy upgraded you to have a very basic nanite system running in the background. Smart enough to restore you to your current base form, but outside of that, incapable of other basic tasks." I state proudly as Genos stares at his arm in wonder.
We continued the discussion late into the night as Kuseno and I went back and forth with various ideas and concepts.
[Time Skip]
For the first time in a long time, I trained.
It's a grind heavy activity that I dislike heavily, but was an unfortunate necessity for the situation.
I underestimated the power levels of my opponents, and it almost cost me heavily. The combat data I snagged from B-13 provided me with a general strategy and structure on how the organization operates.
Their one-on-one engagement was slightly problematic for me at the moment, I currently specialized in fighting large groups, but I was slowly adapting.
The question was if I could do it fast enough.
This led to me analyzing everything about my current way of fighting.
The Slayers Fist, worked pretty well. The Gentle Fist however, not so good. My current body was just unsuited for the fighting style, plus my lack of byakugan, forced me to make adjustments to the style in the midst of combat. This led to me not using the style.
As time went on and my body structure changed, I could utilize the style, but I was still lacking the dojutsu to actually use it to full effect.
Plus, it was designed for flesh and blood, non-armored enemies. I needed something that would breakthrough or punch through the defense of stronger targets, and to defend against their attacks.
The Gamers shop was a place I could search for a fighting style, but this world has a rather unique opportunity.
The Water Stream Rock Smashing Fist, and Exploding Heart Release Fist, being two that come to mind. The first would be easily acquired, as Bang is looking for new students, but the Exploding Heart was going to be tricky.
Bang had the teachings for it sealed in a safe and didn't teach it to anyone. The only other person who knows it, is Garou, and he only knows some of it. Picking up Bomb's style, Whirlwind Iron Cutting Fist, would be a possibility as well.
One thing to consider when selecting a new martial art, was the Man and Machine skill that I received a while back.
When using it to augment my fighting style, it integrated the various cybernetics I had into the current fighting style, opening up a brand-new skill set for combat. Maybe I can achieve the desired result by merging multiple styles.
I remember that finding a teacher for a martial art style tends to be superior, so I'm kind of leaning towards Bang, but let's see what martial arts are available.
Scrolling through the gamer shop, the vast number of options was staggering and after a few minutes, I came to the conclusion to at least attempt learning Silver fang's style before going this route.
On a side note, I found out how stupid cheap the byakugan was to buy as a perk.
Perk
[Byakugan] (1/100) $1,000,000
The dojutsu of the Hyūga clan, provides a near 360-degree view that can penetrate near any object, see through walls, or examine the contents of a person's body. The user can also sense the mana within an individual along with a greater range of vision.
Honestly, for that price, it would be another useful tool in my arsenal to use against those who would seek to cut my life short.
Purchasing the perk, along with the Poison Ivy gem, I finally set out for Bang's Dojo.
Thus, I found myself climbing the steps, occasionally passing a person attempting to reach the top and meet the martial arts legend.
Reaching the top and pushing open the doors, I was treated to the site of Bang and his few remaining students, loudly going through the movements of the style.
Bang was quick to notice me. Leaving one student to instruct the others, he approached me with measured steps.
"Ho? The newest of the S-class heroes. Tavish right? What causes you to honor us with your presence?" Bang addressed me calmly.
Giving him a short bow, I respond respectfully; "The honor is mine Silver fang. I'm just a man trying to honor the Titans that came before."
[+15 Rep with Bang] (25/100)
"Hmm, I can't quite claim that title, but I appreciate the sentiment nonetheless." He replied, the corners of his mouth ticking up.
"I actually wished to have your assessment on something." I explain getting down to business.
"Oh? What about?" He questioned, raising an eyebrow.
"I was wanting to inquire about the possibility of being a student at your dojo." I request, causing his eyebrows to shoot up into his hairline.
"It certainly is an odd request. Especially for a newly minted S-class such as yourself. May I ask why?" He questioned, his students finishing their set behind him.
"My own strength can only carry me so far. My current fighting style revolves around engaging large groups of enemies at once. Single, powerful enemies, tend to be the hardest for me to take down, the last was almost my undoing." I reply, jaw clenching slightly at the memory of the robot.
Silver fang snorted in amusement at my last comment; "Young one, you walked away from that confrontation. That's more than anyone has a right to say. You survived a nuke, fell from space, and you came back hungry for more. Very few of the S-class can claim as much, so don't sell yourself short."
His eyes closed as he thought for a moment before opening them again; Step into the ring Tavish. If I'm going to teach you, I need to know what I'm working with." He stated, gesturing to the area in the center.
Taking off my jacket, and hanging it on a nearby coat rack, I spot Bang drop into his stance for Water Stream Rock Smashing Fist.
Dropping into my Slayer's fist stance, he cocks an eyebrow at it.
"Oh? A style designed to violently grapple enemies? And you say this is designed to take on groups of enemies at once? I feel as if I'm missing something." Bang mused, looking up and down my form.
"This isn't the full effect, I could create the affect if you wish?" I offer prompting him to nod.
Perk activated!
[The only thing they fear is you!]
The Praetor Suit is equipped rapidly, the super shotgun appearing in my hand. Bang's students, crash into each other as they retreat to the edge of the room, terrified of the being standing in front of them. My muscles bulk slightly as the opponent multiplier takes effect.
"Ah, I can see why it works so well now. You can turn off the effect" Bang stated, a little off balance by the change in demeanor.
I put everything back away and turn the perk off, allowing the students to catch their breath.
"Alright, let's start properly now." Bang informed, before moving like lightning to strike at my abs.
Dancing just past the strike, I try to grab his arm only to be blocked and his hand hit my wrist.
What followed was a high-speed dance. Every time I went to grab or strike Bang, he would block, counter, or reply with a strike of his own, usually connecting. My own strikes were often turned aside or blocked with few connecting with Bang himself.
The one thing going for me was my healing factor, as almost all damage delt by Bang was rapidly healed.
I reflected this was one of the few times I had to think about how and where I would strike next in a long time.
But Bang's strikes were starting to add up. In a strict martial arts battle, Bang remains the superior fighter. When not using mana, or any other enhancement. He would probably beat me out as the more seasoned veteran.
The fight came to a halt, when Bang held up a hand; I've seen enough."
Relaxing out of the stance, Bang continued; "While you have some form of training, it's a very rudimentary, militaristic style. I can see why you want a teacher."
He fell silent for a minute before he turned to one of his students, speaking again; "Charanko, please retrieve a gi for Tavish. He will be joining us for the foreseeable future." He stated causing the student to dash to the back.
Turning back to me he continued; "When in the dojo, you will be calling me sensei, and you will follow my instructions. Failure to do so will result in your expulsion from the dojo. Is that understood?" Bang questioned, raising a brow.
"Yes sensei!" I reply, thankful that Bang accepted.
From there, we spent the rest of the day, going through the moves and exercises associated with the water stream rock crushing fist.
New Skill Added!
[Water Stream Rock Crushing Fist] (1/100)
A special martial art developed by Bang to be the ultimate defensive art. Developed to be the perfect blend of offense and defense, users of this martial art can repel all attack types, nullify them, or redirect them with twice the power.
[Time Skip]
I returned to the Cauldron, sore, but satisfied at the result. Training under Bang was definitely one of my better choices.
Watching the tech priests do the final checks on the assembled Thunderhawk gunship, they proceeded to lift off out of the Cauldron, their destination? Space.
There, a team of nano core enhanced MRVN's would start assembling an orbital foundry. Said foundry would start expanding and building to support space mining and orbital deployment.
This leap forward in advancement signifies a change of my battle doctrine.
The organization forced me to realize that my tech had slowed significantly as I grew complacent.
Threats from space and within the earth itself, I had to endeavor to stand at the best point of defense.
I had no idea how long we had before the meteor would hit, but I wanted to salvage it and break it down before impact to offset my materials cost.
Pulling out a tablet and blowing it up on one of the big screens, it displayed the location of all machine units on the planet. The squads of Skitarii, the Spartan fireteams, each one completing their own operational protocol to expand operations. New Cauldrons were being established, supply lines developed, and combat ready units being created and deployed to strategic locations.
Titans and Battle Automata were being prepped to support the ground forces and provide heavy ordinance, and anti-monster countermeasures.
Glancing over at the next squad of Thunderhawk's I reviewed their mission parameters.
These Thunderhawk's were loaded with special payloads and outfitted for in-system travel. They would fire multiple nano machine pilons into the meteor.
They would break down and store the meteor material for study and R&D, while earth would be none the wiser.
Bofoi might be aware of what I'm doing, but as far as I'm aware, he doesn't really have the ability to prevent me from doing so.
The ships take-off, heading skyward, as they aim for optimal exit point in the atmosphere.
Opening up my status window, I start paging through my stats before reaching one of my perks.
Mad Scientist.
Thanks to this perk, I was given a random blueprint once a week. This gifted me with an untapped resource from which to draw new ideas and designs from. Initiating a download to my primary nano core, I start recalculating and redesigning my armor once more. I am hoping that we can bring back some new material to work with.
Scraping the original nano armor, the nanobots and I repurposed it to be more of a suit. One of the weaknesses of the original design was how the nano machines configured the armor with plates. This, plus the "mounded" design, created several faults which were exploited by B-13.
The nano suit, that we came up with as a base, looked an awful lot like that armor from crisis, but I think I was well past the point of caring about something as trivial as that. Especially since it was serving as both a base layer, and a emergency armor.
Following up, the suit has a specialized mounting system for interface with my various armors. I was trying to hold off on developing more without new materials, but needs must when the devil drives.
All that was left now was to wait for results.
[Interlude: Spartan's Never Die]
Monster attacks were a frequent occurrence all over the world. While they were most commonly found in City-Z, other cities were not exempt from this occurrence.
Most often this occurred in the form of a wolf or tiger level monster, an example would be the Boarmen.
These monsters possessed the heads and tusks of Boars, with the remaining of their bodies possessing boar like attributes, all the way down to their Digi grade legs.
Their enhanced strength being put to use to destroy anything that crosses their path, causing general mayhem as they broke into stores, eating all the food and then moving on to the next location.
Their rampage came to a halt as engines roared overhead, a bulky aircraft coming to a hover overhead. The craft was armed to the teeth with its dorsal mounted cannon, twin-linked bolters, lascannons, and full complement of hellstrike missiles.
It's bay doors opened up, allowing for multiple armored figures to leap out.
The first hit the ground and launched itself forward at the first boarman, its thrusters igniting to maintain its momentum, with the others following suit as the charge head first into the devastation. Five of the twenty armored beings split off to search the wreckage, while the remainder split into groups to deal with the monsters.
Mere seconds.
That was all it took before the soldiers were upon the boarmen. The boarmen stood a full four feet taller, but that didn't deter the soldiers as the first one's fist caved in the nose of the first boarman. The following battle could be described as a one side massacre, as the soldiers demolished the rampaging boarmen with fist, bullet and blade. The imposing Thunderhawk hovering overhead, provided covering fire whenever a boarman tried to reach a more advantageous position.
The battlefield fell silent as the soldiers looked upon the bloody pile of boarmen.
The squad that pulled off at the start returned to the rest of the group.
"Commander, search and rescue operations complete." One of the soldiers reported, snapping out a quick salute.
"Casualties?" The now identified Commander questioned, surveying the site.
"Minimal, we rescued some from the rubble and accounted for all the locals." The soldier stated, people in the area starting to come out of hiding.
"Alright people. Let's load up." The commander stated, the Thunderhawk touching down.
As the soldier's load onto the landing craft, camera phones took picture and video of these mighty warriors.
Who were they?
Where are they from?
Why were they doing this?
Some people on the internet speculated that they were new creations of Metal Knight, while others commented on how similar their armor was to the new hero's armor.
One word propagated through these articles, consistent, unyielding.
A concept.
An Icon.
A Spartan.
