Mark made his way to the central command once again in what had been a week. Curious looks were aimed his way as he made his way toward the far too secure room.
There were two guards in front of the central command room - both newly established and he knew of them by name at least. They were part of a side team, a lower one but one that becomes an elite later on.
Liam was working fast if they were already here.
They did not stop him as he walked past them, no doubt thinking that he was here for a delivery. The storage system, the basic version at least, was available to everyone and hence, no one generally stopped him from going in and out of places where people were not supposed to be.
They just assumed that he was there for a delivery.
Liam stood right in front of a screen that showed various camera feeds all over the base and Mark felt a little creeped out by the lack of privacy. But as long as he was not the one whose privacy was being violated, he was going to behave like they never appeared there at all.
"Liam '' Mark called out, his voice carrying over to the other in the silence who finally looked up at him. There was a certain annoyance in that face which only meant that something went wrong somewhere.
"Mark, have you seen Rika Jones around? She was reported missing a few hours ago and is likely not in the base at all" Liam was trying to be casual about it, most likely because of all the ears around them.
"She came to buy supplies yesterday night in the escort's off time. I advised her to come today but she never arrived. I thought she gave up on sample collection" Mark told the other, seeing no point in keeping things to himself.
The other almost cursed at those words before he seemed to get himself under control.
"What mission. Who authorised it? I know I didn't" the other seemed to be talking to himself and it would have been a funny sight had it not been for the life that was on the line here.
"They said that it was a personal mission because there were no funds for their team" Mark let more slip out, knowing that it was in no way or shape his problem at all. Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw Kuro sneakily try to push a button on the control panel and he dashed to pick her up.
Liam just ignored them both, too busy to question why they were behaving like fools.
"Funds, huh? I thought I was clear but maybe I was not. I'll look into this more but the problem is that our future project head is missing. You know what that means right?" Liam asked and Mark felt stiffed at that.
He had a feeling that he was not going to like whatever the other purposes. But maybe he could divert the attention away from himself if he proposed an alternative?
"I'll get a combat team ready for this? Maybe one of the escort teams would like to take this mission?" Mark hoped that the other would take his excuse this time. As much as he liked Rika, he knew nothing about her at all.
"It's not a canon mission, not even hinted at in the actual story so we can't take the risk of sending a team out to change things. It must be the virus that twisted the code in this direction like the other changes that are happening" Liam reasoned.
Mark knew what he was saying, or he had at least felt the changes himself. People around him felt more self-conscious than before, actually willing to question things now. There were decisions that were out of character for them being made, new unrelated groups forming and the problems that were brewing underneath the surface.
The eventual uprising that would divide the base in the base game.
And the most noticeable of all - people were actually taking note of Mark and Kuro. It was a gradual process but it was noticeable all the same to him. Not a problem for the time being but might become one really soon if things continued like this.
"Do you think this is related to the message that appeared in the sky? The one about the 'world's update?'" Mark asked and a thoughtful look crossed the other's face for a few seconds before stress lines appeared on his forehead.
"I'll have to look more into this to check if it is the case or not. The higher-ups said that the message in the sky was an inside code and that's why you could not see it - because you're not part of the data currently" Liam's words brought back home the fact that Mark no longer belonged here.
He was an anomaly here and likely will always be.
"I understand. So, what now?'' This was becoming a regular question around this place, but the times were such that no one could be sure that their choice was the right one.
"Even if the course is diverging from the actual plot, the main core of it will not change much or so I hope. But the order of things remains - we need Rika Jones back with us here" Mark had a bad feeling about what Liam was saying and he knew what was coming.
And Mark suddenly realised with alarm - Liam was the only real and true friend he had who did not hide his nature from him at all and it was a lonely thought to have. Perhaps, the only human connection he could find now that En's existence felt like a betrayal.
Kuro wiggled inside his arms, asking to be let down because Mark was sure he was squeezing her too tight. If Liam asked he would not be able to refuse him and the other did look terribly tired.
"I was hoping you could go out to look for her. There is another major mission coming up for Luna's team so it works out like that too" Mark knew this was coming, he had seen those intentions from a mile away.
But he was not sure what this and the main mission for Luna's team had to do with each other.
"Will I be alone on this mission?" Liam asked, his voice already cryptic. He already knew he would have to take this mission because there it was - the notification for the mission on his screen and the 'ding' in his mind.
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Mission synopsis: Find user Rika Jones and escort her back to safety. Mission area map can be opened by accessing the first checkpoint.
Health bar: 98/100 (status: alive) (T1: 70/100, T2: 80/100, T3: dead)
Failure statue: No access to the combination technology or hybridization, world difficulty rise +3 stages
Success: Opening up a new area for exploration before time for the party, pet upgrade available in the shop
_______________________
"I was hoping you would take Alan with you since we can't have him with Luna in the main mission but he would not allow his younger brother to stay behind in the base alone too. You have seen the wave of unrest that is brewing here, it's not safe"
Yes, that was another thing to consider and suddenly Mark felt his mind slip back to the small girl he had saved a long time ago.
"If Luna will allow me then I'll take Alan with me, but I have another question - are saya and her mother ok?" Mark debated whether to say mother or father but the biological gender won over the other because he actually had no idea what the woman really prefered.
"They're fine, getting along with the other executives at this moment in fact. Since you had Kuro, we had her test her compatibility with other animals but failed to have any results. En is currently with them as a bodyguard so that's why you hardly saw him and once you come back, I'll take you to meet them" Mark felt better.
But also a little afraid at the prospect of meeting the small female with Kuro since they were supposed to be together originally and Mark had almost all but stolen their bond. He did not want to take the chance of Kuro abandoning him for anyone else.
But he soon realized that he was being selfish and the trust he had in Kuro won over. So he agreed with an almost hesitant node in the other's direction.
"Good, I'll make the arrangements to leave in an hour or so. I'll get Alan to meet you in the garage then" and Mark left the room with conflicting feelings all over his mind.
But soon his attention diverted to the mission that was to come and he took a deep breath to calm himself. There was much he needed to do in order to achieve what he wanted to do.
He scanned his system store for anything useful and bought what looked to be affordable along with the weapons available at his disposal. This was another reason that made this decision a little simpler -the system shop.
Unlike the convenient shop, it relied entirely on monster currency as an exchange and he was currently running dangerously low nowadays since he was always inside.
So he would take his time in this mission to collect the points he needed. It all worked out somehow in the end and his heart also felt lighter for some reason too all of a sudden.