Erich watched from on the various holographic projections within his starship, which displayed the ongoing conflict on the Asuran world. He had no idea that the Sage whom he had come to claim as his prisoner had already jumped to his death. Instead, he was more interested in how the Orcs performed with their new power armor.

In truth, he was already terrified by the sheer physical prowess of the Orcish race, which was superior to even his own. How such monsters came into existence, Erich did not know, but he suspected the Alfheim Dominion didn’t just find them in a primitive world and uplift them.

After all, they had all the traits that were needed for the perfect attack hound, except for one. They were simply too aggressive to command. The Orcs were physically gifted in a way that was engineered for the purpose of war, their bodies naturally regenerated most mortal wounds, and they bred quicker than anything Erich had ever seen.

Already, Mala had a giant pregnant belly, and it had only been a few weeks since Erich had foolishly decided to get rid of his limitations on his fertility. Naturally, she couldn’t fight in this state, no matter how much she wanted to.

But that was besides the point, for a species to have all of these benefits which were most useful in combat, or building a large armed force. Erich truly believe the Orcish race was an experiment made by the Alfheim Dominion. One that had backfired on them so spectacularly that they would never admit it was true.

And now these beasts of war had access to the most advanced power armor in the galaxy, which vastly increased their defenses, while also overwhelmingly increased their already peak physical traits. It was because of this that the Orcs had so effortlessly cut through the Asuran troops, who had been gathered to defend the world.

It wasn’t even a competition. The weapons that the Asuran soldiers used could barely penetrate the Orcish power armor, let alone kill them. But there was something that Erich immediately noticed that he found weird. Their weapons, while effective, weren’t exactly advanced. They were neither laser, particle beam, or plasma based.

Instead, they appeared to shoot 30mm rocket propelled explosive projectiles, in a torrent of overwhelming firepower, and with quite limited recoil. Erich was about to ask why they didn’t have more advanced weapons, when Tias sighed heavily before explaining the difficulties she had equipping the Orcish Army.

“Tia knows what you are thinking, Master, and let Tia be the first to say that she wanted to give the Orcs weapons that were more respectable. But the Orcs are barbarians, and wanted to see blood when they killed someone, not to mention they seem to have a penchant for the sound of explosions. So Tia was forced to compromise and equip them with the best handheld explosive weaponry she could design….

What you are seeing is the fruits of Tia’s labor, and though they are not sophisticated weapons of a more civilized age, they are indeed effective against most soft and hard targets. Tia would not doubt that your army would have torn through what was left of Terminus when they arrived on your people’s worlds.

Honestly, Tia should just build master an Army of combat focused robots, Tia is sure they would be more effective than any biological lifeform, but since master insists on sleeping with the Orc, Tia will do her best to make sure Master’s barbarian horde is well equipped….”

There was a particularly dreadful tone in Tia’s voice, almost as if she was incredibly displeased with how little her master seemed to take Tia’s robotic form to bed. Which was mixed with a bitter jealousy towards Mala and Mirage, who seemed to be the focus of Erich’s lustful activities aboard his ship.

It was at this moment that Tia’s voice turned cold as she uttered a single phrase.

“Uh-oh….”

Tia had seldom spoken in such a manner, and thus Erich was quick to ask the girl what was wrong.

“Tia, what has happened?”

Tia looked a bit guilty as she explained the dire situation they had now found themselves in, something she had not actually calculated for.

“It would appear that the target of our mission has terminated himself… The Sage known as the Thyrin Shieldscribe has jumped to his death…. Tia must apologize to Master. She did not anticipate such a scenario occurring.

After all, most biological lifeforms seem to treasure their lives, and this meatbag in particular seems to be gifted with extraordinary abilities, ones that could help him escape with his life intact… Tia wonders what had compelled him to make such a rash decision…”

Erich looked at Tia with a hint of confusion in his eyes as he heard the term she used to describe the recently departed.

“I’m sorry, meatbag?”

This caused Tia to blush and avert her gaze as she apologized to her Master.

“Tia apologizes for her language. It is a term that she has chosen to use when referring to particularly loathsome biological lifeforms. If Master wishes, she will use the term organics while in his presence…”

Tia was definitely keeping secrets from Erich, which he was well aware of, and though not troublesome in its own right, the fact that there had been several disturbing trends of behavior, such as referring to organic life as “meatbags” led Erich to believe she was starting to become a bit unhinged. Because of this, he had no choice to mention this to her, which actually made the adorable little artificial intelligence excited.

“Tia, after this battle is over, you are going to have to come clean with me about what is going on with you, and you will show me just where you are getting the resources to build all of these things behind my back…”

Tia’s holographic projection turned pink when she heard this, before agreeing to her Master’s request, but on one condition.

“Tia promises to tell Master everything, and show him what she has been up to in her spare time… But only if Master promises to leave the others behind….”

Erich did not see a reason to reject the girl, and thus he nodded his head and agreed to the request.

“Fine, it will be just the two of us, but no more keeping secrets from me!”

After hearing this, Tia was a brighter shade of pink than she had ever been before, screaming her thoughts out loud in an ecstatic tone. 𝚘𝒱𝐞𝗅xt.𝐜𝑂𝗆

“It’s a date!”

This caused Erich to shake his head, before looking over at Mala, who he gave an order to.

“Alright, the target is dead, and we have set the world ablaze. Withdraw your forces, tell them they are permitted to take one item each as their loot, and that includes slaves!”

Mala nodded her head when she heard this. Although she wanted her people to raid a bit more, an order from the Warchief was undeniable, and thus she got on the comms and ordered a full retreat. Where Erich then sat down in the pilots’ seat and began to take off from the world, which was now set aflame.

Those survivors would send word of this attack across the galaxy, and when the other factions learned that the Ironhand clan was now equipped with power armor, and more advanced ships, the clan would suddenly find themselves with a target painted on their backs.