In only a Year, the People of Earth had lost almost 2% of its population, they had moved to Shiyan, still even two percent was an astronomical number of Humans. An equal number of Creatures from Earth had also been transported for livestock or experimentation. Millions of Cattle and Deer were given abilities then released into Empire, there was a drive for powered pets but it was a long way until they would be large enough to ride, as such, Cattle were the next best choice of the Empire.
Transportation between Worlds wasn't the only thing to happen, a group of nations had joined together with the Empire and new data transmission satellites were installed, many of them had just been towed directly into orbit with the Empire's ships. Communication between Earth and Shiyan's citizens was possible but there was a five minute delay between transmissions sent and transmissions received.
The Orbiting research stations of Munju's had become Neo-Mecca's for many and the drive for space travel was even higher than the drive to join an already populated environment. Still, the largest and most significant change was their ability to exchange information, vast quantities of books were transcribed into code or put onto the new information channels. The tense atmosphere of the Planets, both of them, had somewhat settled quickly but the technological booms, the influx of new minds and methods of problem solving showed that dramatic change was just starting to take place.
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Vector was busy showing his treasures to Mursayade when Wu Hai landed. He didn't even pay attention and seemed to be in his own world.
"Look, a Dragon's Egg. I didn't think I'd stumble upon one in the Temple but when I went inside, none of you were around. Then, I found this guy." Vector rubbed at the egg, his touch was cold but he was wearing gloves and the egg was still resting on the crystal bed. Misozi had landed in the grass that had already burned away. Her wind formations had blown out what little was still burning.
"Sweetheart, I don't think that's a Dragon egg." Mursayade felt the outside of the Egg, it was searing. "Yup, I definitely don't think it's a Dragon Egg. Maybe its a Phoenix or a Bird Egg, ehh, what do you think about it Eggy?" She made baby noises toward the Egg.
Vector frowned, "Alright, Alright, maybe it is, maybe it isn't.. but I've always wanted a pet that could fly. Maybe its a damned unicorn, I don't know but Its mine, I saved it."
"As if, we totally helped make the Egg come into existence, it's all of Ours." Mursayade tried to assert herself into the matter.
"Oh? So you know what this is? If you can tell me what it is before it hatches, Its yours." Vector stuck his tongue out defiantly.
Mursayade laughed, straddled him for a second and said "Deal. He's an Elemental." She kissed his nose and motioned for the Egg but Vector turned over and pinned her down.
"I said after it hatches.. until then, this little guy is definitely sticking with me." Vector was defensive and it was cute to Mursayade.
Licking the side of Vector's face made him stand up, otherwise he would have taken her then and there. She really understood his kinks and it frustrated him in the right ways. Mursayade laughed again and fixed herself quickly. "What makes you think you're the best to make sure this thing gets born?"
Vector stopped between her and the Egg and spread out his legs in the dirt. He stomped like a Sumo and said. "Dragon eggs should be hatched by Dragons!"
Turns out, he wanted a pet.
"It hasn't hatched yet, you both can fight over your kids when their born. Until then, lets get inside. I'd like to actually cultivate." Vira was dragging her feet as Misozi opened the door.
Wu Hai had been ignoring the Egg entirely, it was like he was possessed with his interests. He had sat down on a rock near the blue armored soldier and he was fiddling with the Crusher. His eyes were fixated on the handle and was unable to put it down. He turned it over and over, again and again. He wouldn't, no, he couldn't be satisfied until he heard a click. When nothing happened after the first few minutes, he started to get impatient and remembered what he had told to himself.
Wu Hai took several deep breaths and centered himself.
He replayed the sequence in his mind and desperately tried to recreate the results from his dream. For what seemed like half an hour, Wu Hai didn't move from the spot. Everyone had gone inside to cultivate except for him. He tried a few more times and when he was about to give up for the day, he heard the click. Wu Hai was so excited that he nearly dropped the thing but, after a few minutes of patiently waiting, no changes had come.
An Hour passed into three, he heard another click, then another, click, click, click, shhuhwing!
The Weapon twisted and folded in on itself, Vector had come out no earlier than five minutes prior but he never expected what he had just seen. The long epic and iconic paddle like weapon had morphed, it grew longer and had thinned out considerably. Now, it had an edge like a sword but was far more compact than it was originally, the Crusher looked more like a Greatsword.
The Sword was lighter in Wu Hai's hands, he waved it around and flipped it over in his hands a few times. Vector was still eyeballing it when Wu Hai nonchalantly threw it over, Wu Hai had thrown red hot swords and speartips to Vector in the forge, he never expect for him to lose his footing and almost fall over when he caught it.
Vector laughed, caught himself and played it off. "Its a joke, a joke. I'm good.." He played it off and tossed it like a throwing knife afterward. Then, Vector passed it back. "With this, you don't have an excuse anymore. You're going to have to use it in battle. How did you figure this out?"
"I had a Vision, I think.. I think I spoke to myself.." Wu Hai spoke like he was considering something. "Since we're near this 'Sunset Empire,' lets go check it out and see what they have for trade. Bring that guy, he might be useful." Wu Hai walked up to the tied up man. "What. Is. Your. Name?" Wu Hai spoke slowly, cocking his head as each word came out of his mouth to insult the man further.
It worked, he already felt somewhat defeated. Dejected, he looked at Wu Hai with his usable eye, the other was swollen shut. His throat was dry when he spoke but he still gave his name, "Juese"
"Is that what you want me to call you? Because its gonna make me laugh. Your name is Juice?" Vector laughed and felt like he was being punked.
"Its my name, you asked.. what else do you want.. just kill me now.. please, please kill me now." Juese kept pleading for his life to be terminated, it was very sad for the group after a while.
Repeating himself a little, Wu Hai spoke with a grin on his face and a knife in his hands, "Since we are near the Sunset Empire and want to venture into the Empire's cities for trade, you're going to tell us everything we need to know to avoid being captured, otherwise, they will find you.. and don't you think death is a better fate already? Don't temp us to turn you in or use you as a bargaining chip.." Wu Hai cut the man down and saw the slave collar on his throat. "You already have this on him and you still kept him tied up?"
Vector shook his head in disagreement, "Just cuz he can't take it off or lie to me doesn't mean he can't run before I give him orders, also, he has to be awake when I give them out. He had passed out when I put it on."
Juese had no idea why these outsiders really wanted to go into the Cities of the Sunset Empire but they had said that they wanted to trade. Their capabilities were well beyond what the City Guard and Soldiers of the Sunset Empire could muster during a fight and he was worried that they would use him to plot massive destruction.
As such, Juese was reluctant to help.
When Mursayade saw the complicated look on his face, now that he was untied, she rammed her fist into his balls and knocked him down. "TELL HIM WHAT HE WANTS TO KNOW."
"Geez, Mursayade.. are you alright?!" Wu Hai wondered, she had become pissed off out of no where.
"Nothing, Vector beat me in 1-2-3 and.. you know what.. go do your own bedroom work.. those girls are waiting for you inside." Mursayade walked over to Vector and slapped him on the ass. "Are you coming inside or not? I want to go to bed."
"Sounds good to me.." His voice trailed off as he was walking but he stopped and turned around, "Come on new guy, There's even room for you." Vector wasn't going to push it, if the guy wanted to run off, he couldn't. Vector had already told him what to do and nothing Juese could do would change that directive, the strength of the collars had even been enough to make Ibuwere submit.
Inside the Ship, Juese was quiet when he entered the room. When the Isolation formation came down, he sighed. 'What has become of me, I'm a prisoner. I can't even beg for death with these people, what do they want to do?'
He sat down on the bed, it was the most comfortable bed he had ever been on. It somewhat shocked Juese, he check it for traps. When there was nothing ominous to find, he searched the cabin. There were books on the shelves and he grabbed one at random. He couldn't read the language but there were lots of pictures of animals, it fascinated him. "These people don't seem like Royalty.." He snapped the book shut and put it back, laying down, his head hit the pillow and he passed out.
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The Journey to the Sunset Empire was a short one according the Juese, in the morning, it was like he had a personality swap. He no longer wanted to die, instead he wanted to see just how badly the group would be killed once they were discovered. Still, by the Orders given, he could not disobey and gave them the information that they wanted without reservation.
There were no security checks at the closest city's entrance. It wasn't the Capital of the Sunset Empire but one of its border Cities, there were a lot of traders because of the continued war with a neighboring Monarchy.
Apparently there was another group called the Eclipsing Moonshiners, they were a group of Star worshipers that longed to gain enough territory to change the sky back to a dark time. One of the governing principles of the second level was that whomever controlled it, could customize the weather, and that included how the lights would change.
"This level is weird, is there a second 'second' level or is this the only one?" Vector asked a good question, Wu Hai wasn't sure but as he was falling for six months in search of them, the HUD had recorded their path. Recalling it for their review, Wu Hai pointed out how it was shaped like an Aloe or an extremely over-fertilized version of one.
A disguise was necessary and unless the party dispelled them, they would remain, at least in appearance, to be Human. Juese had confirmed that the Guards had no way of discerning someone's race because most of the people who were within the Empire's reaches were Humans. It made Wu Hai appreciate them a little bit more, knowing that they were the descendants of Humans who had made it to the Ultinian Realms and not just the very bottom level. It showed the promise of human beings but the way the Sunset Empire was operating was extreme and that was something he couldn't condone.
Wu Hai cast the disguises for Vector and the others. They had already trampled a raid group, what else could the 'Sunset Empire' possibly have to threaten them with after learning so much from Juese. They had him wear a cloak and ordered him to remain quiet unless to warn the group of danger.
When everyone was ready, they turned Misozi into a small pocket size item, stuffed her into a bag and walked through the streets into the City. As Soon as they entered the city, there was a loud clapping sound from within Wu Hai's pocket, Misozi was vibrating in his pocket.
Wu Hai sent his senses into the ship and heard Misozi. "Zao, there's been a malfunction. I can fix it over time but, I can't return to my normal size until its repaired and I require energy. LOTS of energy."
"Are you serious right now? You couldn't say something before!?" Wu Hai spoke aloud and realized that he looked crazy. He rubbed his 'bald' head and continued to walk with the group. "What happened?"
"Nothing I can't repair, but if you want the technical, I had an energy channel rupture. I don't know the cause but I will let you know, it happened right when we passed through that sonic shield." Misozi spoke like she already knew the source but she still had nothing to confirm her speculation.
"How long?" Wu Hai asked.
"If I get a nice source of energy, maybe..1 month." Misozi paused and thought about it before answering completely.
'A Month! WHAT THE HELL!' Wu Hai wanted to scream, a month was a long time to be stranded without a Bed. He wasn't sure what currency the City used and there was still the very real possibility of being discovered by accident.
"What's wrong?" Kuzunoha talked from underneath a veil.
Wu Hai came up and whispered to the group, he gave them the details and looked up, he had spotted a shop with something that looked like Bread. 'Fresh Bread..'
Standing in front of the Shop, Wu Hai was drooling when the Baker turned from the stove and asked, "You gonna buy it or slobber all over my counter?"
Wu Hai gulped, wiped his face and asked, "How much?"