35 Fall From Grace (1/2)
Axtorius snapped his fingers and a three-dimensional map winked in front them out of the aether. It depicted a destroyed, ancient city that looked like it'd been through hell and back.
”This is the area where your final test will be conducted: The ruins of Sotephor City,” he said. He pointed at a massive, broken tower that pierced the sky higher than any other building in the area.
”That's where the outpost you need to reach is at; right at the top of the skyscraper. As I previously stated, your only mission objective is to reach the outpost, register your name on the terminal we left for you, and then wait for extraction. Nothing else is required of you.”
The projected map flickered briefly and expanded, displaying the entire city in a two-dimensional overview. Sotephor City was an enormous, sprawling city that dwarfed anything Reed had ever seen. From the look of it, the metropolis had an area that spanned several hundred kilometers at minimum.
”You will drop separately into the Sotephor City via a Single Use Extra-dimensional Insertion Vehicle (SUEIV). It's a mouthful, I know. They're informally called coffins — I'll be addressing them as such for the duration of the briefing to save my breath,” he stated.
A colorful variety of tiny markers popped up across the map, dotting the landscape. Some were closer to the rendezvous point and others were farther away. The class quickly caught on and understood what the dots represented.
”We'll be dropping you off where we feel you'll be challenged the most. The greater our expectations, the further your drop zone will be. Be advised that you after exit Heaven's Gate, your tomes will have limited functionality — you'll need to get close to one another to restore basic communications with one another,” he warned.
The ground beneath their feet lit up and the world around them blurred into a flood of colors. In an instant, they'd all been whisked away somewhere far away from home. Reed looked around; the place they'd been teleported to looked a foundry of some kind.
Sleek, metallic and elegant, these were the words that best described what Reed discovered. Rows upon rows of shiny, jet black 'needles' hung above him and his classmates. They were roughly twice the height of the average person and had various symbols engraved on their surfaces.
”Welcome to Daedalus Base: The North's HQ and your new home. This where our intelligence service is located; the central hub of the North's power. It's also where contenders go to receive missions. Those black needles above us are the coffins you'll be using today.”
A soft, barely discernible hiss came out of the coffins as they opened up, revealing a slim compartment that held a seat. The coffins started descending slowly in orderly rows, one after another.
Reed entered a coffin and sat down on the seat; despite its outer appearance, the seat was actually rather comfortable. As soon as he strapped himself into the seat, the door abruptly closed and locked him inside. It was pitch-black but not too long after, a brilliant blue light flickered inside and the coffin booted up.
A logo flashed by depicting a hand grabbing a pair of beautiful lightning bolts; underneath the sleek, stylized logo a pair of bold words could be seen: StarForge Industries. Reed knew that name, after all, it was too large to not know.
It was one of Mulia's largest guilds and a rival competitor to the other two economic titans in this world: Umbral Dynamics and Seventh Eclipse, the same guild that created the first tomes in history.
Reed a heard a soft hum for a split second and then, a familiar voice buzzed into his ears. ”Can you hear me? If you can, press the flashing green button on your lower left.
Fifty green lights winked in acknowledgment. Axtorius responded, Excellent, all systems are green.” The blue screen inside their coffins flickered and a map of the city appeared one last time.
Axtorius said, ”As soon as you land, seek cover, scope out the environment, and try your best to group up with your classmates, if possible. There's strength in numbers, brats. Don't get cocky, even if this is a simple mission. Stay low, think twice before you act, and use everything we've taught you to accomplish your objective.”
The coffins creaked and Reed felt as if he was being shaken around. He knew that something was happening outside, and just as had that thought, the blue screen in front of him flickered in response. A view of the outside of his coffin appeared as he had wished for inadvertently.
A multitude of coffins were being pulled into an assembly line of some kind. They were transported into what seemed like an empty room that had various hatches on the ground. When every coffin had been brought into the room, the hatches opened down below, revealing a massive, churning vortex of Anima that looked like a miniature hurricane.
Reed gasped in pure terror; he'd never seen Anima concentrated to such an extreme extent. He could feel a horrifying pressure beneath his feet. The maelstrom seemed to get stronger with each passing minute.
”Oh, no.”
A hollow voice buzzed in ears, ”Systems green. Internal dampener activated at maximum. Tran-shifted coordinates have been calculated for XXX-7551. 99.98% accuracy rating. Engaging probability drive...”
”Wait, what?” Reed suddenly felt a tremor beneath his feet and he squirmed in fear. A loud voice boomed across the room, straight into his coffin.
”Prepare to drop in three... two... one...”