Unexpected

Nathalia's P.O.V,

I walked into the Terrestrial's large iron carriage, it had just been a few hours since the last time I was there, and it still amazes me like the first time. We walked into the room Hex had last taken me, although this time, another soldier was standing in the room. Hex turned to Nichol and signalled to the soldier with his hand.

"If you would please follow her," Hex told Nichol. Right, Nichol was going to guide them to Hohendorf. Nichol nodded and followed the soldier as she disappeared into another room. Once Nichol was gone, Hex signalled to the chairs. "Please take a seat, all of you," Hex told us.

I sat down on the chair that was a perfect combination of style and comfort. If this is how things will be in the future, it really just adds another reason to continue fighting against the Piglins. Alina, Elisot and Neil all sat down on the other chairs around the table, but they all looked tense. "Please, relax; there is no need to be afraid," Hex said as he walked to the wall, which dispensed the beverage if I remember correctly.

Just like last time, some small iron arms pushed out a large bottle along with a few cups. Hex placed the cups on top of a table, and then Hex poured the beverage on it. Was that wine? So they have that in their world too. Hex placed the cups on a weird transparent square thing, which had some openings where the cups precisely fitted in. Hex then put them all in the middle of the table. "Feel free to drink it," Hex said as he walked back to place that cupholder on the other table. Hex grabbed his own drink and sat down on his chair on the other side of the table.

I looked at the cup and grabbed it, and I brought the edge of the glass to my lips. The rim was a perfect black and white band as if a fragment of starlit sky raced around it. My mouth melted with flavour when I began to drink; it was soft, rich and beautiful. Never had I drunk wine this exquisite. It seems my example inspired Neil and Alina to drink, as shortly after I started, they too began to drink. Their face said it all; it looks like they very much agreed with my thoughts. "Do you not drink?" I heard Hex's voice ask, and so I opened my eyes. Right, Elisot won't remove her helmet.

"Elisot," I told her. "It's rude to decline a gift," I partially wanted her to remove her helmet and start getting over that fear of hers, and half I was afraid that the captain was going to be offended.

"Do not worry," Hex replied calmly. "It's alright," Hex said, directing his gaze at me. I breathed a sigh of relief. I was taught to always accept gifts as if not the other person might be insulted, which is terrible when carrying out diplomatic missions. Although, I have to be thankful, as that once saved me from an arranged marriage.

I placed the empty glass on the table. "Was that wine? Because if it was, never had I tasted a wine so good," I started to Hex. It had the taste that resembles that of wine, but it was just too good to be true.

"Indeed," Hex replied. "It's a wine made from the grapes in the agri-world Billie 8," Hex said. "They are the best in the entire Terrestrial Empire. That, combined with the fact that we have perfected the wine creation process since we have had a headstart of a few thousand years, and that is why it tastes so good," Hex finished his explanation with a sip of wine from his cup.

From his explanation, something he said caught my attention the most, though. "What do you mean 'Agri-world'?" Considering what he had previously said about the nature of their civilization, then could it mean…

"Oh," Hex said. "It's a planet that we have reserved exclusively for agricultural processes. Imagine it as a planet-sized farm," Hex casually said.

I stared blankly; they have an entire planet just for farming? The amount of food they could produce… But wait! "H-How many of these 'Agri-worlds' does your empire have?" I wobbly asked.

Hex crossed his arms and looked up; he seemed to be wondering for a few seconds. "Several dozens, I suppose," Hex said. "We have very space-effective methods, so we don't have to dedicate too many worlds to agriculture,"

"Several… dozens…" I softly replied. I stared at Hex, who was just casually sitting there, like if he had just not dropped an entirely new concept to us. Alina, Elisot and Neil seemed to be just as perplexed as me. They can produce so much food that their population must be in a number we can barely comprehend. My head is starting to hurt from digesting all of this new information. Still, this also proves that an alliance with them is something we desperately need, as they could even help us with the current famine plaguing most of the Kingdom and parts of the Holy Empire. "That is… interesting," I replied, trying to keep my composure, but I saw Hex raise an eyebrow at me.

"Sure it is," Hex replied as he sat back on his chair. "Now, do you mind if we continue where we left off?" Hex asked as he moved his cup on a circle while holding it in his hand. "You see, I am curious," Hex asked. "Whenever you fight, those weapons of yours seem too bright up, but they stop whenever you drop them or stop fighting, and the same thing happened with the Piglins; why is that? I suppose it is not some normal metal, is it?"

I narrowed my eyes at the question. Would it be a good idea to disclose the nature of our weapons? This may also be my chance to learn the secrets of theirs; again, I only detect a small psionic potential in them, so tiny that they probably aren't even aware it's there, so they wouldn't be able to use them. "Well, you are correct," I replied as I took out my sword and lifted it so he could see it. "Our weapons and armour, too, are made of a mineral called psionite. It's metal stronger than iron, but what makes it special is that it can absorb psionic energy. The user shares part of their psionic energy with the object, strengthening it. The weapon's strength depends on the user" As I said that, I transferred some of my energy to the weapon to make it glow. "So, the higher the psionic potential, the more energy can be deposited, and thus the stronger the object becomes," I explained to the man. He was paying close attention to what I was saying, but now it was my turn, so I placed my sword away. "Since I have answered your question, now, I believe it's my turn to ask the question. What is the true nature of your weapons? Is it magic?"

Hex leaned back, and I heard a small snort come out of him. "No, it's not magic," Hex replied, and he took out one of his weapons, placing it on the table and then pushing it a little farther, causing me and my companions to follow it with the sight. "Touch it if you want," I slowly stretched my hand and grabbed the weapon. "It has a safety measure, so it won't fire itself on accident, just make sure to never point it at anyone, treat it as if it was ready to kill someone," I nodded at Hex; such a dangerous and powerful weapon was now in my hands. It's heavier than I thought. I carefully examined every detail of it; such perfect craftsmanship, such level of detail. I see why he didn't care to show it to me; it will be hundreds of years before producing something like this.

"It's called a blaster," Hex said, causing me to look up at him. "The way it works is that it transforms an energy-rich gas into a hot beam that can easily pierce and melt through targets," Hex explained to us. "The strength of the bolt depends on the type of gas it uses, and our gas is that of the finest quality," Now, my most important question would be about how these bolts will fare against our armour.

"Do all of your soldiers use these 'blasters'?" I asked the captain.

"Of course," Hex replied to me. "It is the backbone of our military, after all."

I sank on the chair. Our ways of warfare are too different. Our range attackers waste too much energy in a single bolt. Only the most psionically powerful can regularly use ranged attacks, which is why we mostly rely on close-quarters combat. They also seem to possess a wide variety of war engines. My mind flashed back to when those engines completely destroyed the walls of Rumelia. While we can create psionic shields to protect our cities, they are challenging to maintain, and I'm not sure how well they will fare against the Terrestrials' weapons. There is only one way to find out, and I don't think I want to carry it out…

Hex's P.O.V.

I looked at Nathalia; her face was one of shock, just as I had expected. I must get them to realize how much of a threat we can actually be. I don't plan on attacking, though, or more like, we can't attack primitives unless it is in self-defence, as stipulated by the Primitive Protection Act. This act will keep our hands tied throughout our stay on this planet. The act dictates that we must limit our interactions with primitives, primitives being the word we use to refer to any pre-FTL civilization. We can't perform any offensive actions against these civilizations unless we are attacked first. We can't declare war unless war is declared on us first. Of course, they don't need to know that. Typically, though, this wouldn't be much of a big deal, as many empires simply ignore it. Still, the Terrestrial Empire just convinced the Galactic Assembly to impose sanctions on the Infinite Empire due to their own breachings of the Primitive Protection Act. So if it is discovered that we have breached the act, then we will be labelled as hypocrites, and our influence in the assembly will decrease, and we may also see sanctions placed on us.

I rested back on my chair and closed my eyes. Our unlawful occupation of land inside this "Great Kingdom of Fireza" may be seen as an invasion in the eyes of the Galactic Community once communication is re-established. I can't allow that to happen; that is why I must convince the rulers of this nation to sell that piece of land to us, which is why we must appear before them as a threat that must be appeased, but we must be careful to not be seen as a malevolent force. This will prove challenging, but I must do what must be done. Nathalia will be a helpful ally, so I must convince her through subtle ways that it is in her best interests to be allied with us.

I opened my eyes and leaned on the table. Now that I think about it, I don't know much about this world's geopolitical situation. I must get as much information as possible, or else I will be walking around blind. "Could you tell me more about the realm we are going to?" I asked the knight.

This seemed to kick Nathalia out of her thoughts, causing her to look at me. "O-Oh, right, I shall," Nathalia then cleared her throat and began to explain. "Where we are going is the Grand Kingdom of Fireza, ruled by the house of del Frizia since its inception 400 years ago," Nathalia began her explanation. "Fireza started as a duchy inside the Holy Empire, and it was granted to the hero Lukas del Frizia by Emperor Leon himself. The del Frizia family has a long history of heroes, dating back all the way to the war with the sky people," Nathalia said. "And thus I'm proud to be a del Frizia too,"

I widened my eyes. "You are a del Frizia?" I asked, still in shock. "Then that means…"

"Yes," Nathalia interrupted me. "I'm the third princess of the Grand Kingdom," Nathalia stated with evident proudness. "I did tell you I have influence inside the realm," Nathalia reminded me. "Where we are going is the fortress city of Hohendorf, the regional bastion in the sparsely populated east," Nathalia said. "It is administrated by my younger brother, Prince Drake. He is the lord of this entire region, so whether you are allowed to travel around this region or not is up to him," Nathalia explained. "But do not fret; I'm sure we will be able to come up with an agreement that will be beneficial to everyone," Nathalia reassured me.

Well, this information is certainly interesting. I raised my hand to my mouth to cover the smirk I was unable to hold. This was going to be relatively straightforward then. Through Nathalia, we will be able to get access to the royal court. From there, I will have to establish contact with someone influential, maybe even with the king himself. I just have to hope that the same tactics work with them. So this is what they call psychological warfare, huh?

I continued to converse with Nathalia for the next few minutes. Nathalia's companions rarely spoke up, as they seemed to be quite insecure in this whole situation. Nathalia appears to hide her true feelings the best; she still lacks experience in the matter, though. Our cultural exchange would be soon interrupted, though, as suddenly a loud sound of something landing was heard, and the earth shook for a few seconds.

Then, from the door that led to the pilots' cabin, Nathalia's subordinate, Nichol stepped out; he was visibly agitated. "Princess!" Nichol exclaimed. "You must come to see this!"

Then, from behind Nichol, one of the pilots appeared. "Captain!" The pilot exclaimed.

"Yes, yes," I said as I stood up and grabbed my helmet. I put on my helmet and turned to Nathalia. "I'm coming too,"

Nathalia nodded and stood up, too, along with the rest of her knights. "Very well," Nathalia stated as she put on her helmet too. "Let's go, Captain,"

We bolted out of the Turbo Tank, reaching the exterior in just a few minutes. Once outside, I saw my soldiers were in absolute shock. They had all raised their blasters to the front, and I heard Jaxon, who despite his injuries was still leading at the front, shouting. "Stop moving! Raise your hands right now!" Jaxon shouted, his words being translated by the universal translator.

I looked at the front, and there I was, blinded for a few seconds by a bright light that burned through my retina, piercing my eyes like an arrow. Even with my helmet on, it was still difficult to see. It took my genetically-enhanced eyes a few seconds to adjust to the sight. When they did, I managed to catch a winged figure standing majestically in front of my army. It was clear that it was the source of the light.

As the light died down, I walked towards the front, passing in between my troops. The figure became more defined, and then, when the glow disappeared, at last, I saw clearly who was in front of me. Cladded in silvery armour that seemed to glow with the same aspect as the knight's sword when being psionically charged, a woman stood. Her presence was an imposing one. Her golden hair danced with the wing, and from her back, two white wings stretched high and mighty. Was she an angel? Oh… My… Emperor… Just what is happening in this world?

The woman had one sword in each of her hand, and raising one of them, she pointed it at me. "Are you the leader of this host?" The woman spoke up. Her voice boomed around the word. I must admit that it was becoming increasingly difficult to remain standing. Only once I've been in the presence of a being like this, and my skin still bristles when recalling the memory.

"I am," I responded to the woman. "And who might you be?" I asked.

The woman walked forwards, pointing her sword right at my neck. "I am the one who is interrogating here," The woman firmly stated. "Why are you heading towards Hohendorf?" She questioned. "What is your purpose?" The woman pushed her sword forwards, forcing me to step back.

"We have no ill intent," I reassured the winged lady. "We are simply going to be meet with the lord of this lands," I stated. The lady raised an eyebrow; she did not look convinced.

"You will not pass," The woman indicated. "Your march stops here, you foul creatures. I will not fall for your tricks!" She exclaimed out loud as she raised her sword to strike me down.

"Lady Gabriela!" I heard Nathalia shout from behind. It was about damn time for her to show up. Nathalia then stood next to me and extended her hands, signalling to this Gabriela to stop. "They are with me; I was guiding them towards Hohendorf!"

Lady Gabriela looked at Nathalia for a few seconds, and then she slowly lowered her sword. Nathalia and Gabriela stared at each other fiercely for a few seconds as if having a silent conversation. I then felt the pressure dissipate, and the glow that irradiated from the angel died down. I was finally able to take a good look at her. To say that her features were majestic would be an understatement. She was almost… godly.

"This is Captain Hex," Nathalia said as she signalled towards me with her hand. "They come from the realm beyond the veil. They brought us the news about the final demise of the sky people of legend. They are stranded here for now, though," Nathalia explained the situation to the woman.

"And how are you sure you can trust them," Gabriela asked as she pointed towards us with her sword.

I sighed and then removed my helmet. I should have done this from the beginning. I saw as Gabriela's eyes widened at the revelation that I was also human. "Do you trust me now?" I asked the lady.

Gabriela lowered her sword. "Not entirely," She stated as she squinted her eyes. "I do not have the intention of fighting humans. Still, that doesn't mean I will let you go around this world unchecked," She informed me. "I am also interested in you. Humans beyond the veil are certainly a new prospect," Gabriela then extended her wings and started to levitate in front of us. "I will join you in your journey, as someone needs to keep an eye on your ilk," She then flew up and towards the Turbo Tank. She then stood on top of the tank.

I sighed. This world will be the death of me, not necessarily because of the Piglins and whatever other horrors there are. "I apologize for the inconvenience," I heard Nathalia say behind me. I turned around and saw her and her knights as they bowed.

I waved my hand in the air. "It is no issue," I said to calm Nathalia and her group down. I heard Nathalia sigh in relief as she then stood up straight. "Who is she anyway?" I asked the princess.

"She is Lady Gabriela the Valkyrie," Nathalia said. "She is one of the most highly respected members in the Holy Order of the Valkyrie. She was supposed to come to aid us to retake the city of Rumelia," Nathalia explained.

"So there is an entire order of people like her?" I asked as I raised an eyebrow.

"Indeed," Nathalia replied. "Their race was subjugated by the first Pope-Emperor, and since then, they became loyal subjects to the Holy Empire," She stated. "Due to their incredible powers, they were tasked with the mission of becoming the guardians of humanity, a task which they take very seriously," Nathalia stated.

"I see," I replied. "I guess there are more factors I must take into account about this world in case things start going south…"

Author's note: Hey there, sorry for the late update, Due to personal matters, I can no longer dedicate as much time as I used to write, and I had given priority to my other story as it was falling behind. I will try to update you as soon as possible, although I can't give any guarantees. Chapters will be a little over 3,000 words long. I hope you understand. Have a nice day!