A technomancer's journey in an apocalyptic world

Ryan laughed out loud at a joke said by one of the people near the campfire as his mind drifted to the talk he had with Xue.

Xue walked alongside Ryan in complete silence for a moment before he spoke, "So, how is your Apostle life treating you."

Ryan mulled over the question before he began to speak with a sigh, "Although I am grateful for the powers that I have received, for it helped me keep my loved ones safe, but some of the downsides I hate it."

Xue tilted his head as he spoke, "Downsides, what downsides?"

Ryan sighed as he spoke, "I hate how everyone treats me, losing their sense and pride just to garner my attention, and it is such a chore."

Xue snorted at his words as he spoke, "That is an understatement, and it is one of the many reasons why most of us avoid going near a settlement."

"May I ask you something?"

Xue smiled kindly at Ryan as he spoke, "Of course, I dragged you here to get to know you better, and I hope you would do the same."

Ryan smiled at him before he spoke seriously, "How much has the ocean changed?"

Xue frowned as he spoke, "What do you mean by change?"

Ryan let out a sigh as he spoke, "The surface world has changed so much, with bizarre creatures popping out that no one has ever seen before."

As Xue frowned, Ryan continued to speak with a sigh, "Just the other day, we came across a group of ghouls who have learned how to reproduce."

Xue's frown deepened as he spoke, "But how? Ghouls cannot reproduce, as they lack reproductive organs."

"That was the truth before, but now, ghouls can reproduce by kidnapping females and using them as breeders, and it was so horrifying that we had to kill them to end their misery."

Xue grunted before he sat on the nearest rock as he spoke, "Sorry, but because of my injured leg, I am unable to stand for too long."

"You are injured?"

"Aye lad, the ocean is not as peaceful as it used to be, as strange creatures are popping up with some being rather troublesome."

"I see, but what about the undead? We are having some serious problems regarding them."

Xue waved off his concern as he spoke, "Ocean is full of creatures that feed on them."

"That is what we thought about carrion animals at first, but at the end of the day, they themselves ended up becoming undead."

"I understand where you are going, but there are countless species who are not affected in such a manner, and they are safe and healthy even after feeding on the undead."

Ryan was silent for a brief moment before he spoke with barely concealed excitement, "That is great, we can use the DNA of the species and splice it into some other animal and then we could have an anti-undead species on land as well."

Back at present, Ryan frowned as he recalled his talk with Xue, who had given him the information.

'But, how do I implement it, without the help of an accomplished geneticist, most importantly where would I find one, maybe our resident mad scientist can work some of her black magic.'

"Hey lad, why such a long face? Smile a little."

Xue's voice brought Ryan out of his musings as he spoke with a smile, "Uncle Xue, I was simply thinking."

Xue sighed as he spoke with a shake of his head, "Now is the time for celebration, you should celebrate, here have a sip."

Ryan gave an apologetic smile as he spoke, "I am sorry, but I do not drink alcohol."

Xue looked aghast before he spoke with a shake of his head, "That is no good lad, a only when a person learns to drink and grow hair on his chest can he call himself a man, I being your uncle will at least teach you to drink, here."

With that, Xue put his left arm over Ryan's shoulder while he shoved a bottle of rum into Ryan's mouth with his right.

Ryan awoke in front of a familiar campfire, and it did not take him much time before he was on his knees as Avtis's voice came to his ears.

"Did you enjoy drinking?"

Ryan shook his head as he spoke with a grimace, "No, not at all, it tasted weird and smelt bad, and I did not like it."

Avtis let out a bellyful of laughter as he spoke, "That is why you are still a kid."

Ryan shrugged as he spoke, "I do not mind being called a kid, as I still am I, besides being a kid has its perks."

"Really, what perks?"

"Student discounts for those below eighteen years of age."

"Ha, I will give you that, as it certainly had its perks."

A brief silence descended amongst them before Avtis began to speak, "So, how did the hunt for the drone go?"

"It was a failure, we had managed to shoot it down, but then it began to leak radiation, so we had to pull out fast, and those enemies you warned me about is dangerous."

"Hmm, tell me, Ryan, have you heard about Kronos Arms."

Ryan frowned in deep thought before he replied with a nod, "Of course, I know about them, they dealt with weapons and weapon accessories, but according to the internet, they had some of the worst products."

"They created that drone."

Ryan's jaw dropped as he spoke in disbelief, "That is impossible of the electrical or electronic devices survived after the day of the merger."

"I would have agreed with you, my foolish disciple, but the proof suggests otherwise."

"I took a close look at that thing, and I stumbled upon something interesting, interesting enough that I had Brenlena pull out souls of the employees of Kronos Arms and learnt a few interesting things."

"First of all, the worthless company that Kronos portrayed was a facade, and behind it was a very active research institute that created cutting edged technologies, such as that drone."

"But, why act with such secrecy?"

"By creating, that phoney company, they used the laws of the land to camouflage themselves, and upon seeing such a poor almost laughable company, many would not even spare a glance at it." 

"Now, here is the kicker, the employees did not know who they were working for."

Ryan was stunned for a moment before they spoke, "Then their CEO, their founder?"

"Handsomely paid actors, but the real power behind them is unknown."

"That is troubling."

"Indeed it is, and do you have any questions so far?"

Ryan nodded as he spoke, "About the drone, can you tell me more about it."

"Of course, the drone was powered using Nuclear battery, with..."

"Wah wah, wait a minute, what do you mean by Nuclear Battery? Nuclear batteries should not be as hazardous to force us to run away from it."

Ryan was slapped hard on his head by Avtis as he spoke with a hint of annoyance in his voice, "Can you stop and listen before coming to a conclusion."

"As for Nuclear Batteries, my foolish disciple there civilizations who use Nuclear Batteries that are very dangerous when they start leaking."

"In this case, the rupture of an advanced version of M388 Davy Crockett caused high radiation leakage, and I hope you know what they are?."

Ryan frowned for a moment in deep thought before he spoke with a gasp, "Yes, I remember reading about them."

"Good, but I have not called you here to discuss the drone, rather your next mission."

As Ryan sat up straight, Avtis continued to speak, "The reason why I have brought you here was for this mission specifically."

"There is a region near your place that is eluding our senses, and we want you to investigate it."

Ryan shrugged as he spoke, "Okay."

Avtis spoke with a harrumph, "My foolish disciple, you failed to perceive the gravity of this situation."

"Some time ago, some of the Gods noticed certain places on this planet that we cannot see like some fog is shrouding our vision, and then something is making us to look the other way."

  Ryan's eyes widened as he spoke, "That is troubling."

"Troubling indeed, there are things like that which can do so to lower-dimensional beings like you, but things that can confuse our senses are a tad bit worrying."

"Will it be dangerous?"

"Very much, in fact there is a high chance that you will die."

"Can I pass this mission?"

Avtis quickly squashed the hope blossoming in Ryan as he spoke with a snort, "It seems that I have spoiled you lazy, but alas, this time, I cannot give you such a choice."

Ryan's jaw dropped as he spoke with a splutter, "When have you give me any choice?"

"That is plain rude, my foolish disciple, as I give you one every time."

"The only choice I get is something terrible happening to me if I do not do the quest."

Avtis let out a sigh as he spoke, "That is to teach you that, 'Every Action has a Reaction', now is there anything else you want to know?"

Ryan nodded as he spoke, "Please, tell me more about the mission parameters."

"As I said before, the scope of the mission lies primarily on scouting and scoping out the threat and then removing the said threat."

"Your current teammates will only be your companions, and until and unless they vehemently desire not to participate, you will only take those five with you, and you will not stop them from joining."

"You will not inform Xue about this mission or about anything that we spoke here, and if he becomes nosy, tell him I said that he does not need to know."

"So, is there anything else you wish to know?"

Ryan nodded as he spoke, "When you said 'we', did you mean the patron of my companions?"

"Of course, along with another, but other than them, no one knows of your mission, and will learn as we will mask your presence."

Ryan frowned as he spoke with a sigh, "I have nothing to ask for at present."

A disappointed sigh came from Avtis as he spoke, "A pity, though I will advise you this, no matter what happens you will try your best to survive, no matter the cost, even if you have to sacrifice others you will have to, now go."

Ryan opened his eyes as a thought suddenly came to his mind, 'Why did he call me a lower-dimensional being? Does...'

Ryan's thoughts derailed as a bout of nausea along with a blinding headache hit him.

"Here, drink this."

With that, Shakidra shoved a foul concoction into his mouth as Ryan's headache began to subside.

Ryan looked at Shakidra as he spoke blearily, "So, what happened?"

"A hangover from drinking, Your Holiness."

Ryan growled as he spoke, "I am never touching that filth again, no matter who tells me to."

He took a deep breath before he spoke with a frown, "Shakidra, are the others awake and sober?"

Shakidra nodded as she spoke, "Yes, Your Holiness."

"Then please convey them that we have a new mission, and we are leaving poste haste."