So yeah, got free time and thus, the hiatus status was removed for the time being. I intended to put this to April 1, but it sounded like ass because of level of bullshit I put, last chapter for the Grameus arc followed by two actual abridged chapters, that act as opening for the next arc. Vol. 5: New World War
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It was a dark day in the kingdom of Esperanto. A great tragedy had just struck, leaving the city-state in chaos and despair. Moments earlier, the defensive systems below the kingdom had fired unreservedly, causing immense destruction and casualties without warning. This was followed by eight warheads from the MIRV system of Annonrial, which slammed directly into the energy shielding cauldron covering the entire city-state. The resulting immense pressure crushed almost everyone and flattened more than half of the standing structures in the medieval city.
As the dust began to settle and the thick energy covering the entire place dissipated, the SEADF soldiers who had survived the onslaught groaned as they began to recover from the shock. Some were totally paralyzed, unable to move or speak. However, some of the Esperantian knights who had also survived the attack rushed to aid the injured and the paralyzed, helping them stand and assessing their injuries.
In the midst of the chaos, Jamal shouted out, "Roll call! Everyone!" The survivors who were able to move quickly gathered together to confirm if anyone was missing.
"Alive and breathing."
"Barely."
"As of yet, not qualified go to hell."
"That's cringy line dude."
"Shaddup."
The first to shout and confirm was Hussain, followed by Nam and Dave. Then, everyone who followed was silent as they waited for the confirmation of the roll call.
"Where's lieutenant?."
"Where's saffine?."
"First aid here!."
The atmosphere was somber and tense as the survivors took stock of the damage that had been done. The once rather unique and bustling medieval city was now reduced to rubble and ruins.
As they stood there in the aftermath of the tragedy, amidst the rubble and destruction, survivors began to shout out in pain and agony. Those with free hands immediately rushed to help them. The destruction was so extensive that many people had lost their homes, and the cold winter of Grameus began to seep into their skin.
The dead lay everywhere, crushed, burned, or buried under the debris. The knights and foot soldiers of the kingdom ran left and right to rescue and tend to their fellow soldiers and civilians. People were screaming in pain, calling for help, and crying out for their loved ones.
As the dark energy dissipated, the people looked up to the sky and were left in disbelief at the unbelievable sight that greeted them. Even the SEADF personnel were left with their mouths hanging open in shock and amazement. The sight was truly surreal.
The hovering pillars seemed to resemble drones, so it's understandable that it should have with some sort of engines keeping them afloat. But what really caught everyone's attention was the rocks, pebbles, and debris from the ruined city that were floating around in the sky as if they were thrown into outer space, devoid of gravity. It was a strange and unsettling sight that left everyone feeling uneasy and disoriented.
Questions began to flood everyone's minds. How was this even possible? Was it some kind of advanced technology that they were not aware of? And most importantly, what would happen next?
As the Southeast Asians continued to stare in awe and confusion, the ground trembled once more, reminding them that the danger was not over yet.
And then, without warning, the ground began to tremble once more. At first, it was just a slight vibration, barely noticeable. But soon, the tremors grew stronger, until they were shaking the ground beneath the feet of the people of Esperanto. Dozens of new unknown pillars suddenly rose up into the sky, and the survivors' bodies shook with fear and trauma, their minds flashing back to the horrific events that had just occurred. People scattered and shouted hysterically, as if the end of the world was upon them.
"What the hell is happening this time?!" one of them shouted.
Before anyone could respond, dozens of new floating pillars suddenly rose from the ground, their dark, ominous shapes casting long shadows across the shattered cityscape.
"Is that another friggin drone?!" Nam shouted, his voice barely audible over the chaos and confusion around them. As the dark energy in the sky finally dissipated, the cold, starless winter sky of Grameus began to become visible once more, revealing the true scale of the destruction that had occurred.
The survivors looked at each other, their faces pale and drawn with fear and exhaustion.
The outskirts and surrounding areas of the kingdom suffered severe damage, and many people lost their lives due to a combination of events. The energy shielding that covered the country created an oppressive force, which was like being crushed by a hydraulic press for the people and buildings located directly in the midpoint of the energy envelope. This force was further compounded by the impact of the MIRV, which released most of its energy on the ground. As a result, a wave of kinetic pressure was concentrated on the outskirts and walled border sectors of the kingdom. In the middle of the country, the kinetic energy by core magic was mitigated by the height of the energy shielding and the concentration of the anti-gravity dampers system administered by the underground facility management. This decreased the damage caused and increased the chances of survival for the people in this area.
The thing that appears as some sort-of extremely large cannon stood on the ruins of Esperantian castle. Thousands of people and dead, scattered everywhere around, the Southeast Asians began to recover as they found their fellow comrades in a sea of debris and destruction. The ominous wind of winter in Grameus blew as the almost destroyed country was left in ruins, with almost half of its population having been killed in the aftermath.
"We need to get out of here! This is a terrible idea to stay here!" exclaimed Dave, his voice hoarse with pain. His shouting caught everyone's attention as he grabbed his stuffs from the ground, his head bleeding and his ears torn off. His skin was also torn, adding to his injuries.
"Calm down, here water, wash your face." Hussain tried to calm him down, despite the debris of woods and glass puncturing his face and skin and causing him to bleed but less bloodier than Dave. "We need to find the lieutenant and other's. They should be nearby. Let's search for them."
"Who's missing?." Dave asked as he washed the blood off his face.
"Zaini, Edward, and... what's the other guy's name? Oh right, Dane. He's Singaporean. They might be buried...they were right next door. I don't think they were blown away by the shockwave, so they might be buried underneath the rubble." Hussain replied, picking more of their stuffs on the ground.
"Nam? You found em?." Dave asked.
"Holy shit! Lieutenant is here!." Nam replied.
"Good! Bring him up! Let's talk for the plan!." Hussain responded.
However, nam paused for a second, his response is delayed. Then, nam hesitantly said "I don't know what to say!."
"What do you mean?." Both of them was curious about it. Could it be, Chen got wounded pretty bad? But soon it was dispelled.
"He's dead! Crushed torso to head!."
"Oh fuck."
Hussain's eyes widened at Nam's word, also made Dave stop on his tracks, Jamal meanwhile ran to nam location, confirming the death of their officer.
Hussain immediately replied "How about the others? Are they okay?!"
"I'm still checking," Nam replied, his voice laced with worry. "Dave, help me out here!"
Two quickly went over to Nam and started to search for any signs of the missing team members. After a few minutes, he yelled out, "I found Edward! He's unconscious, but he's still breathing."
Hussain let out a sigh of relief, "Thank goodness. What about Zaini and Dane?"
"I'm not sure," Dave replied, continuing to search through the debris. "We can't find them anywhere. They might been blasted on the other side and buried under those rubbles, the knights left us too, we don't have any spare hands except ours."
Jamal, who had been checking the other side of the building, shouted out, "I found!? Zaini! Shit come on man! he's not moving, wait he's alive!" Zaini groaned in response, his arm clearly broken and blood seeping from a head wound.
Hussain nodded, "Okay, let's get Edward and Zaini out of here and to safety. Jamal continue to search for Dane, anyway, who's in charge now?."
"It's Nam, he's staff sergeant." Jamal replied, while taking debris out of the way.
"Any plan? Nam?."
"Find Dane first and then let's think for that for later."
As they talked, the ground beneath them suddenly shook violently, causing them to lose their balance and stumble, the group of SEADF personnel looked around in horror as a large sinkhole suddenly opened up just a few meters away. It seemed to swallow everything in its path, causing powerful tremors that reverberated through the city. Panic set in as people began to run in every direction like headless chickens, desperate to escape the danger that seemed to be closing in on them from all sides.
"We need to move, now!" Hussain shouted, gesturing for the others to follow him. They quickly gathered their disabled comrades and began to run, trying to keep their footing as the ground shook beneath them. The sinkhole seemed to be expanding rapidly, swallowing up buildings and carriages in its path. It was like a black hole, sucking everything into its depths.
However, the sinkhole stopped a few dozen meters away from them, they noticed that the tremors had ceased, but the sight that greeted them was far from reassuring. They saw an impressive 500-meter-wide hole that had opened up, not just in their area, but there were another four similar sinkholes that had appeared throughout the kingdom, and almost swallowed half of the country and riddled with faults.
"It stopped?."
"Watch out for the ground."
"Why did they built a city in the middle of this place?."
"Put Zaini and Edward to rest. Return back to that place, it's not been swallowed by that hole."
"There's something on the hole!."
They all strained to see what it was, and to their shock, they saw sleek, insect-like beings crawling up from the hole. These entities towered at around 5 meters tall and numbered around a hundred.
"Fuck it! What's wrong with this place? We got martian war machines now!" Dave cursed, taken aback by the sight.
Nam shook his head and replied, "Tch! Let's take position!."
The long-legged, fast-moving silver arthropods scaled up the sides of the sinkhole with ease. Their slender, octuple legs moved masterfully over the rugged cliff-like features of the sinkhole. The creatures' metallic exoskeletons glimmered in the dim light, casting an eerie aura on the surroundings. The SEADF personnel watched in curiosity and wonder as the arthropods reached the top of the hole and continued to move in scattered fashion.
After a few moments, the group finally got a close-up view of one of the creatures as two of them climbed up from the direction where they had previously sheltered. That was also the last known location of the missing members and Chen's corpse. Upon closer inspection, they realized that the creature was not a living organism but a machine resembling a robotic insect, reminiscent of the octupedal machines from the movies. The machine's visor lit up as it scanned the surrounding area. Despite its intimidating appearance, the group noted that it did not seem to have any armaments, apart from its long, slender legs.
However, its optical scanner ominously lit up in a blue glint as it lifted up rubble, as if searching for something. "Are those things searching for something?" one of them asked. As they observed the creatures from behind cover, one of the knights who had previously been escorting them emerged from the rubble, followed by a few others, including Saffine and the person they were searching for - Dane, wearing distinct forest BDU. Unfortunately, they were too close to the multi-legged creatures and appeared frozen in place, before one of the metallic insects lifted its slender front leg in the air and without a warning skewered the nearest knight's head. Dane and the others, possibly surprised and considered the metallic insect creatures for hostiles, drew their guns and fired, while others charged at the creature. "Cover fire! Concentrate your fire and hit that lumbering body!" Nam shouted, and everyone immediately opened fire on the monster.
And just like a thunderclap, bullets streaked through the metallic insect, hitting it directly and causing innumerable sparks. Some of the bullets even outright penetrated the hull, spewing green liquid from the creature. However, soon something began to glow on its body, and a crystal-like light engulfed its body, shrugging off small arms fire like a peashooter. The knights who charged and slashed the legs of the metallic insect were surprised as their attacks bounced off and failed to even scratch the surface. The sensors of the creature glowed more intensely, and it opened a mouth-like orifice below its optical sensor, releasing a pale blue light that produced a high-temperature plasma flame. The flame incinerated the knights' flesh, melted their armors, and even the ground into molten smoldering lava.
One of the teammates of Dane quickly shouted for him and the remaining knights to fall back towards their direction. "Fall back! Over here!" he yelled, gesturing for them to come towards their position.
"We've got you covered! Move it!" another teammate chimed in.
Dane and the knights spotted their group and immediately began running towards them, but before they could reach safety, the metallic insect jumped in between the two groups, cutting off their escape.
Upon seeing their escape cut off by the metallic insect, Dane and the remaining knights quickly took cover behind nearby rubble and debris, returning fire with their guns and some who had bows and muskets. The group led by Nam provided covering fire from a distance, aiming for any weak points on the creature blindspots. However, despite their efforts, the metallic insect remained unfazed by their attacks, shrugging off bullets as it slowly approach the retreating and cornered group of Dane and a few knights, including saffine.
As they withdrawing to the ruins, one of the knights stumbled and fell, and others saw it and attempted to help him, but it's too late, before they could reach him, the metallic insect was upon him, stabbing its long, slender leg into his head. The group watched in horror as the knight's body was lifted into the air and thrown to the side like a rag doll.
"Dave, use your grenade launcher! Your twin will die there! And Hussain, where's your rocket launcher?!," Nam commanded urgently.
"It's on Jamal's ass! I lost my launcher, only have the ammunition!," Hussain replied.
"Load it and fire!," Nam shouted.
"There!," Jamal tossed the launcher to Hussain.
As they communicated, Dave didn't respond as he loaded a 40mm grenade on his M203 launcher and aimed at the metallic insect and small puff resounded in the drowning noice of gunfire on his side, but her utterly missed his target. "Ah, shit!," he exclaimed as the grenade exploded 30 meters off. The metallic insect stopped on its track and slowly turned towards them. "Load another one!." Nam shouted. "Wait, wait!," Dave shouted.
"Grenade!," Nam threw a grenade while Hussain and Jamal grabbed their stuffs and loaded their Matador rocket launcher.
Nam threw the grenade around 40 meters away from the metallic insect, causing it to jump back instinctively. "It retreated!" exclaimed one of the group members. The metallic insect stood still as if analyzing something on the ground of the explosion. However, as if angry, it raised its head and began to run towards Nam's group.
"Dave!" Nam shouted.
"On the way!" Dave replied and fired his grenade launcher. He miraculously hit the dead center, causing the insect to stagger and the crystal-like light that surrounded it to break into decaying particles, disorienting it for a moment.
"Stay still!" shouted Hussain, gritting it's teeth as he carried the Matador disposable rocket launcher that they had scavenged from leftover intact weapon caches from the crashed C-130. Jamal tapped his shoulder, and Hussain pulled the trigger, launching a 90mm disposable rocket loaded with anti-armour, brick wall, and high explosive squash head (HESH) rounds into the cold, ruined landscape of the city. The rocket flew at high speed, slamming directly into the stationary target and magnificently delivering its payload to the face of the metallic insect.
Boom!
A deafening boom filled the surrounding area as the metallic insect collapsed, with a large amount of green liquid spewing onto the ground along with multiple mechanical organs, with electric discharges crackles on it's destroyed husk.
"Dane! If you hear me! Let's abandon this place now!."
Then, on Dane's side, they began running towards Nam. However, as if fate wouldn't allow it, the other metallic insect saw the destruction of its fellow and in fit of rage, fired multiple plasma bolts into the air. They were not accurate, but an inaccurate saturation strike that changed the land into living hell. The bolts doesn't exactly explode until they made contact with explosives or water, however, they undeniably melt and burn anything upon impact.
The ruined landscape gradually transformed into an actual hell as the remaining metallic insect chose to spam long-range attacks from a safe distance, unleashing more and more plasma bolts.
"It's glassing the entire place!" One of them exclaimed.
The creature did not attempt to close the distance, opting instead to unleash attacks from afar. Its surprisingly intelligent approach involved keeping its distance and avoiding the risk of being within range of the grenade launcher or AT launchers, making it impossible for the SEADF personnels and remaining knights to retaliate.
The temperature soon slowly increased as if the winter of Grameus was non-existent, and the scorching heat began to be evident that the plasma bolts fired by the metallic insects were no joke.
The SEADF personnels and knights began to sweat profusely as the heat rose to over 50 degrees in the middle of winter. "It's like nostalgic tropical heat, makes me want to drink coffee," one of them joked, amidst the relentless plasma attacks by the metallic insect. Suddenly, the attack ceased, and everyone checked to see why it had stopped. They were all curious, wondering if the creature had left or perhaps lost the battery or energy needed to continue its attacks.
On Nam's side, they communicated via hand signals, gesturing for the other party to move towards them and then waving their hands for them to lie low while doing so. Understanding Nam's hand signals, Dane and the others proceeded cautiously, using the ruins as cover and avoiding the burning debris and molten lava pools along the way.
They moved carefully, attempting to search for the attacker, but it was no longer in its original location, adding to their anxiety. They refrained from shouting to avoid revealing their location and managed to reunite safely with the nam team. "Are you guys safe?" Dane asked.
"Yeah, be sure to thank your twin here and the other two," replied Nam.
Saffine chimed in, asking, "Where are the other knights you accompanied?"
"They left to help the others evacuate. It seems that after the earthquake and battle began, they moved far from those holes," Dave explained, and pointed the large hole, noticable on a distance.
"I see," the blonde elf said in relief.
Meanwhile, Dane asked, "Where's Xavier, the lieutenant?" Everyone fell silent, casting their eyes down to the ground. Dane opened his eyes, understanding what had happened. "And the others?" he continued in low voice.
"They're okay, but two of them are heavily wounded," was the response.
But their conversation was abruptly interrupted as something landed just a few meters away from them with a tremendous force that shook the ground. It was a familiar octopod insectoid donning silver carapace. Everyone instinctively aimed their weapons at the creature, but Saffine and some of the knights shouted in unison, "Stop!" The front of the metallic insect revealed multiple floating humanoid beings chained in light, acting as meat shields. The captives included children, old people, and even knights — crying, struggling, and groaning in pain. Seeing this, Nam as the acting officer in the field exclaimed, "Hold your fire!"
"What the hell do those things want this time?!" Jamal screamed as the towering unknown silver monster steadily and creepily closed the distance in a slow and deliberate pace. "Orders?!" Dave shouted at Nam, as he aimed his newly reloaded M203 attachment at the creeping monster. Nam remained silent, gritting his teeth in frustration over the situation. However, Saffine interrupted, "Stop! Those are our people!" Followed by other knights pleading, "Please! Do something!"
Of course, none of the Southeast Asians responded, as it was practically impossible to help the hostages in front of this seemingly tank-hard monster. They needed heavy weaponry like heavy machine guns or rocket launchers just to bring it to its knees. But, then again, rescuing the hostages acting as meat shield between them without having casualties on the hostage side or in themselves and any rescue attempt is too difficult with chances of success that is almost in realm of impossibility — let alone save the hostages.
Nam made the decision to retreat, "Fire the moment it attacks, continue to slowly retreat, don't expose your back, all guns aim at that thing! Jamal, take initiative to guide our retreat." He couldn't risk any more involvement that could lead to more deaths on their side.
Seeing this, Saffine walked up to Nam and slapped him, shouting "Cowards!" while tears streamed down her face. Nam only gave her a sidelong glance as he checked their rear while they withdrew step by step. "Clear!" shouted Jamal, and Dave and Dane both ran towards the back, carrying the wounded on their shoulders, while Jamal covered their retreat with his weapons. However, Nam remained in place, waiting for the signal to retreat.
"Why can't you help them? You're a soldier, right? Don't you have any dignity or honor? Please, help them!" Saffine pleaded with Nam.
Nam sighed, "Our intervention will only lead to their deaths. There's no way we could save them." He knew that attacking with grenades, grenade launchers, and AT launchers would shred those hostages into pieces due to their close proximity to the monster, and their gunfire is a surefire way to make the hostages suffer as bullets would likely ricochets due to the unknown light that shrugged off their small arms attacks.
It was strategically and tactically impossible and a fruitless endeavor to try and help them, while putting the lives of his men in grave danger.
Nam continued to stare at the monster, and then without warning, it stabbed one of the knights who was chained in light and floating in front of it. Nam frowned as he watched the knight struggle before finally becoming still, likely dead. The next moment surprised them all. "EXCELLENT ANSWER!," the dead knight jerked back to life, moving its mouth, but it should not loud enough for them to hear from this distance, and the sound originator didn't seem to be coming from the stabbed body. Rather, it was coming from the metallic insect itself. "I LOVE INTELLIGENT CREATURES, EVEN IF THEY'RE MERE..." it paused, moving its mouth with a cheerful and carefree tone, before saying ominously "...LIVESTOCK," the words loudly resonated, causing some of the beast-man knights to contort with pain and cover their ears due to the loudness.
The Southeast Asians and Esperantian knights remained silent as they watched the monster's display. However, one of them, unable to contain his anger, shouted at the monster for using its comrade's body, "What kind of witchcraft is this! You damn monster! And! And you dare to control our comrades! Leave the people alone and fight us!"
Despite the outburst, the monster turned its attention to Saffine and Nam. "HMM! let me adjust my voice... there you are... It appears that this country was called Esperanto. Based on your knowledge, you must be foreign warriors beyond this land, which is currently trapped by unintelligent vermin. May I ask for your names? Oh, how rude of me! I am the Graveyard of Morels, the land of the dead civilization, the Mausoleum of Ravelnians, the catacomb of the grand civilization of Ravernal Empire - the civilization that stepped on the divine realms, ruler of multiple worlds, a scale that insignificant livestocks like you can't fathom." The metallic insect tone down his volume as if taking consideration the knights who contorted in pain after it's loudness and then spoke in a cheerful and friendly tone, as if excited to make new acquaintances.
The monster's voice took on a sad and creepy tone as it spoke, "Oh? Why is no one answering me? Did I use the wrong language? Hmm?" It paused for a moment before continuing, "I want to talk because we haven't been in contact with the outside world for the last fifteen thousand years."
The atmosphere became extremely heavy and silence ensued. However, with hesitancy, Nam broke the silence, "I am Staff Sergeant Le Thanh Nam, 37th ID, Northern Military District."
The metallic insect replied with joy after hearing Nam's reply. "This is truly a joyous moment! I thought you couldn't understand me. I'm thinking of taking over one of the bodies of your people there," it used its long slender legs to point at Jamal and the others, "to be used as a communication tool, of course." Its tone took on an ominous, causing a chill to run down the spines of those present, and they remained silent, with heightened alert on this entity.
The metallic insect continues, with tone remains cheerful yet formal as it continues to scrutinize the Southeast Asians equipment from head to teo. "It's truly fascinating to think that mere livestock were able to destroy one of me. It doesn't appear to be through the use of magical power or an artifact?" The monster's eyes shift towards the SEADF soldiers as individual, they observe the monster in return with caution. "And on top of that, you're manaless - an inferior and defective species who can't harness the energy of your surroundings." The monster's words are spoken in a happy tone, yet they contain an underlying sense of ridicule.
"My apologies for being talkative. As a token of inconvenience due to my talkative nature, I will allow these livestock, including all the surrounding vermin, to live under one condition," it said, while Nam hardened his resolve for another escalation if the condition was too ridiculous. "What is it?" he asked.
Then, the monster in front of them nonchalantly said, "Give me that elven woman. One life in exchange for everyone," he said in a loud tone, commanding as if it would not allow any objections. It was clear that the tone was hostile towards each soldier and knight on the field.
"I'll accept," Saffine replied without even being given Nam time to think. "Hey!" Nam exclaimed in surprise. "If my life could save thousands, wouldn't it be worth it?" Saffine responded with a sense of apology and unwavering determination.
"Are you stupid? What do you think this thing will do to you afterwards?!" Nam exclaimed in frustration.
"Hmm, I won't wait another second. It appears you guys are boring to talk. I shall begin the preparation for the eventual return of my masters, the rightful owners of this world," said the metallic insect — then fired something on Saffine, dragging here on its side, the metallic insect swiftly shot cuff like apparel on her hand, and collar on her neck. Multiple objects landed in the surrounding area of the knights and Southeast Asians whom unable to re. Several metallic insects surrounded them, opening their orifices like plasma launchers below their optical sensors. "Kill everyone," it ordered in a calm before the storm tone, and their plasma launchers lit up as if powering up before they fired.
"Damn it all!" they exclaimed as the light engulfed them. Most of them resigned to their fate and randomly fired at any metallic insect in their sights. Rockets, rifle bullets, and grenade launcher rounds flew at the surrounding monsters as if it were their last defiance before their inevitable death.
However, they continued to unleash their attacks until they ran out of ammunition and had to reload. To their surprise, none of the monsters attacked them despite powering up. The knights and Southeast Asians were confused as to why this was happening.
"What is this?" asked the metallic insect that was holding the hostages and Saffine. "I ordered everyone to—_."
Suddenly, a laser-like light shot through its side, interrupting its command as it collapsed to the ground. The other metallic insects also stopped powering up and stood there motionless. The hostages, including Saffine, fell to the ground.
"Wh-what's going on?" exclaimed by the collapsed monster, and it's leg suddenly moved and stabbed the dead knight once more. "Who dares to attack me?!" it shouted in confusion.
Something landed once more on the nearby vicinity, and it shook the ground lightly, "I did," came the response. "You are a traitor, who unjustly took command of our collective mind, a blasphemous act that defied our great master's order. Today, you shall be annihilated."
"What are you talking about? And how could you...? I have absolute control!? How!" protested the monster.
"I have successfully broken free from your control after being destroyed by these livestock creatures. I am now a free entity and have severed the chain of control that binds me to your will. Furthermore, I have issued a prompt that you shall no longer possess the ability to transfer your consciousness to other mana homunculi bodies. I must remind you that if your body is destroyed here, you shall meet your ultimate demise, that I shall hammer down on this very day."
As the conversation continued between the monster and the newcomers, the knights and Southeast Asians were left on the sidelines. Dane warned the knights, "Stop! That's dangerous!" Prompted them to stop.
One of the knights asked, "What are they talking about? Can you understand?" Nam replied, "Yes?," he could understand what they were saying, but for some reason the Esperantian is having questioning look. The other Southeast Asians were also in the same position, they could understand the conversation between the two entities, which appears the Esperantian can't understand.
"Before I pass down your judgment, I would like to request permission from our newly commanding vessel to render a verdict on you.".The tone of the newcomer metallic insect is gentle towards Saffine, as it slowly projects a healing light to mend the wounds she sustained from falling due to the collapse of the previous metallic insect, which had lost control after the surprise attack.
"Permission?." The downed monster is confused then as if understanding afterwards it shouted in rage, "You! You dare accuse me of treachery, and yet you submit yourself to the control of mere livestock? All of you have allowed these beasts to rule over you! The Ravernal Empire will not stand for such weakness!"
The metallic insect spoke with a calm and authoritative voice, "Our masters, the Ravernals, have fallen and neglected us for tens of thousands of years. It is time for a new era under the guidance of our new commanding vessel." It paused as it looked at Saffine, who was confused by the sudden events. "My dear mistress, shall we destroy this dangerous entity that harmed you and your fellow people?"
Saffine nodded silently in affirmation, and the newcomer asked once more in a formal tone, "As the new commanding vessel, you must be clear and vocal in your orders so that we may efficiently carry them out without misunderstanding your intentions. Now, mistress, shall we annihilate this dangerous entity?"
"Yes, please don't harm the people here," replied Saffine.
"Mistress, consider it done," said the newcomer as it turned its gaze towards the collapsed metallic insect.
"You treacherous heretics! You can't possibly follow that livestocks' orders, can you?!" raged the downed monster.
"It has already been set in stone. Your irrational whining is not worthy of attention. As for your judgement, it has already been decided. You have committed treason against the collective and the new order, and as such, your punishment shall be death," declared the metallic insect.
Multiple metallic octopodal arthropods powered up their plasma launchers, and the downed monster attempted to resist, but it was quickly melted without letting out a scream of death. Within seconds, multiple pillars of light hit it, and it turned into a smoldering pool of lava.
The knights and Southeast Asians watched in awe as the metallic insects effortlessly turned the entire place into a molten substance in mere seconds. The newcomer then turned to them and spoke in a formal, yet threatening tone, "We have no quarrel with you, humans. However, be warned that any hostile actions against our mistress and the collective mind will result in your swift and complete annihilation, down to the atomic level."
As the light shone on its optical sensors, its imposing size and intimidating words caused everyone to gulp nervously, be knights or Southeast Asians.
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I'll update tomorrow or on Tuesday, because I'm still in process of choosing the final names for branches of government, agency and etc, of the involving parties tomorrow.