July 26, 2175
8:45 A.M.
Dark clouds reigned the sky above the forest Jack and his companions were currently taking refuge in. The ground was now filled with puddles, littered with half-burnt trees that had fallen as a result of the thunderstorm the previous night.
"Sigh~ Enak, was all that meditation really necessary? I feel like we missed out on some quality combat practice because of that," Jack said as he walked out of the training room, his body sore all over.
"We are trying to concentrate your internal Kana energy. Warriors take years to achieve a satisfactory amount, but thanks to your genes, we are progressing exponentially. Such results on day one, impressive, young master," Enak said, his tone proud.
"I guess, but still, we wasted three hours of workout time for this... all I can feel is my aura nodes crying for their lives," Jack groaned as he started to descend the stairs.
He had been in the training room for the last three hours, training to fulfill the necessary requirements for effectively learning the techniques from the codex. According to Enak, he was at the bare minimum for the qualifications.
So here he was, absorbing external Kana energy into his system, even when his dantian felt like exploding, absorbing until Enak told him to stop, and release it back into the air as swiftly as he could.
"It's a training one can only ideally do on a day one is sure we wouldn't have any confrontations. They cannot have their aura nodes getting blocked mid fight," Enak explained as Jack entered his room.
Wait, but we might run into confrontations today. We are going outside. You should've told me before, Jack thought, his thoughts turning dark as he imagined what would happen if his Kana system were to jam in a fight.
"That's what I am here for. Your constitution is more special than you think, and with me, your potential will slowly come out. Only if you train, of course."
"Let's just hope we don't have to fight a revenant today... I don't want them biting away my stomach when my dantian is already paining like this," he groaned as he walked into the bathroom.
"Right, so the plan for today is driving to Bethlehem and get a robot framework for Viora to modify?" Enak asked.
"Yes. Thankfully, that place was more or less ran by machines. Not many people lived there, so hopefully we wouldn't encounter any Ortho Sapiens there," Jack sighed, stepping into the shower.
"Hopefully," Enak repeated with a defeated sigh.
Jack emerged out of the shower a few moments later after cleaning up. Ethan had been in his room trying to break into the Stamford lab network. Diana was in her room reading through the list of refugees they had taken in, overseeing Viora and Elpira, who were sorting them into roles they would work under at the lifecamp.
"Still, that restriction Viora's got, that she can't manufacture robots, is a bit dumb, don't you think?" Jack asked as he started getting some bacon ready.
"You're saying that because you don't know what robots back at Creta were like. Even our normal law enforcement robots were total warmachines compared to the ones in your police department. It would take at most five of them to deal with the horde you dealt with back at the festival," Enak explained smugly.
"I can imagine what would happen if someone wrong got ahold of high-class pocket tents. It would be like having a personal army," Jack said thoughtfully.
"Exactly. I remember during my time with Rick, there was a batch of robots that went rogue. They destroyed everything in a one kilometer radius. We had to send a whole brigade to take them down."
"That's intense."
"Hey, have some left for me?" Ethan called out as he descended the stairs.
"Sure do, fetch yourself a plate," Jack replied, settling down his breakfast on the table before taking a seat.
"So, find anything?" Jack asked as Ethan took a seat across from him.
"Sadly no. Infiltrating the network is hard, harder when none of the information modules are functioning there, no channels open for me to creep in."
"I see. Guess we will just have to wait?"
"Yeah, unless we get some inside help..." he trailed off, knowing it was a risky plan Jack would never agree to.
"We can't do that. If we send someone out, there is a high chance they get killed, or worse, captured, mind-controlled and sent back as spies. Mom has no way to identify the affected right now," Jack said sadly.
"Yeah, right. Did you decide which factory we will take the robot from in Bethlehem?"
"I didn't. The factories will be in working condition... it will be hard to just take the robot. Viora, what sort of robot would do?"
"Just something with a human framework would do. There are no other requirements. I'm sorry for this shortcoming of me," she replied apologetically.
"Don't worry about it, you're a great help to us," Jack encouraged her.
"Thank you, master," she replied, her voice laced with determination.
"You know what, I have been looking up the various types of robots that are manufactured in Bethlehem. Thankfully, they stopped making military robots there. We wouldn't encounter any of the soldiers anymore. We might even find something in those shut-down factories. Still, they make combat dummy robots there. We should get one of those," Ethan said, browsing on his holo watch and displaying a holographic model of the robot he was talking about.
"Hmm, looks promising. Viora will figure out the rest," Jack remarked as he interacted with the summoned image.
"Great. It's about 1500 kilometres from our current location. Should we start moving?"
"We really should. Ugh, I am really not ready to address a robot as if it's my grandpa," Jack sighed, but he knew his grandfather's guidance would be like a boon to them in their current situation.
"Alright, let's get moving. I will inform everyone in lifecamp that we are on the move. We really should find a stable hiding place for that tent. We shouldn't just carry them around. It's dangerous," Ethan said, getting up and placing his dishes in the dishwasher.
"Trust me, I want that too," Jack said, tossing his dishes into the dishwasher too.
"Hmm... not washing them yourself today, huh? You always do that when Diana is eating with you," Ethan teased.
"It just doesn't look good when she is doing her dishes and I am just dropping them in the dishwasher," Jack refuted immediately.
"Of course it doesn't," Ethan said, shaking his head.
"Anyways, don't drive right into the city. I need the wheel back in my hand once we are about to get off the highway."
"Alrighty," and with that, he climbed out of the tent.
"Well, Enak, time to get brainstorming. Viora, do we have a complete model of the lab's structure?"
"It's all set in the strategy room, sir."
"Good. Let's get moving," Enak agreed.
As they walked to the strategy room, the Kana network came alive, delivering Ethan's voice as he informed they were getting a move on.
Jack opened the door of the strategizing room. As he did, the lights inside came alive, the central holographic projector displaying a 3D image of a battle-worn shield backed by twin swords, 'Outpost' written on it in eroded letters glowing red against the silver of the shield.
"Good design, Viora," he said with a smile.
"Thank you, master. I made it yesterday. Well then, would you like me to put the lab structure on display?"
"Yes, please do."
The lights dimmed a little and the object on display changed. The widespread lab was now at display, with its many domes and towers, each detail in the image.
The lab compound spread across a thousand acres of reinforced terrain, an impressive display of compact and efficient craftsmanship. Four distinct wings radiated out from the central command tower, each reserved for a specific field. Each wing had about three to four buildings and was connected by both underground tunnels and on-ground corridors.
A wide network of mag-lifts and roads interconnected the labs on the surface. They moved at insane speeds between destinations—a magnetic variation of cable cars that were suspended mid-air with magnets.
One block housed sterile genetic labs, a place for genetic research. Another rose toward the sky with radar dishes and telescope-enclosing domes, forming the observatory and communications department. To the west, the material engineering wing called the Alchemy Ward blazed with forges, focused on recreating the alien minerals of Creta.
And deep underground, sealed in lead-lined chambers, were the decommissioned labs where the first human-Kratian hybrids were grown in isolated vessels during the days when research about making humans and Kratians genetically compatible was underway.
Some called it a house of horrors after the many gruesome life forms that took form there—a necessary evil for ensuring the co-existence and survival of both the species.
Around the research hub, in a half-kilometre radius, was the no man's land—an empty space designed for secrecy and containment.
A ten-metre fence made of Strobium and Kadestone surrounded the complex. Above it, a canopy of concentrated Kana energy hovered twenty metres high, its invisible field laced with lethal power.
The energy density was so extreme that any dantian or Kana-engine that touched the canopy would detonate instantly due to the overwhelming force of energy overload.
"Hmm, remove the roofs and place the floors side by side for multistorey structures," Jack instructed as he grabbed the structure's outline and dragged it below so he could get a view from the top.
The structure was configured according to his instructions, revealing the many halls and corridors.
His mother was currently hiding in the genetic engineering block, which was about half a kilometre away from the space research lab.
"Only if they had installed watchtowers in that vacant land, things might have been under control," Enak remarked as Jack rotated the structure around.
"I wouldn't be so sure of that," Jack sighed again as he began tracing various paths to get to his mother from the observatory.
"Yeah yeah, the mind control. I know, I used the word 'might,' young master."
"Even if there was no mind control, things would've still gone unnoticed for at least a week."
"What? Why?"
"Few years ago, the lab was bought off by Draven Vanthelis. Ever since then, the workload on the researchers increased. They wouldn't be able to be contacted for weeks sometimes, or come home for days. That's why no one will notice a thing until a week or something has passed."
"Sounds like quite the tyrant employer," Enak sighed.
"Yeah. Hmm... the domes will open. If I enter from here, fight my way through to Mom... no, that's too unreliable. If I encounter a big brigade, I'm more or less dead," he said, biting his lip as he traced the path.
"You're not concerned about the fence?" Enak questioned.
"Well, it's just 30 metres. I will climb over it using Kana slabs," he said nonchalantly. "You've been asking me too many questions. I thought you'd be good at strategizing," he added.
"Just testing you. And until now I didn't see any need for a correction. Anyways, we will walk right through the fence," Enak said smugly.
"I will blast right there into smithereens," Jack said, taken aback.
"You won't. You have me, remember? Besides, we need to do it."
"Why?"
"I will absorb a lot of Kana energy from the fence, store it, and when you enter the dome, we will fire it right into the machine. We will either have the whole ceiling caving down, or at least the machine getting destroyed. In any case, we will create a permanent opening for us," Enak said smugly.
"Wow, alright. Sounds good."
Just then, there was a knock on the door.
"Jack? Should I join you?" Diana called out from the other side.
"Yeah, come inside. I was just planning our move," he said, opening the door for her.
Diana came inside. As she and Jack discussed the many routes, Jack noticed some blood on her hands.