Aether Knight: Desolation: A LitRPG Light Novel

by Tracy Gregory

  Atop the beast, beneath the canopy mounted to it, was a familiar face. Igni held the reins tight, controlling her mount masterfully. Behind her was a figure wearing heavy black armour, Eric, the developer who had first approached the chosen. Strapped to the beast behind them was a complex melange of machina parts assembled into a rough pillar shape.

  “What are you doing?” Austin screamed, pointing towards his fellow executive.

  Olgan saw his chance, the warrior before him distracted by the dramatic arrival of Igni and her machina. He lunged, grabbing their weapon and twisting it out of their hands. Olgan had seen the weapon used, it was a simple case of squeezing the curved metal above the grip. He depressed it and found himself surprised at the kick as the weapon bucked about in his hands.

  The recoil didn't matter, the surprised mercenary was directly in front of Olgan. A storm of bullets hit his chest, thumps ringing out with each impact. His ballistic vest took a few more, before finally, a shot punched through, piercing a lung and knocking him to the ground.

  A wave of shadow crashed into Olgan, sending him flying backwards. He struck his ceremonial throne, slumping to the ground. The developer had knocked him away with the flick of his hand, manipulating the shadows around him into something tangible.

  Igni’s mount slithered towards the fallen chieftain, knocking a mercenary to their side as it rushed past. An armoured hand reached down, grabbing Olgan and pulling him to the top with incredible ease.

  “We’re making this a habit,” Igni said as she drove her mount onwards. “I was on my way to deliver the finished binding stone when I came across this one.” Igni gestured behind herself with her thumb. “He warned me about what was going to happen. I came as quickly as I could, Olgan. I wish…I wish I could have been here sooner.”

  “What about your own people?” Olgan righted himself on the back of the beast as it fled from his village. Despite its size, the machina was capable of a surprising turn of speed.

  “They’ll be fine. More of my warriors survived, and importantly more of their mounts. These developer warriors are frightening, but it seems they’re no match for a machina.”

  “Their equipment is from our world. It’s designed to fight people, not monsters,” Eric said. “Maybe if they had heavier ordinance, but it seems Austin got cocky.”

  “We'll head to my clan's lands and regroup from there. Hopefully, we can get a message out to the Skyrunners. I can’t imagine that they’re under threat at all.” Igni had flipped her veil over her head so she could see better. It was a rare occurrence, the Cavecrawler chief showing her face. She the pale skin of the rest of her clan, her features sharp and pointed. The mask across her eyes was thinner than most, a delicate swirling purple pattern painted upon it.

  “A good plan.” For the second time in the past few months, Olgan found himself the survivor of a massacre. The last time he had fallen into a depression, struggling to hold together the remnants of his alliance. This time would be different. The heretics to the south would need to be dealt with, but the destruction they had wrought was in defence of themselves. Olgan understood that. He was a warrior, there was honour in fighting back. This was different, the developers had invaded unprovoked, attacking those unable to defend themselves. It was unforgivable. “They will pay for this.” He turned to face Eric. “Did you know? When you first approached us, did you know this would happen?”

  “No. No, I didn't.” Eric raised his visor so Olgan could see his face. “I intended to work with you, but some of the others were impatient, they went behind my back to do this.”

  Olgan said nothing, simply looking at the face of the developer. He watched the movements of Eric’s face, searching for traces of deception.

  “If I find you did,” Olgan said. “I’ll kill you myself.”

  Chapter Twelve

  Crazy Train

  They left Simian at the top of the chasm formed by the Deus's footsteps. The scavenger had explained that most scrap metal came from the ancient vehicles scattered around the ruins or from the roofs of smaller single-story buildings. Rather than press on deeper into the ruins in search of parts that may or may not be present, the party had agreed that the unexplored undercity was the best call. Each knight held a lit torch in their hands as they climbed down, light cascading against the stone walls of the revealed tunnel.

  “All good down there?” Simian said, his words echoing off the walls. The torch he was holding over the edge cast the opening of the pit in a dull orange.

  “Yeah, we’re down. Start getting the crates ready,” Alex said. They had prepared for an eventuality like this, assuming that the landscape of the ruins would be uneven. Along with the crates for storing the scrap, the party had brought pulleys and rope. It had been Simian’s idea, his experience proving itself useful.

  “What do you see down there?”

  Alex looked around, his torch held out at arms-length, his fellow knights doing the same. Ahead of them was a tunnel, a wide tall corridor burrowed into the rock. Its roof was arched, its walls covered in what looked like concrete. Across the ground were two long metal rails, gaps left in the ground where wooden boards had once been. Alex recognised where they were, he was after all a Londoner. This was a subway, a rotten artery beneath the ossified heart of the city.

  “What is this?” Cassius said, kicking the rails. The clang echoing through the tunnel.

  “It's a train track, a section of rail,” Casey said. She bent down, putting her hands beneath part of the dark metal. She pulled, the rail refusing to budge. “It’s like a kind of wagon that rides along this metal.”

  “Why? What’s the point in having a wagon that can only go one direction?”

  “It can go a lot faster is why,” Alex said. “Journeys of days dropped down to hours. Can carry a lot more weight as well.” He slid his sword free of the scabbard, the glowing runes along the blade casting their light into the darkness. “I've got an idea,” he said, looking at Casey.

  The edge of Alex's sword touched the rail, the aether edge fizzing with energy. He pushed down, the rail glowing white-hot as the sword slowly sliced through the metal. Alex felt the resistance give, his sword striking the concrete below with a spark. He moved to her other side, cutting the rail a second time. The metal came loose, Casey lifting it easily with her enhanced strength.

  “I figured if our weapons can cut through machina armour, then they should be able to cut through these rails.” Alex waved his sword at the metal still attached to the ground. “It’s the exact kind of thing that Erwin was after, right?”

  “He did say he wanted sturdy robs and sheet metal. These look as sturdy as anything I’ve ever seen.” Cassius held his torch out at arm’s length, peering into the darkness of the tunnel. “This thing seems to go on forever. It’s hard to tell with the darkness.”

  “Probably.” The light from Alex’s sword danced across the face of his helmet as he began cutting into the rail again. “These tunnels might stretch beneath the entire city.”

  “Back on Earth big cities used networks like this to let people move around easier.” Casey leant the section of rail he was holding against the far wall. Above her Simian was staking the pulleys into the ground.

  “How many people are there on your world if you need something like this to move about?” Cassius took a step forward, trying to spread his torchlight deeper into the tunnel.

  “On Earth or in a big city?” Casey walked over to the new section Alex had cut free, picking it up with a grunt. “Cause a city might have anywhere from a few hundred thousand to a couple million. Earth itself had I think seven and a half billion at last count?”

  “Billion? Billion? How do you even look after that many people?”

  “Poorly,” Alex said. “How many of these rails should we take?”

  “As much as possible. Having extra can’t be a bad thing. We could probably sell the leftovers for decent zenni.” Casey leant the second rail next to the first. “They’re in good cond
ition. Being in the tunnel probably protected them from the environment.”

  “Wait a moment,” Cassius said, holding his free hand out, his fist clenched in the gesture Alex had taught him. “There’s something up ahead.”

  The knights formed a line, each holding their weapon in one hand and a torch in the other, the light from the flames flickering against their armour. Cassius was right, there was a shape in the darkness, something lurking further up the tunnel. Carefully and slowly they advanced, step by step, towards the shape.

  “I’ve never seen a machina like this. Be careful,” Cassius said, one hand holding his cannon to his hip. “It’s a big one.” He tossed his torch forward, hoping to illuminate his quarry.

  Alex and Casey both laughed, Cassius’s beast revealed.

  “Yeah, that’s a train,” Alex said. “It’s what runs along these tracks. It’s just a vehicle, like the cars outside.” Alex walked towards the train and banged on the rear of it. “It can’t hurt you.”

  The train shuddered, the carriages lifting from the ground as hundreds of mechanical legs unfurled from within. The nearest carriage raised, the legs undulating as it loomed over Alex. At the top of the car was a set of slicing mandibles, glowing azure eyes staring down at him.

  The machina lunged forward, throwing its bulk at the knights as it tried to crush them. A wall of water crashed against it, knocking the beast away. It slammed into the side of the tunnel, dust shaking from the ancient walls. It let out a long piercing shriek, the sound like a thousand motors being run at once. The water collapsed, washing across the tracks.

  “I told you!” Cassius said. He tossed the torch to the ground, gripping his cannon ready.

  “Yeah, you told us.” Alex removed his sword from his newest augment. The shield of water had absorbed the blow then swiftly collapsed. There had to be a limit to what it could absorb. Alex weighed up his options quickly. There wasn’t much space to move, the machina inside the train filling the tunnel with his bulk. Using his groundshaker ability seemed like a terrible move whilst underground, and Casey didn’t have much space to use her jet. That just left Cassius and his cannon the only real option they had.

  “We need to find more space!” Casey said, backing away from the beast. She had come to the same conclusion as Alex.

  Cassius fired his cannon, the aether crashing against the machina. It reeled back, one of its legs limp from the blast. “I can’t hold it back forever, not all my cartridges have recharged from the last fight.”

  Alex sword under his breath. He had forgotten that Cassius had expended most of his ammunition battling the snawpjaw. The cannon wielding knight had even used his elemental cartridges, the aether inside normally reserved to exploit a weakness. They were running out of options quickly.

  “Traps!” Casey said, sheathing her blade. “If we can get some traps on it, we can hold it steady, so it doesn’t crush us!” She reached into her quick items bar, pulling free a trap and spiking it into the ground before her.

  Copying her, Alex did the same, putting his trap slightly behind Casey’s. He wanted the creature to stumble into the second trap once it broke free of the first. Cassius took a while longer to lay his, having to dig about in his backpack for it.

  “Let’s hope this works,” Cassius said as he spiked his into the ground. He walked back towards the opening, firing his cannon as he went. Rifle shots joined in, fired from above by Simian.

  “Found a friend?” the salvager said, taking another aimed shot. “First time for everything.”

  “At least I have friends, old man.” Cassius glanced at Simian to glare at him. His eyes settled on the length of track resting against the wall. “I’ve got an idea! Alex the metal.”

  Alex ran towards Cassius, the light from his blade dancing across the walls. He was still holding his torch in his shield hand, the flames thankfully unaffected by the screen of water Alex had summoned. “What are we doing?”

  “Cut the top, make it sharp.” Cassius grunted as he pulled the rail away from the wall.

  “Right, got it.” There was a loud snap as the first trap activated, tangling the machina's legs in a thick woven net. “Casey, make a hole!”

  Casey ran to the creature’s side, slicing rapidly with her sword. Sparks flew from the hull of the carriage, the metal tearing away to reveal soft machina flesh beneath. With more quick strikes the energy within Casey’s sword built to a crescendo, her final slash severing cabling and cutting free a section of the train. She sprinted back to the front of the beast as it freed itself from the net.

  “Help me with this,” Alex said, the tip of the rail cut into a point by his sword. “We need to drive into the machina.” He threw his torch forward, the burning mixture of rags and oil landing beside the puddle formed by Alex’s ability.

  “We can use the tunnel against it,” Cassius said.

  “Right, got it.” Casey grabbed the other side of the rail, her and Alex carrying it between them. The second trap activated, binding the creature again.

  Alex and Casey charged, rushing forward with their makeshift ram. They ran to the monster’s side, the same one where Casey had cut away at the beast.

  “On three,” Alex said. “One, two, three!”

  They swung the rail forward with all the force they could muster, slamming it into exposed cabling. Tangerine liquid spurted out from the wound, coating the armour of both knights.

  The machina broke free of its bindings, shrieking in defiance at the thorn in its side. It slammed its body to the right, trying to crush the knights who had thrust the rail into it. They ducked, the pained machina crashing into the wall of the tunnel. The impact drove the rail deeper into the machina, the creature skewering itself. It swung the other way, bouncing off the other tunnel wall and collapsing onto its side. The legs curled, the machina’s shriek fading as it died.

  “That was new,” Alex said, staring at the body. The machina was two cars long, the carriages fused to its body. “Is it wearing these trains, or is it these trains, or what?” He prodded the corpse with his sword. “You think there are more of them down here?”

  “Most likely,” Cassius said. “This metal, it’s attached to it. It was either made like this, or it’s grown into it over years. Not sure I like either idea.”

  Alex tossed the harvester crab at the body, letting the tiny creature go about its work. “On the upside, this a lot of sheet metal we can carve, off, right?” Alex walked to the fallen beast, running his hand across the roof to the of the train, the carriage having come to a rest on its side. There were symbols there, the runic script of the aether lands printed across it. “Pass me a torch.”

  Casey pulled a torch from the void in her backpack, holding it in front of Cassius so he could light it. She handed to Alex, stopping to look at the runes for herself. “What’s it say?”

  The torch moved right to left as Alex walked along the length of the car. “Berat Corporation.” Alex returned to the start, there were two sets of text, the corporate name in big bold runes, and a much smaller row of words below it. “The technology of tomorrow, today!”

  “Berat Corporation. You don’t think that’s the same as-”

  “The old god? Maybe. Who knows how things get twisted over millennia.”

  “What’s a corporation?” Cassius asked, touching the runes.

  “Like a big business, basically. But really big, bigger than anything you can imagine.” Casey produced another torch from her bag, passing it to the Cassius. “Like imagine a shop big enough to take on the Towers, and then keep going.”

  “I think I get it. Maybe.”

  Alex scooped up his harvesting crab, the little creature having completed its gruesome job. A number of components had fallen from the belly of the beast onto the ground. Alex bent down and picked one up.

  ??? leg. Uncommon crafting material

  “Looks like we’ve got a new species,” Alex said. “Who wants to give it a name? I got to do the last one.”

  “
Hermitapillar?” Casey said. “No, we can’t prove it doesn’t come like this as standard. What about Millitrain?”

  “I kind of hate that,” Alex said.

  “What about Railcrawler? That’s what this metal thing is, a rail right?” Cassius kicked at the railway by his feet.

  “Railcrawler sounds good to me,” Casey said.

  “Agreed.” Alex reached for the remaining parts, sliding them into his bags.

  Railcrawler leg. Uncommon crafting material.

  Railcrawler cabling. Common crafting material.

  Railcrawler mandible. Rare crafting material.

  “Guess we start cutting it up then?” Cassius said. “Well, you two have all the swords. Off you go.”

  ***

  Anaya watched the heretics work, dragging up their prizes from within the chasm. She had found a vantage point in a nearby ruin, the stone shells of the decaying buildings unfamiliar to her. There were ruins within the lands of the Chosen, but not like these. The structures around her were towering behemoths, stoic monoliths compared to what she was used to. They provided ample cover for her stalking, letting her advance unseen.

  The ruined city around her had opened up into a huge hole, part of what looked like artificial caves broken through by the avatar that had come bursting from the mountainside. The heretic caravan was camped on the edge, most of their number descending inside. They had spent most of the day ferrying objects from inside, fragments of metal loaded into the waiting wagons. There had to be more to it. Sending out a clandestine party to simply collect scrap struck Anaya as a waste of time. She would need to delve into the tunnels herself, seeking out what it was they were truly looking for.