The Forgotten Warlord: Return of the Lost Son

---3rd Person POV---

While Leon wrapped things up on the bottom floor, Angelica and company scoured the silent, dim corridors of the sixth floor for the hostages. They had separated from Leon before getting directions to their location, so the women were forced to sweep the floor room by room. Wary of potential hidden dangers, they limited their room searches to scoping things out from doorways.

“I really wish we could read what was written on these signs…” Hertrauda stared at the fire safety map mounted on the wall before her with a perplexed look. “Do you think this map is trying to lead us somewhere important?”

Hertrude studied the map for a moment. “The several maps we’ve seen already do seem to point to the same location. I suppose it’s possible that something valuable is hidden there. That said, if it really is treasure, why make it so glaringly obvious? Treasures should be hidden, not clearly marked.”

While the sisters debated the map, Olivia stumbled upon a room that was like the one they had seen the Elves in. Several cylindrical tanks were mounted in the center of the room, but unlike the ones on the fifth floor, these were filled with murky liquid. Unsure if people were trapped inside, she cautiously entered the room. As she approached the closest tank, her Magelight illuminated a black sticker with a skull and crossbones on it.

‘That looks ominous. Better leave well enough alone.’

Olivia turned around and ran straight into Angelica. The startled woman took several steps back, bumping into the tank.

“Angie!” Olivia puffed her cheeks in anger. “This isn’t the time or place for games.”

Angelica ruffled her hair with a smile. “Sorry, I couldn’t help myself. When I saw the chance to—”

Her voice fell silent. A shadow moved within the murky liquid, sending a chill down Angelica’s spine. Without thinking, she grabbed Olivia by the shoulders and pulled her away.

“Angie, what are you—”

Thump! Thump!

A pair of black skeletal hands smacked aggressively against the glass. Whatever was in there was hellbent on getting out. As the intensity increased, their instincts told them to run. The two darted out of the room, slamming the laboratory door shut behind them.

“Everything alright?” Lucoa stepped out of the adjacent room with a concerned look. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

They shook their heads vigorously.

“No!” Olivia’s breathing turned ragged. “Something inside the room is trying to break out of its tank.”

Lucoa rushed over, and with Angelica’s help, they welded the door shut. After verifying there was no other way into the room, the three women left the scene. They rejoined the others to continue looking for the hostages.

“Guys! I think I found them!” Clarice poked her head out of a room, beaming with excitement.

Deirdre stormed over, wiping the sweat from her brow. “About bloody time. Let’s free them and return to Leon’s side. This place makes my skin crawl…”

Clarice gave her comrades a cramped smile. “About that, I don’t think they’ll be going anywhere for a while.”

Confused, the women shuffled into the room. The large space was full of human-sized capsules, each with a frozen body inside. At first, Olivia thought they were too late to save them, but Clarice suggested checking their life signs with magic. Olivia did as she recommended and focused her gaze on the capsules.

“This… This can’t be right.” Olivia rushed to the nearest capsule. Through the viewing window, she stared at the frost-covered body in disbelief. “How can a body covered in ice still be alive!? All the health books I’ve read say this should be an impossibility.”

Yunyun approached a different capsule and peered through the window. “Luxion mentioned that this was a cryogenic laboratory. This is just a guess, but it may have something to do with keeping people between life and death. Leon told us that the distance between star systems is quite far. In the period leading up to their expulsion from our world, the Old Humans would have prepared for a long voyage to another world, right?”

Everyone turned to look at Yunyun in shock. Her explanation made quite a lot of sense when they thought about it. The war had ravaged the planet, forcing the New Humans to take drastic action to survive. Without a way to cultivate food in space, the Old Humans would have needed to sleep for the entire duration of the trip, similar to how some animals hibernate during the winter.

Yunyun shrank back under their collective gazes. “Did I say something wrong?”

“No, you are quite insightful for someone our age.” Hertrude smiled. “If we work off that line of thinking, these people are in a state similar to petrification. As long as the proper procedure is carried out, we can safely awaken these people. The question is: What is the process?”

They searched the room for clues. While the others scrutinized the capsules directly, Yumeria walked over to a console at the center of the room. As she approached, the display lit up with unknown text and numbers.

“I think this thing controls the capsules, but I can’t read any of this.” Yumeria looked at the others. “Anyone fluent in Old Human script?”

Angelica and company looked at one another. Since Leon usually took care of the translations, they had never thought to learn ancient languages. Without him here, the best they could hope to do was fumble around and hope they got lucky. As lives were on the line, they chose not to tempt fate.

“Since there is nothing more we can do, we should probably head back to the elevator and—” Lucoa’s words were cut off by Solaris.

The biomechanical raptor took a few steps back, keeping its gaze fixed on the ceiling. Unsure why he was acting weird, a sudden scraping noise overhead sent a shiver down their spines.

“Angie…” Olivia backed away from the overhead air vent, clutching her staff with white knuckles.

“Crap… I didn’t take into consideration the air ducts.” Angie drew her blade and conjured a flame lance. “Prepare for a fight, ladies!”

Hertrude pushed Hertrauda behind her as she drew her sword. “Care to explain what the hell is going on? I thought we agreed not to touch anything…”

A seven-foot-tall, black creature burst out of the air vent before they could give a response. As its feet touched the floor, it flicked its sharp, whip-like tail at Angelica’s face. She was too stunned to react to the attack, forcing Solaris to act. The raptor shot forward, throwing its full weight behind a shoulder check into the side of the creature.

Olivia was the first to recover from the initial shock. White light gathered at the tip of her staff as she slammed it into the floor. “Solaris, get out of the way!”

Solaris leaped backward, passing through Olivia’s barrier as it surged forward. The creature tried to create space to reevaluate the situation, a grave mistake. Olivia took advantage of the opening, increasing the expansion rate of the barrier. In seconds, the enemy was sandwiched between her magic and the concrete wall.

“This isn’t how barrier magic should be used, but I don’t care.”

The black carapace of the creature crumpled under the pressure.

Hiss!

Green liquid seeped out of the cracks and its mouth. The unknown fluid dissolved the concrete on contact.

Deirdre drew her rapier in a flash, holding it with a death grip. “What the hell is that thing?! Why is its blood made of acid!?”

“Who cares! Just kill it!” Angelica said as she unleashed a barrage of fire lances.

No one had to be told twice. While Olivia kept it immobilized, the mages among them threw spell after spell at it. Roxanne and Yumeria, who could not use combat magic, fired arrows and threw whatever they could grab at it. After several devastating volleys, they stopped and waited for the dust to settle.

“Don’t let the barrier lapse until we are certain that damn thing is dead.” Lucoa kept her eyes on the dust cloud, searching for any signs of movement.

“Of course.” Olivia kept her breathing steady and her mind focused. A momentary slip could prove fatal. “Roxanne, do you still smell it?”

The beastwoman lifted her head and sniffed the air with a proud smile. It abruptly faltered after a few moments. With a complex look, she sniffed the air again with intensified vigor.

“I… I can’t pick up its scent.” Roxanne looked back at her comrades. “It’s like the creature was never here.”

<Rawr!>

Solaris stomped its feet before rushing toward a different corner of the room. In response to its challenge, the creature appeared out of nowhere, throwing itself against the barrier with renewed ferocity. As it wildly thrashed about trying to reach Solaris, its fingers chipped away at the barrier.

“Livia! Why isn’t the barrier recovering!?” Angelica and Roxanne stepped to the front of the group. “Is your mana reserve almost depleted?”

“No!” Olivia’s face turned as pale as a sheet of paper. “I’ve got plenty of mana. Its body must have limited anti-magic properties.”

The group accepted her answer, switching from magic to physical weapons. Yunyun started to chant, preparing to buff her allies to increase their chances of winning. As she was about to close her eyes to focus, an armored hand burst through the wall. It closed around the throat of the crazed creature.

---Leon POV---

Returning to the sixth floor, Fenris and I heard the roar of explosions from the magic barrage. We had run straight here to find out what was happening, only to find a damn Xenomorph trying to get ahold of my companions.

“Cleare… Why didn’t you tell me there was a Xenomorph roaming around down here?” My grip tightened as it tried to break free. “You should have disclosed that before we parted ways. Also, how did it avoid your detection? If this is one of your sick games… I’ll turn your core into scrap metal.”

<Hold on a minute, Boss! I swear to you this had nothing to do with me. Your companions must have awakened it from its slumber by accident. As for how it got past my systems… You can blame the Elves for that one. They’ve been blindly messing with the facility’s power and wiring to gain access to new areas. My drones haven’t been able to make repairs because the Elves attack them on sight.> (Cleare)

With intense hatred, the Xenomorph flicked its tail toward my throat. I grabbed it with my teeth and ripped the tail off at the base. Before it could spray its acidic blood everywhere, I used fire magic to cauterize the wound.

Shriek!

It clawed at my gauntlet as it writhed in agony.

“Will you shut up!” I sent a burst of psychic energy into its body. Unable to withstand the attack, it fell silent as the brain of the Xenomorph went dark.

Tossing the corpse into my Item Box, I stepped through the gaping hole I had created with an apologetic smile.

“Sorry for the delay.” I rubbed the back of my head. “Everyone alright?”

“Leon!” The group rushed forward, latching onto me with pure relief.

As Roxanne nuzzled her face against my forearm, her body tensed up. She took a step back and gave me a good sniff.

Unease crept into her heart. “Leon… Where is she? You smell like a she-wolf.”

With a teasing smile, Fenris Wolf stepped out from behind me. She gave the others a friendly wave before approaching Roxanne. The two of them locked eyes for a moment.

“So, you are the beastwoman I smelled on him. You’ve got a lot of spirit, girl.” Fenris moved around Roxanne, sizing her up. “My name is Fenris Wolf, but everyone can call me Fenris. I owe Leon a debt of gratitude for pulling me back from the brink of death. We’ll be working together until the debt is settled. Hope we can get along.”

“Likewise…” Her tail puffed up as they glared at one another again. “My name is Roxanne.”

Fenris studied her closely before breaking into a smile. They shook hands as sparks of energy crackled between their eyes. Whatever was going on, things were going to be quite interesting in our party from now on.

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