War Core Wednesday! War Core 3, Chapter 30.

Chapter 30.

Hugh woke coughing, his first act in his new flesh and blood body was to swallow wrong. Painful and annoying as the experience was, it was real, and he was back in his body. It was the same rundown hospital room that he had previously revived in, the place looked like something from the eighties, with the only high-tech piece of equipment being the core placed in the center of the room. Clothes were laid out for him, an Army uniform and combat boots. After getting dressed and using the cramped restroom, Hugh tried to plan his day.

Harmony Station would be open to him for twenty-four hours, after that, he had to be back inside the war core or face whatever penalty the GCA decided to impose on him. The first step for him would be to find the nearest kiosk and retrieve the special reward he was promised. Any advantage he could gain in the campaign against the Ssath was important, and he didn’t want to delay it for a meal or to mess around with shopping. Outside his hospital room was a short hallway, the doors to several other hospital rooms lined the hall, but they were all locked, and Hugh had no way of knowing if any other human cores were on board the station at this time.

There might not be any human cores aboard the station, but that didn’t mean the place was unoccupied. Hugh steeled himself for what he would find outside the double doors at the end of the hall. Aliens of all types would be going about their business, all of them war cores receiving their rewards, or visiting after cashing in a chunk of reward points. Outside, the place was crowded, but the bizarre aliens all seemed to ignore him. Remembering his run-in with the Ssath named Hssim, Hugh hurried to his first destination, not wanting to block some alien and make it mad enough to eat him. Experiencing that once was more than enough for him.

Moving into the flow of the crowd, Hugh made his way toward the lift that would bring down a level where the nearest reward kiosk was. None of the alien races around him were familiar, so it looked like he was in the clear from any hungry Ssath. Of course, if he did get attacked, the GCA would penalize the Ssath greatly, so maybe that wasn’t such a bad thing if it happened. The kiosk knew who he was and activated as soon as he approached.

Congratulations! You have received the following.

1. Automated Infantry Factory (1).

2. Infantry Component Unlock (assault mech specialization).

3. Auto Turret, tier 5 (10).

4. Single-Use Advanced Infantry mech, Avatar Class (1).

He had to dig into the interface to get more information on what he had received. Everything sounded awesome, but the devil was in the details. The auto-turrets he had used before, and they had always been helpful. Some of these items were supposed to be special rewards, and their descriptions seemed to justify the claim.

1. Automated Infantry Factory. This structure can be constructed during most battle types. Once activated, the structure will build itself over a short period. When it is complete, the factory will produce infantry mechs that match the tier of your current barracks. The infantry mechs will automatically move toward the enemy command post or the nearest critical location on the battlefield. They will engage any hostile and neutral forces they come across and cannot be commanded directly by your core. There is no cost for these units, and they do not count against any unit caps that may be in place. The factory can be repaired if damaged, but once destroyed, it cannot be rebuilt.

2. Infantry Component Unlock, Assault Mech Specialization. Choose a tier (1-10) for this component unlock.

3. Auto Turret, tier 5 (10). Choose any location within view of your units and call down a drop pod containing an automated turret that mounts a 75mm medium mech cannon. Once they arrive, the turrets need a short time to activate, so use caution in their placement. These structures cannot be repaired by your construction drones.

4. Single-Use Advanced Infantry Mech, Avatar Class (1). Activate this ability during a battle to create a mech suit for your core to directly control as its avatar. While operating your avatar, you can still perform other core functions. This avatar is much more powerful than a standard pod-controlled mech, but it cannot be repaired by your drones.

It was better than he had hoped, the combat trial he had just completed must have influenced at least two of the rewards, the automated factory, and his avatar. They were powerful items, even if they were a finite resource. From the description, it seemed that he could choose whether or not to deploy these rewards, which made them good panic buttons to hit if a battle was going against him.

The only thing that hadn’t been explained was the component unlock. It wanted him to choose a tier, and since this seemed to be a permanent upgrade, he needed to choose carefully. At first, Hugh was leaning toward selecting a lower tier, since he would always be able to use it. The battle might have tier limitations and if he chose something higher than most battles would support, the upgrade would be useless. Still, he didn’t need much help at the lower tiers, and given the fact they were in a campaign against the powerful Ssath, there was a good chance he would run into more max-tier fights. If that was the case, having a special upgrade for his top-tier assault infantry might overpower his opponent.

Tier 10 selected. Your tier 10 Assault Infantry will now automatically be equipped with a combat drone carrier. This upgrade places a small compartment in the back of your mech that can dispense defensive drones to help protect them in battle. Capable of firing an internal laser, launching a grenade, and deploying a temporary shield, these drones are highly effective in either a defensive, scouting, or offensive role. The drones cannot move more than 100 feet from the operator's mech, or they will go dormant and fall to the ground. The drone dispenser will slowly replace any losses at no cost to your core.

That sounded great, but Hugh would have to see the upgrade in action before he gave his final judgment. The decision was made, hopefully, it would prove to be the correct one. With his rewards gathered, Hugh felt the first rumblings of hunger hit. It was time for a meal, something he had been looking forward to. It’s funny, you don’t give much thought to what you eat typically, but when you only have a chance to eat once in a great while, it was something you thought about considerably.

Hugh went to the same diner he had eaten at each time he had been aboard the station. Valery had introduced him to it, and he hoped that they could hang out together again sometime. It was lonely as a core and having a friend who understood what it was like was a comfort. This time, Hugh had been craving some pasta, and lo and behold, the menu did have several types available to him. He went with something comforting, a bit plate of spaghetti with meatballs, and a hunk of garlic bread to go with it. Just like with his other meals, the pasta tasted just like he expected, and the GCA systems were somehow able to match his taste memories and recreate them surprisingly well.

Finishing things up with a glass of tea left Hugh twelve reward points poorer. After paying to level up and for his meal, he was now sitting with only a hundred and thirty-eight. He was poor, and a big shopping extravaganza wasn’t going to be in the cards for him on this trip. Hugh had splurged before, and the Drop Beacon of the Vanquished had proven more than worth the risk of going into debt, but he couldn’t ignore his need to save and level up his core, otherwise. He might find himself falling further and further behind in relation to his opponents. Who knew what higher levels might unlock for him and his units? He also had to think long-term, it might take decades, but Hugh was determined to eventually purchase his freedom.

Thinking about returning permanently to his human body brought up a few concerns. Leaving behind his life as a war core meant that someone else would have to fill the role and was that something he could keep on his conscience? Earth needed him, and having a higher-level core dropout, only to be replaced by a green one might be a recipe for disaster. It wasn’t something he had to figure out today, and there would be time, many decades, likely, to ponder what he should do.

Hugh returned to the kiosk, looking for something to keep him occupied. He had no desire to jump into any of the simulators, that was pretty much the station’s equivalent of gambling and while Hugh felt he was getting the hang of being a war core, he didn’t want to risk losing any of the reward points that he had fought so hard for. Someday, he might be in a position where trying the simulations would give him a high return on his investment, but for now, he would pass. Parsing through the data, he looked for anything to do with Earth. He almost flipped past the overview screen for his home when the date caught his eye.

It was showing that over eight months had passed since he had started the battle with the Yaelar and Ssath core! What were his people going to think, did they consider him dead, no, they would know if he was dead, wouldn’t they? What happened to the soldiers that had survived the combat trials with him? From what Hugh understood, the combat pods weren’t nearly as high-tech as his war core and were something they could duplicate back home. How had his men survived inside them for so long?

Hugh was torn, should he return early and debrief his team, or should he enjoy the few hours he had on the station. At first, Hugh decided to stay, if eight months had passed, the additional twenty-two hours or so he had remaining on his pass weren’t going to make much of a difference. While he pondered his options, a message flashed on the kiosk. Expecting Valery or one of the other cores might be trying to get ahold of him, and wasting precious resources to do so, he was shocked when he spotted the sender. Opening the message, Hugh began to read.

Hugh Logan,

Thank you for the sacrifices you made to help not only myself, but many of my pack to survive. While our worlds are not at war, we are also not likely to become allies given the nature of the betrayal that your leaders committed. That being said, I consider you a friend and an honorable ally. If I can return the favor in some way, I will try to do so. May you conquer your foes and may we fight together as brothers again one day.

Pack Monitor Dalven.

That was an unexpected message. Hugh had just done what he thought was right, and he felt dirty for how his world had treated the Yaelar, trying to drag them into the conflict and using them as a speedbump against the Ssath. Hopefully, the leaders had a change of heart, and work was underway to try and make restitution to the Yaelar. Having seen them fight, Hugh would be much happier having them on his side than fighting against them. Dalven had been aggressive and savage in battle, but also controlled, unlike many of the Ssath cores who could be goaded into making mistakes.

The message also helped Hugh make up his mind, he needed to get back home and find out what was going on there, he had been gone too long, and the station had little more to offer him at this time. He knew the way back to the human section of the station, the GCA technology recognized him and unlocked the same room he had arrived in. The war core sat open and it was with some trepidation that he stepped inside, watching the slow closing lid, and preparing for his body to be destroyed once more.

Do you wish to return to your core, there are still 21 hours and 48 minutes remaining on your pass? Y/N.

Hugh hit yes, pain engulfing him as he was transformed back into a core.

Prepare for your return to Earth.

Transport to this system has been delayed, lockdown protocols are in place due to imminent invasion.

Please wait.

Permission granted to return; your core is a designated combatant in the coming campaign.

Hugh was flying back through space once more, but he couldn’t think of anything else other than the message he had just read. Earth was under attack. While he had been gone, the Ssath had conquered their way to the doorstep of humanity.