War Core Wednesday, War Core 4, Chapter 12.

I'll be taking a few days off for Christmas with the family, I hope you all have a great holiday! War Core will be back next Wednesday with Chapter 13, and I hope to have a special announcement to make at that time.

Chapter 12.

This station was from somewhere outside of Hugh’s universe and as far as he was concerned, wherever it came from could have it back anytime they wanted. Well, they could have it back once he got off of it. As for getting off the station, he tried to dig deeper into the security station’s console. There must have been some biometric sensors, as it locked him out of everything other than the messages and emergency notifications he had already reviewed. While he pondered his next move, something odd began to display on the console.

Unauthorized access detected. A security alert has been issued.

Processing…

Attempting to contact local authorities.

Processing…

No security personnel are detected aboard the station. Scanning for station administration.

Administrator is deceased, scanning for subordinates.

No administration personnel are detected.

Implementing command hierarchy scan.

No assigned station personnel are detected.

There are 114 living beings detected aboard the station, none are station personnel. A new system administrator will be selected from the existing guests.

The being that last accessed security station 1a has been designated as the station administrator. Place your hand on the console for station pairing.

Hugh hesitated for just a second, but the chance to have some control over the station’s systems was too good to worry about any negative effects. The infection was transferred by the infected running around, not through the station controls, so things should be safe enough. He placed his hand back on the console and other than feeling some warmth flowing into his hand, nothing happened to him.

Full authority has been granted, administrator. This security station’s access to overall station controls is limited. Access the main administrator terminal for full access. Current options are as follows.

1. Security office 1a reporting and status.

2. Maintenance.

3. Station status.

He was in, and Hugh jumped into the menu, starting with the first option.

Security office 1a, reporting and status.

1. Review security reports.

2. Assign patrol units and access the interior security office, confinement cells, and drone storage. Error, ingress/egress functions for security units, and access to the inner office are unavailable due to damage sustained. Assign repair teams to the security office to unlock this option.

The first selection was mostly a rehash of what he had already read, a huge list of requests for aid, all of which went unanswered when the person manning this station was killed early in the fight. The other option that promised the ability to assign units and access the rest of the security office wasn’t working, and it looked like the locked door inside the station was malfunctioning or damaged. Repairs needed to be made before he could access whatever was behind the door. With the next option on the main menu being maintenance, it seemed like that was the logical choice for getting some help.

Maintenance.

1. Assign repair units.

2. Create a maintenance schedule.

When Hugh selected the option to assign repair units. He saw that he had access to four teams, all of which were assigned to different standby locations around this level of the station. When he selected a team, a map of this level appeared, allowing him to select the area where the maintenance should be performed. Hugh selected the nearest maintenance team and highlighted the security office for repairs.

Activating team 1 for repair functions, error, team 1 are all listed as deceased.

Activating team 2, error, team 2 are all listed as deceased.

Activating team 3, error, team 3 are all listed as deceased.

Activating team 4, biological members of this team are listed as deceased, transferring the current request to the team 4 maintenance drones. Drones are coming online, power levels at 4%, and charging.

Hugh had been scared for a minute, the first three teams were all living employees of the station, all of which were now dead. The last team was composed of living members and maintenance drones of some type. When they finally charged up, he should be able to get some repairs underway and that door unlocked. Since the single person assigned to the security station had been armed, there had to be an armory inside where Hugh could gather up some extra firepower.

While Hugh waited for the maintenance drones to charge up, he perused the last option on the console, the station status. His access at this location was limited since this console was just linked to a local security station, but Hugh was able to see which areas of the station were active with power, and which were inaccessible. As he looked through the massive station, a new GCA prompt appeared.

You have been separated from the rest of your team. Having survived on your own for the minimal time required, a new solo option to complete this stage of the trail has been activated.

To complete this trial, you must find a safe method of exiting the station. Should you succeed, you will rejoin the rest of your team for the final stage of the battle pits.

Congratulations. For unlocking an alternate path to victory, your rewards have been increased. Exit the station to receive your enhanced reward package. In addition, your physical status has been upgraded. Stand by for physical enhancements.

Your Core Reward Pack has also been upgraded. Should you survive to reach the final stage of the battle pits trial, you will be granted a choice of 3 minor upgrades, 1 standard upgrade, and 1 superior upgrade.

Hugh felt strange as the nanobots inside his body went to work. The GCA was controlling them directly and he didn’t need to apply any personal upgrade patch this time. There was some discomfort as his whole body became a construction zone, but it wasn’t anything that he couldn’t handle. It went on for some time and after an hour had passed, the strange feeling subsided and Hugh felt better than he had ever felt in his life. A quick check confirmed that this latest round of enhancements was much more powerful than the little patches had been.

Hugh Logan. Physical form enhancements.

Intelligence: 107%.

Perception and vision: 156%.

Physical endurance and strength: 148%.

Cellular regeneration capacity: 259%.

His thoughts processed faster, and Hugh could now make out tiny details in everything he saw. Three was no way to confirm it just yet, but he was willing to bet that his vision would be fine, even in complete darkness. His strength was more than double what his normal body possessed, making him among the strongest people on Earth. Top-tier bodybuilders probably still had more bulk muscle, but Hugh’s strength was contained within a normal body frame. He looked lean and strong, with all signs of his pudgy belly gone, but he didn’t have the overinflated look that professional bodybuilders had, and his ability to move wasn’t hampered by that bulk.

His regeneration was more than two and a half times what it had been, which gave Hugh a much better chance at fighting off or delaying the crazy infection that had befallen the station. He had kind of zoned out while the upgrades to his body were taking place, and the view that greeted him now wasn’t a good one. The front windows of the security office were starting to crack under the constant onslaught of the infected and the metal of the front hatch was beginning to warp and bend. It wouldn’t be long before those things made their way inside.

On a more positive note, it looked like the maintenance drones had arrived. Five small spider-like drones crawled over the malfunctioning hatchway that led deeper into the security office. Tools were inserted into gaps, and one seemed to have connected itself directly to the hatch controls. A small open panel below the front widow showed where the drones had gained access. One of the infected stuck its arm through the opening, the hand still clutching a shattered maintenance drone.

His little repair guys had taken some losses getting to him, and Hugh hoped that the five remaining drones would be enough to complete repairs before the horde of infected finally broke inside. Hugh readied his weapons and waited to see who would win the race, the infected, or his drones. Testing out something, Hugh spoke to one of the maintenance drones.

“Can you hear me?” He asked.

“Drone 457 is awaiting orders, current task will continue until new orders are received,” a robotic voice said through some hidden speaker on the drone’s body.

“What are your orders after the repairs are complete?” Hugh asked.

“These units will return to their assigned charging ports and await further orders,” the drone replied. That wasn’t good, while he wanted them topped off on power, he didn’t give the drones very good odds of making it past the infected intact. Only their focus on getting at Hugh had likely allowed some to survive the trip over and slip into the opening before they were noticed.

“Once repairs are complete, standby here in the security office for further orders. How long will your current power charge last?” Hugh asked.

“At current workloads, the onboard charge should last for 14 days, 11 hours, and 33 minutes,” the drone replied.

“Can you charge here inside the security office if you need to?” Hugh asked.

“Affirmative, standard power ports are compatible with this unit, but please be advised that recharge rates will be greatly reduced when using such methods,” the drone advised.

“Good, how long until current repairs are complete?” Hugh asked.

“Repairs on this work order will be complete in 3 minutes and 22 seconds,” the drone replied.

Nice, that was quick, and he would need that speed since the windows were about to fail, and the front hatch could burst from its frame at any time.

Hugh adjusted the pistol in its holster for easy access and readied his rifle to fire its few remaining rounds as the front door started to give way. A flashing indicator on the console in front of him caught his attention, the drones were finished and the system needed his intervention if anything was going to happen.

Inner security office access is now available. Emergency reports are backlogged, do you wish the system to automatically distribute security drones? Y/N?

Hugh hit no, he didn’t want the drones blithering around looking to save people that were already dead, he needed their help right now. He selected the area in and around the security office for the drones to patrol, noting that there were a dozen of the machines under his command. Four new options appeared, frustrating Hugh with the constant delay. On closer look, he was a bit glad for the choice, as one of them was perfect for his needs.

A custom deployment area has been chosen. Please select drone loadout.

1. Community Patrol. This loadout includes an extra community interface module and a child reward dispenser for observed good behavior. Offensive items consist of a low-power stunner. Drones in this setting will do everything in their power to de-escalate a situation before resorting to non-lethal suppression means.

2. Criminal detection and apprehension. The reward dispenser is replaced with a class 1 beam weapon. Rules of engagement are modified with a more aggressive escalation meter than the Community Patrol setting.

3. Riot suppression. This setting eschews any community interface modules and mounts additional light armor on the drones. A powered, directional shield unit is employed, and the beam weapon is improved to class 2. The integral stunner is replaced with a high-powered unit that has individual and area stun effects.

4. Repel boarders. This setting is used to respond to hostile invasions of the station. All safeguards are removed, and enemy targets are labeled as kill on sight unless otherwise overridden by the direct order of a superior. The light armor modules are replaced with heavy armor, and the class 2 beam weapon is upgraded to a pair of class 3 weapons. An external power supply is mounted under the armor, providing power to the beam weapons as well as to an enhanced shielding unit.

Hugh hit option four and then made his way to the internal door. He had given the security drones their orders and had delayed retreating to safety just in case the console up here in the front of the office was the only one available. The hatch leading to the interior of the station took a few seconds to cycle open. Hugh could see it was more heavily armored than the front hatch, but not by a huge amount. The infected could bash their way through here eventually. He made it inside, ordering the repair drones to follow as the front windows began to shatter and the front hatch was finally forced open.

Hugh slammed the door button, cycling it closed and firing the last rounds in his rifle magazine to keep the horde back until the door was securely sealed. He immediately hit the locking mechanism, noting with panic that it had been set to all access by the drones when they had completed their repairs. Now, only Hugh and the drones could make use of it.

He was safe for the moment, but already the infected were pounding on the hatchway. At least now he had options, and those options included a dozen security drones that were gearing up for war.