Published at 7th of March 2026 9:11 am

Chapter 342: Cleaning Up

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Nicolai stopped by the fake base first. There he removed the tracker from the Knife and put it into a stone.

Hed checked with Serrin on the fly back, and learned that Serrin had left the item shed been using to track him in his rooms before stealing the bowl.

Hed seen the Queens fear and anger. If shed had any method of tracking Serrin, whether it be a tracker inside Symbiotes or something else, she would have been using it.

Also, from everything he knew he didnt think it was easy to hide something in a Symbiote. When the new user broke them in they gained total control of the Symbiote, making it easy to investigateif they had the capability.

Cyberwarfare had already come up with several spiritual spyware scanning methods, and had run several such scans on the Symbiotes. All had come back clean. It had even worked out a way to detect the type of tracker resin the Queen had put in the Knife.

He could keep the Quiet Knife with him, and the Symbiotes too.

As they flew toward the hill, he descended until he wasnt far above the treetops.

Ill go on ahead, I need to check something. You watch my back.

Are we expecting trouble? Serrin asked.

Possibly. The same group who created those Blood Hunters might have left something here. If its safe, Ill signal you.

He came in slow, Cloaked, creeping up to the nearest of his drones. It was attached to a tree, where hed positioned it carefully and done a little trimming to ensure there were no branches blocking its view of the hill.

He swept the area with Soul Sense and Simulations compared the 3D model this generated with how itd looked the last time. A line of tracks ran through the area, but the drone itself showed no signs of tampering, nor its tree. The tracks were determined to be from some kind of small mammal, similar to a badger.

After connecting to it via one of the wires set into his bionic arm and waiting for Cyberwarfare to complete its virus scans, they downloaded the footage.

It was reviewed in seconds. As hed anticipated, the Scoundrels had been here. He watched their distant figures moving over the hill. Zooming, he took note of each and every one of them, with Threat Analysis listing off augments and guessing at Symbiotes.

The Scoundrels clustered close around two particular locations. Locations he recognised as places hed hid some of the numerous camera-drones.

The Scoundrels had indeed trapped those two drones. One with a proximity explosive, the other with an uploaded virus.

The explosives were disarmed, taken apart and added to his stockpile. The virus was shredded by Cyberwarfare, which labelled it, with the superior sneer of an AI, as; Amateur work.

Considering this was Cyberwarfare, amateur work could be anything from the worst gutter-level coding all the way to top-tier human pro.

During all of this, his drones had been sweeping the area, controlled by Threat Analysis, running its own analysis. The Module found numerous hidden drones, which it tagged ScoundrelDrones(1-6).

Some of them, the less well hidden ones, were trapped. Nicolai disabled all traps, hacked all drones, and Cyberwarfare edited the footage to remove all signs of him and prevent future recording, then placed its own viruses on them. There was also a sentry drone flying very far above, an almost unnoticeable speck in the sky. He shot it down.

All that done, he signalled Serrin with a wave, then headed to the entrance. By the time it was opening the Hornet had reached him.

Inside he found the base much improved from the last time hed seen it. Legal had cleaned up, and there was even a new bot.

What do you think? spoke the Module, the Infiltators form standing proudly atop it. Just as stipulated! I rushed this one because, well, who knows when more vagrant bugs will attempt adverse possession.

Very nice, murmured Nicolai, circling around the hulking Close Combat Bot.

Its lower body was a heavier version of the typical Assembler bot, four solid legs reinforced with heavy outer plating, curved around the joints and ends to extend stabbing points. The bots upper body had the typical two arms, wrapped in the same sharp outer plating.

The left arm connected straight into a gigantic shield. From the front is looked like nothing more than a large rectangular slab of steel. But he knew it wasnt quite so basic, with quite a bit of engineering put into the design. It was shaped in a shallow U, like a riot shield, so that attacks would be encouraged to glance off.

The bots arm slotted straight into the shield. The shield had a hole right in its centre, and inside of the bots arm was a piston which drove a heavy metal spike.

Nicolai issued a mental order.

The spike shot out from the centre of the shield. It was so heavy and fast that the entire shield jolted forwards when it reached full extension.

Serrin all but leapt in the air in surprise, while Nicolai shuffled closer, checking for any problems.

The spikes narrow point glowed in the harsh light. With a grinding of gears, the spike was retracted. Very good. Any bug or beast on the other side of that shield would be in for a nasty surprise.

In the bots right hand it held a gigantic flanged mace. The shaft was formed from tough spring-steel, and flared into a head of softer alloy-steel with heavy flanges welded on. It would be case-hardened when there was time. The bot had a few other weapons slotted into its back, to match differing combat environments.

He finished his circle, satisfied, envisioning the carnage the bot could cause. Coming to stand beside Serrin he noted the uncertain way the Hornet was regarding the bot.

What do you think?

Its very big. But still, no Soul. What if its opponent just turns into mist?

Can you turn into mist?

No. There arent any Symbiotes at Tier 1 that do that sort of thing. But there are at Tier 2.

Nicolai nodded. Im aware of them. He was especially eager to make use of the amulet he had which would allow him to do precisely that, once he was Tier 2.

These bots are for simpler enemies, like Greybugs. They serve a necessary, if situational role. Ideally I would also be there, to round out their weaknesses. But in the event Im not his eyes fell on the Infiltrator.

What is it? asked Serrin, who seemed entirely fascinated by the tiny bot, far moreso than the larger ones. How does it have a Soul?

Nicolai shrugged. Im not sure. I made it in a haphazard fashion, Im not sure I could replicate the process.

An aberration, said Serrin, nodding. He appeared to be experiencing an emotion of some kind but Nicolai wasnt sure what. Sadness, said the Mask. Like me, the Hornet added, voice quieter.

This child is in dire need of therapy, said Psychology, and Nicolai could feel the Modules hunger to give Serrin exactly that.

What he needs is a friend, said the Mask, and we will be that friend.

Perhaps he needs all of that, said Nicolai. But what hes going to get, right now, is the task of helping me fix this place, kill the Scoundrels, and seize the Shardache we need. Camaraderie was best grown through action in any case, in his experience.

First things first, there were a tremendous number of dead bugs in the mines. Legal had focused on re-arming while hed been gone, in case of another attack, but now he was back they needed to do some cleaning.

Come on, he told Serrin. We have work to do.

###

The existence of these bug-made warrens was one silver lining to what had occurred. Now the danger was passed, he wanted to make use of it, and the mining bots had been set to dig through the collapse. Hed fill the warrens with cameras, traps, and automated defences, and use this tunnel as a new primary entrance, one which was much less eposed.

He had set all the bots and automated wagons to loading and dumping corpses en-masse into the warrens. Simultaneously work began on turning the new tunnel into a secure entrance.

While the bots did what they did, he and Serrin got on with more important things.

Hed learned from the Memory Tomes that seeing into and entering the Interior should be possible, and that he should also be capable of doing some of what Serrin could do, though with more difficulty. Being able to slide in-and-out of the Spiritual Realm, or the Interior, was an ability he would be highly interested in acquiring.

He spent quite some time quizzing the Hornet on that, and other areas of interest.

I saw numerous doors and other systems opened via ripples. And there is this. He raised the ball Artifact hed gained.

Artifact, Hornet Bug-Smasher

Tier: 2

Type: Force

Arts: Flight, Oma Store, Command Store

An Artifact of Hornet design, formed from a heavy ball of metal. Typically controlled directly via Soul Sense, this Artifact is also capable of remotely command via ripples. While connected to it via Soul Sense the user may alter its internal operations, programming in a limited number of autonomous directions as well as adjusting the type of ripples it will recognise as commands.

In many ways it resembled an offensive drone, but one which made great use of its spiritual and Symbiotic nature.

Serrin nodded. Is that not common, amongst your kind?

My people made no use of spiritual things until we arrived here. But even the Shenrans, who are quite the opposite, dont seem to go this far with ripples.

No use of anything spiritual? muttered Serrin, aghast. Id heard the others say that the metal-fetishistic humans dont seem to use much Cultivation, but I struggled to believe it.

The humans you befriended werent from my race?

No. I wasnt able to get near many prisoners, and the Ripper is especially interested in your kind.

So Ive seen, murmured Nicolai.

How do your people survive, without any Cultivation? How do you fight against Spirit Beasts, and everything else?

How do you think? He patted the assault rifle ever-present across his chest. Serrins Soul was all twisted up with doubt. There are much larger weapons than what you have so far seen, he added. The doubt remained. Nicolai shrugged. The Hornet would see in time. Tell me about these systems of ripples.

We use Loci bugs. You use Soul Sense to train them to do what you want.

Nicolai blinked, taken aback. So the walls of the Hive are full of these bugs?

Exactly. Theyre everywhere. Some of them are just sitting there, waiting for ripples or Soul Senses. They can act as alarms, activate Symbiotes and traps, send messages and warnings, hold information, open and close doors... all kinds of things.

They dont move? What do they eat? he asked, puzzled.

They eat ripples, though only certain types.

How he trailed off, shaking his head. It made a weird kind of sense. How can one get their hands on Loci bugs?

Well the Hive has Hornets who are tasked with breeding them, and training them. I guess you could take some? But they wont survive here. Serrin indicated the stark walls. The only source of ripples is you, and that thing, nodding to the Infiltrator. The Hive has hundreds of Hornets and thousands of slave bugs, all communicating with ripples, all the time. And the type of ripple is important. If it comes from an Imbued or an Artifact or something like that, they cant eat it. Loci bugs can only consume ripples from living beings.

Nicolai subsided, some of his excitement fading. Not much use, as of now.

And Sythera had protections making use of these things?

Of course, to an extent. Though hers were grandershe had proper Rituals with Symbiotes. Those are more expensive, but tougher to deal with.

You circumvented them?

Serrin flicked his wings. Easily.

How?

You act like a part of it, convince it to let you in

As Nicolai listened, he felt Cyberwarfare becoming ever more focused on the conversation. What Serrin described sounded a whole lot like hacking, of a sort. Talking of tricking the Loci or the Ritual or Symbiotes into thinking you were a part of the system, or had the proper authority concepts they understood well.

Whenever he encountered such a system, he would be ready.

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