Sitting in her captain’s chair, Chimera relaxed as the Meras, now rebound within the ship, began its start up sequence and slowly rose from the launch pad.

  The star port was bustling with activity from the recent arrivals from the mining site, so it took a little longer than they wanted. Lysandra was already yelling at the port personnel while Chimera and Bayleaf had their moment of bonding a few minutes ago.

  Now though they were finally lifting off and making their way towards the crash site which supposedly already had been checked.

  “Never hurts to check again,” Chimera stated, mostly repeating what the High General wished to do.

  Meras gave her a thumbs up on her board as the flight path towards their destination showed it would only be a few short minutes before they arrived.

  Their escort would arrive in about thirty minutes after they arrived, a consequence of the Meras’ upgrades. With its faster engines, increased mana capacity, and more efficient reactors, it was like comparing a jet plane to a biplane in terms of speed and efficiency.

  Sure, it would get there eventually, but not before the jet plane.

  Just like that, they had already arrived at their crash site, and the inspection team was heading down in shuttles to take a look at the salvage.

  Chimera wasn’t joining them though.

  Bayleaf had let it be known that she was able to speak to a few of the survivors from their space battle, and was able to open a dialogue with them.

  Mostly after whatever strange music or subliminal message caused them to go suicidal.

  Chimera had not had a chance to meet them with everything that happened, so she decided she would spend her time delving into their memories and gathering data that way.

  She could hopefully find a way to permanently end that failsafe as well.

  Chimera gave one last look to her bridge staff as she turned to walk towards the prison cells.

  …

  Lysandra Elderbloom felt the shift of the shuttle as it touched down, the weight of the planet once more gripping her and keeping her level as she disembarked the… shuttle.

  She would not admit that the shuttle was something that she was unsettled by, but it was hard to discount the strangeness of a viscous material suspending her while the shuttle moved, a gel that simply held her and her men in place.

  Lysandra felt trapped, but oddly secure as well when she was inside it.

  With the gel gone and the atmosphere opened, Lys moved to start directing her Harriers around the crash site.

  “Teams A and B will scout the interior, C, you’re on guard duty. Tessa, Arrose, Bargo, you’re leading the teams inside. I want Tessa In A and Bargo in B. Arrose, you go place that gun of yours on a perch and scout the area. We’ve already got Verdant Hood on the planet, so pop some of their heads off, would you?”

  Rose smirked, “yes ma’am.”

  Bargo shook his head, “I just had to choose a melee focus…”

  Tessa swung her hacking staff with a lazy smile, “beats being out here in the heat.”

  “Harriers, Move out!” Lysandra thrust out her hand in a commanding voice, causing all the Harriers to start heading out to their respective groups.

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  Lysandra followed behind Tessa, their *ahem* special edition to their group.

  Very rare was there civilians that could handle magical feedback, rarer still the ones who could use it to hack into already built magical circuits and interpret the data within.

  If only she wasn’t a criminal as well, Lysandra would have welcomed such talent.

  Tessa tilted her head up at her, the smaller Elfari giving a long stare as she typed something on her arm-keyboard.

  “Any reason you’re coming with me, miss royalty pants?” Tessa’s voice dripped with faux respect.

  Lys could feel her right eyelid begin to twitch.

  No hope that she’ll stop that, probably double down if she knew it irritated me so much.

  Lysander hated being reminded of her royal lineage, if for no other reason that she wished to be known for her strength and merits. Her sister was the monarch, Lys was simply a good fighter and a good commander.

  “Because you are the most likely to help us discover the truth of why the Verdant Hood are here. I wish to know firsthand, and being near your increases those odds.”

  Tessa stuck her tongue out as she smiled, “well if that isn’t a compliment, I don’t know what is. Not to worry your holy royal buttness, me and Crypta here will crack this egg open.”

  Tessa gestured to her staff, a strange blend of space oak wood and computation gear, which gave an emoticon, something that Lys didn’t fully understand, of a confident nod.

  That same staff was one of the reasons for Tessa’s imprisonment according to the file that Lys read about her.

  Modifying a dryad to inhabit a staff was an older, more dangerous tradition of the noble houses. It was outlawed in the past due to the power that such beings could bring to a properly trained Druid.

  A soul connection that could be tapped into instantly, it reduced the time it took to cast such spells, made use of both beings mana pools, and more importantly allowed one to call upon the Mother Tree’s protection, something that was reserved for royalty.

  For obvious reasons. Having that much power made nobles twitchy about following the rules and laws of the Empress and Emperors of the past. It was a necessary means of control, and the dryads did not need to live in staffs when trees and ships served just as well.

  Lys immediately thought of the Meras and its new avatar, wondering if that might count as breach of the law.

  …She’s not tethered to Mera in the same way…

  Though that was hard to prove, Lysandra was getting ahead of herself.

  Once the crisis was over, then she would ask her questions.

  “Take it as you will Tessa, so long as you fulfill your duty. You as well… Crypta?”

  The Staff once again nodded with its strange light magic, showing a Elfari giving a thumbs up.

  Lys rolled with it and followed the group as it made its way inside, the wreckage already cleared to allow access to the bridge area of the ship.

  A few guards were blocking the way, personnel from Anvilage who had been sent by Kass to keep the place secure.

  Lysandra was about to give them the command to move when she saw both Bargo and Tessa flinch.

  “Wait General, something’s wrong…” Bargo spoke, his spear lighting up with his magic as it took in the wind.

  “Yeah… something’s fucked up here.” Tessa typed away at her keyboard as her staff mad what Lys assumed was an angry face.

  The guards despite having seen them stop made no move to… move, or react.

  Lysandra stared at the guards, seeing their faces even from the thirty feet away she now stood at.

  Something about them seemed so strange…

  “Shit, Group A, apprehend the guards, non lethal!” Tessa shouted as she pointed her staff at the guards, who suddenly opened the door.

  “Group B, to me!” Bargo charged forward as the doors revealed something that all of Lysandra’s Harriers knew too well.

  The guards stood still even as the doors revealed a Metal Beast, a cybernetical abomination grafted with dangerous magic and welded parts of metal and debris.

  This one was based on an ape, its four arms holding a dangerous array of weapons. Spear, Sword, a rectangular shield that glowed like a ship’s shield system, and some sort of biological cannon that was built straight on the beast’s arm like a cannon.

  The roar it gave was one of anguish and promised death, and soon it was rushing forward, trampling the non-responsive guards.

  Lysandra called forth the Trapping Lance, Elderblaus, the ancient weapon of her family, and readied it as the Metal Beast charged forth, its green skin and pale face snarling with foam and spittle.

  …