2731 Engine and Grimoire (Part 1)
The Mirror Hall had gained more mirrors and powers, but Solus glossed them over. For some reason, she was in a rush.
"The Heart can now store up to ten arrays at the same time and the Library has gotten much bigger, but honestly, that's just the icing on the cake I'm about to show you." Her eyes sparkled like stars and her cheeks were flushed with excitement.
"Lith, before I open this door, I need you to calm down and take a deep breath, okay?"
"Okay." He nodded, feeling confused rather than emotional.
"This room is everything we've always dreamed about. It's so important that I'm still conflicted about how to name it. I'll let you decide once you see how it works." Solus said.
"Wait, aren't you supposed to remember how it's called? Didn't your mother name everything already?" His confusion became worse by the second.
"Please, Mom was a genius Forgemaster, but she sucked with names. I mean, Refining Chamber. Pfft. Spark sounds much better, am 1 right?" Solus looked at him with such happiness that Lith couldn't find the strength to contradict her.
"Now, without further ado, welcome to the Prime Engine. Or the Mechatron. Up to you." Solus opened the hardwood door, revealing a room filled with holographic screens and five stone pedestals at its center.
Four were arranged in a square formation around the main one which was placed at the very center of the room. On top of the pedestal, there was what looked like a chunk of Davross and the Fury was stuck in it.
Each of the side pedestals had a chunk of metal of its own and one of the pieces of Menadion's set fused with it. The Eyes, the Hands, and the Mouth channeled their powers through the magic metal that amplified them before sending them to the Fury.
"What's this supposed to-" Kamila turned to Lith noticing that he shared the same childish enthusiasm and unbridled joy that Solus had while introducing the new room to them. "Oh, great. Another nerd rant is just what I needed."
"Father of all Mechs! Are you telling me this is..." Lith didn't dare to finish the phrase, afraid to jinx it.
"Yes!" Solus jumped in joy before taking his hands into hers. "This is the control room for the tower's battle form. Or as Mom called it, the Battle Room."
"Eww. It sucks! Your naming sense is much better!" Lith passed Elysia to Kamila and then he lifted Solus.
She jumped at his neck, grabbing at him like a koala while both danced around the room.
"I know, right? Which name do you prefer?" She asked.
"Excuse me, can I have an explanation?" Kamila was annoyed by both being left out and the improvised dance/hug/whatever it was.
"Of course, I'm sorry." Lith stopped for a moment. "Long ago, thousands of light years away from Earth, on a distant planet-"
"No, I don't want to know about the childhood fantasy world this thing reminds you of. That can wait. I want to know what it does." Kamila stopped him.
"Sure." Solus nodded. "You see the..." She looked at Lith, eager for his decision.
"Prime Engine." He said like it explained everything.
"The Prime Engine controls the tower's battle form and allows its master to customize it as we see fit. Let me show you." Solus finally let go of Lith to reach the holographic mainframe.
"The Eyes are in charge of recon, enemy analysis, and even predicting their spells like a Dragon would. The Hands control the world energy, fuelling the weapon system and granting the battle form of the tower full power even after leaving the mana geyser.
"We can use tower tier spells and combine the enchantments of the various floors as long as we don't get too far away. As for the Mouth, once in the Prime Engine, it can store a second set of spells, arrays, and even combat maneuvers that will be instantly executed.
"The tower can, for the lack of a better term, body cast its own spells. It can also access the Library and the Firing Range respectively to give us the best options according to our enemy and conjure the spells we choose without burdening us."
"What about the Ears of Menadion?" Kamila asked, pointing at the empty pedestal.
"I wish I knew." Solus whimpered, losing her spark. "I mean, look at that! That's the only sour note of our breakthrough."
She pointed at a holographic display showing the current capabilities of the battle form and it was stuck to 60% of the maximum predicted capability.
"60%?" Lith read out loud in horror. "Why?"
"My guess is 20% off because we don't have the Ears and the rest is because the tower is still broken." Solus' shoulders slouched and her gaze fell to the ground. "Still, look at this!"
She lifted her head while inputting a few commands on the keyboard.
"We can choose the appearance of our mech, the weapons it can manifest, and even their enchantments." Solus had the colossal humanoid form of the tower shapeshift into what Lith recognized as a semi-truck.
"Wait." Lith raised his hands to stop her. "Is it a mech or a gestalt?"
He pointed at the five different pedestals, each holding a unique piece of equipment.
"Mech. We don't need other people to control the battle form. Why? I thought you liked flying solo." Solus replied.
"Well, yes, but skills like Friya's dimensional magic or Faluel's multiple heads would have been nice, no? Imagine combining our talents for-"
"Excuse me! Do you two need a moment or can I be part of the conversation as well?" Kamila was starting to feel truly left out and truly pissed off.
"I'm sorry, babe, here's the gist of it." Lith
shared with her a breathtaking story via a mind link.
It was about a living planet who spawned sentient robots with incredible abilities among which there was the power to combine in order to form something even more powerful.
"I agree with the Prime Engine." She nodded. "The guy is smart, level-headed, and kind. Just like you. The other guy is strong. A true leader and a warrior but he ends up letting his past define his identity and ruin his future. Like you almost did.
"Please, don't jinx it." She caressed Lith's face while showing him the little bundle of Elysia who was still giggling at her father's comical act.
"I won't. I promise." He kissed her hand and then the baby's head. "Oh, gods. What's this smell?"
"I think you got her excited as well. Do your thing, Daddy." Kamila chuckled.
"Okay." Lith Warped them to the nursery where he had everything he needed to clean and change the baby. "I don't know if it's because of her Divine Beast side, but baby poop shouldn't be this big or smelly."
"I never measured it, but feel free to." Kamila passed him the baby powder and a clean cloth diaper.
"No, thanks." Lith sent the stinky cargo to the pile of manure that Raaz's farmhands used to fertilize the fields. "Is there anything more you have to tell me about the Prime Engine?"
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