Published at 10th of September 2026 7:13 am

Chapter 4485: Fighting to Protect

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"Are you going?" Fae asked Kane as he donned a holster over his exo-Martial suit. It fashioned two sheathed daggers that were inches away from where his hand would normally rest, allowing him to draw them instantly in battle.

He turned towards his wife, who gazed at him with serious concern. She hadn’t aged much in the past few decades, but she had certainly gained a much more matronly presence, having spent many years leading her family.

"Of course I am," he replied. "You know I have to. This is a war between civilizations. It is an existential threat. Human civilization will need every single asset we can get our hands on. Otherwise, we are doomed."

Fae knew he was right, of course. He was a Martial Corporeal, the second-highest Martial rank under the Transcendent Realm. He was one of human civilization’s best combat assets. His absence would materially impact the outcome of the war.

"Then, I will come as well," she insisted when she saw his determination.

"No." Kane turned towards her with a serious expression. "Runark needs at least one of us with him in his current state of mind. It’s best if only I go. Even if he is training with Rui to harness his trauma to become talent, he will still need family to support him during this time."

Fae knew he was right, of course. It didn’t sit with her that he would have to go by himself and fight for his family while she would get to be home with their son.

"You worry too much, Fae," Kane smiled at her wryly. "You know how strong I’ve become. I’ll be fine. Besides..."

His smile grew more confident. "We have Rui. That means we’re going to win."

Fae knew that, of course. She would have ordinarily been much more worried. After all, this was the first war between civilizations that human civilization had ever truly participated in. It was also the first true interstellar war at this scale as well. Nobody knew what it would be like.

If her husband was taking an ordinary risky mission, then she would have no problem. Both of them were Martial Artists. Martial Artists took risks and risked their lives every time they entered the field. They relied on their experience to keep themselves alive.

But they were about to enter a conflict that was so unprecedented that they had no experience with it. Kane was very difficult to kill, but he had never fought on a battle of this scale. Not even their brief conflict with the laminars and nebulars thirteen years ago could compare.

She was right to be worried, he knew. But it didn’t change anything as far as he was concerned. The day of the invasion was to arrive in just a few days, and the conscription of special combat assets had continued.

This included the top-ten pathwalkers, this included Martial Corporeals, Transcendent candidates. This included the next tier of pathwalkers that were still extremely powerful. Human civilization needed every hand it could get.

He hugged Fae, feeling her affection and care in the tightness of her embrace, before eventually pulling himself from her.

"It’s time."

She smiled at him. "May you be victorious."

"I sure intend to be," he promised with a serious expression, picking up a bag filled with essentials, before exiting their little homely estate, gazing at the bright blue afternoon sky as a comforting breeze blew past him.

One could see the Jormungandr’s distant, hazy body in the sky despite the daylight. The giant slumbering serpent had been freed thirteen years ago shortly before the Era of Expansion commenced and he had become Gaia Prime’s final line of defense. It was worthy cause for his power and the giant snake would rather guard its home world than try and integrate into human civilization’s military system.

He turned back once, nodding at his wife, before teleporting away.

WHOOSH

He found himself in outer space, near the secondary rings that revolved around the planet at a greater distance from Jormungander. The bright light of Sol illuminated him, unfettered by an atmosphere as he weightlessly floated about.

Teleporting to surface-space teleportations were prohibited in Gaia Prime, but being a Martial Corporeal had its perks, including a remarkable amount of impunity from the rules. The moment he teleported, he received communications with the Docking Coordination Department of the Gaian Defense Force, giving him detailed instructions on where to go. He activated his Realms of power, thrusting himself forth with a little bit of materia prima, pushing himself towards the second layer of rings around Gaia Prime, the planetary fortress.

It was much busier than he remembered it, of course.

’Woah...’ His eyes widened at the seemingly never-ending sea of warships that hung around the planetary fortress. An endless fleet of fleet carriers, battleships, battle cruisers, and destroyers slowly assorted themselves under the directives of the Gaian Space Force.

Each ship would accept a directive liaison from the Gaian Space Force that would ensure that the conscripted fleets and vessels would adhere to the commands as directed, before heading to their respective makeshift war fleets.

Of course, coordinating so many disparate fleets together was an extremely challenging affair, which was why each war fleet was led by a coordinator ship from the Space Force to ensure that none of the conscripted forces went out of control and were properly harnessed into war.

Kane knew that he himself would be assigned to a part of some war fleet, most likely a fleet of interceptors that would drop him off in space to harass enemy cruisers and to penetrate their hulls, if possible.

The moment he arrived at the dock, he was greeted by a suited man with several assistants before him, who promptly saluted him.

"Welcome to the Gaian Planetary Fortress, Corporeal Kane," the man said with a gracious and respectful tone. "I am your Space Force liaison, Seaton Marly, and I will be helping you coordinate with the Space Force for the duration of the war."

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