JAWS (TOME 9 of the TIAMAT'S WARS SERIE)

A taste of hell

In the early morning, everyone woke up very early. Just like when I was his student in my other life, I was never to disappoint him.

At 5 o'clock, I was up. As usual, Master was always ahead of me.

Even after his death, he was even earlier and never missed a chance to make a remark.

He was praying and probably recharging his Ki.

Quickly, everyone had packed their things and ate a mini survival ration in a hurry.

Everyone was in the courtyard, about 300 people, including the wyverns.

He opened his eyes and Songyu came up to him, holding a kind of leather satchel rolled up to protect its contents.

With a word: "Machines, move!"

The terminators as well as the "captain" moved forward. There were about fifty of them.

Master: "The other machines will have to come here if they want to evolve.

So I asked Alpha and Beta to join us.

Master Ming: "Songyu, your turn!"

And she passed each terminator in armor and stuck a yellow talisman with red writing on it at different points of their body.

I didn't understand but I knew that asking questions would irritate my master and all of them looked.

"Terminators, or scrap heap... your first mission is to go and gather the dead, take their identification tablets from their necks and give them a burial.

You will then free their souls trapped in the battlefield and maybe some of them, purified, will attach themselves to your structure and thus you will merge with these dead warriors. You will become one and you will have the beginning of a soul and a true existence. This will be your only chance. The talismans must be protected at all costs to avoid demonic possession which will lead to a paranoid reaction and your termination."

He clapped his hands and everyone complied.

Then Dirk, Malika and her officers stepped forward.

"Drop your weapons and armor in the hall, you won't need them and you won't need them anymore. Take off your clothes! Take these white pants and this rope as a belt."

A hubbub began.

"Songyu, show them!"

She picked up a flat, very strong armor and a sword and handed it to Dirk.

"Strike!"

Dirk struck and planted his sword into the armor with all his might and it withstood the onslaught of the English.

Medieval Asian armor was lighter and stronger than European armor.

The mastery of steels and alloys was a factor.

Then with a finger, she perforated in several places the armor that the sword had not succeeded in penetrating and with a blow she crossed the plate with her girlish fist.

"Impressive!" said Dirk.

Then she took the sword and rolled the blade like a sheet of aluminum foil.

Everyone went "OHHH!"

"This is what a cultist can do.

Your modern tanks, armor and weapons are as fragile as paper against opponents like Raoul and Songyu.

Then came my turn and that of my brother and sister.

"Master Ming stroked me and without shame, I began to purr."