The goblin camp after the attack had an eerie calm to it. Bodies and their weapons lay scattered in every direction.
The fire that brought the goblns demise died out, more after running out of tinder to burn than the efforts of the group to put it out. Burnt husks of buildings dotted the camp and the smell if carbon wafted throughout the area, preventing them from searching for too long. High levels of carbon could even affect high ranked C hunters. With such little time to collect the spoils before the gate close the team wondered if they could gual all of the equipment or carry whatever was in the mountain out.
"Everyone, gather what you managed to find in a neat pile. Since it would be a waste to leave this good research material, Ill let you all witness the first ever Dimensional Crystals, made by Greene Corp and myself as a way to collect and store large quantities of research materials. It is quite handy in these particular situations, if not for the mindlessly expensive cost to manufacture we could get it into the hands of every scientist in the world. The Wearer adds mana, the device compresses whatever object into a space that stores it using the weares magic. I can't mention anything more than that, trade secrets. You understand," Max added.
Max gave a Dimension crystal to everyone, allowing the collection of Artefacts to be collected quickly.
Artefacts were heavily saturated tools and objects with mana, weapons were the most common of these but were not limited to them. Magical crystals known as Mana Stones, usually carved from the bodies of creatures, were exceptionally valuable to artisans who could work with them making new gear or researching the objects power.
They gathered all the materials that they could, dented swords, spear heads, and plenty of materials were stored into their Dimension crystals, Bags for short. Each member of the team got a different object that held their crystal, a couple of rings, an actual bag, and two armguards.
Getting the crystals from the goblin bodies was easy enough, were others ripped the crystals, or cut them out, Alexander collected the whole body or the goblins into his Bag. Allowing Lunaris to munch happily hidden.
After retrieving the bosses corpse, which Max made sure to take for research, a horde of treasure was found inside the mountain.
A heap of rare mana infused material called Ore lined the camber. Mined from the mountain by the goblins and spread haphazardly around a giant throne like a dragons horde. 'They just threw them in the corner like cheap rocks. This stuff could pay for each of my familys tuition and still have plenty to retire at 30.'
Some time after, when they collected all the materials, a message appeared above them, informing them of their success in conquering the gate. A time limit for the closing of the gate would usually apear, but since it was a Chaosbreak, the time limit was void and the gate would close when they left instead.
"The bags were extremely helpful, Max. I wish we had these in that Snake Beast nest last year." Kahawai said, absorbing the last ore from behind the throne.
"Agreed. That Anaconda was way to heavy to pull out of that cave.There's something for you over their Alexander. You really pulled your weight, so you deserve a gift."
Alexander searched around the area Max had. Hopefully looking for some new armor or weapon. He would hate to jave to carry around Max's family logo every where he went.
Alexander searched beside a dusty book case covered with grime and spider webs was a sword and shield. The blade was rusted in some places and chipped along the edge,otherwise it was sturdy and repairable. The shield was dented on one side but still had a dense protctive aura. Lifting the shield up Alexander realized it was lighter than it seemed, perfect for his balanced frame.
It was worse for ware, but Alexander knew any weapon found in a gate could atleast be of D rank or higher.
Most Artefact weapons and Armour in general could destroy or fend off any normal earth weapons. That's why Aretfacts from gates are highly sought after, even the lower graded ones.
Those Artefacts that were unusable or deemed to problematic were smelted down in magical furnaces and made into ore for higher grade weapons and armor by highly skilled Artisans called Forgemasters. Their techniques were highly secret to them and they rarely left from their powerfull fortress ships to grace the public.
Alexander placed them into his crystal and everyone was rested, they made their way back to the gate.
The trip back was easier. Waiting for them outside the cave was a team of armored warriors stacked with tech and the Akamai logo in red. These were the Akamai Elite Hunters squad, all A ranked and above, deployed in the most dire of circumstances. They were the best of the best even in the global world.
They took their helmets off after seeing the group come out, a sight greeted them of Geralt and other servants Alexander had seen around the estate.
Next to the Akamai death squad was a winged warrior of the Goddess of Light, a Seraphim.
The Seraphim had dazzling white wings, powerful and large. Her leather armor fit comfortably as she seemed both relaxed and prepared to separate someone's head from their shoulders in an instant. Her aura spoke volumes of her skill and power as she spoke with Max. "I see your emergency wasn't as desperate as you perceived, Annoying one. Do you think my time is easily wasted? For I to come from my duties and babysit you is not what I would call an adequate use of the divine skill you were given."
"I believe at the time It was. If I had died, how would our master have felt after losing her favorite child?" Max interjected. The Seraphims demeanor shifted if only slightly at his words. "Your time is my time, and my time is precious. I appreciate you being here and I am humbly thankful for the speedy assembly of the Special task force. We have successfully closed the gate and defeated a D ranked monster. We should be celebrating right now," Max exclaimed, patting himself on the back.
"None needed, Master Greene." Geralt congratulated. "However, please let us know if you are risking your lives beforehand. It is our duty to protect you all, after all what are butlers. It pains me knowing that a chaosbreak happened on or near the premises without my knowledge. You are all to precious to me to not worry. So please," Geralt scowled more seriously and bowed convincingly.
"We promise. Now lift your head, Geralt. When did you find out we were here? We were with everyone most of the time, so it's impossible to have called for aid without us knowing," Kahawai asked.
"That's probably my fault," Max added. "I have a personal satellite over head, so I can guess how they knew where to find us. Regardless, we're safe now. Worse than fair but call the Association and tell them we've taken care of a problem."
"Mortals..." Seraphim sighed. "He may be gifted by the Bright mother with a great mind, but his intentions are never straightforward. Careful allies of the Max Greene, his mind may yet be faster than his wisdom when it comes to it."
"We know," the team echoed.
Everyone made their way from the cave to what Alexander had started to feel like another home. Even the people in it.
Alexander was suprised as several messages apeared and he slowed behind everyone as they traversed the woods.
'Safety mode ended. Upgrade successful! Consciousness returned to operational ability. You have a new message from the Goddess of Darkness, A'rathèl!'
The two messages were completly different, one had to do with the entity within him contacting him. The other had to be spam mail.
'Lunaris?'
'Yes?'
Alexander asked many questions about what it was and how it came to be in his head. The walk back was silent, taking a good 15 minutes to traverse back with no rush to do so. She answered as much as he knew.
'That is all I know, host. We awoke to find you were the closest living thing capable of sustaining us. However damaged ypu might have been you were repairable. Anything else before that is a dark blank.'
'I'll help anyway I can, you've more than helped me out. Like Seraphina always tells me when someone does good by you, you do good by them. You can stay with me as long as you want. Just don't take over my body." Alexander joked inwardly.
'Affirmative. It seems you where damaged and fatigued. Would you like me to start the repairing process?' Lunaris chimed.
Alexander felt a tangling through his body as the nanites coursed through his body, repairing his cells. Mana surged into him like a siphon. Regulated by Lunaris the new energy went to his core.
Alexander
caught up with the group with a chipper mood.
'What a freak,' Kai thought, as he limped slightly.
Seraphim escorted them to the estate before she bid them good night, the dark night sky unfamiliar to her with duties to tend to. Before she left she had a very hushed conversation with Max.
The Association representative arrived and got their report on the incident. They gave each of them an appropriate reward
writing down their information.
The Association left and that was the start of the celebration. They enjoyed some nice drinks and Nakamura cooked a delicious meal, to the kitchens' staff's dismay.
The night had wound down and Geralt prepared to take Alexander home. Those that were staying were shown to rooms. Leaving just Alexander alone downstairs.
"The car is ready, master Mortem. The drive should be around 30 minutes. You could always stay here for the night, if you feel to tired."
"Thak you, Geralt. But my brothers and sister would be to worried. Let's get me to bed."
"As you wish, Sir. Looks like rain. We should hurry."
Mother's Embrace Orphanage, same time...
Thunder boomed between the rain drops rumbling over Hawaii, as a dark figure stepped up the of the brownstone manor.
Tap Tap Tap!