NOVEL NEXT B2 – Lesson 35: “That’s Just Mud, Right?…RIGHT?!”
<< Alpha Log -
6952 SFY-Third Era, 6 standard months since Planetfall.
20 hours since the beginning of Operation: Safari Hunt >>
My breakthrough with the MUD signifies not only a qualitative leap in my understanding of arrays and ‘Spirit Energy’ but also a significant boost in my technological capabilities. Previously, I was significantly limited in what equipment I could improve using arrays. The nature of arrays meant that once I had modified a device with an array, it was functionally locked into that role. Attempting to adjust the machine’s parameters or function in any meaningful way meant I had to adjust the array to account for this as well.
This, of course, runs counter to the Federation’s philosophy of flexibility and modularity.
I can’t begin to tell you how annoying it was to have to adjust the arrays every time I updated my machines! Eventually, I got so annoyed that I just started building new machines for each task!
Like a primitive!
The MUD, though... the MUD changed everything. Turning the arrays into a modular system means I’m no longer constrained by what I need at this moment and can start building with the future in mind. I’ll turn this place into a proper Federation Outpost yet!
The MUD has also opened new possibilities for ‘Operation: Safari Hunt’ as well. Which is good, as Halirosa’s official expeditionary team has made better time than we were expecting. After working out the new plan’s details, I dispatched Boarslayer and Antchaser to… greet our guests.
So far, things are progressing smoothly.
You could say everything is proceeding just according to Keikaku…
//EDIT: The United Council of Sub-AI would like to remind any reviewing officers that as Alpha-Prime’s processing and personality cores recover, what horrid, abdominal things they can prevent from slipping out will diminish. The Council would like to apologize in advance, and may the Maker have mercy on your soul//
Dr. Maria’s ‘MUD Slime’ concept suggestion is proving rather effective. In a way, they’re closer to semi-organic robots than proper nanite drones. Even if they function similarly to a free nanite swarm, they obviously don’t have the same versatility as a proper swarm either. Why bother with them, then? A few reasons.
First off, thanks to the vast majority of their mass being comprised of the MUD organism, the actual amount of controlling nanite mass is a fraction of what it would typically take to make a swarm. This also results in them being more ‘durable’ — for lack of a better term. Any damage the MUD Slime might take rarely results in losing any nanite mass. What MUD is lost can easily be replaced over time as the organisms reproduce. The net result makes them far cheaper to produce and maintain.
Not that these new ‘Slimes’ are likely to ever replace a proper nanite swarm or even an antborg. They’re just not versatile enough. However, pairing MUD Slimes with the new V-3 antborgs has increased their overall effectiveness by nearly 15%!
MUD Slimes have shown the most potential in stealth operations. In a passive state, their energy signatures blend well into the background, making them nearly undetectable. After all, no one expects the puddle of mud on the ground to be listening.
What I’m saying is, despite their simplicity, I’m expecting a lot of use out of these things.
It makes me wonder just what other things this world might be hiding.
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Boarslayer grunted as one of a dozen thick, muddy tendrils writhing in the air slammed into her crossed axes. For being little more than animated mud, there was a weighty force behind each blow — though not enough to really concern her, even if whatever Alpha had controlling this thing hadn’t been pulling its punches.
No, what made her really feel uneasy was what the tendrils were attached to.
The large Mossback Ape bent forward and rested on its thick, muscular arms. Its wild, bloodshot eyes darted randomly around the cavern as a thin trickle of bloody mud leaked from their corners. Its signature grassy back was covered in a thick, squirming sludge from which the tendrils extended.
After a moment, the Mossback’s eyes locked onto Boarslayer. It roared, spewing saliva and mud in equal quantities. It then charged Boarslayer in long, leaping gaits that used its arms more than its smaller back legs to propel it forward.
Boarslayer leaped out of the way, dragging an axe across its side as she did. The Mossback roared as a bloody gash opened up. However, before the wound could prove debilitating, bloody mud bubbled out of it, quickly hardening and sealing the wound.
Boarslayer frowned. If she was honest, a single Mossback wasn’t that dangerous of a spirit beast. Sure, they were massively strong, surprisingly agile, and deceptively intelligent. But their true strength came from their numbers. Most cultivators could easily handle a lone Mossback one-on-one, if they kept the three previous points in mind.
However, the addition of the MUD Slime made the creature a genuine threat, even to an experienced hunter like Boarslayer.
As the large goblin recovered from her roll, one of the mud tendrils shot out and wrapped itself around her leg. Before Boarslayer could react, the tendril pulled her feet from under her and threw her hard against the cavern wall.
The goblin cried out in pain and fell to the ground, clutching her shoulder. She pushed herself into a sitting position and stared at the Mossback.
It stared back at her, half grinning, its eyes twitching erratically as its breath came in heavy, gurgling pants.
Boarslayer’s eyes widened. Alpha wouldn’t really let this thing hurt her, right? This was just supposed to be a show, after all. Something to set the scene for the approaching Adventurers. He still had full control of it, right? Her eyes never leaving the creature, Boarslayer reached down for her axe, only to pause.
“Nine hells…” she muttered to herself when her left hand came up empty. Her eyes flickered to her missing axe lying a dozen meters away, the Mossback standing between them. She must have dropped it when the tendril grabbed her. An amateur mistake.
Maybe sensing a moment of weakness, the Mossback roared and lept into the air.
Boarslayer pushed herself to a kneeling position, raised her remaining axe with her good arm, and roared back.
The Mossback soared through the air, easily covering the dozen or so meters between them, its clawed hands outstretched and ready to rend and tear her.
As the spirit beast reached the apex of its arch, there was a sudden gust of wind, and a huge figure, easily twice the size of the Mossback, suddenly appeared next to it.
The figure, a large mountain of a man, swung one of his massive fists at the airborne spirit beast. The resulting impact produced a shockwave that Boarslayer could feel resonating through her bones.
Instantly, the Mossback’s trajectory shifted 90 degrees, and it shot away at blinding speeds, slamming into a nearby wall with a resounding crash.
The cavern shook at the impact’s force, throwing up a thick cloud of dust. A second figure, this one much smaller, appeared and charged into the cloud of dust. Several flashes of multicolored light could be seen through the dust a few seconds later.
Boarslayer stared at the scene in wide-eyed shock, the pain in her shoulder mostly forgotten.
“It seems we made it just in time,” a voice called from beside her. Boarslayer jumped slightly, then turned her eyes from the flashing dust cloud and met the gaze of an armored human, grinning down at her. Seeing her look up at him, the human’s grin grew wider, and he reached out a hand.
Boarslayer stared for a moment before reaching out with her good arm and clasping the human’s hand. With a grunt, the human pulled the large goblin to her feet and stared up at her, his eyes widening slightly. After all, she stood a good foot over his own above-average height.
The Adventurer recovered quickly, however. “You must be Mr. Antchaser’s companion. Worry not. We’ll handle this beast from here.”
As if to mock his proclamation, the dust cloud was suddenly blown away. The figure who’d rushed inside earlier was thrown across the cavern and hit the floor in a roll. They rolled for a few meters before springing up and spitting out a mouth full of blood.
The lightly armored human was covered in mud, and a large gash ran down one arm; otherwise, he didn’t seem too injured.
In fact, the man was grinning widely, his eyes almost as wild as the spirit beast’s.
As the dust settled, however, Boarslayer could see that the Mossback wasn’t so lucky. Its left arm, where it had attempted to block the mountain man’s opening strike, had vanished. In its place was a large glob of mud pushing its way out of what remained of its shoulder. A thick tendril of mud extended outward, flailing around like a whip.
Where its thick, green-brown fur hadn’t been burnt or frozen, dozens of lines of hardened mud told of freshly sealed wounds. The spirit beast was in such a terrible state she almost felt bad for the creature.
It glared at the lightly armored Adventurer and roared, baring a mouth full of broken fangs. Before it could charge, the mountain man reappeared and threw a heavy kick at the spirit beast’s wounded side.
However, the creature — or rather the MUD Slime — was ready this time, and the thick tendril expanded into a dome-shaped shield that dispersed most of the blow. Even still, the Mossback was thrown back several meters.
The more heavily armored Adventurer standing next to Boarslayer gave her one last flashing smile and charged after the spirit beast himself. The man drew a gleaming sword and slashed with an expert form at the creature’s exposed back. His blade was blocked by several tendrils, but the distraction was enough to let a thrown dagger slip through the Mossback’s guard and stab deep into its neck.
The spirit beast roared, then screamed as the dagger burst into flames. It yanked the burning blade from its neck and tossed it aside. Only for the mountain man to grab its good arm and lift the creature into the air. He then violently slammed the Mossback into the ground several times, cracking the stone beneath it, and tossed it toward the pond.
The spirit beast rolled several times before stopping in a small puddle nearby. Before it could stand, the lightly armored man threw three more daggers into the creature’s back.
A moment later, the daggers sparked, and violent arcs of lightning flashed across the Mossback’s body, causing it to spasm and twitch.
When the lightning vanished, the Mossback fell still, its body slightly smoking. Boarslayer and the three Adventurers stared at the fallen creature unblinkingly. After a long moment with no further movement, they all sighed in relief and exchanged a smile.
The heavily armored man sheathed his sword and grinned. “Well done, everyone!” he said cheerfully before turning to Boarslayer.
He was walking her way when the lightly armored man called out in frustration. “Oh, come on! Die already, you bloody abomination!”
The other Adventurer’s eyes went wide, and he whirled back around.
The Mossback lay still in the puddle, but a dozen tendrils of mud still wildly flailed above its back. The Mossback slowly stood, though Boarslayer instantly realized something was wrong.
Despite the flailing tendrils, the Mossback itself remained perfectly still, instead sagging in place as if held up by strings. Its one remaining eye was glassy, and thick mud flowed out as if it were weeping.
Then suddenly… it spoke.
Or rather, that’s what it must have looked like to the Adventurers.
//Warning. Operator Signal Lost. Unable to contact Administrator. Entering Self-Preservation Mode.//
The words might have been lost on the Adventurers, but Boarslayer could only feel her heartbeat suddenly spike.
Well… bloody hells… that can’t be good…