Hold over Myriad of Worlds

The start of the next day proved challenging for most partygoers, as hangovers made them be of no use until afternoon.

-"Yue, do you have a cure for my headache?"

-"Exusiai, remind me what you were saying yesterday. It was 'I lived with Big E for long enough to outdrink a dragon', right?"

-"Ugh... Forgive me for the error of my ways. Be a bigger person and help!"

-"Sigh. Texas, would you mind bringing some water?"

-"No problem, sorry for her last night."

-"It was a party, after all, just remind me to never ask about touching her halo again."

-"But who knew you could mimic my halo! Yue, you must have one over your head nonstop!"

-"I believe it doesn't fit me well, but I can manifest one when talking to you in the future. I must say that the Empathy ability you possess is a handy one."

-"I also think so. Just be careful not to be influenced by some negative emotions of others."

-"Thanks for your worry. So, what do you all plan to do now? Big E, I know you are here."

-"Heh, you are no fun with your 'seeing' with eyes closed thing. I want to rebuild our bar in your group. Would you mind?"

-"Of course not. In fact, I invite you all to join us. Yae is trying to expand culture in Hold, and some more modern styles like yours are in need there."

-"Nice! You can count on this penguin to rap you a great community of street artists!"

-"Just make sure not to start some gang wars. Astraea will literally smite you if you do."

-"Don't you worry, mate! I'm a down-to-earth bird!"

-"Sigh."

-"Guys, will you also join me in rebuilding our pub?"

-"I plan to bring my sister here! Mostima can go with me?"

The other Sankta woman nodded, agreeing with Exusiai's proposal.

-"I still have some unfinished business to do."

-"Are you referring to your trip to Siracusa?"

-"You know Sora?"

-"Well... I might seen your letter... or two."

-"I'll be sure to teach you about privacy later, but you are right. I have to upkeep my oath."

-"You should keep your promises, but you are not the lone wolf that Sora spoke to me about."

-"Wait! Yue!"

-"So you've heard. It's something I have to do."

-"You know that they will follow you."

Texas didn't respond after that.

Leaving her Penguin Logistics to themselves, I moved to the bridge of Xuling, where Kenshin, Yukong, and Fu Xuan waited for me to start planning our next step.

-"Now let's start with our main purpose, stabilizing this world."

-"Yes, I've received a map from our researchers in Hold marking locations where we have to establish basses for our stabilizers to work."

-"I hope there are no troublesome sites."

-"Most are, just two are problematic."

-"Of course, it couldn't have been easy."

-"Aren't you already used to this, Fu Xuan?"

-"I don't want to be, Yue."

-"Kenshin, focus on those easier places. I'll take care of those two locations."

-"Leve those to me."

-"Then what are those places?"

-"Victoria and Aegir."

-"Sigh. It'll be fun."

-"Do you need any support?"

-"Give whoever you can. That city is under siege. We not only have to contend with those greedy dukes but also with usurper inside."

-"Good. You should ask Rhodes Island for help. They have a bone to pick with that, Theresis."

-"I will do that. Fu Xuan, will you come with me?"

-"Somebody has to command the troops. Not to mention some seductresses meeting someone walking the Path of Womanizing."

-"Sorry, Fu Xuan."

-"Don't be. It will mean you regret what you did. I'm just venting. I knew how you were before I agreed to spend my life with you."

-"Thank you."

-"You better be."

-"End the family talk, guys. Let's get this done. I don't want to overwork my people after all."

Keshin and Fu Xuan discussed a more detailed plan while I acted as a 3D printer, creating models for locations on which we are to create basses. In an hour, they prepared strategies for every conceivable situation that may happen to our soldiers.

When our talk ended, I left the bridge and walked to the mansion that was designated as my home on the Xuling. Inside Jingliu, Sakura and Hare were waiting for me.

-"We have our tasks, get ready."

-"Where are we going?"

-"You three will follow me to Aegir."

Three women nodded, and after short preparation, I teleported us four to the ocean.

At the same time, my puppet was now with dragon girls, Rhodes Island, and Reunion on the bridge of Rhodes Island landship. I told them about our mission in Victoria. This surprised some members of Rhodes Island, but they agreed to help us.

-"Victoria, huh? Londinium nonetheless. It won't be a peaceful place."

-"I'm aware. That's why a third of Lapis Knight will be deployed with us."

-"That will be helpful. We have a few people from Victoria in the Rhodes Island. Let me call them to help us understand what is going on in Londinium."

-"Please, having someone who knows the city will certainly be helpful."

Kal'tsit messaged someone, and a few minutes later, four feline women came to the room.

-"Let me introduce you quickly. Those are Siege, Indra, Dagda, and Morgan. They are from Londinium."

-"Pleasure to meet you."

-"This is Yue. He is the leader of Hold, which controls that flying ship."

-"It's an honor. What can I help you with."-Spoke Siedge, who was a leader of the four.

-"We are about to attack Londinium, and as such, any information about inside of the city will be appreciated."

-"May I know why?"

-"We have to establish bases in places of concentrations of Originum energy to start absorbing and stabilizing it. For some reason, the center of Londinium has one of the greatest amounts of Originium on the Terra."

-"I see. So we are to take over the city?"

-"We can, but it is not necessary. It is enough to capture the point where the energy gathers and hold it for a week."

-"Only week?"

-"Yes."

-"You can solve the trouble of Originum so fast!"-Amiya's surprise spoke for many in this room.

-"It will only stabilize Terra, mind you. In our understanding, this means that the world won't explode suddenly, but we will be given enough time for evacuation if it does."

-"How long will it take for it to not explode?"

-"Months."

-"..."

-"But don't worry, after this week, we can receive support from Hold, and I heard that Nobunaga wants to come here personally."

-"Is that good?"

-"Well, Lapis knights are best in defense. Ember Knights under Nobu are specialized in the usage of much more advanced equipment. Let's just say that we now seek who is the enemy and who is the ally."

-"Good that we are allies then. When are we going?"

-"Lapis Knights are getting ready for the deployment. We are to go first and perform reconnaissance. Three Starskiffs are waiting for us."

-"I see. Closure and I are very interested in how those work, by the way."

-"I also want to know how they do that, to be honest."

-"Huh? Aren't you like the leader in the whole research branch?"

-"Tell you something, Nian, those ships are not built. They are grown from seeds."

-"What the fuck?!"

-"Yes."

-"What is wrong with your world? Technology grows on trees?! What else, maybe some sentient star-sized amoeba."

-"We have one slime like that."

-"Slime?"

-"Jelly monster."

-"I don't want to know."

-"Your choice."

We walked to the mooring platform, where my Guards were already waiting. We boarded three Starskiffs and set off to the territory of Victoria.

It was not a long flight. Not even thirty minutes later, we landed on a lone mountain overlooking the surroundings. Not far away, there was a landship that was surrounded by grand dukes of Victoria.

-"So what is our plan?"

-"Our group is too large to sneak in like this. Let's divide it into three. Rhodes Island's main party will go and seek their informer. The Reunion and Siege party will seek leaders of resistance inside. The rest of us will scout what is going on with our target location."

There was no opposition, and as such, we started sneaking into the Londinium.

While my puppet was doing its job, my main body was floating over the ocean. Before me, there was a mostly abandoned city that was overrun with Seaborn.

As I covered the city with my perception, I found that all the people living here were closer to Seaborn than the people of Aegir. Only three people couldn't be considered Seaborn, and they were fighting at the moment.

Landing on a nearby building, I teleported my Guards to me. Explaining my findings about this place, I asked them about their opinions.

-"Lord, I think that helping those three people and asking for information about the situation in the city will be the best course of action."

-"I agree with Sakura, Master."

-"Then let's do this. You two go and help them while Hare and I will go to the recommended place and start setting everything up."

After splitting, Hare and I teleported to an abandoned park and started setting up a stabilizer. Hare set up some basic defenses in the surroundings.

Ten minutes later, everything was prepared and ready to start. Because all stabilizers must initiate at the same time, we had to wait for the rest to be set up.

-"Have you got used to Hold, Hare?"

-"Yes. While I'd like to spend more time with you, Sakura is really nice to me, and others are also welcoming."

-"I'm happy to hear that. I also want to spend more time with you all, but things got a little hectic lately."

~"And they will not calm down for a while"~Terminus appeared next to us.

-"Why would you say that, Terminus?"

~"You have to ascend to Aeonhood before the calamity arrives."

-"How do you plan to help me achieve that?"

~"Your strength is not a problem, nor is your understanding. You achieved perfection with your body and spirit. You lack only in one aspect. Soul."

-"We already found a word that has some techniques for the soul."

~"That world you found will not help you much. While not useless, their usage of soul is too narrow. It will only harm you in the long run."

-"Then what is your plan?"

~"I contacted someone who owed me a debt in a world with strength comparable to ours but with techniques that can help you ascend."

-"Sigh. More work it is. Can you give me some more details?"

~"The world there pursues paths like ours, but no Aeons exists there to pave it for others. They call themself cultivators, and the person in my debt is strongest when it comes to soul techniques in that world."

-"Just from the name itself, I can feel that cultivation is not a quick way to get power."

~"It is not, but time is not an issue for me."

-"Right. After this is done, you can send me there, but please make sure that no time passes for members of Hold while I train there."

~"That was my time from the beginning."~Leaving those words, Terminus disappeared.

-"I feel that my parent just planned a field trip for me."

After shaking my head, I continued talking with Hare.

In Londinium, things were not going as smoothly. We discovered that the location where the stabilizer is to be set was, in fact, a weapon of mass destruction in the making. Our three groups gathered once again, and we started planning what to do next.

-"Peaceful option does not exist."

-"Not only that, we even can't count on any distractions to work either."

-"I agree with you both, Kal'tsit, Ling. Our purpose is to capture the area and later signal the Knights to land and help us take control of that complex."

-"It's easier said than done."

-"Doctor, you will be in command of the action. Ling and Kal'tsit will assist you. Fu Xuan will be in charge of the Knights. Tell her if you need them somewhere. The rest of us are at your disposal. I'll be taking control of the stabilizer and using my abilities to prevent any serious injuries and such. Any objections?"

No one spoke.

-"Good, let's get going then. We have two hours until the planned time of starting the stabilizers."

After giving the command to the Doctor, he quickly formulated a plan and started giving everyone tasks. In the end, I was given three roles to play. The first was to make the battlefield into our domain, and the remaining two were those I spoke of before.

Focusing on our target, I unleashed Path of Enigmata to make it into a labyrinth that would play in our favor. This was a signal for Ling to teleport everyone inside to where they were designed to be.

I appeared in a room that appeared to be the location of the heart of this weapon. Ignoring it for now, I started setting up the stabilizer. Finishing it quickly, I started monitoring fights that were happening around the complex.

-"Done, you can move to the next point."

-"Roger, we will start with the second phase of the operation."-Ling's voice sounded through the communicator.

The second phase of our plan was to allow Knights entrance to the city and complex. To do this, I opened the portal between this place and Xuling, through which Knights started moving inside.

At the same time, hundreds of Starskiffs appeared above the city and started to attack different places in the city. They also landed Knights near the complex we were in to create additional defenses around.

Thanks to their arrival, we were able to clear all enemies from inside the complex before two hours passed. Kal'tsit was in charge of setting defenses inside the complex while Ling coordinated surrounding outposts established by Knights.

The Doctor meanwhile started the third and last phase of the basic plan, joining most operators into the response unit under his command that would reinforce any point in our defenses that needed support.

Our attack was quick enough to surprise the enemy, but they started to counterattack us everywhere they could.

-"To think we will once again face against Theresis forces."

-"Don't worry, Amiya, this time he will be the one losing."

-"Sigh."

-"You still think of Theresa."

-"Yes, I miss her."

-"Well, Kal'tsit, Amiya, do the person you speak of looks like this?"-I created an illusion of a Sarkaz woman with pinkish hair.

-"Yes. How can you know her appearance?"

-"Well, she is currently walking toward this building."

-"It's impossible!"

-"Yue will not lie, Kal'tsit. Even if she is alive, why is she with her brother?"

-"I can feel that she is alive, but her state is wrong. Doctor, let her pass. Talking with her will allow us to know what happened."

-"Isn't this risky? Her strength is beyond Talulah."

-"Have Dusk make a painting, and I'll control Enigmata so that she enters it."

-"Thak should work. Thank you, Yue."

-"No need. We have to face her in this situation, and it's better to have a potential ally than a certain enemy."

The Doctor prepared the trap in line with my idea while Amiya and W went to meet their former ruler.