Chapter 104 Countdown.

Somewhere in the north American continent was a black dome. No one knew where it came from or how long it has been there, and in all likelihood no one will ever know.

Cracks began to spread over its surface emitting purple light. Little by little it began to crumble like the shell of an egg revealing what was hidden underneath.

It was a large square shaped platform twenty meters across, made out of obsidian like black rock. It's surface appeared smooth at first, however seconds after the black dome completely disappeared strange symbols began to glow a purple light forming lines that drew complex geometrical shapes.

The air over the platform began to vibrate and in the next moment a pillar of light shot up to the sky.

One after the other strange figures began to appear before the light pillar. They looked human at first, however they were far from the frail and weak specie that infested the once lively planet. It was an uncanny resemblance with the only difference being the unrealistic beauty those beings had. And though their proportions varied, they all had female forms at the very least.

In just a couple of minutes the area was filled with the strange beings, and as the light pillar began to fade all of them went down on one knee and placed a fist on the ground.

The light receded and the platform was in sight again, now however it had a strange construction on top of, surrounded by many more of the strange human like beings dressed in a much bulkier armor.

Ripples spread over the construction and its surface began to split into many cube shaped pieces which moved to the sides in unison as if opening up to reveal what's inside.

"We welcome the arrival of queen Hela." Said one of the kneeling figures, her voice thundering through the surroundings.

The construction opened up revealing a throne made of the same obsidian material. It was simple with the only decoration on it being the glowing simbols on its back.

Sitting on it was a small figure, a girl of short stature with a slender figure and thin limbs and. Her body was almost entirely exposed with only a few pieces of black cloth covering her chest and privates.

The lack of clothing didn't seem to bother the being shaped like a small girl as she sat on the black throne relaxing with one hand supporting her head. It was as if she wanted everyone to see it, her lustrous light blue skin which defied the conventional image her kind was made in. A breeze passed by playing with the short strands of her bluish white hair. A moment later light began to flicker over her head, drawing complex symbols that emerged together and formed a halo like red ring.

As an eerie silence enveloped the surrounding, the blue skinned girl slowly opened her eyes, their red irises cast down for a while before moving on to look at the kneeling crowd.

"I see everyone is here…" the girl spoke in an ethereal voice. "But I don't sense my sister…"

"Your majesty, if I may speak…" said one of the figures at the front.

"Black Thorn. You better have a good explanation." The queen said. Though her expression remained unchanged, her words placed an indescribable pressure on her followers.

The one who asked for permission, Black Thorn, stood up and walked over to the obsidian platform. She had long purple hair and a voluptuous body stuffed into a tight fitting suit that left nothing to the imagination. Once she was under the queen's gaze she immediately kneeled again and lowered her head.

"Though we made an attempt, the target had no interest in negotiations which left us with no choice but to use force."

"And?" The queen asked. "By the looks of it you seem to have already done so, yet I don't see my sister anywhere…"

"Your majesty, I'm ashamed to say that we have failed to locate her whereabouts despite all of our efforts. The traitor seems to have hidden her well. Not only that but he also had the audacity to create an inferior version of our kind, using it to push back against us and slow down our search."

"An inferior version?" The queen's eyes suddenly turned into a sharp glare.

"Yes, your majesty." Black Thorn said, her body shuddering under the gaze of her ruler. "It seems the traitor had taken a new identity and attempted to blend in with the humans infesting this planet then alerted them of our arrival. Though we have been met with some resistance, our inva-"

"Get to the point." Said the queens, interrupting Black Thorn's report.

"Yes, my apologies." Unable to breath from the terror weighing down on her, Black Thorn spoke once more. "We had an easy time throughout the first phase of the war, however when our victory seemed inevitable the enemy deployed a new type of weapon. From appearance alone it was clear that they were an attempt to replicate our kind, however after several confrontations we have learned that they lack most of our capabilities, instead relying on ancient equipment that struggles even against forth class drones."

"I see…" The queen closed her eyes and let out a sigh. "Black Thorn. I've listened to your explanation yet I still don't understand; where is my sister?"

"Your majesty, I-"

"You have wasted time, that's what you did." The queen said. "If you carried your job like you're supposed to, you would've finished by now."

"But… your majesty…"

"Father had decided to betray our kind. Even though I graced him with the chance to be one of us, he chose to steal my sister from me and flee to this primitive world."

Standing up from her throne, Hela the queen of Calamities walked past Black Thorn and faced her soldiers.

"Search the land, find my sister, and once she's back in my hands erase the rest of that pathetic race they call humans."

"Yes, your highness." The humanoid Calamities said in unison before disappearing into thin air.

The area became silent once more. The girl with blue skin and red halo slowly walked back to her throne, sitting down before speaking again.

"Now, Black Thorn. I want to hear more about this inferior version my traitor of a father had created." Said Hela, resting a hand against her cheek.

Remaining silent for a few seconds, Black Thorn exhaled before speaking.

"As I've mentioned before, they lack most of our capabilities. Their weapons are useless, their shields are weak. Aside from the force field, they can't even use the most basic arts. They have no access to any other power sources aside from their internal battery. However what I believe to be the most infuriating part about them is their lack of free will."

"Ho~oh…"

The queen lowered her eyes as if something had caught her interest. Noticing that, Black Thorn decided to elaborate.

"Their information intake is quite limited, and most of their emotions are restrained forcing them to act a preprogrammed personality. They're like brainwashed drones who have no say in their actions at all."

"I see…" the queen let a smile appear on her face.

"However I have gotten word that some of them have managed to overcome the programming recently." Black Thorn said. "Your majesty. Even if they're an inferior version, I ask that you show them mercy and save them from the dirty hands of those evil humans. They had no choice but to fight this war. I'm sure that if you were to stand before them they would-"

"Enough, Black Thorn. I understand what you're trying to say." The queen interrupted, waving a dismissive hand with closed eyes. "I'll go see them with my own eyes eventually. If they offer me their loyalty I will consider allowing them to join our ranks."

"You have my gratitude, your highness." Black Thorn said with a smile, her head still lowered.

"Now, leave me alone for some time. I need to prepare for our meeting with father."

As soon as she spoke those words, the small cubes began to move back into their places forming the construction around the obsidian throne.

~◇~

Sam spent the night in Five's room, waking up around seven in the morning. The Valkyrie was awake by then, however she didn't leave the bed choosing to wait for him by his side.

Seeing her smile first thing in the morning warmed his heart and he couldn't help but want to kiss her right then and there.

After having such a steamy night the two of them felt that a shower was neccessary so they put their clothes on and were about to head for the large bath in the first floor, however the moment the door opened Sam was horrified to see Nine's face as she stood there waiting for him.

"Good morning, Doctor~?" she said with a smile different from her usual. Her eyes turned to Zero Five who couldn't help but blush and turn away. "I see you were quite busy last night."

"Uh… well…" something told Sam that he was in a really bad situation, but before he could come up with a response the blond Valkyrie quickly moved to his side and locked her arms around his right.

"It's morning already so that means it's now my duty to guard Doctor, right?" Nine said, looking at Five with a threatening smile.

Still under the effects of her first time Five only nodded in response. She didn't know why but something told her that the blond one is aware of everything the Doctor had done to her and that filled her with a strange sense of shame.

"Oh my! Doctor, it seems you are in dire need of a bath!" Nine said, looking up at Sam with an exaggerated expression. Pulling him along she started walking down the hallway leaving the blushing Five behind. "We must hurry. I'm sure you'll be quite busy today."

Obviously what the blond Valkyrie had in mind was more than just a quick bath. Though he wasn't really in the mood, once the two of them got naked Sam quickly found himself looking down at Nine as she serviced him with her mouth.

Thankfully he managed to get his thoughts in order soon after he came and quickly convinced the Valkyrie to wait till night so they could have their sweet time.

Nine wasn't so happy about that arrangement but agreed nonetheless. The two of them quickly finished showering then went to get some breakfast after which Sam went to continue his work on the Valkyrie heart.

Nothing out of the ordinary happened that day. He contacted Alice and Shizuru to see if there are any news, However nothing happened while he was holed up in his lab.

Nothing happened in the forty sixth base, that might be true, however all around the world the Calamities began to make a move. The countdown for humanity's last battle has already began.