Chapter 93: Imperium

The box was packed to the brim with an assortment of metal tools, the spaces between them packed with sawdust and a rough oilcloth to protect the tools in transit. Kothar pulled out a dull black colored hammer, it had a rounded head on one side and a point on the other, useful for shaping curved portions and for punching holes. 

The hammer was made out of some alloy unknown to Kothar, and for its size, its weight was surprising. Since the seller had claimed that the hammer could be used for at least 10 years, Kothar was eager to find out what exactly the alloy was.

He wanted to start building some better armor for himself, and while he could use Titanite, he needed something far more durable if he was ever going to face the Devourer in battle.

[How long do you think before we can analyze the make up of this alloy?] Kothar asked Silane, while he knew the general methods they would follow, he was reliant on Silane for many of the purely technical aspects of their research.

[With these tools, it shouldn't take us more than a month to get a fully functional fabrication plant going, by then we can start creating our first circuits, and it'll only be uphill from there. After that, it depends on what you want to prioritize, getting some Plasma Rifles and Titanite body armor, or some research equipment?] Silane already knew the answer, Kothar had always prioritized increasing the Alliance's strength, he had been famous for saying, 'Strength is a prerequisite for negotiation, why would a far superior power negotiate, when conquest would be far simpler?' No wonder he had so quickly become the poster boy for the Sentinels. After Kothar had been revealed to the wider public, the vast majority of the Alliance's funds had begun to flow to the pockets of the Sentinel High Command.

[You know me too well, alright, let's use these tools before worrying about analyzing them.] Kothar laughed a little before tossing the hammer back in the box, and returning to investigate the multitude of items offered by the Pebble.

On a whim, Kothar decided to see if he could find any Imperium on the marketplace, and he spoke into the device.

"Imperium." Immediately, Kothar was bombarded by rows upon rows of listings, each price tag more surprising than the last. A fist sized piece of Imperium was listed for a hundred thousand Credits. 

Even more surprising was the fact that there were no pieces bigger than the fist sized piece, it seemed that the material was far too rare, and individuals preferred not to sell it.

No wonder the mantis had become so entranced when it had seen the massive floating chunk.

[Try searching the Encyclopedia for more information about it, let's see if we can figure out why it is so precious, other than the fact that it provides so much power and seems extremely rare.] Silane's curiosity got the better of her distrust for the Pebble, though it had led them directly into a trap, it seemed to be the only source of information they had for anything, anywhere within the multiverse. 

Kothar nodded in agreement, and the usual message popped up, this time requesting 10 Credits to read the document, Kothar tapped past this, he had more than enough after his most recent mission.

"Imperium. A highly valued material throughout the multiverse, famed for its almost endless power generation, it is notoriously difficult to harness without the proper knowledge. Its uses are many and mysterious, some say that it can even allow some beings to attain a higher level of power…" The document ended mysteriously.

[I can't believe that this is what passes as information, this kind of thing is no better than a rumor!] Silane spat in disgust, she had much higher standards for what an Encyclopedia was, and to her, what the Pebble provided was an embarrassment to all Encyclopedias.

[The worst part is, this is still useful information, since any information is better than none. We took so much for granted when we were with the Alliance didn't we, especially all the tools and sensors we had access to.] Silane reminisced fondly of days when she had entire laboratories filled with robots she could control, using them to perform experiments and gather endless data.

[Alright Kothar, I've had enough floating about in your head. We need to make that fabrication facility, so I can make some robots and start doing my own research. I can only take so many battles with strange interplanar bounty hunters before I get fatally bored.] Silane said in only a half joking tone, she had always been used to a fair amount of autonomy, and she had grown tired of spending all of her time in Kothar's head in all of these new and unique worlds.

[Of course, maybe we can finally build those battle bots the Alliance never approved, so you can help even more with all of these battles.] Kothar laughed, remembering the shocked faces of the High Command when he and Silane proposed armed autonomous robots controlled by Silane. Initially they had laughed, thinking he was joking, then their faces had quickly turned to shock when realizing he was serious.

[I've got some new ideas myself, I'll need a few mana crystals for some experiments. If only you could use that Spatial Artifact of yours to freely travel between planes, it would make life so much easier.] Silane complained, she wanted free reign of both Eclat and Atla.

[Even if I could, I'm sure portaling back and forth willy nilly would attract far too much attention, no, I think it's best we leave it to Pebble portals until I'm sure I can cloak the spatial fluctuations from any portals, Krieg will be looking out for them.] A frown came across Kothar's face as he remembered his wizened ex-mentor.

[You're right, now how about taking a look at some of these armor sets, you wear these rags for any longer, and they'll fall right off you.] Silane attempted to cheer Kothar up by directing him to the various strange armor sets flashing across the Pebble interface, and it worked, Kothar instantly perked up, and tapped on the first set that caught his eye.