Chapter 120 – EVO
***Tirnanog, Aerie Flagship***
***Vanya***
I leaned back in my chair and allowed the others to inform Magnus and Astra about the current situation. Since I was the one urging for speed, I should have done so myself, but I was tired and the other members of this council were aware of the all-nighters I pulled.
My attention returned to the map on the table as my mind spun, running through scenarios and possibilities. The map showed all known positions of allied and enemy forces with the latter information being more than a little unreliable.
At a glance, the current tactical and strategic situation might have looked like a stalemate between the clans, but I saw it was anything but.
The more Clan Jeng had revealed about their state of affairs, the direr things looked and I was still reluctant to inform the others of how dire I judged the situation to be. It wasn’t like I looked down on the other leaders, but not everyone was as calculating as me. There was no need to jump to conclusions without the full picture, as there were still some undecided factors.
For example, the organisation had yet to reveal the full scale of support it could offer and a few of the ancients had yet to reveal on which side they stood.
Nonetheless, the massive losses among Jeng’s civilian population were a heavy blow to the clans overall economic strength. During the initial stage of their attack, Thich targeted several of their housing trees which Clan Jeng used as self-sufficient skyscrapers. Jengs entire living style relied on burrowing into these gigantic trees like termites with the largest, the mother tree, at the centre of their settlement. Even so, the collapse of several of their surrounding housing trees had claimed a devastating amount of lives.
Clan Jeng was still counting their losses.
The arrival of Aeries and my forces had prevented the absolute worst outcome and forced Vier and Thich into a temporary retreat. Back then, I wondered why our enemies hadn’t fought harder to deal the finishing blow to Jeng. What should have been a decisive battle turned into a mere skirmish in the grand scheme of things.
Oh, thousands had died and airships went down with entire crews lost, but at the end of the day, neither side had truly committed their forces. Except for Jeng, nobody suffered irreplaceable losses. Thich would have had Jeng against a wall if the elders of Aerie hadnt revealed their wormgate. Without it, we might have lost the entire clan.
The complete eradication of a clan such a thing hadnt happened since the great clan war.
I sighed inwardly at the senseless loss of life, cursing my fellow humans for their inability to work together when survival alone was already hard enough in this world. But those were only my feelings. Rationally, I knew my species’ drive for competition and adversity was the reason why we had won the game of evolution and came out as Earths top predator. As much as my fellow humans were suppressing the animal within to play the game of civilisation, that which caused us to rise to the top always shone through to drag us back down.
And in a way, I had no right to complain after deciding to kill my predecessor to take things into my own hands. It almost cost me Tiannas support, but thankfully the woman was too calculating to throw the clan into disarray at such a critical moment by causing a power struggle. Though, things were not well and I would have to face our issues sooner or later.
Suddenly, I realized my thoughts had drifted off again and I forced myself back to our reason for being here.
By now, we knew why the enemy retreated, seemingly bestowing us the gift of victory by abandoning the field of combat. Following old wisdom, countries could win a battle and still lose the war.
Jengs Paladins and their ancient, Felix, had revealed the full scale of their failure only reluctantly, but they had no choice given the aid their people were receiving from us. To hold back vital information would have been the height of folly.
Their reluctance nonetheless caused me to be wary of them and I still considered several scenarios of possible betrayal by Jeng. It was unlikely their civilians would rebel against us after Aerie took in most of them. But Jengs leadership? Enemy operatives within their ranks?
Possible, even very likely.
It looked like Thich hadnt only known how to hit Jeng in the worst way possible, crippling their entire infrastructure. Thich also managed to steal all of Jengs stores of iobeetle armour a supply Jeng had hoarded for several years as they restricted access to the material.
Highly suspicious circumstances, given the precision of the attack. Meaning Thich must have had spies and informants among Jengs population.
The fact that Thich had managed to acquire large amounts of such an important resource as iobeetle armour put us on the back foot. Iobeetle armour was not indestructible, but it surpassed steel in mechanical resistance while being far lighter.
Modern warfare on Earth had gravitated away from heavy armour, but only because modern firearms had become so powerful that armouring infantry with sufficient protection would be impractical. It was possible to protect vital areas to some extent, but using the equivalent of modern plate armour capable of withstanding bullets would have caused any normal soldier to collapse beneath the weight.
Not so on Tirnanog.Visit no(v)eLb(i)n.com for the best novel reading experience
The average Tirnanogian was larger and stronger than any human from Earth, even without specialized mutations. Thanks to the iobeetle shells it was possible to create a modern knight capable of withstanding everything except for the heaviest of modern firearms. All while still allowing for more than enough mobility.
Aside from Jengs paladins, Aeries hunters were the best example with their armour-weaving techniques.
Iobeetle armour was tough enough so it was beyond the point where it mattered whether it was penetrated or not. The necessary forces to break the shell were large enough to kill most humans from the transferred kinetic force alone, even if the armour stayed intact.
The only real downside was the expense due to its rarity.
Besides, the main point of equipping our elite warriors this well was not to have them fight other humans but to protect their lives against the teeth and claws of Tirnanogs wildlife. A stealthy predator going for a vital artery was always a threat, no matter the power of the individual.
On the positive side, it would take quite some time before the Thich would be able to field enough armoured warriors to tip the balance truly. Iobeetle shells were hard to process, but it was only a question of time. We had a few months, maybe a year until the supply of better armour would tip the scales.
It all depended on Thichs ability to process the raw shells which was hard to judge since we got barely any information about their infrastructure.
Woow, Magnus exclaimed upon seeing the scene.
Why are you so surprised? I asked. I thought you arranged this.
Well, I knew the general plan of what would happen if I managed to confirm safe passage and sent a message back, but I didn’t expect them to pull it off to this extent. At the most, I hoped for a few dozen people to storm the facility and get through. Magnus spread out his hands. Those maniacs! How did they get a small army together? Did they march up to the gateway facility and blast their way in?
Why don’t we ask? I marched up to a nearby guard and introduced myself, waving a few filaments at the same time. Our armour and treemonae mutation alone were enough to get us waved through the bunker’s entrance where we expected to find Conla Leece who was in charge of this mess.
An additional security check later, we found ourselves in Gurney’s former office where Conla was sitting behind a desk and heatedly arguing with three people.
Upon seeing me, Conla raised her hands towards the ceiling. Astra! Magnus! Praise Gaia! You are here! Finally!
The three who had been arguing with Conla turned to us and one of the men whistled in a rather offensive way.
You are the girl who Magnus ‘partnered’ with!? he exclaimed and mimed an hourglass figure with his hands. No wonder the lad finally abandoned his ascetic ways. You are a looker!
I blinked. Excuse me?
Oh, where are my manners! He offered me a hand. Gunnar Elrod is the name! Call me uncle! I have been managing Earth’s side of this operation for too long, so finally going on vacation was overdue if you ask me.
I wasn’t sure how to respond and just stared stupidly while Magnus stepped into the room from behind me, growling rather menacingly while he looked down at Gunnar, Who are you supposed to be?
Gunnar! Gunnar replied while looking up at my partner. Don’t you remember me? What have they been feeding you? You are at least a head or two taller than when I last saw you.
I only know one Gunnar Elrod and he is dead, Magnus stated in a rather deadpan voice before looking at the other two. Chloe, Jakob, who is this clown?
Gunnar raised a finger. Right! Never used this face with you. He placed the other hand on his wrist as if he intended to measure his pulse and twisted. With it, the mans face shifted, turning leaner and more angled. Remember your instructor, Agent Crowford? Gunnar did it again and got some more wrinkles while his chin turned more pronounced. The hair on his head receded some more, giving him an even older appearance.
I was taken aback. It wasnt like old people werent a thing in Tirnanog. To pursue power, a few chose to use a more combat-oriented mutation instead of starfish. Still, seeing an old person get even older while I was watching was somewhat disturbing.
Gunnar grinned once the transformation finished, revealing a set of crooked teeth. Or maybe this one? Remember your old neighbour who always snuck you and your sisters some sweets?
Magnus stared at Gunnar, his mien revealing nothing of his emotions.
Gunnar grinned at Magnus and spread his arms, intending a hug.
Magnus struck Gunnar with his palm, hitting the man right in the chest. The force of the blow sent Gunnar flying backwards until he hit Conla’s office table and did a backwards somersault over it. He only managed to let out a very strange noise as the air was forcefully pushed out of his lungs.
Conla was also forced to jump out of her chair to dodge the body. Watch it!
Magnus! I exclaimed.
Magnus raised both hands to show that he was done. Before you carp over this, I thought long and hard about a proper response!
Two seconds! Tops! I complained. That’s not long and hard!
I used thirty sub-personalities simultaneously! So all added up I gave it at least thirty seconds of consideration! Magnus tried to justify himself. And I haven’t really hit him! That was only a light shove! And if he is really who he claims to be, then I should have lightning bolted him to kingdom come until it smelled well done in here.
That’s not the same and you know it! I said.
Ihht hurtsss a certain someone wheezed from beneath Conlas table.
Don’t worry, miss. Gunnar has a few combat mods which are normally restricted to military personnel, the older woman who was apparently a part of Gunnar’s party assured me with a smile on her lips. We kind of expected this to go way worse.
Chloe! Magnus exclaimed, throwing out his arms in an urging gesture. Stop the small talk and start explaining! Whats this supposed to be? Magnus pointed at Gunnar who was using the table to get back to his feet, which I found surprising. I expected someone so frail to be hurt more.
Ih hink he hot haaa rip Gunnar wheezed while holding a palm to his chest.
Of course! Everything will be explained, though that will take time! Maybe we should sit down, but first. Chloe paid the shapeshifter no mind as her gaze roamed to the third member of Gunnar’s group and she held out a hand. Pay up!
The man Magnus addressed as Jakob grumbled, but pulled out a colourful plastic bag and handed it over. Fine, you won. Though, I would contest that we would have to wait till Magnus learns the whole story before he decides to freak out on Gunnar.