Chapter 446 - You are being Nicknamed, Do Not Resist (Patreon)

Notes : Chapters 451 and 452 have been written and added to the queue !

Okay. So, uh...I was told 451 has a bit of a cliffhanger ending as well. 452's is...well downright evil.

I might up the upload pace just for these three so there isn't a riot or something XD

And, you know, make sure there aren't more cliffhangers for a bit afterwards.

Also ! Good news, I probably don't have breast cancer. I had some issues, a doctor's examined me, though they aren't 100% sure, so I need to do a mammography.

Anyway, I hope you'll enjoy the chapter !

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Chapter 446

Vitae Sandlands, Duchy of Sarth

City of Sarth

"CQ!" Uron's avatar unfolded, looking like some kind of bipedal armadillo crossed with a lobster. "I have heard a great deal about you." He extended a clawed hand. "It is a great pleasure."

"The pleasure is mine! Uron...mmmhhh..." She tilted her head. "Not very cute...It won't do at all. Hurie is nice, but it sounds like 'hurry'. Oh, I know! I'll call you Ronron!"

"Wha-"

"As for you!" CQ turned towards the dark elf princess. "No nicknames! You remain Ulfyris. And a traitor."

"I have not betrayed anybody. Much less your mother, since I have had no contacts with her." Simply said the princess, though the boss could see she was making an effort not to grit her teeth.

"You have betrayed Allya's trust. Who is the Empress and my mother's liege." Though technically mom gave Allya the orders and not the other way around. It was confusing. They should really make it clear who says what to who! She'd suggested they get a leash, everyone understood she was giving orders to Kara when she used the leash, but when she said that, mom had choked on her drink and auntie Ghost hadn't been able to stop laughing for half an hour. "Also you have betrayed the Syndicate."

That gave the princess pause. She didn't even blink at the first part, but she clearly hadn't expected the last one.

"I beg your pardon?"

"You are excused. You were in prison after all." She smiled at the princess, who seemed even more confused for some reason, and then took a letter from one of her pockets.

One thing she loved about her mom's new clothes, is that they had spatial pockets. So many of them too! Mom liked pockets.

Which was weird, because she was wearing armor all the time. Then again, she could just make anything she wanted in the palm of her hand. And controlled the whole dungeon. So in a way, everything in the dungeon's influence was in her pocket! That was the biggest pocket. Second biggest, after the Citadel, since it was in a spatial distortion field as well. Big space pocket. Because it was in the void.

She offered the letter, and after a second's hesitation, the princess took it. The envelope opened, at the touch of her mana signature, and she quickly read through the contents, her expression more and more alarmed as she went.

"So yes!" Said CQ once she was done. "You're a traitor. Also your battleship is impounded and it's mine now. Well, mom's. But same difference." She gave Uron and Manson a look. "Don't tell anybody. At all. It's not public."

Both of them nodded. It wasn't public because she wouldn't leave with the ship. Officially, the dark elf Syndicate would send another crew to grab it and their wayward members. The princess would stay in the Empire for the time being. She wouldn't actually be a hostage. Apparently it was fairly common here, but mom really wasn't a fan of 'hostage diplomacy'. She just wanted to keep the princess under her thumb for a bit.

In truth however, once the ship was out and about, they'd swap the crew with a golem contingent being sent via one of the supply ships headed for the city. They would continue their way through the wasteland in their own expeditionary ship then.

Since the last time the battleship had crossed the wasteland it had done so all alone to make a point, no one would blink, and she would have a capital ship following behind her main force. The Syndicate, or more accurately Elkaryos who had then gotten permission from the Syndicate approving his actions, had given her mom all the schematics and training materials for the ship. So the golems already knew how to operate it, and she'd had some experience using the simulations.

It was a handy ace in the hole...especially since it could fly alongside the edge of the Lost Sands and emerge into the Western Baronies unnoticed.

Since the UDC probably had reinforcements hidden somewhere along the mountains, she was planning to keep it in reserve until they headed in. She was pretty sure she could crunch through their currently deployed forces with what she had. What worried her was getting outmaneuvered by a second enemy.

When she'd fought adventurers, it was always the ones willing to split up into coordinated teams that were a problem. A single formation she could siege and nimble at with teleport attacks, and isolated members were easy to pick off.

Duos fighting back to back were a lot harder to crack, because when she attacked one, they could hold her off and the other pairs either focus on her royal guard or join in on pinning her down.

So! Now, she'd engage the duos before they could start dancing around her. Or, more accurately, she'd surprise them with a very big ship before they could deploy their ground troops. An air battle she could probably win fairly easily.

It was the ground she was worried about. Sure, she had Mackies, but she didn't have the tons of artillery she usually did to cover her movements. No carriers either. No way to resupply the quantities of drones the main army had burned against Sunrise, not here, and the Blackbirds weren't very useful now that the UDC knew about them. Mom was working on a new version, but there were bigger priorities.

The princess set down the letter, and seemed to be utterly speechless. Color had drained from her face, which made her look kind of pink, which was neat. CQ liked pink. Her mom's eyes were pink.

"...I think her highness will need some time to process that." Finally said the duke, and he gestured. The desert rangers gently pulled the princess up to her feet, and she offered no resistance as she was led away.

"One mission objective complete." Said CQ, before turning to Uron. "So, Ronron."

"Er...yes?"

"You said you wanted to help?"

"I did! I'm not very well geared for combat or force projection. Truth be told, when the United Dungeon Wars happened, I was mostly here to be vaguely threatening to the Crown. But for all of their other faults, the Asarians were never really harsh with dungeons. Truth be told, few were on Arkhan. It's why there are so many neutrals."

Mom had said it was a cultural legacy from the Sapphire Kingdom. Since they'd started in an almost completely dead continent, with a very powerful, centralized government to colonize it, dungeon cores had not been caught in the constant squabbles between nations until the Wars of Shattering.

And by that point, there were a lot of old and powerful dungeons, which made it not a good idea. Like, at all. Especially since there were now a lot of small nations that were very busy killing each other and didn't have the time to go pillage their dungeons, and desperately needed their resources to keep flowing.

The Asarians most of all, because the Sapphire Kingdom, what little remained of it, really wanted them dead.

"But?"

"But the Western Baronies are just next door. Unfortunately, my monsters are still running into issues despite the chemical...err, enhancements. So they should probably stay in support roles for now."

"Oki. That'll be good still." CQ paused. "Why did you insist on telling me this in person, and not simply message my mom? Actually, why haven't you contacted my mom a whole lot? You're sending her reports, but I don't think she ever actually had a conversation with you."

Ronron hesitated, then sighed.

"Your mother scares me." He admitted.

"Oh! Well, she is scary to a lot of people. Don't worry, I've been told I'm less scary! And cuter. I'm less tall, you see."

He did not seem to see, given his confusion, evident even on a face made mostly of leather, but there was much to do and CQ also wanted to meet the palace's maids because they had awesome gossip in Darthar and she wanted to know if they knew any more here.

"So, Dukie, Ronron, as you both know, I'm going to head up into the baronies to kick the UDC's ass. Do you have anything you wish to contribute or warn me about before I retire to the guest quarters?" She turned towards the duke. "I do get guest quarters, right?"

Manson bowed slightly.

"The royal suite in fact. Made by my great-great grand uncle. He was, er...close to the King of the time, and wished to accommodate his visits in comfort and for as long as possible."

"Yay! So, anything?"

"Nothing more than the UDC's advance has been very slow." Said Manson. "I advise caution."

Uron nodded.

"Likewise. The UDC usually either does very fast raids or slow, incremental strategic advances. This is...not right. Whatever's happening, it's either a trap or a kick in the anthill."

Well, CQ knew they had the UDC's Founder on board, and that little flotilla had landed up North, probably replacing everyone with toadies. So she was expecting a thorough anthill kicking, but you never knew.

"I shall make sure to keep it in mind!" She heard the door shift, and looked as it opened, Jumper and Tornado stepping through. "You're back!"

"Yes." Said Tornado, and they both bowed. First towards her, then towards the other two, considerably lower. "We have accomplished our mission."

"Good." They were supposed to get to her quarters, and talk to the servants about stuff. Mom had said something about 'not repeating the offers made in Darthar', whatever that meant. "Then it's been a long journey and I want to flop in my bed to see how comfortable it is! See you tonight at the ball!"

The noble and the dungeon core bowed.

"Of course. Until tonight."

She walked out, but her hearing, already good but considerably enhanced by the new armor, picked up the murmurs behind her.

"How is 'Ronron' a nickname? It's the same amount of syllables?" Whispered the dungeon core.

"Trust me, just go with it." Answered Dukie in equally quiet tones.

The door closed, and CQ walked along the hallway. Skipped really.

She couldn't wait to get her dress out for the ball! It was so cooool! It even had shotguns in the shoes!

*****

"We're here." The Inquisitor-Captain looked over her shoulder at the priest. "I don't know why we're here, still, but we have arrived."

The priest nodded, his robes heavily embroidered and ornamented.

"I know, sister. And I apologize. But it is critical. You know there has been a lot of activity from heretical machinery lately."

"I heard. Fucking metal abominations. Imbued with the madness of their makers." She gestured at the bridge of the airship. "We're ready for anything. Running the blessed sensors as instructed, looking for any lurking machines."

"Most excellent, sister. Then we shall disembark, and begin our holy task. We-"

The Church had been careful, and adaptative. They were sweeping for stealth and cloaking technology now, with the careful, nearly maniacal attention to detail of the devouts undertaking a holy task.

But the Order was never an organization to shy away from adapting. Had they not been capable of that, they would have long since been dead.

No nuclear warheads had greeted the expedition. No stealth fighters or hidden missiles.

Just chemicals. Pheromones.

The priest never finished his sentence, and only screamed as things leapt from the sands. Creatures that could become one with the dunes. Had been designed to be so.

Abominations of bioengineered flesh and twisted sinew ripped into the airship, as it still hung in the skies.

The Inquisitors fought bravely, but futilely. There was not a legion of the terrors, but there were enough.

They fought. They screamed. They died.

Slowly.

Ultimately, their agony was cut short as the skies lit up with fire from the void, and silence descended once more upon the dunes below.