Universe 5757, World of Ether, Dark Continent,
In the middle of the tall mountain peaks, wind blew through a dark forest. It carried the faint, strange vibration like a humming frequency. This place was not typical for the Dark Continent, a land usually filled with ancient, creeping magic and shifting shadows. Instead, it was a fortress built on cold, logical math.
The palace sat between four towering mountain peaks and looked like something that did not belong. If someone were to scale the dangerous, fog-covered slopes, they would not find old ruins. Instead, they would see thousands of hidden, square-shaped objects pushed deep into the stone of the peaks, all acting as local power tools and sensors.
Thousands of dark, square drones swarmed the sky, patrolling the region with deadly coordination. Their designs were the result of many simulations, and the small, shaped openings on their bodies cut through the air with perfect precision, ensuring they could watch every single square meter of the land. Even the palace itself was a center of this high technology, making a sharp contrast to the mystical and messy world outside.
Inside the large complex, the hallways were filled with silent guards... six-foot-tall, human-shaped robots with scary yellow markings on their armor. They stood as still as statues, watchful and ready, guarding the halls and the entrance to the throne room.
Inside the throne room, the air was heavy with anticipation. Trosso, candidate 5757 and the former member of the sand-dwelling lizards tribe, stood by the massive window, looking out at the dark, moving wilderness. His transformation was significant; where he had once been a shorter, looser creature, he now stood at a massive height of six and a half meters. His muscles were lean and strong, giving him a dangerous, hunter-like appearance. The scales on his body had become brighter, shimmering with a deadly intensity that proved how much change had gone into his appearance.
Standing right behind him was Alpha, a unique humanoid robot wearing dark armor with distinct white markings. Alpha bowed slightly, speaking in a voice that was precise and very confident. "Master, the preparations are complete. We have finished installing the sonic weapon grids across the entire area and equipped every unit with it. With these frequencies active, we can finally stop the shadow-shifting tricks of the Dark Witch tribe and take control of this continent."
Trosso turned slowly. His movement was powerful and smooth. He squeezed his four-fingered claw, the leathery stiff joints clicking quietly in the silent room. "We must finish this goal as soon as we can," he rumbled in a deep voice filled with controlled anger. "I am certain that the mistake will not be repeated again."
As he spoke, he remembered the terrible battle from years ago. He had been so sure of himself back then, powered by the technology upgrades from Keon. He had watched with great pride as his army turned into the terrifying, adaptable machines he had modeled the design of these machines after the robot characters in the movies he watched before.
Under his command, these robots had easily destroyed the weaker dark races, like the goblins and ogres. He had been the total ruler of the Dark Continent until the day he ran into the witches.
That humanoid race, with their strange sound based magic and their ability to turn into shadows, made his precise blue-laser weapons useless. He watched in fear as sixty percent of his army was destroyed by ghosts and invisible voices he could not even target. It was an embarrassing defeat. He had to beg Keon for a way to win, which led to the creation of these sonic weapons. He spent years searching for the rare materials needed to build them for every drone and soldier. Now, he was finally ready for this moment.
Trosso looked at the status screen in the corner of his eye. The red numbers flashed with cold, clear urgency: 13 days, 23 hours, 58 minutes remaining.
"Only two weeks left in the ten-year time limit of Phase 5," Trosso muttered, the pressure of the mission feeling heavy. "I have to find every single witch, clear them from this land, and conquer this continent before the time is up. If I fail, I lose everything. I will lose my chance to find my wife and child. We do not know what that higher being does to those who cannot finish their task."
He looked back at the window, his eyes narrowing. The witches would soon feel the power of this new technology, and he would not let fate or some higher being... keep his family away from him.
With a firm, determined look, Trosso turned his massive body away from the window, his movements heavy and careful. He looked at Alpha, who stood waiting in silence behind him. "Show me the plan."
Alpha nodded, tilting his head slightly. His eyes shot a concentrated beam of light into the middle of the room. The air shimmered, and a 3D hologram appeared, showing the jagged landscape of a dark mountain range. It was full of holes, caves, and cracks, looking like open wounds on the mountainside. "We have found the exact coordinates of their main habitat, Master," Alpha said, his voice completely flat.
As the robot spoke, the cave entrances flashed with a sharp, red circular light. The map zoomed in, revealing layers of rock to show a massive, connected web of tunnels. "These openings are all tunnels," Alpha explained, pointing to the complex design. "After deep scanning underground, we have confirmed that every one of these tunnels meets in a single, central place."
Trosso leaned in, his glowing lizard eyes fixed on the display as it grew. Under the mountains, a massive, hollow space appeared, filled with complex buildings and living areas.
"Is this... an underground city?" Trosso asked, his voice low with surprise.
"Master, you are correct," Alpha confirmed. "This is the hidden heart of the witch tribe. They have used this maze of tunnels to stay in power for centuries. Even the half-beast tribes, despite their keen senses, were wiped out when they tried to attack this complex."
Trosso’s eyes brightened as he looked at the detailed map. A cold, tactical grin appeared on his face as his clawed hands rested on the controls. "Good work, Alpha. We have basically won half of this war with this single piece of information. No wonder they could merge with the dark... they weren't just using magic, they were literally born from it and raised in these lightless depths."
He touched the display, zooming in on the surrounding land. He picked the cave entrances and a flat, empty spot on the ground right above the massive underground cavern.
"We are not going to attack by going into their tunnels," Trosso said, his voice hard and firm. "We need to be precise. First, we will seal every single cave opening with our sonic emitter. At the same time, we will send in heavy drilling units to cut through the ground, reaching the edges of this underground space. When everything is set, we will trigger the sonic waves from all sides at the exact same moment."
He looked at Alpha. "Those waves will scramble their senses as soon as they hit. They will not have enough time to react or fight back. After that, we will go in and wipe them all out."
Alpha pulled back the image on the screen, its calculation chips whirring as it did a final, quick check. "I have run a simulation of this plan, Master. There is an eighty percent chance it will work."
"Eighty percent is plenty," Trosso replied, feeling relieved in his heart. Then, he shook his head, looking a bit frustrated. "It is too bad, though. I wish I had nuclear weapons. One single nuke would be enough to destroy the entire underground city and everyone in it, which would save us the trouble of fighting a ground war."
Alpha stayed still, its armor reflecting the light. "Master, making nuclear weapons takes years of research, material gathering enrichment. We do not have enough time, and we do not have the detailed designs needed to build them before our deadline."
Trosso’s mouth twitched, and he dug his claws slightly into his leathery palms. He walked away, his heavy footsteps ringing against the floor. He was not planning to build them himself... he did not have that kind of time. But his mind went back to the one person who always seemed to be one step ahead.
'Maybe he has already built the weapon of mass destruction,' Trosso thought, staring ahead and wondering if Keon was already far ahead of him, holding the power to destroy something he could not yet touch.
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