December 3rd, 625
Inside a chopper about 10 thousand feet in the air, I brought out the weapon I’d start our battle with.
We’d be dropping into an active battle against 210 Hog Riders who were on the way to attack a battalion of our troops. That was several minutes ago, and they were likely locked in combat now.
I was with the Snow Doves in a troop transport. It only had 30 seats but with a little overstuffing we made it work.
Umara sat beside as I fiddled with a new gun. After my advancent I was able to project deep into the 7th Star. I had no doubt that I had surpassed the power level that Maxwell expected to have upon advancent. I was above average, even for his Call.
So that ant I could outright skip so of the early weapons, getting to more of the good stuff. It seed that the surface level weapons were from the early 21st century, while the latter weapons were a decade or two older.
Weapons didn’t change too much after the 1980s, still being used well into the 2000s. The M240 was one such weapon and the one I had in my hand was the M240LWS
Made to be lighter weight than a standard M240 and given a shortened barrel and fra, the M240LWS was perfect for who needed so level of mobility while retaining a higher caliber and volu of fire. It was much more wieldy than the M60, could fire faster, and they used the sa caliber. That ant I could continue to summon backpacks of ammo and feed chute the belts to the gun.
On the helicopter, I first took off the barrel and fiddled with the gas regulator, upping the gas setting to 3 and thereby increasing the fire rate. I had yet to ever get a jam in any gun I summoned so I was going to take advantage of it and not worry about what an increased fire rate would do to the weapon.
After that I reassembled everything, mounted the feed chute adapter, accessed the feed tray, laid down the belt, shut the cover, and slotted in the feed chute. After that I racked the receiver, placed it into open bolt configuration, and clicked the safety on.
Now it was good to go.
Umara comnted after I was done.
“That was complicated. The gun looks weird too.”
“It’s a machine gun, but I almost forgot that you haven’t seen any of my new weapons since the Magisterium.”
“No, I haven’t. The last ones I saw were what you used when we hunted together in the markets. The Tommy Gun, I believe.”
“Hoho, well you’re in for a real surprise. That was two Authorities ago and these guns punch much harder and faster.”
I said that while taking out a holo sight and mounting it to the rails. Once that was on I settled the weapon on my lap.
Umara reached over and felt the body of the gun.
“No more wood.”
“Nope. Steel, titanium, maybe so polyr for the grip.”
“What’s polyr?”
“It’s almost like a plastic but that’s not technically accurate.”
“What’s a plastic?”
“A petroleum product, very versatile.”
“What’s petroleum?”
“It’s oil, but not the cooking oil you’re familiar with. A hydrocarbon specifically. A more well-known one is octane which is an alkane with the formula C8H18 that can be refined into gasoline among other cycloalkanes and aromatics.”
“I recognized so of those words.”
She chuckled at , making smile and shrug.
“Sorry, I’ve been getting technical recently.”
“I actually noticed. You seem different after your advancent. Sothing happen?”
“It’s just a natural consequence of how enhanced my mind has beco. I have an absolutely perfect mory now as well as a thinking speed several tis faster than before. I’ve rembered absolutely everything I’ve ever seen, heard, and experienced throughout my entire life. There’s an unbelievable amount of information I have access to now. I may have to give you so more grimoires and improve the old ones.”
“That’s… amazing. Don’t worry about my grimoires though. Let’s get through these battles first.”
“Mm.”
I nodded and waited, quickly getting closer to the battlefield.
After so minutes, we arrived.
The pilot called out, “Get ready to deploy!”
I looked up at the knights in front holding shields. They’d be leaving first, everyone standing following them before those in seats finally got to leave.
I turned back toward Feiden who sat at my other side, nudging him with my elbow.
“Go for longevity. This won’t be the only battle tonight.”
“Roger. Are you sure you don’t want to stay near you? We can work in a team.”
“I’m sure. Just worry about the Hog Riders. We need to wipe out as many as we can while we’re in the field.”
“Dropping!”
The pilot yelled, the helicopter landing and shaking with the impact. Then the ramp dropped, the knights charging out.
“Move, move! Get to the front!”
Nonnen charged out with them, launching himself toward the enemy as soon as he was clear of the helicopter. I stayed seated, adjusting the machine gun in my lap.
Everyone in the seats ca next, mostly warlocks who followed behind the knights. and Umara’s squad were last.
I turned back toward the pilot.
“Keep her close! This won’t take long!”
“Roger!”
I got a thumbs up, turning and running out.
A few seconds after my boots hit the ground the helicopter went back up.
Umara turned back to face . I nodded to her.
“I’ll be watching.”
“So will I. I’ll see if you’re ready to join special operations,” She smiled at cheekily.
“Honey, you have no idea.”
I returned the grin and let my Aura out.
Then, I disappeared.
……
Umara’s eyes narrowed when she saw her boyfriend vanish from her eyes.
The rest of her squad was staring, scrutinizing the area as he faded from view. After several seconds, they were incapable of finding anything, and knowing he’d probably run off already, they gave up.
Jaya suddenly laughed.
“Holy shit. I think I get what you guys were saying now.”
“Let’s get into the fight. Tana, move to the flank. Feiden and Harsha, take point. Jaya, you’re with . Let’s break down their line.”
They all looked to the battle.
A detachnt of Hog Riders had charged a battalion, shattering their ranks and allowing the rest of the oncoming Scourge force to attack with greater effectiveness. The charge had been stopped by now but the battalion was collapsing and in dire need of help.
Umara scanned around, filtering through the surrounding Auras and finding the place with the highest density denoting the most powerful combatants.
Then she found that the Snow Dove Brigadier Nonnen was already slaughtering everything in that area.
She turned to the second place with the highest concentration where the cluster of Hog Riders were, finding that the other Brigadier Amira was also already wreaking havoc.
Several Chiefs were engaged with the higher level Royals, and the rest of the Snow Doves were nailing down fortified lines to protect the battalion and allow them to regroup.
After a few seconds, Umara realized there wasn’t any one place she could go to make a significant impact. Even without them, the Snow Doves had it covered.
“And they’re not even special operations. Alright, we’re going to attack their western flank and slaughter our way through. Let’s get the pressure off those shield bearers. Move!”
Feiden charged with her word, the five of them gliding across the ground and finding their first targets.
Feiden and Harsha charged in first, Feiden skewering two monsters and Harsha moving in past him with her shield, bashing away so monsters that wanted to pounce on him. Feiden recovered with a movent and killed another monster that wanted to flank Harsha, and from there the two worked around each other. Harsha provided a barrier, and Feiden used her to line up targets for uncontested kills.
Umara then ca up from behind, forming small lances of fla and compressed air. They were simple spells considering what she had begun to achieve, and they were unleashed consistently, effective but light on Umara’s mana. It was more than enough to kill or maim her targets, and Feiden had no problems finishing the injured ones off.
Then Jaya moved to the side of their formation, taking out a canister full of fluid. She cracked open the top, shook it around a bit as it started to leak, and then threw it over beyond her squad’s imdiate targets.
The canister spun in the air and released a long stream of the fluid, flying past several dozen monsters before hitting the ground.
Jaya smiled and brought up her hand, flicking her fingers and releasing a spark. It ignited the fluid on her hands, which she manipulated with her mana and threw at the trail of fluid.
The trail ignited, and thick green flas erupted throughout the monsters’ ranks. They scrambled as the flas engulfed them, screams filling their ears as hide turned to ash and smoke filled lungs. The monsters collapsed after several seconds.
Umara turned, narrowing her eyes.
“Don’t use your resources too early.”
“It’s okay, I’ve got plenty!”
“I’m serious. I have a feeling you’ll need to be as frugal as possible. No more this battle.”
“Fine, fine.”
Jaya sighed, Umara looking for their next targets and finding the Hog Riders not far away standing in an open area, trying to advance on the retreating troops.
The knights that were holding the line they flanked were backing away to reinforce other areas, so Umara decided to continue pushing as long as they could.
“Keep going. Go for the Hog Riders. Don’t let them pierce through our lines.”
“Roger.”
Feiden moved forward with Harsha, Feiden keeping his speed in line with hers.
Before they could get far though, a voice entered their minds.
[Heads down. Going hot.]
Feiden stopped in his tracks right before he made contact with the enemy riders, grabbing Harsha and killing her montum just as quick.
Then, the streaks ca.
Feiden watched as bright red lines zipped in front of him, slicing through the riders and their mounts. The explosions ca with them, sharp shockwaves hitting their ears a dozen tis a second and ringing across the entire landscape around them.
The riders were cut down five at a ti as clusters of bullets shredded through them, blowing holes open across their bodies.
John’s bullets entered from behind, but Feiden noticed that his bullets exited through the armored front of the riders anyway, sending shattered fragnts of the hard bone-like material flying.
In seconds a dozen Hog Riders were dropped, and the gunfire never stopped. It was unceasing for a full minute, and in that ti the lines of the riders were decimated, cut down by those bright red streaks. Feiden noticed that the number of explosions outnumbered the amount of red streaks there were. Sowhere, amidst all those deadly lines, were even more bullets.
Feiden looked to the side, seeing John moving behind the enemy lines. He walked with steady steps, the trigger held down, his aim adjusting for every target he wanted to kill. Sotis he angled himself just right and his bullets tore through multiple monsters. Other tis he found a tougher enemy and simply put more rounds inside of it.
It was cold, chanical. Feiden could sense no hint of care in John’s Aura, what little he could actually sense. There was a thorough lack of emotion, John’s only focus being the most efficient and effective way to kill the most amount of enemies in the shortest ti possible.
Feiden looked back, seeing Umara staring with a serious look on her face. Noticing his gaze, she waved, smacking Jaya’s shoulder and getting Harsha’s attention.
“Let’s keep moving. Get to the other flank. We’ll pincer them from there. Go!”
They rushed across the battlefield as John continued to fire. Many monsters turned around but they were cut down all the sa. Then an Authority 9 Royal tried to jump on him, but he simply disappeared from view, Amira taking the chance to cut down that Royal from behind.
He spent so ti in the shadows before appearing with more ammo, continuing his walk, continuing the slaughter.
Feiden could hardly believe how a weapon could be so lethal. John had explained to them how those guns worked conceptually but this was on another level entirely. So many of those bullets, backed by so much power and speed. They were unstoppable, unable to be dodged, the most difficult to block. Their penetrative power was proportional to their unbelievable speed and size, after all.
But when Feiden saw John cutting down hundreds by his loneso, he started to realize not just the potential behind those weapons, but what it ant to be truly powerful.
Those of a higher Authority were always known as one-man-armies. They could kill thousands alone, wield catastrohpic magic akin to natural disasters. Feiden always found it difficult to visualize such things because they were often stuck fighting enemies of equal strength, focusing all their power onto one being, learning how to be skilled with Aura and efficient with their Vigor or Mana.
But those guns were different. They were efficient, they delivered all their power unto the enemy with no waste, but most importantly, they could deliver volu.
Feiden wondered, could he stop hundreds, thousands by himself? Could he not just kill high level enemies, but kill them fast? Or did it take ti?
He rembred when John would fight back then, similar to how he did now. Those guns always made quick work of his enemies. It only took one bullet to the head to end an enemy. John knew how to pour huge chunks of his power into singular attacks, empowering just a single bullet, one that would make all the difference, and kill enemies even above his own power level.
And yet here he was, also capable of slaughtering thousands alone.
That was the kind of power he needed to strive for, the level of control he needed to discipline himself with.
He stabbed forward with his spear, thinking about how long it took to deliver his blade through the enemy’s throat, and then counting each painful millisecond to retract the blade and angle it for the next enemy.
Too slow. Wasn’t he supposed to be the fast one?
But emitting sweeping blades of vigor was wasteful. Did he just have to stab and slash faster?
But he could bend space. He was the Apple, literally. It had beco his nickna after that fateful epiphany.
So, perhaps, if he managed to bend space to assist his attacks and kill faster, not just for the sake of traversal…
He smiled, thinking he was onto sothing. If it could move him, it could move his spear. He just needed to refine his control over his Aura. He had never used it recklessly after almost killing himself with it. There was an abysmally steep learning curve and he was still ascending it.
He continued to fight, manipulating his Aura to try and find that path.
That’s when Umara’s voice ca from behind though.
“Where the hell is Tana?”
Feiden glanced around, thinking that he hadn’t seen the girl since they exited the helicopter.
He ended up glancing at John again, and that’s when he saw Tana there as well, following behind John as his barrel spit fire and reddened in the night.
He pointed, “She’s with John!”
Umara looked to where he pointed, seeing the girl and squinting her eyes to see a bit better. The strobing flashes from John’s gun made it easier to pick them out but she couldn’t see what exactly Tana was doing.
She eventually shook her head.
“Nevermind, just keep fighting.”
Feiden didn’t question much and simply focused on refining himself.
In the distance, Tana watched John run out of ammo. The next second he went invisible, completely vanishing from Tana’s senses.
“No, you’re not actually gone…”
She muttered. She knew this was a trick of the mind. John wasn’t gone. He wasn’t sohow removing his influence from the world. His body still affected the wind, affected the ground, reflected light. Nothing about him or his place on the ground was affected.
It was her own mind. His Psyka and Aura were so abstract that her mind was incapable of making him out. Even if she did sohow realize his presence, picking him out would require her to decipher his influence on his surroundings, which seed to be outright impossible. She’d have to overco the complexity of his mind, and that was only sothing another summoner could do.
In short, her mind was convincing itself that he wasn’t there simply because she couldn’t comprehend him.
“What are you looking for?”
He appeared next to her, hoisting a fresh pack of ammo.
She looked at him. It was no wonder he so easily vanished and reappeared. His powers went so deep that he was effectively reaching into her mind and removing himself from her senses. So long as he was capable of it, nobody would be able to stop him from coming and going like a ghost. At that point, his only weakness would be wide area attacks that would simply obliterate the ground he was standing on and kill him anyway, visible or not.
She responded even as he started firing again, walking with him, knowing her words would reach him just fine.
“There are two ways to vanish from the world. Tricks of the mind, and removing your effect on the world. I don’t have your powers for the forr, and the latter seems impossible. I’m a little desperate so I want to ask you about what path I should take.”
He didn’t comnt, even though she was half expecting him to say that she shouldn’t be so desperate. He may have before but ever since they arrived he seed to be a bit colder, even to Umara. Maybe it was just the battle, but she had a feeling it was the advancent. Sothing changed in that mind of his.
“There are three ways to remove your influence on the world. The first is by removing yourself physically, which is impossible. The second is by letting the world pass through you as if you weren’t there, which isn’t possible as far as I know even with existing magitech. The third is by bending the world around you. You must keep in mind that invisibility cos in different forms. You must not produce sound and must not interfere with sound. You must not absorb or radiate light, must not radiate heat, must not touch the air, must not crush the ground under your feet. It seems impossible and under normal circumstances I’d say it is. But perhaps you’d be able to find a way to do it.”
“But how do you bend light around you?”
She asked as he stopped firing, the last Hog Rider dead. The rest of the Snow Doves were cleaning up with the excising help of 5th squadron.
John kept his gun out but focused on her, the battle over in his mind.
“Gravity is the only way to do that. Feiden bends space with gravity to increase his speed. But you can refract light in different ways to achieve a similar effect, as glass or water does. But that is only one sense. You don’t know how to dampen sound, how to eliminate your effect on physical substances like the ground or air, how to trick the mind like I do.”
“No, I don’t,” She readily agreed, feeling a sharp pang in her chest, “Compared to you guys I’ve been pulling myself different ways. I’ve managed to learn how to slip through air with minimal resistance, but it’s not great. I’ve done so ntal trickery like you, but it’s not great. I’ve tried making myself invisible but I’ve almost entirely failed, using ntal trickery as a crutch since it was the only thing I learned to do properly. But none of it’s great. I’m ahead for now but I won’t be able to keep up like this.”
John didn’t respond, a silent agreent, Tana figured. Then he spoke.
“Yeah, you won’t.”
She felt her emotions well up in her eyes. Brutally honest. She knew she needed it, wanted it, but hearing it still hurt.
She pushed down those tears and swallowed before speaking again, lest she choke on her words.
“Do you have any advice?”
He was silent for a little while, the battle ending around them, the Snow Doves cleaning up as the helicopters ca back down to pick them up.
When the calls to muster ca, he finally spoke.
“You’re gonna have to do sothing big. I don’t know how deep you are in your Auric developnt but changing course is gonna be fucking hard. You’ve always been a hard worker but I don’t think that’s sothing hard work is able to fix. So, bare bones logic would dictate that if sothing’s not working for you, and you can’t change it, you need to get rid of it.”
Tana looked up at him, not particularly thinking about his words, just nodding and waiting for the actual advice.
But when he simply looked back at her, it clicked in her head. That was the advice.
“Get rid of my Aura?”
“Don’t ask how I know, but I’m telling you now that it’s possible. I don’t know if it’s possible while still maintaining your Vigor or powers, but it is. And theoretically, in a world where everyone has Aura, where it’s beco an extension of their beings, soone without Aura would have a massive advantage. Sure, a developed Aura can be a potent weapon and a tool of prediction in battle. But if you can’t reach that height then it only becos a weakness, especially in front of soone better. So get rid of it.”
“...How?”
She asked, knowing the answer.
John chuckled, starting to walk back to the helicopter. She followed.
“I don’t fucking know, otherwise that probably would’ve been the first thing I would’ve done.”
“...Well, if that doesn’t work, what should I do?”
“Figure out how to specialize yourself, quickly, and take it to an extre. Otherwise, I’m not sure, Tana. I’ve got a friend who knows how to beco invisible. I can probably call in a favor and have him teach you, as well as an idiot can, but that’s about the extent of how much I can help. Say the word and I’ll get you on a plane back to the Captial to et him. But until then, you’ll need to get creative.”
“Right. Thank you.”
“Of course. I’m only sorry I can’t help more.”
He turned his head and gave her a smile. She returned it as they boarded the helicopter.
Soon enough they were on their way to the next battlefield. Another battalion was getting hamred, this one worse than the one they just saved.
Tana sat down and pondered the whole way, desperation filling her mind.
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