1191 1191 Waiting Game
With the battle essentially completed, and the Myceloid God in a good mood, Max retreated to let the ones fighting Nico and his Mecha finish their challenges. That was the mode of combat that they had chosen, not an all out melee, but a round-robin style tournament. The two sides would fight each other, in one on one duels, until one side ran out of fighters.
If the Greater Energy Beings from the Cathedral Fleets could see this, they would be losing their minds in rage right now. They had managed to enlist the Myceloids with the promise of a good fight, and then the Myceloids had completely abandoned them in favour of duels the moment that they ran into Max and Nico.
They didn't care at all about the supposedly grand goal of getting rid of the three original mortal species, they just wanted entertainment.
Once the fights on the planetoid ended in a top ten that was Nico and nine Myceloid champions, they called it settled, and the mobile combat arena began to retreat into the other layer of space. This might not have been a major victory, and it might not have even led to the actual destruction of an Energy Being, but they had gained a lot from it.
Confirmation that the Myceloids still respected them, despite being on opposite sides, but more importantly, Max had time to gather accurate data on the layer they were coming from, as well as the conditions for fighting inside.
Once he had time to adapt the Portal Generator, they wouldn't need to wait for disturbances to run their course, they could go directly to the other layer and take the fight to them.
That was still incredibly risky, since they couldn't tell what was a God and what was a major army, but if they could determine a more accurate method, they would be able to launch preemptive attacks.
That would have to wait for another iteration of the Reavers military force, though. They had already learned that the drones could very rapidly be taken over in the other layers, and by the Energy Beings, so using them as the primary fighting force wasn't going to be enough to turn the tides. Plus, most of the humans couldn't fight like he did either. The abundance of energy in his body shielded him from most of the side effects of the Greater Energy Being's attacks, but the average pilot would take heavy mental damage from what the Void Shields were unable to block if they got up close and personal with one.
That was why the Arisen and Darklings fought them at a distance, the displaced energy would pass through their shields and tear their minds apart if they fought them in close combat.
"Sylvie, was there a solution to the mental backlash of the displaced energy when fighting a Greater Energy Being in close combat?" Max asked, hoping that the venerable AI with a child's personality would have answers.
"According to our data, only a God Class Mecha can match a Greater Energy Being in close combat." She replied.
That made sense, the two Beings would counteract each other, and the one in the Mecha would do much like Max did and absorb the excess energy as their own.
If there was a way to synthesize the effect, the System Nanobots might know, but they were notoriously uncooperative when the humans tried to actually interact with them. They just worked to shape the humans into what they thought would be best based on the life that they had lived and the body they were born in.
It was a somewhat dysfunctional relationship between the nanotechnology and the humans, but it had been good for both of them so far.
[We have another signature, should we go over?] Nico asked as she prepared the Androids to return to the ship.
[Yeah, get everyone yourselves repaired and prepared. Let's see if we can find a proper fight.] Max agreed.
This force had been much smaller than anticipated, and while they were crafty, it hadn't been any sort of challenge for the Expeditionary Force.
A force that was working as fast as it could to replace the assets lost in combat or taken by the Myceloid God as tribute.
As soon as they were loaded and all the vessels had made a quick stop to reload their raw materials from an asteroid field, Sylvie opened a portal through the boundary and led the fleet to their next stop.
They should still have an hour or two before it opened, more than enough to prepare themselves for the next battle and have a bite to eat.
The last one hadn't lasted long enough to need sleep yet, but the letdown from the nerves after it ended left the crew feeling exhausted anyhow, and all ten of them went for a short nap while they waited. They weren't needed until the battle began, since Nico was overseeing the repair and reloading process, and they had learned from the Reavers that sleep was a premium product, you got it wherever and whenever you got a chance.
[Incoming World Ship, please identify yourself.] The alien force at the suspected incursion site greeted them.
[This is Sylvie, the AI for the World Ship Creeping Darkness, under the Command of the Terminus Trading Company, from the human species.] Sylvie replied.
[Reavers? It's good to see you. This location has bee showing more intense than usual signs of disturbance.] The alien commander reported.
[Likewise, it is good to have reinforcements. We have a full Expeditionary fleet here, as well as an Android Mecha Regiment, headed by the Commanders themselves. If there is a Greater Energy Being here, please be advised that they may wish to engage it in combat.]
Max smiled at the stunned mental responses of the aliens. If there was a threat on that level, they would fight and retreat because their species didn't have anything that could even harm the creatures. Hearing that the humans were here to pick a fight with it was both a great relief and a horrifying thought, and their minds weren't sure how to respond.
[Very well then.] The radio operator finally managed before cutting the connection.
[All units get in position. Blitz pattern for annihilation protocol. If they're not coming out to us, we're going in to them. AI sentinels, guard yourselves against counterattacks and attempts to commandeer your drones.] Max announced.
