Damon's Ascension-Chapter 93: Assembling The Team 2

Levi Thane stood at the edge of the ship’s training bay, watching the rippling mass of liquid metal suspended before him. It swayed and pulsed like a living thing, held together by his will alone while sweat beaded on his brow, but his focus remained unshaken.

With a gentle squeeze, he clenched his fist, causing the metallic fluid to coil inward and compress itself into a perfect sphere the size of a marble. Then, with a flick of his fingers, it expanded outward into metallic tendrils before settling into a floating and razor-thin disc.

Control, precision, and efficiency.

That was his goal for his training today. His ability was immensely powerful, but in its raw state, it was nothing more than underdeveloped potential, and he refused to waste a single drop of it after all he had gone through in life.

His VQD vibrated.

Seeing this as a test, he exhaled slowly and closed his fist even as the ringing distracted him, making the liquid metal collapse into itself and reform into a solid, coin-sized disc that clinked onto his palm without breaking concentration.

Only then did he glance at the call.

With a smooth motion, he accepted it. "Mr. Damon. What do you need?"

..............

Nicholas Spencley sat in the lavish lounge of a high-end bar in Arizona, a crystal glass of deep amber liquid swirling idly in his hand. The faint clink of ice against glass was the only sound in the otherwise silent room, minus the breathing of the two beings within, of course.

Across from him, a fellow Arizonian sat frozen with unfocused eyes, trapped in a minor mental loop Nicholas had generated based on an earlier scene, acting like a replay.

"Now, tell me again, why exactly did you think it was a good idea to cheat me at cards?" Nicholas questioned, his voice crisp and gentlemanly.

The man shuddered as beads of sweat formed on his brow and his lips trembled, but no words came.

Nicholas sighed, leaning back into his chair, taking a slow sip of his drink. "Ah, never mind. I already know the answer."

With a dismissive flick of his fingers, he released the man’s mind. The unfortunate fellow gasped, clutching his head as if shaking off a nightmare.

Nicholas chuckled softly, amused by the reaction. "Consider this a lesson. Next time, don’t insult my intelligence."

Before the man could stammer out a reply, Nicholas’ VQD buzzed against his wrist. He glanced at the caller ID and smiled.

"Lord Damon, what an unexpected pleasure. To what do I owe the honor?"

............

Marshal stood alone in the meditation chamber with closed eyes and steady breathing.

The room was quiet in a very unnatural way, which the fellow did prefer since he caused it.

After all, the weight of his ability was something he never took lightly because its power was not a joke.

He exhaled slowly, and in a voice barely above a whisper, he spoke: "Silence."

The very air seemed to freeze as the hum of the chamber’s electronics faded and the distant chatter of clients coming to use this amenity ceased.

Even the subtle sound of his own heartbeat dulled into nothingness, leaving an absolute quiet, as though the universe itself had obeyed his command.

Marshal opened his eyes and let the moment pass, allowing the various sounds to return as though they had never left.

Testing the boundaries of his power - SSS Grade Words of Power - was dangerous, but necessary.

After all, even a single word - if spoken carelessly - could reshape his surroundings in ways he did not intend.

His VQD buzzed at that moment, causing him to glance down, seeing Damon Arnan displayed on the screen.

Without hesitation, he accepted the call, his deep voice carrying its usual weight.

"Marshal speaking."

.............

Protizen Echo sat on the edge of the cliff overlooking the sea, casually polishing his forearm, which was partially covered in his signature exo-armor. The sleek black plating shimmered under the artificial lights, subtly shifting as he willed minor design tweaks into existence.

Today’s configuration had a minimalist feel, which was smooth, aerodynamic, almost like an advanced combat suit, but that was just aesthetics as to him, functionality mattered more.

He had recently consumed a fragment of a reinforced titanium alloy, and he was testing how it integrated into his armor’s durability.

A sudden spark flew as he clenched his fist, flexing the ultra-thin plates at his knuckles. Well, if anything, he felt stronger and his energy consumption was much more efficient.

It wasn’t to his standard, but it was certainly getting there.

Suddenly, his VQD vibrated. He glanced down at the screen and shook his head.

[Caller: Damon Arnan.]

With a flick of his wrist, his armor receded into his skin, vanishing as if it had never existed. Protizen tapped the screen and leaned back against the wall.

"Yo, Damon. What’s up?"

...........

In a quiet farmhouse nestled on the outskirts of San Antonio, Xela Stone stood in her backyard, barefoot on the grass as the warm Texas wind fluttered through her silver hair and the hem of her yellow skirt.

Humming softly, she knelt beside a large golden retriever that lay whimpering, its breathing ragged from old age. freёnovelkiss.com

She placed her small hand over its side, her eyes glowing with a gentle white light. In an instant, the dog’s breathing steadied, and it barked once before leaping to its feet, wagging its tail with youthful energy.

"Good as new, Rufus!" Xela cheered with a giggle, standing up and brushing the dirt from her dress. She stretched her arms towards the happy dog, feeling the warm fur on her skin.

Her VQD chimed on her wrist, and she glanced down at it, her eyes lighting up when she saw the name.

"Damon!!" She greeted excitedly, spinning on her heel before tapping to accept the call.

She beamed, already bouncing on her toes with anticipation. "Let me guess, you need my help again, right? C’mon, give me the juicy details!"

...............

Damon put down his VQD and sighed with fatigue, having his energy drained by talking to these bunch of troublesome fellows. Each of them was extremely talented and possessed special abilities that might be useful on this foray, but their personalities were as varied as possible.

Felicia, who had watched all of this from the side with her fingers resting underneath her chin, smiled slightly. "Well, team leader, it seems that you have your work cut out for you."

Damon glanced at her askance. "Where do you think you are running to? You are the Vice Team leader, so you also have responsibilities."

Felicia harrumphed and looked away. "Now you are willing to finally grant me a position after so long, huh?"

Damon felt amused at her playfulness, finding it cute. "It’s not my fault, we haven’t even finished building our embassy yet. I can only do small things like this for now."

Felicia tousled her hair and stood up. "Hmph, I have not had much interaction with males aside from my family and a few friends, but I do know you fellows are notorious for masking false promises to placate us women."

Damon folded his arms. "That’s right, a lot tend to do so. But that’s only because they have something to gain from the woman or they desire something from her."

Damon suddenly took a step forward with a strange light in his silvery-brown eyes. "What can I gain from you, dear Felicia?"

Seeing Damon giving her ’that’ look, Felicia’s heart skipped a beat, and her courage instantly deflated like a punctured tire. "I... well... I have to go change, we should head to the meeting place soon!"

After giving that excuse, she scampered off hurriedly as if fleeing a tsunami.

Damon chuckled thoughtfully. "Not much experience with males, huh. Doesn’t matter much to me, but I’d best be sure of what I’m doing, I don’t want to mess around with a woman of her quality."

Soon, Felicia returned with her confidence intact, wearing her usual garb of a white blouse and skirt, covered by a black lab coat that reached her ankles, along with heels that could likely pierce someone to death.

"Alright, let’s get a move on. Our quarry is quite impatient, we don’t want to keep them waiting." Felicia said casually, as if the scene before was someone else.

Damon did not expose her and allowed her to act tough. "Yes, please, Dear Madam."

They both exited the bunker and entered the shuttle that Damon borrowed, traveling over to Ambrose’s spaceship where everyone would be meeting to handle the next steps of their plan to ’save’ the human race.

As the shuttle charged towards the spaceship, Damon and Felicia chatted about the plan that had been developed, especially in terms of logistics since that would be their biggest obstacle when sorting out the preparatory phase.

When they arrived in the spaceship, they were surprised to see that most of everyone had already gotten here before them, having been picked up by shuttles from around the world and brought over by Damon’s request.

"Hello everyone, and thanks for coming. We have quite a great task ahead of us, but I believe that this elite team will be the cornerstone of humanity going forward." Damon greeted with a smile.