Olax Industries took a large bulk of this block. It was a simple factory but had a dark secret. Harker Cipril used this as a base to hold every kidnapped child that his human trafficking business could manage. But what once was a simple ploy to hide a terrible secret was now transformed into a military base.
Deep inside the large warehouses of these buildings, weapons, rockets, and ammo were carefully placed in order as soldiers continued to gear up or tinker with new weapons.
"Have you met the new Colonel? I can't believe that he's in command!" A soldier asked his fellow platoon member.
"You don't know who Colonel Arthur is? He's kind of like a star in the gaming world!"
"Oh! So that's why looked familiar!"
"Still… I couldn't believe that he carried with him such a commanding aura."
"Tell me about it! It felt like I couldn't breathe!"
"Enough."
"Lieutenant!" The two soldiers saluted.
"I advise you to stop talking about Colonel Arthur. I just saw him questioning several Australian soldiers. He's far scarier than that. I don't want any trouble." The Lieutenant could not help but sweat at the memory of what he just witnessed.
High up on the buildings top floor, several Australian soldiers were laying on the ground. What once was a simple office, was now transformed into a torture chamber. Blood and limbs were laid all around the room. Some of the Australian soldiers had several limbs missing while those with their bodies intact had a very traumatic look in their eyes. and somewhere even whimpering in tears.
Albert Hoross, the Malay-Pangean President stood in shock. But his shock wasn't due to the site of Arthur torturing the soldiers and one particularly stubborn scientist. It was due to the revelation of Australia's technology.
Human enhancement programs? EMP Satellite attacks? With these two things, the Pangean Nations do not stand a chance of winning if Australia declares a Continental War.
New Birth Fort was not just a military base; it was a national treasure. During the previous Continental War, Australia was at its last leg and was about to be conquered by the then One South Asian army. After several pseudo-nuclear attacks that penetrated deep in their territory, most of Australia was turned into a heaping wasteland.
But on its last retreat, at their last stand, Australia decided to rename Darwin into New Birth City. A victorious declaration even on the brink of extinction. That was the start of their counter-attack. After several key battles, Australia was able to push back the enemies and even began their counter-attack retaking all the way to Sydney.
At the aftermath of the Continental Wars, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea fell into a leaderless state and was later absorbed by Australia. Australia was then considered a superpower and the neighboring countries feared the powers of the nation's surrounding them and this led to the unification of the three South-East Asian countries which is now known as the Pangean Nations.
With its new standing as a powerful nation, New Birth Fort later extended its borders and now it was a megalopolis with a huge chunk of its territory part of the city.
"This is crazy!" President Hoross sighed. He glanced at the torturer who didn't seem afraid of their enemies.
"Alright. Now let me present to you what I think is our best option. This is only a draft plan and I cannot take command of the entire battalion. Lowengren. You have to take control of this army."
Sebastian Hoross sat there with a panicking expression. He always had a cold and unwelcoming appearance but the very things that he just witnessed within the last few hours drove him to a very scared and nervous state.
"What?" Sebastian Hoross looked at the crazy declaration of Arthur.
"This is crazy. Why are you involving my son in this?" Albert Hoross voiced out.
"Because if there's any hope for us to leave this country alive, then he has to hold command. I need to take part in this battle. My team is the only ones capable of killing those modified humans."
"We had the chance to escape! But the planes and ships you sent didn't have us aboard!" Albert roared in anger.
SLAM!
Arthur slammed a large sledgehammer on the ground. This was the same device used for torturing.
"I suggest you calm down. Keep in mind that you are not needed back in the country but this is where you are needed, Mr. President." Arthur glared. A familiar pressure enveloped the room.
Cold sweat started to fill Albert's back.
"That's right! I am the President! General Harker falls under my-"
"General Harker is not the commander of this army. Our real General is out cold and right now, I am in charge. General Harker answers to me. And I won't take no for an answer. War is on the horizon President. So it's better that we take the first strike rather than have them attack us. You will do the video shoot and Lowengren will become the commanding officer of this army." Arthur declared coldly.
Albert and Sebastian could not even whimper in response as the bloodlust of Arthur made them shiver in place.
"Interesting pressure. Strong as Meryl." Alean finally entered the room.
"Seeker?" Arthur asked.
"Stable. Meryl's also started doing one session per squad. Though I cannot say how that will help. I doubt any of them will be unlocked after one session. Also, the training Meryl does is a lot weaker than Seeker's training. These soldiers can still stand and talk after each session. Seeker's would leave you in a state of shock." Alean shivered as she recalled Seeker's training.
"I'm making them go through that not to Unlock them but to have them experience a bit of hell before they dive into a real one."
"Why?"
"The modified humans of Australia could be stronger than Seeker anticipated. Most of your soldiers will die. So they'll need to experience a little bit of what it means to fight against monsters like these. Steel your heart, Cepril. You yourself might even die."
"It's that bad?" Alean frowned.
"Yes. Seeker's out of the count so invading and destroying this base will be impossible. We just need to draw the battle out and have someone sneak in while all the ruckus continues."
"So the army will be the diversion while we sneak in?"
"No. The army will probably be dead too soon before we manage our objectives. We will be fighting alongside the army. Meryl will be tasked to get the coolant."
"Is that wise?"
"If all things work out, then everything outside of that base will be more dangerous than the things inside it."
"Haven't you just heard their report? Cybernetic humans and modified ones? EMP satellite blast? No matter what this is a lost battle!" Albert yelled angrily.
"It is. But it's a necessary battle. We need to get our General and our strongest man back. Alean, show the President and Lowengren Meryl's training so that they can get a rough idea of what we can do."
On the other side of the building, a battalion of soldiers presented themselves with their respective platoon. But with all the soldiers standing, there was silence.
Right in the middle of the wide hall was a room fortified with bulletproof concrete. The soldiers would be thrown into this room and try to wound a small timid Asian girl.
All the soldiers could see through the video feed was the image of the girl, which then would be followed by a blur of movements leaving all the soldiers down.
This girl carried a variety of weapons. Some even bigger than herself and would use these humongous weapons to attack and slash the soldiers who tried to use all their tactics to kill the girl. But it was pointless. The girl would easily sneak up on them and demolish their formation followed by what looked like a massacre. It was amazing how no one would be critically wounded or found dead at the heart-clenching attacks this girl would make.
The next three squads who was in line for a pre-battle training session was walking towards the room. All of them had petrified faces. The previous squads hadn't even managed to scratch or graze Meryl. And all of them experienced hell inside.
As the platoon entered, Meryl did something totally different. She stood right in the middle of the room exposing herself.
"I'll give you ten seconds. Try to kill me." Meryl sweetly announced.
A heart clutching sensation gripped the soldiers who immediately reacted by reaching for their guns and aiming at Meryl.
Meryl sighed as the soldiers aimed their guns. Time was slower than ever.
Unbecoming Proficient was a totally new sensation for Meryl. Her reactions were more concrete. Her initial response when faced with guns, was to ensure that the nozzle wasn't aimed at her. But now, she could evade bullets at a more efficient speed.
She waited for the soldiers to pull the trigger.
Three of the soldiers managed to reach for their guns and started shooting.
"My timings getting better." Meryl smiled.
The moment she saw these soldiers were about to pull the trigger she moved her body immediately. The fast motions that Meryl made, gave the illusion that she was evading the bullets.
As more and more soldiers managed to start shooting, Meryl started to run around. Each of her strides made her leap several meters. Her speed, paired with her drastic movements allowed her to easily take down all the soldiers while giving them the maximum fear she could do.
Charles continued to observe Meryl from the camera feeds. Nearby were two pods holding two special bodies.
Charles had a monitor up which was typing down everything that Charles was saying.
"Each stage of the Unlocking seems to improve the overall physical capabilities of a person by over a hundred percent from its original form. The effect is extremely fast. Within a day of being Unlocked, the human body seems to be enhanced as well. Muscle density seems to improve as well over time."
Charles then smashed his right hand with a small hammer.
SMASH!
Charles observed his right hand and saw a reddish spot.
"Third hammer test reveals astonishing results. The third test is dated three days after test two. In that short time, my muscle density has improved once more. I barely felt any pain with this strike. It looks like my overall body can endure up to four times what a normal human being can endure. But training muscles are harder. No wonder Seeker still remained thin even though he eats and workout a lot. No significant muscle gains..."
Charles gazed back at Meryl's screen.
The ten seconds were long over and the soldiers were being tossed and slammed like pieces of ragdolls.
Meryl slashed her sword towards the neck of one soldier. As the blade approached, Meryl quickly turned the blade so that the blunt side would hit the soldier. The speed was fast that all the soldier could see was a blade rushing towards his neck. So when he felt the hit, he could only conclude that the blade pierced through his neck.
The next sensation that he felt was being turned and tossed away like a piece of rag. The soldier fell on the floor and could only think of his home.
"Goodbye." He cried in his thoughts.
"Next!" Meryl announced.
All the soldiers who were down the found themselves alive. They touched the vital parts which they thought Meryl attacked and was confused to find that it wasn't wounded.
The team left the room groggy and confused. Others limping while others couldn't stand and had to be assisted out of the room.
Albert was tongue-tied with what he saw. Sebastian's eyes were shining.
"What was that game? Piercing something? I guess you could say that we can do what the people in that Piercing game can do." Alean laughed as he saw Sebastian's expression.
"Of course, Meryl's probably the strongest among us. Either that or Arthur is."
Alean smiled but she was tightly clenching her fist. She knew she was at the very bottom in terms of strength in this team.
"And those two at Doctor Lindmitt's office?" Sebastian could not help but ask.
"If any of them wake up, they should be stronger than all of us combined."
Sebastian could not help but grin. Something sparked within him. He then witnessed Meryl carrying a large halberd and was using it to attack the soldiers. Meryl seemed to be recklessly thrusting the halberd but it would only cut through the clothes. Meryl would then pick up and toss these soldiers.
A once hopeless battle was now turning into a game that Lowengren was so desperate to play.
"Who are you? No! What are you? What inhuman creatures are you?" Albert stared in terror at Alean.
"Not Inhumans. Were just Unbecoming." Alean laughed.