14:00 AT, Day Thirteen | Near Fort Ioan (Quartet’s Forest Fort)

  “Psst. Darling Ko, are you receiving this? Over.”

  “I can confirm, darling Ray. I am receiving your message. Over.”

  “That's fantastic darling, now I can say how cute you are over the radio! Isn't that awesome? Over.”

  “I think it'd be more awesome if I wasn't sitting in a tree thirty centimeters away from you.” I say, as I use the radio to pat Ray on the head.

  “Meanie, would it kill you to have a bit of fun?”

  “Im all for fun, but not when we are clearly being watched by an enemy force that we are about to attack. Fun can be the headrubs that we can engage in while resting in our newly captured fort.”

  “I guess you do have a point. You better give lots of headrubs later, ima need it. After all, what's a better motivator for violence than headrubs?”

  “I can't think of any other motivator in general that's better than headrubs. So, why don't we get started with this whole violence thing, darling?” I say, with a large smirk on my face.

  “As you wish, no.1. Let's burn these folk to the ground, as is our specialty.”

  I take hold of her hand and we descend down from one of the trees. For the past few minutes we have been watching the fort before us, as we waited for everyone to get into position.

  The fort has clearly settled into a defensive position, they know we are here.

  Complete surprises are boring anyways. It's far more entertaining to surprise someone who knows you are there.

  We fly, hand in hand on a gentle descent towards the walls.

  Predictably, AA cannons lock on and start firing, their flak rounds dancing around and plinking off of our repulsor-shields.

  Turns out, cannons designed for taking out aircraft aren't the best at taking out human-sized targets. Who woulda guessed.

  I speak into the radio, officially starting the first battle of this trial.

  “As long as the moon still shines,” I say.

  “The light shall burn everything in its path.” Ray finishes.

  Cannon fire erupts all around the clearing. Sending heavy anti-structural rounds soaring for the walls.

  Seconds before the rounds impact, the fort comes alive.

  Shield projectors engage, sirens blare.

  Hundreds of soldiers pour out onto the battlements, armed with all sorts of ranged weaponry.

  What could come to be known as the battle of Fort Iaon has begun.

  Ray and I hover in the air, the AA guns having given up. Only to be replaced by heavier rounds fired from rifles.

  The bullets whiz past us, as Ray and I, hand in hand, gracefully dance around the bullets.

  The first set of artillery rounds impact the fort’s plasma-shield generators with a massive roar of fire and shrapnel.

  “Ko, never would I have dreamed I'd be dancing amidst a blaze of gunfire with you.”

  “Nor did I, but I wouldn't have it any other way.”

  “Now, whatdya say we get in on the action, darling?”

  “You read my mind, let's show them what the Moonlight Duo can do.”

  We advance towards the shield wall, the blue tint of the plasma forming a near-solid wall that blocks all but the heaviest projectiles. Unfortunately, projectiles big enough to break clean through these shields would need a mounted gun, or a ship to fire them. Such a shame.

  Luckily though, we have three other methods to break them. Of which we are choosing to employ a combination of two of them.

  I pull one of the shield-overloading (SO) charges from my belt and arm it. Then I leisurely throw it towards the shield.

  The SO charge detonates and the energy produced creates a large hole in the plasma barrier. Perfect for Ray and I to slip inside.

  Naturally, we are met with a much increased volume of bullets.

  We take several hits, but thankfully our armor absorbs the worst of the damage.

  As we descend down onto the battlement, I activate my {lightning bolt} skill and a bolt strikes the nearest group. Devastating two dozen soldiers and giving us a nice area to land.

  We land, and Ray’s face lights up with a very murdery smile. She grabs her spear and activates her {Ravenous Blade}. Before I can even wish her well, she dashes off down the battlements, impacting a group of poor, practically defenseless soldiers.

  Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  I, with a bit more preparation, grab my spear and head in the opposite direction.

  I charge down the battlement, the impact of my spear obliterating any of the medium-level soldiers that try to stand in my way.

  I casually drop a pulse grenade off of the battlements. I can hear it impact a group and detonate with a nice thud. I get a message saying ‘quad-kill.’

  They really are just leaning into the whole video-game thing, huh? Well, I wasn't one of the best VRFPS players in the Terran leagues for nothing.

  These noobs aint got nothing on me.

  I quickly finish off my half of the battlements, making good time. Somehow, I managed to finish at the exact same time as Ray. Perfect for the next step.

  I drop down into the courtyard and duck into an alleyway.

  I unholster my pistol and peek out of the alley. I manage to quickly pick off a few enemies before they can react.

  The return fire shreds the wall where I just was. I can't imagine what such fire would do to exposed flesh. Thank kek i've got fancy armor.

  My primary target is the western wall’s shield generator array. I expand my inae perception field and lock on to its position.

  It appears there is a bit of resistance predicted along my route. How unfortunate, for them.

  I dash out into the courtyard and am met with a few blades. I manage to dodge all but one of them that leaves a solid dent in my armor. How rude, I like, just got the paint redone.

  Naturally, the offender is no longer alive. (well, their being is fine, if a bit traumatized, but their vessel is now a piece of scrap)

  The second volley of artillery impacts the shields.

  The entire world shakes as the roaring fires blaze over the shield. Thankfully, I'm still safely underneath. Though, it won't be up for much longer if I have anything to say about it.

  In my amazement at the coolness of explosions, a high-level soldier manages to sneak up on me. We exchange a few blows, they are clearly much stronger than the medium-levels I've faced up until this point. But, it doesn't take long for them to succumb to the point of my spear.

  I quickly pop a health pack to heal some of the cuts and bruises I've sustained. I'm not flawless like Ray likely is. Heck, the first time I held a real weapon was just a few months, only days really, ago.

  Times change I suppose. I do have a super duper cute girlfriend that loves headrubs. Combine that with the other cool klackery, I'm in a pretty good place. Far better than I was before this whole trials of ascension thing.

  I make my way to the building housing the array. As I enter the door I notice someone inside. I enter the room, and a girl with white hair is standing. With a very deadly looking pair of cleavers in her hands.

  “Oooo, is it finally my turn to shine? She did say to expect you twelve minutes after the explosions started.” She says, with a faint bit of craziness in her voice. She pulls a watch out of her pocket and checks it. “Hmm, it looks like you are about thirty seconds early. Oh well, I guess that just means I get to dice you up and serve you to Lady April ahead of schedule.”

  I stand in the doorway, just observing the strange girl. She is clearly one of their core members. But she was not present at the raid. I guess the Quartet do have a bit of craftiness behind their friendly facade.

  “As much as I love food, I'm afraid I'm not on the menu today. You see, I've got a date later, and I cannot afford to miss it. I'd be skewered and roasted over a fire if I was merely a minute late.”

  “Hmm, a human kebab. I wonder what would pair well, perhaps some green peppers? Or wait, there was a strange blue mushroom that the Pota apparently produced. That would probably go well with human flesh. Not that I've ever had a chance to try either, unfortunately.” She says. Okay yeah, this girl isn't just a little crazy, she is like, all the way crazy. “Oh, do forgive my poor manners. It's rude not to introduce oneself before a meal. I already know who you are, but I doubt you are aware of me. They tend to keep me hidden. Apparently I am a bad guest or something.”

  She gives a bow and introduces herself, “I am the high chef of the Quartet Federation, known as the dicer of hopes, Uri Liv Tria. Pleasure to meet ya, Mr. Foolish hero. Now, how about we skip the rest of the chitchat and get right to the meal, hmm?”

  The moment she finishes speaking, she dashes towards me almost faster than I can react.

  Her blades screech against my armor as I manage to avoid a direct blow.

  I, of course, counter with my spear and manage to land a nice blow into Uri Liv’s back after she went spiraling past me.

  She quickly recovers and closes the distance, her blades only barely missing my neck as she tries once again to dice me into tiny pieces.

  “You're a fun one, ain't ya? I can see why they don't let you come to parties. Cant have you cook all the guests, that'd be bad for future events.” I say

  “Youll be in a nice soup before long, worry not, dear hero. I am already planning a brilliant dish. Did you know that human hair makes great garnish?”

  Yep. Complete psycho.

  Where the klack did they find her? Why did they bring her along into this trial? Like, were they coerced by her blades or something?

  I elbow her in the nose and she quickly backs off. Dropping her blades to grab her face in pain.

  “Sorry, I'm going to have to delay this meal plan of yours. Perhaps we could talk about it some other time? I am on a pretty tight schedule after all.” I say, solemnly.

  I then pull out my pistol and shoot her right in the chest. The point blank blast is enough to destroy the vessel and end our current cooking session. I do wonder what kind of dish she would have made. It would've been unique, that's for sure. Not many dishes around are made with worthless NEET’s as the main meat source.

  I quickly take an explosive charge from my belt and attach it to the main shield array. I set the timer and quickly exit the building.

  By the time I make it into a nearby alley, a massive explosion rocks the wall. Shortly afterwards, the plasma shield along the entire wall collapses and is left wide open.

  I wait around and catch my breath for a few minutes, and then another massive explosion shakes the wall.

  Within short order, a large hole capable of fitting a battle mech opens in the wall. The first person to emerge through it is Rigar, breaker of universes.

  Their massive warhammer is of course present, the source of the wall-breaking explosion. Apparently the special ability allows it to charge up a massive blast of electrical energy and release it like a bomb. Convenient for breaking through fortifications.

  Behind Rigar, dozens of soldiers pour through the wall and begin taking out any of the Quartet’s stragglers.

  Within ten minutes, the entire fort is cleared and I reunite with Ray.

  “Ko! The mission is a success!” Ray shouts, as she grabs me into a massive hug that likely does more physical damage than the battle.

  “Indeed it was, but, was there any doubt? We are the Moonlight Alliance after all.”

  “Of course, our victory was a certainty from the moment we declared it. After all, nothing can stop the moonlight.”

  “You're right in that. Together, we are unstoppable and we will change everything.”

  “Hey darling, you remember your promise?”

  “Naturally, how could I possibly forget about headrubs?” I say, as I give her a few headpats. “But first, let's capture the fort, then I'm sure the troops won't mind us finding a stray building to occupy for a while.”

  “Sure thing, darling.” She says, with a devilish smile plastered on her face.

  We proceed to the core of the fort and officially capture it. Our first successful conquest of the trial. The first of many of course. This whole arena will belong to us eventually.

  But first, I must give my super duper cute girlfriend a lot of headrubs somewhere secluded.

  But fear not, for so long as Ray and I are together, we shall overcome anything.

  So, bring it on.

  End of Chapter 99

  Next: Chapter 100 | Inferno