With Zara's help, accomplishing any stealth-based objective was a piece of cake.
Her shadow concealment went against the laws of nature. Even in an area with no darkness, she could hide within the light.
With the three geniuses left at the mine entrance, Damien and Zara returned to the lab and quietly infiltrated its premises.
The researchers within the library were like machines. They were hyperfocused on their objectives, completely unaware of reality.
Therefore, stealing a few samples from under their noses wasn't a problem at all.
'A Parasite and three of the other mysterious serums they've been experimenting with…that should be enough.'
As Damien stored the samples away in his subspace, he thought more about the researchers than their research.
'They're all denizens.' He realized. At first, he assumed the facility was filled with Nox or at least Nox Worshippers, but strangely enough, the lab was the cleanest area of Calypto Damien had seen yet.
'Because I was wandering aimlessly or on Death Emperor Star for the past year or so, I'd almost forgotten how blatantly disgusting Nox Mana is.'
From the beginning, Damien had the passive ability to see people's mana. Identifying Nox Worshippers or anyone with even a hint of Nox Mana around then was nothing to him.
Calypto was covered in the substance. The green forests, the vast plains, the ruined cities; every piece of the world Damien had seen until this point was repugnant…
…except the laboratory.
Aside from the Parasites and the separate section of the lab where successful experiments were kept, nothing else reeked of Nox Mana.
'Are they hostages, or…?'
'No, hostages wouldn't work so ardently even if they were being threatened. There was no hesitation in their eyes, as if they were working with objects rather than people.'
Those researchers weren't people being threatened, they were people who sold their souls so they could experience just another second of life.
They were cowards and traitors.
'They haven't been injected with Nox Mana likely so they can keep their rationality while they work. Most Nox Worshippers have a tendency to go berserk when their mana corrupts them to an extent.'
In order to save their own lives, they took the lives of their kin and sided with those aiming to destroy the universe itself.
"Pathetic." Damien scoffed coldly.
He and Zara arrived at the mine entrance where they first entered the facility and met up with the other three.
But before they could leave…
Damien turned back to the large hill that obscured the atrocities taking place below it. His hand raised up into the air, and as if he was calling the start of a race…
Shing!
He sliced his arm through the air.
'Spacetime…Severence'
The world halted.
Within an increment of spacetime that no lower existence could comprehend, the world split.
It was soundless, it was formless. Reality itself changed to match the mana's desire.
One begot two, two begot three, and three begot all things. As if mirroring the truths of the universe in number, the singular cut split into numerous instances that converged in a single spacetime.
And finally, time resumed…
RUMBLE!
The sound of rock and debris collapsing rang out instantly. The screams of those who were crushed by the falling debris were cut off within an instant.
The entire area was split into a grid-like pattern. There wasn't a single stretch of untouched land.
And everything within the given area…
…was erased from existence.
'Devour'
Thick black clouds of smoke leaked from Damien's body and fell into the created pit like a waterfall. It snakes through the debris, taking hold of any organic being it could find and devouring them.
Damien's body shuddered.
He could feel the Nox mana piling up in his body, he could feel the pure essence he received from those researchers, and he could even feel the presence of tens of parasites that were being actively broken down into essence by the clouds of Devour.
Everything was his to consume.
The spectacle ended only a few moments later. Damien retracted the devour clouds back into his body and enjoyed the refreshing feeling of the new essence he'd acquired.
Turning back to his squad, he smiled. It was an extremely cold smile.
"These types of facilities really piss me off. Care to join me in wiping them from existence?"
Zara smiled and rolled her eyes, walking to his side without hesitation. As for the other three…
They had no idea what they'd just witnessed. The level of power wasn't too shocking, but the method of execution was absolutely stunning.
Hearing the words that followed that show, they really couldn't help it.
They could feel the immense heat boiling up in their blood. The desire for battle, for extermination, it was addicting to say the least.
With flames in their eyes clearly portraying their mood, the three responded in unison.
""Yes, sir!""
***
A half a month passed from that point.
The squad's dynamic became far more solid with the time they spent together, and the problems they had upon meeting faded completely.
Tyler was the most outgoing. While he was a fierce tactician with an incredible brain, Damien was a belligerent general who used fists to get his point across. When the two compared strategies and balanced their tendencies to form a plan, it would always become a spectacle.
Synth maintained her rebellious personality regardless of how time passed, but it seemed she'd chosen to submit to Damien, at the very least. Of the many times she decided to go off on her own in a bout of recklessness, there wasn't a single one where Damien's presence didn't scare her back into line.
Ash's case was the most difficult. While she didn't cause problems and perfectly meshed with the group in times of combat, her fear never disappeared. She could converse normally with her teammates, and she could even occasionally make conversation with Zara, but she couldn't go anywhere near Damien without freezing up.
'I guess nearly killing her best friend would elicit that reaction, yeah.' Damien thought ironically.
Currently, they'd finished their business on the Lotus Continent and moved to the nearby Blue River Continent. This continent was well known for its large waterways and the complex pattern of rivers that populated its surface.
And most of the Nox bases in this continent followed the same pattern. They'd stay near the rivers and pollute the jade-green waters so that no life could survive on the continent's surface. At the same time, they partook in the same cruelties of the Nox on the other two continents.
Taking them down wasn't even a matter of question. The heightening of the Nox's power level didn't even make a dent in the newly named, at Synth's suggestion, Stargazer Squad. Their synergy was enough to destroy even the most heavily guarded bases.
And more than that, the number of lab facilities they'd destroyed wasn't small. The achievements of this squad completely surpassed the other squads present in Calypto.
This was something they knew as fact. After running around 3 continents causing mayhem, it was inevitable for them to meet a few fellow soldiers. Only, these meetings were often short and succinct.
As time passed, the other Hell Hole forces developed a slight ire towards the Stargazer Squad, an emotion that stemmed from jealousy.
However, they didn't let their emotions get to their heads. They weren't on a school field trip, they were at war. Even if the atmosphere didn't match the great battle scenes they'd envisioned in their heads, the work they were doing was still important.
Because without them acting as a distraction, Heaven's Army's main force would have far more trouble on the frontlines.
'Or at least that's what they told us, anyway.'
