Chương 107: Moving Pawns
"Are we sure it's going to work this time?" I ask Alan, and the Chief Fabricator nods. "Of course, thanks to your input we're almost certain that this design should work as intended."
I sigh, it has been a hectic couple of days. The information about spatial bags I brought back was put to good use, and we finally have some functioning prototypes. So far the most obvious choices like magazines capable of holding thousands of rounds have been tried and tested, and they are clear for production.
Of course, setting up the new production line still requires some time, but it should be ready by the time we finish this.
What I've been 'working' on is a creative design proposed by Philip, it's a mix of Krognar's liquid metal technology and spatial storage. I say 'working' since I hadn't done anything besides Rewinding when a test went badly. And there was a lot of failures.
Alan nods and speaks in a microphone, "Okay testing unit, activate the device!"
His words are relayed to a group of three Legionaries tethered together by a thin silver cord. The Legionaries nod and a streak of blue energy run through the cable. I brace myself, so far this step has been the one which has failed the most. I've seen everything from the metal encasing the Legionaries, compressing them into small cubes, and outright making them explode.
And those are the most normal occurrences.
"Everything seems normal!" a Fabricator who is looking at a console shouts. I learned from the previous timelines that this thing is highly unstable unless it's handled very carefully. So far, we've managed it very poorly.
The silver line expands and pulses before forming a small dome over the Legionaries. I take a glance at the feed from the cameras strapped to the soldiers and grit my teeth. Everything looks fine, but I can't be sure until the artifacts work flawlessly.
"The readings are good and within acceptable ranges!" the console operator keeps us updated, but my eyes are glued onto the group of testers who are standing in the middle of a special isolated room.
"C-Could it be?" Alan mutters as the metal starts to vibrate.
I stay silent. This is the farthest we got so I'm ready for any potential disasters.
But the metal takes shape, and more metal along with other components flow out of a small steel box strapped to the Legionaries' belts.
I hold my breath as the metal takes its final shape, I can't help but feel like a huge weight has been lifted off my shoulders.
"It worked!" Alan shouts and jumps around.
I can't help but grin; this development should allow us to overcome some of our glaring limitations.
Of course, I'm talking about deploying vehicles on the battlefield. The Portal Station has been great and very useful, but it has one glaring flaw. The portals it creates are too small to allow any of our vehicles to pass through. By using Philip's Improbability Factor, we were able to determine that upgrading the Portal Station would require so much purple Magicite that it would require us to have more Credits that the entire Earth has at its disposal.
Instead, we bypassed the problem thanks to a suggestion from the ex-shopkeeper.
We will store his liquid metal into a spatial storage box and use some sophisticated algorithms to turn it into a desired shape. In this case, it's a Humvee that the Legionaries are driving around the test area.
"Alright, now store it back!" Alan orders and the vehicles go back to be stored into the boxes without an issue. Deploying a car this way allows us to send armored support to anyone since the box of liquid metal is now standard issue for the Legionaries. They just have to select what they want, and it will generate around them.
This type of in-situ creation allows for the construction of something like a helicopter or a tank in a single second. But this system isn't flawless since it requires the Legionaries to be tethered by this silvery cable. The more complex the vehicle, the more people it needs. For example, a Humvee could be created by two Legionaries, but a helicopter has a minimum requirement of four.
Nevertheless, it's the only cost-effective way we were able to develop in such short notice. Our current doctrine should make this short window of time a non-problem in most situations, and if it did then Mary and I would be deployed instead of the regular Order.
The new strategy we adopted was based on my recent mission on Krognar's planet along with our previous engagements. At first, there were considerations of doing a standard assault by sending teleporting troops to the enemy base, but relying on the Hammer to soften the targets is more cost-effective, and it will save a large number of lives.
Not to mention that the second generation of Hammer projectiles is already in the works. It will be using our new spatial storage capabilities to make even more devastating shells. But the increased material cost of such projectiles is quite prohibitive since the regular Hammer ammunition is already quite pricey, especially the penetrators. Right now, the designs are being worked on, and small-scale testing has already begun.
This new capabilities also raised the question of the equipment we are issuing. Alan, Terrence and I debated over removing the rifles from the Legionaries and only issuing something using the Portal Station to fire projectiles.
It would undoubtedly streamline our production, and not having to carry a rifle would make our soldiers more agile, but I decided against it. First of all, we don't have a way to reliably provide firepower to everyone since the Hammer is already taking a lot of space.
Secondly, my battles against Beelzebub and the Oracle proved that our portals aren't as durable as we thought, the risk of making our soldiers defenseless is too high to ignore.
Thirdly, changing our current production line is not an option at the moment. It would take too much time and stopping production of anything is not possible. Right now, all the Printers are running at full capacity to provide all the equipment the Order needs.
The only change we made for our small arms are issuing spatial magazines and a new formula for the propellant of the EGBs and the shells for the Hammer. As it turns out, Krognar dabbled in explosives when he was younger. Most of his stuff was volatile and unstable, but one of his formulas was easy and cheap to produce while giving better results compared to the standard gunpowder we were still using.
According to our tests and calculations, the velocity of all our projectiles has doubled thanks to the change of fuel. As a side note, the muzzle flash of our weapons is now blue for some reason.
But there was some work done on my equipment. Mainly my armor, robes, and pistol which have been upgraded by Phase 3. The test proved that there was a significant increase in performance, but the runes are no longer readable and seem to have vanished from the surface of these items. Also, the Portal Gun remained unaffected by Phase 3.
To sum it up, we've done quite a lot of research, and upgraded our equipment again. We also fixed a glaring problem in our logistics, and I feel like we are ready to take on the Stonecrusher Empire. The only thing that stops us is that the production of Spell Jammers hasn't started yet. Krognar's machine is being rebuilt in one of the last free corners of the workshop, and large-scale containers are being constructed according to the Goblin's specifications. Securing our only supply of Starmetal is also being dealt with since a squad of Legionaries has been dispatched to the tribe that was hoarding all the Starmetal.
Their initial reports are good. They teleported into the vault, and the Starmetal was still there, although it showed signs of critical instability. Nobody knows when the metal is going to blow-up, but we better hurry to make sure that nothing bad happens.
Our Infusion technology also allowed us to not require Frostcrystal Roses for Starmetal processing. A considerable amount of frost essence will now provide the needed cooling. It uses a ton of materials compared to the Roses needed, but the Roses' rarity would make large-scale production not viable.
I also tried to improve myself, mainly regaining my soul strength. Constantly Rewinding doesn't provide enough power to make it a viable tactic, but I was dedicated enough to be able to use Phase 2 again. It would only last a couple of minutes, but it's better than nothing. The rest of my time has been dedicated to preventing any disasters from our experiments, and nobody has died thanks to my efforts.
Subjugating the Shard's population also finished, but increased manpower forced us to expand our headquarters even further, and space is slowly running out.
That is a problem I don't have the answer to, the only lead we have on the Dimensional Harpoons is worthless so that project isn't high on our priority list.
Right now, all our efforts are focused on defeating the Stonecrusher Empire. We are slowly mapping the location of their bases, and dispatching Sarah who is acting like an innocuous bystander gave us more insight into their current operations. It isn't much, but every little bit of information helps when dealing with such a strong foe.
Things have been moving nicely, but I know it isn't going to stay that way. The Stonecrushers will make their move sooner or later, and the other Families and Councils are bound to enter the fray. We also have to worry about Steve's group. It would be very likely that they'll try to interfere with our operations. Not to mention that their recent 'victory' might have encouraged them, and their disruptive actions would put a wrench in our plans.
But it shouldn't matter in the grand scheme of things. The fact that they failed their last operation so miserably shows that they aren't as efficient as us in terms of warfare.
However, I can't help but be worried about the future. We never fought a large-scale conflict before while the Stonecrushers, and to a lesser extent the Freedom Movement, have lived in such an environment since their birth.
Terrence is a capable leader, but from what I can tell he's only really led skirmishes and guerrilla strikes, not a full-on war against large power blocks.
We could sow discord in the other Councils to gain some time, but I fear that the internal strifes would lead to large, and more centralized, power blocks. It could lead to the emergence of another Empire, or even worse. But worrying about it will not lead to anything, we don't have any spies in those Councils in the first place, so it's just idle thoughts. Buying the loyalty of some Families could work, but our finances are already strained because of the large amount of materials we are consuming. The HiddenNet ensures that we aren't going to run out, but our Credits reserve isn't infinite, so bribes are out of the question for the moment.
But, even if we had the budget, I doubt that most Families with a bit of influence would accept to obey Humans, or Outsiders or whatever niceties they like to call us.
Not that it MatTeRs, we aRe GoInG tO wIpE tHeM oUt!
My phone suddenly rings, so I pick it up.
"Prometheus!" A slightly panicked Terrence says. "We need your orders. Our off-world squad is under heavy enemy fire!"
I sigh and teleport to the command room, that particular planet begins to get on my nerves.
...Riley's PoV...
"Sir, I regret to inform you that the last safe house was compromised, we tried to repel the invaders but they were too numerous, and we were under heavy fire. As per your orders, we teleported away and detonated some explosives to deny resources from the enemy." A scarred officer declares.
I nod, I wasn't expecting that the Empire already seized our most remote safe house. We managed to steal a few assets here and there, but it's not enough to put a dent in the massive Stonecrusher war machine.
"Don't worry; you did what you could. Any losses?" I ask with a tired tone. The realities of guerrilla warfare are not something I'm used to, and at this point losing one soldier is something that will weaken us severely.
"We were lucky; we just have a few wounded that will recover in a day or two." The Werewolf answers.
"Good, go have some rest," I order, and the soldier lowers its head before walking out of my sparse office.
I look at the old wall and sigh. Things haven't been going well for the remnants of the Family, or I should say the Neo-Wolfheart as we are called by the few that are aware of our existence. Steve's betrayal shattered the Family, and the group that fled with me is only one of many. I tried to recontact them, but finding them proved to be impossible. The few we found went into hiding and didn't want to even think about fighting for the Family again, or they pretended to be the true successors of the Wolfheart legacy.
In the end, I left them to their own devices. Instead, I tried to rebuild the alliances of old, but the few remaining Families are too scared of the Empire to do anything. From what I understand their allegiances already lies with the external Councils. Some of them even blame the Wolfheart for the situation, and they have publicly said that any Wolfheart member will be shot on sight as retribution for all the destruction our incompetence caused.
I cannot blame them. It's true that we handled things poorly. Numerous disasters in a row plagued the Family, and in hindsight, we took the worst possible decision at every corner. Our weakness allowed the creation of the Stonecrusher Empire and all the horrors that resulted from their rise to power. Entire Families were massacred, territories were pillaged, and infrastructure was destroyed. And the bastard that is Daredrick blamed us for that, thus lowering our status even more.
By now, the Wolfheart has been turned into a footnote of History, a power of old that has fallen and will never go back to its former glory. In all honesty, I contemplated stopping the fight and living in hiding, maybe even going to another planet or dimension to live in peace. I fully realize that I am just another warlord vying for the legacy of a fallen Family. We are only more legitimate than the others because I was nominated as the next head of the Family, but our military power is so weak that the other groups can disregard these claims.
Furthermore, the Stonecrusher controls almost everything that was once a possession of the Wolfhearts. There are a few enclaves of resistance left, the biggest one being the traitors of the Freedom Movement. But these rebellions are bound to be crushed by the Empire, so the current state of affairs makes our struggle even more pointless. There will never be a Wolfheart Resurrection.
However, my pride as a Wolfheart doesn't allow me to back down. That stupid pride of ours that has destroyed our Family and plunged the area into chaos pushes me to keep fighting in pointless operations that are only slightly hindering the Stonecrusher supply chain.
The men still loyal to me want to keep fighting for some reason. I don't know if they are aware of the state of affairs but, even if they are aware, it's likely that they can't back down for the same reasons as me. We are pariahs, shunned and rejected by the antiquated Family system. We could disband, but where would we go? Nobody will hire us because it would incur the wrath of the Stonecrushers, or they aren't interested in a band of ragged nobodies from a destroyed Family.
Our limited funds will not even allow us to start a small stall in the Bazaar, the only place where we could regain a semblance of purpose. Our Credits reserves are too small to afford a shop, so we honestly have no future.
There's no real hope, and I can only watch as a spectator as chaos spreads all around me.
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Onch
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