Author Notes:
As you will soon see, I was bloody high of recaf...
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Stepping out of the female showering area while using a towel to dry my glistening black hair, I feel slightly thankful that my hair is kept short. While I am attracted to a ponytail hairstyle, keeping it tidy as a Guardswoman will be a pain. This is not to mention that long hair makes it nigh impossible to get it under a helmet. Passing by my fellow Cadian 8th ladies, with them greeting me either out of politeness or familiarity, gestures of which I do return, I soon find myself at the shared quarter assigned to the female members of my 3rd Platoon. Although we are in the barrack area, it's more accurate to say that I am staying in a dormitory alongside my fellow ladies. Males and females are assigned different buildings. All buildings have their own armories while sharing a singular yard for general activities. Due to the expedient nature of their constructions, the buildings are sparsely furnished with only the bare necessities for the Guards. They are, however, extremely sturdy and easily defended should the need arise. Each dormitory is, in essence, an enlarged bunker, built to last with little in between. There's not even a paint job for the exterior or the interior of these dormitories. Other than a few camouflage nettings and the emblazoned Imperial Aquilas, the buildings sport only the dull colors of the material used in their construction.
Truly, we Cadians are utilitarians to the core.
The moment I slide open the steel door and step inside, I immediately sigh knowingly as a pair of hands move to grab me from the side. Soon enough, I feel two mounds of flesh press on my head as I am pulled into a friendly hug.
"Scorpin, must we do this now?" I say wryly, addressing one of the Specialists in 3rd Platoon's Special Weapon Squad.
A tall Cadian woman with short brown hair and a thin scar running down her right eye, Scorpin is what one would call a gentlemanly pervert. I say that because she tends to have a roaming pair of hands when we girls are in private. That said, she is not just dependable but also knows how to perfectly balance her cultured tendencies and interpersonal relationships so as not to cause anyone discomfort. Oh, and she is also the oldest of us girls in 3rd Platoon, which prompts her to occasional bursts of mama bear actions when someone commits a faux pas on us ladies.
Smirking as she leans over her boobs to look down on me, Scorpin answers.
"But of course! It's been a while since I have taken your measurements! Now that we have some privacy, I can do this now!" Having said that in a righteous tone, Scorpin moves to palm my breasts and causes me to blush slightly.
"..." I stay silent as Scorpin roams her hands underneath my shirt.
It's futile to resist this woman's advance. Not to mention I am also feeling somewhat obligated to reward Scorpin for a job well done with her grenade launcher these past few days. These are the reasons why I can only stand still, biting back a moan, as Scorpin gently fondles my breasts and even teases my nipples. Since I am wearing a slightly damp unbuttoned white shirt and hot pants, the older Specialist basically has unhindered access to the wonderful treat that is my cuddlable hourglass form.
Nodding to herself, Scorpin comments shamelessly.
"Umu, perfectly sized and balanced, as all things should be. Honestly speaking, you really do have the nicest pair of tits around, Ein. Big and small breasts are overrated, it's the form-fitting ones that deserve to be cherished!"
Though I feel flattered by Scorpin's sincere, albeit a bit pervy comment, it doesn't stop me from blushing a tad redder in shyness. There's little to no way I can counter such shameless but paradoxically sincere praising. Thankfully, I am saved from turning into a boiling kettle when the last two female members in 3rd Platoon come to twist Scorpin's ears chidingly. One of them even comments in annoyance.
"Seriously, Scorpin? You already bedded two of us, yet you still preying on poor little Ein like this?" The girl, who is also one of Scorpin's girlfriends, winks apologetically at me. "Sorry about this doofus, Ein."
I fix my shirt, noticing the few droplets of water that run from my cleavage down to my belly. I cough to push through my embarrassment.
"It's ok. Scorpin might be a doofus, but at least she's 3rd Platoon doofus."
Hearing my endearing jab, Scorpin actually pops her chest out in pride. Unfortunately, her two girlfriends frown and twist her ears even harder, prompting the Specialist to nearly keel over in pain.
That's just karma for groping me, Scorpin.
Still, looking around, I notice there are only four of us in the quarter. Raising an eyebrow, I ask. "Does anyone know where our Rookie is?"
"If you're looking for Weiss, she headed off to look for some chow and a walk before hitting the bathroom." Answered one of Scorpin's girlfriends. "Now if you would excuse us, we will have to take Scorpin over here elsewhere and render her some discipline."
Unironically, Scorpin is promptly dragged out of the quarter, presumably to the bathroom where I came from. Despite the circumstance she landed herself in, Scorpin sports only a fake facade of panic. Shaking my head at the play the trio conducted, I speak out to them as the door is closing.
"Try not to break the plumbing this time!"
"No promise~!" One of them shouts back right when the door is closed.
I sigh, shaking my head with a small smile. It's moments like earlier that I am reminded of a fact.
We're humans, after all.
Off the field, when all the blood is dried and rifles are cooled off, we Cadians are no different than the common citizens of the Imperium. We have our own interests, aspirations, and even quirks and personality traits that resurface when our facade as Imperial Guards is shed. It's because of this that whenever 3rd Platoon is deployed, I always set out with the mind to protect my Platoon mates to the best of my ability. Maybe I cannot save this universe, but I can at least make peace with the fact I am doing whatever I can to protect the few beacons of light in this grimdark future.
I hang my towel on a drying rack before I hop onto a bunk bed. Of course, due to my short stature, I am given the top bed, with Weiss securing herself the bottom one. Laying down on the slightly hard bedding, I mull over the gains I've made throughout the last few days. Due to the constant patrols, I didn't really have the time to give everything a once over. Now in a private setting, I can go ham and analyze what I received.
Pulling out my Yoroi Doshi from a belt draping over the bed railings, I idly make it supernaturally spin on my palm. This is a method I developed to train my usage of the Abyss Totem Stigmata and my multi-tasking skills.
[Bonus Mission accomplished:
Helped vanquish a Traitorous Warband.
Successfully impressed parties of interest in your martial prowess and mental acumen.
Successfully secured the derelict Battlestar Pegasus.
Successfully influenced the decision to kickstart the reverse-engineering of useful Colonial technologies.]
[Granting rewards:
Ten Cosmic Cookies.]
[Disclaimer:
Cosmic Cookies act as a form of currency to trade for random rewards.
Each Cosmic Cookie can trade for ten random rewards.
Barred some special events and circumstances, Cosmic Cookies are unobtainium.
To use Cosmic Cookies, the user must gift them to a Shoggoth as tribute.
The only Shoggoth known to the user is Nicolae the Shoggoth.]
[Belkan Imperialis' Chatroom unlocked!
User can use the System's Chatroom to send messages and gifts to anyone designated by the user.
The participants of the Chatroom are beholden to the Laws and Protections implemented by the Void.
In the event that the Laws and Protections are violated, the Void will deploy Enforcers.
Messages and gifts can be sent anonymously.
The System Admin will unlock more Chatroom functions for the user as time goes on.]
Those were the things I first read when Battlestar Pegasus was clear. Although I still don't know why the Chatroom is named Belkan Imperialis, it didn't stop me from tentatively using its functions back then. When I gifted a Cosmic Cookie to the Shoggoth that I met in the Bar, I received these System messages.
[Nicolae the Shoggoth - Chatroom Moderator:
Overworked. Waiting for lunch break.
Status: Don't PM me unless someone breaks the Laws again, or if you have cookies. Cookies are nice.]
[Do you want to send this gift to Nicolae the Shoggoth?
1x Cosmic Cookie.]
[Yes/No]
[Is this an anonymous gift?]
[Yes/No]
[Sending gift... Done.]
[Nicolae the Shoggoth has received the gift...
Nicolae is tired.
A Cosmic Cookie is deposited on top of Nicolae's head.
Nicolae jumps in the surprise.
Nicolae clampers happily for the Cosmic Cookie.
Nicolae is happy that the User remembered and sent her such a thoughtful gift.
In her haste to grab the Cosmic Cookie, Nicolae accidentally topples her piles of documents down a couple of departments.
Nicolae is shocked that her inattentiveness may cause a few universes to blink out of existence.
Nicolae jumps out of the windows, Cosmic Cookies in tentacles, to try and stop the departments below from processing the wrong documents.
Nicolae does not forget to repay the User's kindness, however.
Nicolae uses ten of her tentacles to reach inside her personal inventory.
Nicolae pulls out ten random rewards before gifting the User back.
Nicolae has no time to elaborate.
Nicolae has to leave after bidding the User temporary farewell.]
As any sane person would do, I nearly stumbled and laughed when I read the System messages. Fortunately, my self-control was at least good enough to maintain a poker face on this matter. I didn't want Mama to react weirdly when I suddenly burst out laughing.
Hell, even now, I still want to laugh when I reread the entire message sequence. As for the rewards... Well, they're truly random, for sure, akin to that of the Daily Login rewards... Basically, more Gacha, yay~! I received some status increases and a couple of helpful but otherwise not noteworthy passive skills. The surprise additions, however, are these.
[Cosmic Cookies rewards:
10x Wisdom Cubes.
1x Upgrade-Whatever Ticket.
Perk - Skillshare Graduatee.]
I mentally cycle through the descriptions for the items.
[Upgrade-Whatever Ticket:
As the name suggests, the Ticket can be used to upgrade anything and anyone.
The Ticket's effectiveness is random, but the resulting upgrade or upgrades are guaranteed to always be positive.
Useable by mentally designating the target to be upgraded and tearing the Ticket.
The upgrade process is tampered-proof and safe. This is a guarantee by the entire Shoggoth race.]
The Ticket is... Supremely useful, and even that is an understatement. Knowing the implication of this thing, I am torn on what I should use the Ticket for. My heart and mind are squabbling with each other about this matter, to the point I decided to shelve the Ticket for the time being for my own sake.
Moving on.
[Wisdom Cubes:
A special, mysterious object in the world of Azur Lane, carrying the hopes and dreams of mankind.
Useable for many purposes, a Wisdom Cube is a high-efficiency, clean energy source that is easy to generate, easy to store, and cheap to use.
Its notable and most important trait is to give birth to an existence called Kinetics Artifactual Navy-Self-regulative En-lore Node, otherwise known as KANSEN or Shipgirl.
Wisdom Cube is capable of manipulating information, data, concepts, and even touching upon the realm of Creation.
Wisdom Cube(s) is/are blank unless the cube(s) is/are bound to a ship or an unmanifested spirit of a ship.]
Right. There's no way in Hell that I would fail to recognize the Wisdom Cubes. Those things were what I mined for daily to bring my shipfus home back in my first life. Oh, the memories... I am honestly missing my shipfus, having grown too attached to the port I built from scratch alongside the Kansens from all factions. But alas...
Anyway, when I received the Wisdom Cubes, this alert came up.
[Detecting an unmanifested Kansen spirit, identified as Battlestar Pegasus. The Kansen spirit is at risk of dissipating.]
[User, do you want to save the spirit using four Wisdom Cubes?]
[Yes/No]
Understandably, I picked yes. Any qualified Shikikan will do as I did.
[Binding Pegasus using four Wisdom Cubes... Merging Wisdom Cubes into a singular cohesive unit... Success.]
[Battlestar Pegasus' Wisdom Cube;
Inert. Need materials for the reconstructions of the Battlestar or a suitable unbound vessel for the KANSEN to manifest fully.
Status: Thank you for saving me and avenging my crew, Ein. After years of grief and isolation, I can finally go to rest with peace of mind. Wake me, when you need me.]
When I read Pegasus' message again, I can't help but pat myself on the back. As a cultured Shikikan, I am glad that I could save her from a fate of obscurity. I have a feeling Pegasus will be a nice girl to get along with despite her tumultuous past.
As for the last noteworthy thing...
[Perk - Skillshare Graduatee:
A Perk receives after learning and teaching numerous Skillshare online classes.
The Perk allows the User to share one of her skills with several beneficiaries.
The beneficiaries can be anyone and anything.
Currently, User can share a chosen skill with four beneficiaries of her choosing.
Beneficiaries can be changed at any moment.]
Yup. Another extremely broken skill, or in this case, Perk. Of the four beneficiaries, I already know who I will pick to share a skill with.
[Skillshare Classroom - Debuff Immunity:
Mama, Elyzabeth Fortier.
Big sister, Tsavorae.
Emperor of Mankind, ######.
(Pending beneficiary).]
Picking Debuff Immunity as a skill to share with the most important people in my life is a no-brainer. Although I have no idea how beneficial Debuff Immunity will be for the Emperor, I do hope that she should have an easier breathing room to combat the Ruinous Power with it. The last slot is for when I need to buff someone quickly. It can't be wrong to have a failsafe, you know?
What I truly don't expect is how big of a deal my momentous decision will be for the galaxy at large. In a way, my ingrained position as a Guardswoman kinda hampers the way I look at the extremely big picture.
As for the remaining nine Cosmic Cookies, I don't think I should use them now. My instinct is urging me to take it slow and chill for some time. Judging by her Status, Nicolae is busy as well.
I don't want that cute Shoggoth working overtime because I was too hasty with my gifts.