ALL NOVEL Chapter 20: Monopoly in technology
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The complex was in a state of organized chaos. While my legionaries worked on repairing the vertibird and recovering parts and resources, I headed to the control room to ensure everything was in order. The lights flickered in the area as several cooling systems and machines hummed back to life.
It was time to make a decision about which files to delete to ensure that I had exclusive access to the system. With a few commands, I began erasing critical records after making physical copies and encrypting access to the most sensitive sections of the facility. This would give me an advantage if my authority was ever questioned or if someone attempted to wrest control of this installation from me.
Fortunately, I found a homemade schematic on how to repair the vertibird. Diana had created this schematic for her convenience in case she needed to fix it at some point. However, even with this advantage, it would take us quite some time to restore such a technological marvel.
Informing Lanius about our position was crucial. If I didn't, I could be considered a deserter, and my shelter would be in grave danger of being besieged by legionaries within hours. I couldn't let that happen.
I began working on the vertibird, studying the schematic and evaluating what we needed. The vertibird's technology was advanced, and the repair process wouldn't be easy. In the meantime, I kept my centuria busy, ensuring they scoured every corner of the complex for useful parts and resources.
Although the main building had suffered significant damage due to the battle with the sentry bot, the critical areas, where the essential machinery and resources were housed, remained mostly intact. I had to get everything up and running again. The first step was to ensure all the equipment was functional.
Seeing that many parts were unavailable, I decided to send ten of my men back to camp with orders to return with carriages. I also instructed them to bring a bull with them, as it would be a good way to gain Lanius' favor by presenting the animal that symbolizes the Legion's heraldry.
While they were gone, I continued working on recreating the necessary parts to make the vertibird operational.
For an entire week, I was almost completely dedicated to the task of recreating all the vertibird parts. The work was meticulous and demanding—failure mid-flight would mean death. Each day, I spent hours in the workshop, using the tools and materials I had found in the complex to fabricate the missing components.
My hands were covered in oil and grease, and sweat dripped down my forehead as I adjusted, welded, and assembled each part. Sometimes the work seemed endless, but the thought of having a working vertibird filled my mind with the military and business possibilities I could pursue if I managed to fix it.
Over the course of the week, the parts began to take shape, and the vertibird started to resemble what it once was.
During that week, besides working on the vertibird's reconstruction, I also took care of my injured men using medicinal herbs. It wasn't an easy task; many of them were in bad shape, and I had to be meticulous to ensure that each wound received proper treatment. My experience in field medicine helped, but the lack of supplies—or rather, the refusal of the legion to use modern medicine—and the rudimentary conditions made things difficult.
Finally, on the eighth day of hard work, I managed to repair the vertibird, but not without complications. The vehicle was operational, but the control system posed a problem. Originally designed to be operated by a robot, the vertibird had an obsolete system for a human pilot.
I had to improvise a control system that adapted the old robotic interfaces to something a human could handle. Using parts from communication equipment and control panels, I adapted them with my technological knowledge to create an interface that could be manually operated.
I spent several hours adjusting and calibrating the new system, running tests to ensure the controls responded adequately. Every adjustment was a mix of intuition and technique, as I was working with technology that wasn't entirely familiar to me.
Despite the challenges, the vertibird was ready to fly. The improvised control system worked better than I had expected, allowing me to maneuver the vehicle with reasonable precision. It wouldn't be as perfect as the original design, but it was functional.
"Well, it looks like it works. Luckily, there were a few barrels of diesel we could use to power the engines," I said, wiping the oil off my face as I inspected the vertibird.
"There's not enough space for all of us," Cato pointed out, eyeing the limited space inside the aircraft. With the casualties we had suffered, we were down to eighty-two legionaries, thirty-four of whom were injured.
"I'm the only one who knows how to fly it for now, so I'll go and take the most seriously wounded with me so they can receive more specialized treatment. I should be back soon. Knowing Lanius, he'll want to see the body—or what's left of Diana—with his own eyes," I replied, dumping a bottle of water over my head to cool off.
"I'll handle getting the wounded onto the machine," Cato responded.
The injured legionaries were carefully loaded into the vertibird, and as I prepared for takeoff, the weight of the vehicle became apparent. The engines roared to life, and although the vibrations were intense, the vertibird began to lift off slowly.
"Well, so far nothing's exploded, which means it's working… for now," I muttered to myself, as the legionaries were too preoccupied with the pain of their wounds to pay attention.
"Alright, now to make it back to camp—hopefully in one piece," I said, struggling with the vertibird's controls.
Flying the vertibird was much more difficult than I had anticipated. The controls were incredibly stiff, and each movement required considerable strength, far more than the simulations had prepared me for. It felt like I was fighting the machine itself just to keep it aligned with every adjustment or correction.
"Damn contraption… how is anyone supposed to fly this in combat conditions? As soon as I can, I need to improve the controls," I grumbled through gritted teeth, as I kept forcing the levers to maintain a steady course. Every turn felt like I was on the brink of losing control, but at least the vertibird responded well enough to avoid a nosedive.
The one positive in all of this was the speed. The journey, although uncomfortable, was incredibly fast. Not only due to the vertibird's power but also because I could now fly over rivers, hills, and other obstacles that would have slowed me down considerably in a motorized carriage. The landscape below sped by quickly.
I flew the machine for nearly two hours, forcing myself to get used to the resistance of the controls and the precise movements I had to make to keep everything in check. As time went on, I began to feel more confident. Finally, I spotted a river snaking through the tribal territory. That river was unmistakable and immediately helped me get my bearings.
"There you are…" I murmured in relief as I adjusted the course to follow the river. From this elevated position, everything was clear, and soon I could identify the markings of Lanius' cohort camp. The banners fluttering and the organized layout of the tents were unmistakable.
I descended slowly, carefully maneuvering to avoid crashing. As the vertibird made its descent, the unmistakable sound of rifle shots pinged off the hull. The bullets bounced off the armored shell, leaving marks but not penetrating.
"Damn it!" I growled, wrestling the controls to stabilize the landing. I glanced up at the camp and saw figures in the watchtowers, aiming their weapons at me. Of course, a vertibird landing unannounced in Legion territory wasn't a common sight.
"I'm Centurion Gaius, cease fire!" I barked into the radio, gripping the controls tightly with my other hand, aided by my power armor.
There was a brief moment of silence, broken only by the hum of the helicopter's engines, before the radio crackled to life: "Cease fire! Repeat, cease fire! It's Gaius, repeat, it's Gaius!"
The shots stopped, and with a sigh of relief, I continued the descent more calmly. I managed to land the vertibird on solid ground, though not without a few jolts. As the engines wound down, I opened the hatch and saw several legionaries approaching, their expressions a mix of surprise.
"Be more careful, idiots! If this thing weren't built like an armored transport, you'd have turned me into Swiss cheese," I shouted at the legionaries as I climbed out of the helicopter. Though I raised my voice, I wasn't truly angry—it was partly my fault for not giving proper warning.
The legionaries exchanged embarrassed glances but quickly moved to help unload the wounded.
Lanius appeared, as imposing as ever, wearing his signature mask modeled after the face of the god Mars. His veterans followed close behind, forming a disciplined and attentive line. Even though his face was hidden, I could feel Lanius' intense gaze evaluating the chaos my arrival had caused.
His heavy footsteps echoed in the silence that had fallen over the camp. His eyes, obscured behind the mask, moved from the vertibird to me.
"True to Caesar, Centurion Gaius. I hope your sudden disappearance has yielded something of value for the Legion, or you will face the wrath of Lord Caesar," Lanius said with his firm, unyielding voice.
"True to Caesar, Legate Lanius. If I recall correctly, I sent a bull as tribute to Lord Caesar—the symbol of the Legion's heraldry," I replied calmly.
"Indeed, your tribute will be sent to the son of Mars to be appreciated. But according to your messengers, you suffered casualties and brought back many wounded in your strange flying machine. I assume you found something far more valuable than that bull," Lanius responded.
"The false goddess Diana is dead. She threw everything she had left at my centuria, including a sentry bot armed with a laser minigun, a grenade launcher, and dual missile launchers on its shoulders. It nearly wiped us out, but we brought it down and found Diana—ending her," I answered.
"Show me her body," Lanius demanded sternly.
"I didn't bring it, Legate Lanius. But there was no body to bring—Diana was a human brain connected to a computer, controlling the installation where she was confined," I explained, before he could start expecting more.
"Take me to see this brain," Lanius said, marching toward the vertibird.
Lanius climbed aboard and strapped himself in using some of the makeshift restraints I had used to secure the wounded legionaries. He remained silent, waiting for me to take him to the installation.
The flight back was relatively calm. My previous experience made handling the vertibird more manageable, though the controls were still a challenge. What had been a struggle before became slightly smoother now that I was more familiar with the machine.
"We're almost there," I announced to Lanius as we neared the complex's entrance.
Lanius nodded slowly, his grip on the straps unwavering. His silence was almost intimidating, but there was no doubt he was taking in every detail.
The vertibird touched down with a slight bump, and the engines powered down. I headed toward the entrance, where my legionaries stood guard over the remaining wounded.
"This way, Legate Lanius," I said, signaling the path to the control room.
Lanius followed without a word.
We reached the control room. The floating brain in its gel was still visible, surrounded by screens and technical equipment. Lanius observed everything with sharp attention, the light from the room reflecting off his Mars mask.
"This is the brain. This is where Diana controlled the facility," I explained, gesturing to the grotesque sight of the brain in its container.
"So, this is what dared to claim divinity greater than Lord Caesar… the ultimate weakness of humanity, depending on machines and technology to stay alive." His voice was filled with disdain for the reliance on technology, something he saw as an inherent flaw. His eyes, hidden behind the Mars mask, stared coldly at the grotesque image of the brain floating in gel, a representation of everything he despised about the old world.
"Good work, Centurion Gaius. With this false goddess gone, the profligates who worshipped her will no longer have any support. Taking control of the remaining villages will be easy. My question now is... clearly, you're the only one in Legion territory who understands how to use this installation. So, are you willing to pay for control?" Lanius asked, crossing his arms.
"What do you have in mind?" I responded, unwilling to be the first to make an offer.
"What exactly does this installation do, besides controlling robots?" Lanius asked, staring at me intently.
"It produces food. Think of it as my castra, but capable of supporting several thousand people," I said, keeping the details vague.
Lanius fell silent for a moment, processing my words with a penetrating gaze behind his mask. I knew I couldn't give too much away, but his direct question left little room to maneuver.
"Food for several thousand..." Lanius repeated, calculating the value of the facility. "That makes this place far more valuable than I expected."
"Unlike your castra, for the next few years, you'll give three-tenths of the production to the Legion to supply our forces. Once you've paid the tribute, things will return to normal," Lanius declared.
"That seems like a fair proposal to add this facility to my tribe. Now, about the lands of the Twin Mothers—how much would the Legion be willing to sell them for? I want to populate them with slaves and turn that valley into the breadbasket of the Legion," I said, seizing the opportunity to make a counteroffer.
"The lands of the Twin Mothers," Lanius murmured, considering my words. "This region is fertile and certainly has the potential to become the breadbasket you speak of. If you have the means to make those lands productive for the Legion, it could be arranged."said lanius
Lanius paced slowly, his heavy steps echoing in the control room.
"The Legion has little reason to hold onto this land. A castra to defend the north, perhaps. Considering that all the tribals will be enslaved and distributed throughout our territories, this place will be empty. As long as you pay the tribute and keep your word, we'll be open to negotiating the price of the land once you've proven you can fulfill your promises. If you want to populate that valley with slaves and make it productive, it will be up to you to ensure it bears fruit. Only then will I name a price," Lanius said.
With that, he turned and walked slowly out of the installation, his footsteps echoing as he disappeared into the distance.
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I remind you to leave your ideas or what you would like to see.
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