The Orion Project (Rewrite) (indefinite hiatus)

Chapter 58

Devon sat on a medical bed and he watched in silence as Doctor Seraph quietly spoke to himself as he compared Devon's report with Alyssa's on a large screen on the wall. Devon had removed his armor and handed it off to a few of Hephaestus' assistants, he was given a simple shirt and pants to wear in place of his under-suit.

Doctor Seraph swiped the report left and right, up and down, reading and rereading every minute detail he could find.

"Well?" Devon asked.

"Hmmm...yes." Doctor Seraph mused as he gazed over Devon's medical report. "It seems you're telling the truth, Devon."

"Yeah? I never would'a thought." He waved his hands sarcastically.

"Yes yes, we were wrong to accuse you, etcetera etcetera." Doctor Seraph waved his hand over his shoulder.

"Should I be worried about this pain in my chest?" Devon asked.

"Hmm...from the way you have described it, I'm sure we can get it under wraps. I wouldn't worry too much."

"Great..." Devon sighed.

"Now, give me a detailed report of the incident." Doctor Seraph sat next to him and took out a small pen and paper. "I want every detail."

"Alright, I landed outside the northern part of the village...."

...

"Intriguing, anything else? How did you access your bond's power? Specifically?" Doctor Seraph folded his hands.

"Lie to him..."

"I dunno...it just, happened I guess. Like a flight or fight response." Devon suppressed his surprise at himself with how easy it was to lie to the Doctor.

"Hmmm...it could be different depending on the bond eh? I see, thank you. Return to your quarters and get some rest." Doctor Seraph said. "I'll summon you when you're needed."

Devon nodded and left the medical room, making his way back to his barracks.

'Why did you want me to lie to him?'

"He must never know, no one but you should know my name. It holds weight, status, power. Keep it to yourself, youngling."

'Alright...'

He sighed as he turned the hall, nearly bumping into Rose.

"Oh! Hey Rose....how's it going?" He asked awkwardly.

Her cold stare and silence gave him his answer.

"Good to see you're doing fine. So, can I get to the barracks? I need to rest." Devon said.

"Where were you?"

He sighed in defeat. "I was on an assignment, used too much of my bond's power, and passed out. I guess I was out for a while since it's been a week and a half since then."

She crossed her arms, obviously not believing him. "Uh huh."

"It's the truth." He shrugged. "Doctor Seraph has the results, go ask him."

"Oh, I will." She said coldly.

"Yeah..."

She hugged him and let him go. "We'll talk after you get some rest. I'm glad you're back."

"I'm glad I am too. I'll see you later, Rose."

He walked past her and entered his barracks, flopping onto his bunk. He stared at the ceiling for a few seconds before sleep took him once more.

...

Devon's eyes shot open and instead of the blank ceiling of his barracks, he was greeted to a cloudy sky. Brittle grass brushed against his skin and he got up. He scanned his surroundings, finding nothing but wide open grasslands with some hills and a few trees dotted here and there.

He pushed himself to his feet and started walking. He took it all in, the land seemed to be changing seasons with every step he took. Snow appeared and disappeared, storms raged for seconds and stopped.

A large shadow amongst the clouds caught his attention and he watched as his bond slowly descended from the sky. She landed in front of him, her piercing blue eyes scanning him up and down.

"So, I take it this is another memory of yours?" He asked.

"Hmm, this place is, but I only wished to talk with you face to face." She replied as she laid down.

"You can talk to me at any moment, why in my dreams?"

She nodded to her right and he followed her gaze. A massive, black, raging storm was off in the distance. Instead of rain, it looked it was dumping a black ooze upon the ground. It connected and it sucked up the life force of anything it touched, leaving it dead and decaying.

"That is why I wished to speak with you in this manner." She said.

"Is that what's blocking our connection?" He asked.

"Yes, and no. I believe it is blocking us enough to keep us in check, whilst feeding off our shared power. I have not seen something like this before. The Anor might, they have experienced much in the history of this world." She explained.

"Well, I doubt they'd want to help us. I mean, we've killed their kind before so..." he shrugged.

"Hmm, yes. That is an issue, however, I know that this blight must be removed. It has no place in your body." She huffed.

"What do you want me to do? I highly doubt Doctor Seraph knows what this thing is." He waved at the storm.

"I would not be too sure." She said as she watched the storm consume more of the grasslands.

"What do you mean?"

"I cannot place it, but, this...thing, seems artificial to some degree." She said as she turned back to him.

"Artificial?"

"Yes, I can sense the natural magics residing in it. And yet, there are things that are not. I have sensed the same in the Anor's machinations. They combined natural magics with something that was made by them."

"So, a combination of manmade magic or tech and natural magic. Sounds a lot like us if you think about it." He mused.

"Yes, it does." She trailed off, lost in thought.

"Eirlinda?"

"Hmm? I will investigate this further. Do stay out trouble, alright?" She seemed to give him a smile. Well, as much as a massive dragon could.

"Good luck, I'm sure you'll find something. Who knows, maybe I'll beat you to it." He smirked.

"If only..."

....

Alyssa and Eune walked off their airship, taking in their destination. They had landed near a Zenithian Military base, on the outskirts of a small town. It was large enough to warrant four anti-personnel turrets on the corners of the walls surrounding it, four sniper towers and multiple checkpoints. Eune tapped the side of his helmet and it zoomed in through his HUD like built in binoculars.

He could spot multiple guards, drones, and a few mortars from their position on a hill overlooking the base. There was also a small airship landing site near the center of the base. There was even a tank stationed alongside it. The tank was rectangular in shape with massive treads and a railgun mounted on top of its main cannon. The main cannon itself was longer than its body and it was clearly under maintenance.

"This could be our only chance to attack." Eune said as he un-zoomed. "That tank is getting some work done."

"Agh...this ain't right." Alyssa whined.

"The assignment?"

"Yeah! This is a Zenithian base! Why tha 'ell are we attackin' it!? Ain't they on our side?!" She asked.

"Should be. They could be traitors?" He said sheepishly, trying to placate her worries.

"Rrrrhhh, let's just get this over with." She cocked her rifle and made her way towards the base, with Eune hot on her heels.