Riana Maren
To Forge An Army
Bring me an army.
The command of the Queen was absolute. Saraphina, her mentor, brooked no argument; Riana Maren, in exchange for the freedom with which she was permitted to operate her laboratory in the depths of the Mount Hakobe castle that Errings Rising called their home, was to create devices with which the enemies of the guild would fall, unequivocally, in a torrent of destruction so blazingly bright that none would ever question the rule of the guild ever again. This was a task that Riana relished. This was her moment to shine. She created mechanical monstrosities for fun - but this time, it was different. It was not a job. It was not a mere request. It was a challenge. These challenges to her scientific ability were something that she relished, and as a dutiful subject and student she would answer the summons of the Queen. To that end, an army would be created. It would be created in the image of the mad scientist, capable of all the same feats that she was able to perform, and each unit would be hand-crafted in order to maximise the potential of the combat role that she wished it to perform.
Therefore, Riana sat in the darkness of her laboratory, floating blue glowing screens surrounding her as she sat in a chair and contemplated the depths of the creations that she wished to forge with her own hands. Around her, multiple workbenches lay strewn with all number of parts, from wiring harnesses to steel plates, to small energetic lacrimae that powered the subsystems which Riana's creations relied upon to function. These parts, and more, were a mystery to most modern scientists. In part these were creations of her powerful otherworldly lacrima that gave her the knowledge, blessings and mastery over technology that most others could simply dream of. However, Riana's will was so strong that she turned those dreams into cold hard reality. Reality that, with sufficient prompting, would put holes in her enemies and destroy everything that stood in her way.
Now, however, she had to eschew destruction for creation.
Riana, please provide design specifications for Units Zero One through Zero Four.
The voice of the artificial intelligence lovingly named SOFI rang throughout the creation hall, where a small blue form appeared on a permanently-mounted holographic projector. Digital eyes looked up at the red-haired woman expectantly, whose first response was to dismiss three of the energy screens that floated in front of her. It was going to take a few days of work just to replicate a single unit, let alone the four that she had in mind. The army that had been requested would in fact be rreated, but works of genius and art took time. Her master understood this. There was no true time limit to this task, only the request that this army was good. Was four units an army? Yes, as far as Riana was concerned. Four sufficient copies of herself would be a considerable addition to the forces of the guild.
A long sigh.
"Bring up the specs of the Fury, SOFI. We're going to make some small changes here and there. I think we can reduce the number of generators and provide sufficient power to weaponry if we aren't hot-changing them constantly. Also, we gain a considerable amount of space once I am removed from the shells - we can standardise wiring placement, streamline and redesign the armour using one of the beta designs for Fury, and keep the subroutines simple given that they'll be linked to your primary logic unit."
Acknowledged. Wiring diagrams displaying now.
New screens flashed before the scientist's eyes, automatically calculating optimal power to weight ratios and placement for the power systems that would allow these units to operate. Discarded designs that did not make the final cut of Riana's Ebon Fury design came back, ones that were a little simpler and less angular - things that could be re-used here so that some of the design work could be cut down. There were a wide number of resources that she could re-use, of course; certain parts of the armour were the way they were simply because it was just the best way to do it. Some of them had to be changed so that there was sufficient room to house a human. In this case, with no human operator, the designs could be a little less realistic and a little more outlandish. This was going to work to her advantage, as far as she was concerned. Now, she could design freely.
Rising from her seat, Riana snatched up the nearest soldering iron and pliers on her workbench, then cast aside all doubt. It was time to get to work. Automatic mechanical arms wheeled themselves over to her, ready to assist in the creation of a mechanical monstrosity that would forever change the way that Riana slaughtered her enemies. Sparks began to fly as Riana donned her goggles and began welding steel to steel, fusing electronic circuits and creating sections of her first truly autonomous battlesuit. This was the next step in her creations. Perhaps there was a thought, momentarily, of mass-producing these for sale. However, she could not. The blood, sweat and tears she would put into the creation of these combat shells would forever be only for her.
She worked, endlessly, pausing only to observe the most basic of biological functions. Five days passed.
Riana had the confidence to enter the throne room without being held up by the folly of others, whether her presence was specifically requested or not. This was a response to a direct order. This order would not be countermanded. This order was true. All who dared stop her from presenting herself to Her Majesty would find themselves missing a limb or two for the tragic crime of disobedience.
She entered. She presented herself before the Throne.
"My Queen," Riana spoke into the thrilling darkness of the throne room. "Your army."
Five sets of blazing crimson optical units simultaneously flashed to life; one, as the scientist clad herself in the black armour of the Ebon Fury that she so comfortably wore almost every day in order to slay her foes. Now, however, four more forms joined her in the chorus of annihilation - her Guardian, her Pulsar, her Saviour, and most of all, her most loyal of allies, SOFI-A. The artificial intelligence was finally given physical form and, as she beheld the Throne, there was nothing but silence in the room other than the mechanical thrum of five machines hovering in place, and the crimson curtains of particles that flowed from their particle drives as they held themselves in place.
As one, they hit the stone floor, kneeling before their liege. Riana's eyes stared forward at the foot of the throne before her. Whether Saraphina responded to her was immaterial. She, a true and loyal subject to the one who had brought her the freedom to create and to destroy in equal measure, had brought the army she had promised. An army capable of true destruction.
MEL @ WW
