"Track down runes?" Megan asked, her voice louder than it should have been as Solana was fervently praying, which earned her a few looks from the crew.
"I just arrived before you. But it seems Adam is thinking of running rune code sequences for detection, but he needs Sister Solana to decode Cyberspace data into Realspace information." Kave replied to the best of his understanding.
"How?" Megan hissed as she leaned close to Kave, "Cyberspace is a simulation, not subject to the laws of physics."
Megan's question was valid, as it had reached a point where it would be hard to make a link between the mundane and the arcane. The one who replied, however, was the ever-sharp Yuki Nakamura:
"Not unless you find the link between the Mental Energy that feeds the runes and the feedback effect which bends the laws of physics to the runes."
Yuki's flat, emotionless tone made it sound like something natural, but in reality, even the hard-to-read girl was interested in the process more than most.
"Like magic and code?" Megan squinted her eyes, thinking of the possibilities, "That's possible to achieve?"
Kave shrugged, and Yuki looked back to the front, joining the silence, which was only interrupted by Solana's occasional murmuring every time she finished part of the process.
As a few minutes passed, the nun turned and gave a report:
"Blessed be the Sacred Code, and may the Words of Sol Imperius preside over this endeavor. The RuneTech Project—though unsanctioned Script—has exhibited no signatures of Malcode. Thus, by the authority vested in me as the sole representative of the Scriptorium upon this World, I, Solana of the Sisterhood of Aten-Sor, hereby authorise this Project under Emergency Protocol, at the behest of Lieutenant-Justiciar Adam Clay, Commander of the Earth Legion."
Hearing the full authorisation from Solana was not just a customary blessing or a way to officialise things; it was a guarantee of safety against AI or Malcode development.
One of the strongest phenomena Adam was struggling with was the Sacred Code's responsiveness to prayers. Not always, but if the agony of a spiralling rabbit hole of debugging and fixing—especially in a time when GitHub was a thing of the past—could be fixed by prayer, Adam was considering a full conversion to be a FanaTech, no less.
Adam turned to his people and looked into the eyes of each of them intently:
"Alright, here is the plan. We are now logging the parameters of Rune Emissions into the Systems of our Scanner Beacons, but this is a new foreign tech to all STDs… dammit!" He winced before expanding the acronym, "To all the Sanctioned Technology Diagrams of the Solarium."
Kave and Megan shared a short chuckle, but were fixed by a stare from Elena.
"The order of business will be the following: I want Wrench and Elena to go across the three Beacons we have built and calibrate the energy detector parameters to the data we will give you. I want you to start here at base first; then, when you get it figured out, split over to the base downhill and the front base."
"Sir!" Wrench and Elena saluted officially but didn't move, as they weren't dismissed just yet.
"Privates Magpie, Kave, and Boneface, this is a direct command to freely use your attuned Rune items when given the signal. Since we can't passively detect runes that are just lying there and aren't being used, we need you to keep activating them in order to figure out the energy pulse."
"Yes, sir." The three saluted as they were addressed officially.
"Private Buzz, you'll be our communication guy. Stay with Elena and Wrench until they finish the scanner in the base; then we will start the experiment right after."
"Yes, sir!"
"Dismissed!"
Even though she was battered with exhaustion, all Megan could do was put her heavy gear in a corner of the residence, keep only one pistol on her, and leave the place with the other five.
Out there, Elena gathered and organised the group of four privates and one corporal, but all she did was repeat what Adam had said and tell the three Earthlings to remain in a nearby place on standby; the nearest would be the mess hall by the Tanaka field hospital. The mess hall used to be the open area between the house and Kave's Cave, and it was used as a campsite when Adam first summoned Elena and the Trench Dogs. As the numbers increased, however, a barracks was built to house the troops, and this mess hall became necessary to create an organised place for food and troop gathering, as well as welcoming the newly summoned with a warm meal and maybe a punch to the face if a brawl was to erupt.
Still, the hour was past curfew, and nobody should be wandering outside their bunks except for those on guard and patrol. The trio that walked in had an assignment, so they could simply avoid any scrutiny from any NCO on watch, especially with Kave and Megan being the Commander's direct subordinates.
Inside the hall, it was cold and empty, as half the lights and the radiators were out. However, there was still a small face standing behind the counter, eyes focused on a book bigger than her head, before turning them to face whoever walked in and breaking into a wide smile.
The little girl immediately hopped off a small stand as she ran to receive the visitors, her hair fluttering as she energetically hopped with every step.
"Oh, Sophie!" Megan was the first to meet the girl who hugged her immediately. "How have you been? It's been a while."
Sophie gestured that she had been doing well before turning to Kave and exchanging a fist bump with him, as the two would get along and play all sorts of childish pranks. Lastly, Sophie hugged Yuki, causing the latter to freeze up and not respond.
"… Child! Let go…" Yuki's voice resisted the panicking urge to hitch up, but it was softer than ever.
Sophie, her smile beaming, asked Yuki if she was hungry, offering spare portions of wolf meat and broth alongside spiced gruel made from grub bars. Normally, their only option had been the infrequent Krant meat, which hadn't been seen in two weeks.
The three were eager for a warm meal, and so they followed Sophie to the counter. While she served them, they noticed Hammerhead slumped in a chair behind the counter, deep in slumber, his head hanging down and covered in his usual boonie hat. Because of this, they decided to stay quiet and take their trays to the table farthest from him.
"So, how are you and Sharp?" Megan asked Yuki as she took her seat.
"We broke up," Yuki replied flatly, wolfing down the tough meat with vigorous chewing that made her thin jaws appear more developed than they actually were.
"Why?" Kave asked, a bit taken aback.
"That's like…" Megan started counting on her hand before facing Yuki again. "The third time this month."
"Our relationship is what one might describe as toxic," Yuki said, staring at nothing as a psychotic look appeared in her eyes. "If we don't take breaks from each other, we may murder one another."
"I'll never understand you two," Kave blurted and buried his face in his food.
"At least it is healthier than yours," Megan retorted. "Elena is calling you her boywife lately."
"She can call me whatever she wants, but at least she does it behind closed doors," Kave replied with a cheeky smile, "With lungs like yours, half the camp knows when you and Adam are shagging."
"Why you little…"
As Megan was about to stand up and smite Kave with a fist while he hid behind Yuki, who didn't want to get involved in their tussle, the door to the Mess Hall opened. As the three turned around, they all paused for the arrival of the newest face in camp.
Ajax Wills, as tall and wide as the door frame itself, walked in with snow all over his hair and jacket, which was the top layer of multiple flannel shirts. He observed the hall, looking at the three—two of whom he recognised—and went toward the counter, about to wake the man sitting behind it, before a young girl jumped up on a step stool behind the counter, smiling at him.
Her innocent appearance, braided blonde hair, and healthy skin gave him pause, a conflicted look on his face. Obvious thoughts were expelled with a long sigh. His eyes landed on the badge over her little apron that said "Sophie - Staff".
"You're the mess officer here, young miss?"
Seeing the girl, who was roughly 6 years old, nod, Ajax picked a tray from the side and watched the options. Sophie gestured with her hands, trying to explain the options she had for him.
"A little bit of everything, but mind my portion size, please." Ajax shrugged, not understanding sign language, but not being a picky eater and thankfully having no allergies.
As he received his tray packed full, he looked up and saw that the man sitting beside the girl was awake and watching him. Ajax nodded to him, and the latter did the same, only a couple of seconds afterward, before dangling his head and going back to sleep.
As for Sophie, she picked up a book and started reading. Ajax couldn't help but glance at the title, only to read "The Physics of Optics and Light, 101." He was only curious, but seeing that, he was utterly taken aback, intimidated by the genius of a 6-year-old who reads in subjects such as this.
His eyes landed on the trio once again, who seemed to have calmed down once he walked in, and since he recognised Kave and Megan, he stepped towards them.
"Hello," he said and sat a couple of steps away. "Mind if I join?"
"Oh, please," Megan replied, gesturing for him to sit on the only open side opposite her at the square table. "Sergeant Ajax."
"It is Private now, sadly," Ajax replied with a shrug, stirring the food with his spoon to check its consistency.
"Don't worry much about that; I think Justiciar Adam will shoot you up the ranks soon," Kave replied and pointed to the one opposite him. "Yuki here got in later than most of us, and she was promoted to Corporal in less than a month."
"Must have achieved something big." Ajax turned to Yuki.
"Nothing other than being the Justiciar's 'rat'," Megan retorted.
"Said the Justiciar's 'bed warmer'," Yuki replied.
"And I would love to see you two going at each other all day, but let's not freak out the new guy." Kave interrupted them, causing them to look away from each other.
Ajax watched the exchange, finally digging into his food and finding the taste to his liking. Still, he commented on the atmosphere he saw:
"Such an unconventional military. Knowing what Wartopia is like, I'd thought this would be stricter."
"How unconventional?" Megan asked.
"Relationships between senior officers and privates, genius children as staff, and soldiers up for a late-night snack," he recounted so far.
"Adam, Kave, and I knew each other before it all went down," Megan explained. "I was together with Adam back then, and we reunited, but he had already risen through the ranks."
"And Sophie is a genius, alright, but she's Hammerhead and Biscuits' adoptive daughter. They are Wartopians; she's an Earthling," Kave explained the following part. "Their family takes care of the Mess Hall and the Field Hospital."
"And we are on a mission currently, just waiting for them to call for us," Yuki explained the last part.
"A mission in the mess hall is something to admire." Ajax shrugged, not caring about whatever they were up to.
"How were the results of the Iron Maiden?" Kave asked Ajax.
"Some good," Ajax replied before shrugging. "Some, I would say, were terrible by my standards, but I still made it. The Computer said I was registered for the position of a Private, and I was recommended to join the Grenadier Corps."
"You'll be with Flint the Fanatic, huh? Sorry about that."
The reply didn't come from any of the three seated around the table, but from a man who joined them with the sound of something being placed on the table.
It was the man who was sleeping behind the counter and part of the mess staff: Hammerhead.
What he placed on the table was a mug, and in his other hand, he carried a jug of something.
Kave and Megan greeted him, but he waved them off and faced Ajax:
"You're the new guy!"
"I'm the new guy." Ajax nodded, looking into the mug to find it empty, prompting him to ask, "Booze?"
"Too early for you." Hammerhead shook his head, then started pouring something hot and steaming into the mug for Ajax. "Hot brew."
"Thanks." Ajax took the mug, feeling the heat seep through it into his hands. "Who is Flint the Fanatic?"
"The only other Grenadier," Megan replied. "Guy lives on the front 24/7 with a no-retreat policy."
"I remember Grenadiers being Wartopia's elite human soldiers," Ajax commented, looking between the group.
"Elite my ass," Hammerhead retorted. "You're one of them Wartopia players, too?"
"Got dragged into it about ten years back; it didn't last that long, but it left good memories," Ajax answered.
"Ten years?" Kave interjected with an exclamation. "That's like 5th edition; massive lore drops have happened since then. Grenadiers became more of the unhinged type; Terminators moved from the Inquisition to the military, but under joint units and became the new elites."
"I suppose I'll have to get familiar with the status quo," Ajax said with a shrug. He then tasted the brew, his face contorting into a grimace as he exclaimed, "What in the devil's asshole is that?"
"Troopers' Swill," The four around him replied at the same time, all with a grin of their own, even Yuki.
"Toughens you up in winter." Hammerhead slapped Ajax's shoulder as he stood up. "Makes you shit bricks, though."
This was usually one of the few ways the military would welcome a newcomer, other than attempting to sucker punch him, which wouldn't be possible with Ajax due to his intimidating size.
Still, what followed was a scene he was most familiar with: three young soldiers who were bouncing balls of energy, joking, cursing, and exchanging all kinds of inappropriate slurs. He missed that feeling and felt yet another thing finally starting to make sense.
But not long after, a Wartopian trooper walked into the Mess Hall, taking big strides toward the group.
"You three! Situation changed," Buzz, the radio and drone operator, spoke before pausing when he noticed Ajax. "Damn! This guy is as big as Stone."
"Ajax Wills," the ranger introduced himself with a handshake.
"Not for long. They'll give you a nickname like Tower or Pillar or some shit!" Buzz accepted the handshake. "Name's Buzz; anything you need, you come find me, not that Titanite prick Doper. I can fix you up with booze from downhill, Earthling toys, or some real treasure artifacts."
"Treasure artifacts?" Ajax frowned.
"The best art tomes you can imagine…" Buzz was about to go on, but Megan interrupted him.
"Cut the buzz, Buzz," Megan said harshly before turning to Ajax, "He's selling sex magazines."
A smile formed on Ajax's face as he muttered, "There's always one of those."
"What are the orders?" Kave finally stood up seriously.
"Justiciar Clay wants you at the Beacon." Buzz said before turning to Ajax, "You were called too."
With that, Ajax wolfed his meal in two large gulps before taking his tray back to the counter with the others and following Buzz outside.
"What's the situation?" Megan asked freely, realizing that, with Ajax also called, this won't be a secret for long.
"The signal detector was calibrated, but the settings were already part of the trusted diagrams." Buzz replied.
"You're saying that a technology we were trying to develop based on Runes was already there in the settings?" Kave asked.
"Pretty much so." Buzz nodded and added, "Prepare yourselves, though, Justiciar Clay doesn't look pleased."
"Why?" Megan asked, trying to keep up.
"The Technology we found to detect runes…" Buzz paused for a dramatic effect before continuing, "It's the same one used to hunt Espers."
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