Nucleus 1: The Dust of Moon [Mature Sci-fi Romance]

Osram Time: 07:07, February 24, 2295

Outside Door Kaamos, Vault of Primal Urges, Mare Imbrium, Near Side, Osram

"Engine, annihilate them!" Dilinur Altai commanded from atop a dust-covered hill. Below her, the air filled with screams of the dying.

"I thought you'd never ask!" Kaori's excited voice came through Dilinur's earpiece.

The Draconic Engine rumbled into position, its crimson hull decorated with golden dragon symbols. The tank's turret rotated as it prepared to fire.

With a thunderous sound, the vehicle launched a round from its Havok Warhead Launcher. The miniaturized tactical nuke spiraled through the air like a comet toward its target.

Alliance Vanguards and Ironbears in white armor were blown apart in blinding flashes, soldiers reduced to charred remains.

"More shots, Engine!" Dilinur watched as the Draconic Engine continued firing.

Two more warheads fell on what remained of the Alliance soldiers. Bodies and parts drifted slowly in the moon's low gravity.

"Acceptable," Dilinur whispered as she jumped down. "Legionnaires! March forward!"

Around her, Bloodtroopers and Amber-Eyes advanced with the siege engine behind them, its treads churning the moon dirt. Dead Alliance soldiers lay scattered, their limbs twisted among broken machinery.

The smell of burnt metal and flesh hit Dilinur's nose, but she felt a strange pride as she walked forward. She'd massacred for progress before.

"A victory well-deserved, legionnaires," she announced to the soldiers gathered before her. "By following orders without question, you've shown what it means to be an Imperial."

The soldiers remained silent. Dinu wasn't surprised. Silent obedience was valued in their society.

"All strike teams, report!" she ordered, her voice echoing across the lunar landscape.

"Team Tiger, all twelve present!" a senior Bloodtrooper called out proudly.

"Team Dragon, eleven present. One slain, three injured," another reported.

"Team Ox, five present. Seven slain…five injured," came the next report, the man sounding uncertain as his row of soldiers stood noticeably short.

"Team Hound, all twelve present!" a female voice declared.

"Engine, present. Barely a scratch!" Kaori's proud voice sounded from the crimson tank behind the soldiers.

Nearby, Flesh Pot devoured the last Psi Lynx, a man in a white trench coat. His screams were drowned by the sounds of breaking bones as he disappeared into the Radi-Mon's mouth.

The Imperial soldiers showed no reaction to the scene. Their training had prepared them well.

Dilinur considered the numbers, then realized something was missing.

"Where's Team Boar?" she demanded, scanning the troops.

"Prefect Altai," A Bloodtrooper stepped forward, his voice deep through his damaged horned helmet. "Team Boar is still fighting the enemy on the other side of this — Vault."

Dilinur touched her earpiece. "Team Boar, report!"

"Almost victory, Prefect! Six slain, two injured, one enemy left!" came the enthusiastic reply.

"One enemy left? What's taking so long?" Dinu frowned.

"Some Valoran with golden hair and silver arms," Team Boar's leader answered. "We've just cornered him, almost —"

"Capture the enemy," Dilinur interrupted. "Bring him to the rallying point."

"At once!"

She lowered her hand and faced her troops again. "Team Hound, search the area. Make sure there are no Alliance soldiers left."

"Aye, Prefect!" an Amber-Eye saluted before leading twelve soldiers away.

With a smile, Dinu continued. "The rest of you, await my command. For the Imperium!"

"For the Imperium!" her warriors shouted back.

With her Psi Fan Tarim Aytün in hand, she turned from the battlefield.

"Make way," she said, walking past a line of Bloodtroopers. More soldiers lined the path to the tent, watching her respectfully as she passed.

The tent stood amid the destruction. Its midnight-colored silk panels decorated with dragon symbols fluttered gently, supported by a flexsteel frame with glowing hieroglyphs along the seams.

Dilinur paused at the entrance. The smart fabric recognized her and opened with a soft sound. Inside, an interactive map of Osram glowed on the floor, while holographic stars moved on a false sky above.

Joon-Seok Pak sat in a folding chair, his pale face marked with thin red lines. He lifted a vial of Medi-Vap to his lips, breathing in the teal mist that healed his wounds.

"I'm fine, Dinu. A few Psi Lynxes can't kill me," he gestured for her to come closer.

"Good to see, milord," she said with relief, walking less confidently than she had outside. When she reached him, Joon-Seok stood up, towering over her.

He pulled her into a hug without hesitation. She blushed against his chest, her face barely reaching his heart.

"Prince Joon-Seok?" she whispered.

Joon-Seok held her tighter. "I owe you, Dinu," he said softly into her hair. "When we faced Lorna Weiss and her team, you and your Bloodtroopers saved me."

She felt his voice against her temple, soothing her. "I'm...glad you're okay."

The smell of Medi-Vap and faint blood clung to him. She leaned back to look at his face, caught by the intensity in his eyes.

"Milord. In our short time together, I've felt drawn to you," Dilinur admitted. Her usually steady hands trembled as they moved toward Joon-Seok's face.

"Once we have the Moondust Crystal," Joon-Seok promised, "I'll take you on a date, Dinu. A break from all this fighting."

Her heart beat faster, her cheeks warming. "Yes," was all she could say.

But then a soldier called from outside. "Prefect Altai? Team Boar is back! And there's a message for you."

Reluctantly, Dilinur felt Joon-Seok's arms loosen, and she stepped back, her fingers lingering on his now-healed face.

"Duty calls," she sighed softly.

"We'll answer," Joon-Seok replied, following her.

Outside, a Bloodtrooper approached.

He held out a small disk-shaped projector. "Your message, Prefect."

"Good. Back to your post," Dilinur took the device, which felt cool compared to Joon-Seok's warmth. She activated it, and Iron Roach's hologram appeared.

"Ey, Dinu," he began casually. "Those Alliance dogs you told me to chase? They've gotten into the Vault. Second entrance. Door Volt...Vore...ugh, something —"

"Lady Dilinur," a smoother voice interrupted from offscreen. "Sir Iron Roach meant to say 'Door Valkyris'."

"Who the fuck asked you?" Roach snapped before turning back to Dilinur. "Well? Next orders?"

"Understood," Dilinur replied shortly, holding back a laugh. "You and your Amber-Eyes are dismissed. Go to Celestial Reach and wait for my next orders."

"Break time already?" Roach adjusted his red sunglasses.

"We have enough men to handle the Vault," Dinu said.

"Right, then. Celestial Reach. Our fancy big city in Ocean Anus, uh, something," Roach scratched his head, his glasses reflecting Earth in the distance.

"Oceanus Procellarum, Roach," Joon-Seok smirked at the hologram. "Enjoy your rest."

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

As Roach's image faded, Dilinur handed the projector back to a Bloodtrooper standing next to her.

"Team Boar, milady. We caught one of their senior Vanguards," the Bloodtrooper said, pointing.

Dinu looked at the approaching Bloodtroopers. Among them was a tall Valoran prisoner with silver bionic arms, his impressive size diminished by the shackles on his wrists.

The man knelt on the moon soil, defiance on his dirty face. His light gray eyes stared at her challengingly. He growled.

"Thomas Mendoza," Dilinur recognized him. "Not surprised you survived."

"Dilinur. Wondered when we'd meet again after Shanghai," he said with contempt. "Nothing you can do will make me talk."

"You sound sure. Not scared?" Her lips twitched with power.

"I've served many years in the Alliance. Seen worse things than you can imagine," Thomas smirked through the dirt on his face.

"But you've never seen the Imperium at full power," Dilinur grinned. "With the Moondust Crystal, the Five Realms will soon kneel to us."

"Your Radi-Mon's made from human flesh. I can tell," Thomas glanced at Flesh Pot sitting quietly nearby. "Nothing too low for the Imperium, is there?"

"A necessary evil against your Psi Lynxes," Joon-Seok added. "But the Alliance can hardly criticize our methods."

"Say what you want, but I chose this job. Even enjoy it," Thomas said firmly, raising his voice for the surrounding soldiers to hear. "I'm proud of what I'm fighting for! Can you say the same?"

Dilinur felt her heart skip. She wasn't sure if it was a question or statement.

"Well? Going to kill me or what?" Thomas grinned defiantly at Dilinur.

"Maa-nik-ya Su-shup-ti," she cast the spell gently, red energy flowing from her fingers toward Thomas.

"What..." His eyes widened briefly before going dull as he collapsed.

"Take him into custody. Watch his vitals," she ordered.

The Bloodtroopers dragged the unconscious Thomas to a distant tent, leaving tracks in the moon dust.

"You're imprisoning him?" Joon-Seok frowned.

"We'll decide what to do with him after we get the Crystal," she said firmly.

Dilinur turned away. Looking at the huge vault door built into the hill ahead, she ordered, "Kaori, aim the Engine at the vault door. I want it open."

Dilinur kept her eyes on the vault door as the Draconic Engine powered up. She didn't need to look back—the Engine was always reliable. She heard the faint click of locking mechanisms followed by the hiss of gas.

The impact was massive. A blinding flash lit up the valley, followed by a powerful shockwave. The ground shook violently as the warhead exploded against the hillside vault door.

But when the smoke cleared and the fire died down, the vault door stood untouched, not even scratched.

"Impossible," Dilinur muttered, tasting ash in her mouth.

"Not even a scratch? How insulting," Kaori complained over the comm. "Surely you have some magical way to get us in. Right, Lady Prefect?"

A Conjurer approached, his robes dusty with moon soil, looking serious. "Milady, as our data suggests, there's a riddle on the door, written in Oracle Bone Script. We need the correct answer to unlock it."

Dilinur sighed impatiently.

"Show me," she ordered, her black robe fluttering in the lunar wind as she walked with Joon-Seok at her side.

They reached the massive barrier, its surface covered with ancient script. The Conjurer bowed nervously as he read the riddle. "On this Door Kaamos, we the followers of the Sand Lotus present to you one riddle. Write your answer, and the Door shall judge."

"Of course. Had to be those religious fanatics," Joon-Seok shook his head with a smirk.

"Not surprising," Dilinur sighed as she studied the door.

Another Conjurer traced the symbols on a stone tablet below the door. "I have a brother who shines bright. But at night, I am here in your dream's flight. Look up at me when you read the sky's map. What is my name, where I follow the stars' path?"

"How...quaint," Dilinur frowned, trying to make sense of the words. "If only the data mentioned the answers to...such nonsense."

"Enough of this game!" Joon-Seok growled. "The Alliance agents are already in there somewhere, stealing our prize." He waved his hand firmly. "Step back. Let me handle this."

"Milord!" A Conjurer at the door protested. "These vault doors were built with psionic wards over enchanted regolith. The riddle is the only way."

"Our Imperium wasn't built on riddles," Joon-Seok dismissed him, speaking gently but firmly. "Psionic problems need psionic solutions."

"You heard the Prince," Dilinur signaled her troops. The Conjurers moved away from the door. The Bloodtroopers and Amber-Eyes waited behind her.

Joon-Seok stood alone before the giant door. He glanced around at the gathered troops, his eyes settling on a Peon carrying supply crates nearby. "You there. Come."

The Peon - a thin man in rusted gray jumpsuit, with the telltale glazed eyes of overworking - shuffled forward obediently, setting down his burden.

"Something need doing, milord?" the Peon asked in a monotone voice.

"Stand here," Joon-Seok pointed to a spot directly in front of him, between himself and the door. The Peon complied without question.

Raising both hands, Joon-Seok began to chant, red energy forming at his fingertips. "Sanguine majorum meorum. Maledicta terra sub pedibus tuis —"

"An Ordovox chant?" One of the Conjurers whispered in amazement.

"Sounds like it. Alliance agents use it too," another replied.

"That explains it! Prince Pak studied in England. I heard he even courted local royalty while there!" a female Conjurer added.

"So the rumors are true? The Prince likes Unblooded women?" Another Conjurer whispered.

"Enough gossip," Dilinur silenced them with a stern finger, though she felt her stomach tighten as she realized what was about to happen. "Enough…" she stopped herself. It was just a Peon. The type of workers converted from criminals of all kinds—murderers, rebels, dissendents, rapists, the least worthy of any Imperium citizen—mind-wiped before serving the Legion. Whatever the lowly man suffered was not her concern.

Joon-Seok's hand shot forward, gripping the Peon's shoulder. "Vita tua pro victoria nostra," he added to the chant.

The Peon's eyes widened briefly before his body began to dissolve, his flesh liquefying into streams of blood that spiraled around Joon-Seok's hands as the gray jumpsuit he wore fell away like a husk.

"What an honor to behold such power," one of the senior Conjurers murmured, though his voice carried no approval, only acknowledgment.

A Bloodtrooper removed his helmet briefly, wiping sweat from his brow despite the moon's cold. The Blood Rain Aria was legendary, but few had seen it performed with such... direct methods.

The other soldiers stepped back instinctively, but none protested.

This was the Imperium way.

"Mors tua sine dignitate erit. Timor solus memorabitur, etiam in morte —" Joon-Seok continued, the stolen life force amplifying his spell. Red droplets formed and gathered into a shower of blood energy that covered the vault door, far more potent than any spell powered by Aether alone.

The air grew thick, reeking of iron, ozone, and scorched flesh. Dilinur watched, both fascinated and disturbed, as the enhanced psionic power ate through the stone like acid, centuries of craftsmanship dissolving under the assault.

"Stellae te consumant omnes!" Joon-Seok finished his chant and lowered his hands with a heavy sigh. Where the Peon had stood, only a dark stain remained on the lunar soil.

The door didn't just crumble - it disintegrated, leaving a gaping maw into the darkness beyond.

One of the younger Bloodtroopers shifted his weight, the servos in his armor whining softly. A Conjurer touched the prayer beads at her belt, lips moving in a silent mantra.

Only the veterans remained perfectly still, having witnessed such sacrifices before in the Imperium's darker campaigns.

And Dilinur was too shocked to comment on whatever just transpired.

Behind her, most Bloodtroopers and Amber-Eyes erupted in cheers. Their voices echoed through the valley as they raised their fists and weapons in celebration.

Snapping back to reality, Dilinur turned and commanded, "Forward! The Moondust Crystal is ours!"

"Onward! For the Imperium!" Someone shouted from the crowd, and others joined in until the chant was deafening.

The red-armored warriors charged forward enthusiastically, their disciplined march turning into an eager rush. They stormed toward the Vault entrance with Thermal Battleaxes and Kinetic Crossbows raised high.

Dilinur watched, smiling with satisfaction before following them, though she also noticed how some soldiers now gave Joon-Seok a wider berth as they prepared to enter the vault. Fear and respect were often indistinguishable in the Imperium.

"You don't expect me to drive this Engine into that, do you, Prefect?" Kaori asked through the comm.

"Turn off your tank, Kaori. Join my troops," Dilinur ordered, glancing back at the Draconic Engine.

"As you wish," Kaori replied, stopping her red vehicle a few meters back.

As another rumbling approached, Dilinur turned to the monster squatting nearby. "Flesh Pot, sit and guard the Engine. Don't let anyone touch it."

"Yes, Prefect," Flesh Pot's huge, hairless form bowed before sitting next to the powered-down tank like an obedient dog.

In the distance, a small squad returned: seven Bloodtroopers and five Amber-Eyes. Team Hound was back.

"Prefect. We've checked the area. No more enemies," The Amber-Eye reported, despite the wind messing up her knotted hair.

"Good. Stay and guard the entrance," Dinu ordered, pointing to the ground.

Suddenly, something appeared in the distance.

Dilinur spotted movement in the dark sky. High above, a strange creature flew, covered in bright purple fur that shimmered in the pale moonlight. Its delicate wings left a trail of shining particles. The creature's golden compound eyes, gleaming with intelligence, briefly focused on her troops.

"Is that a new Radi-Mon?" Dilinur mumbled, mostly to herself. The insect-like creature resembled a giant bee, hovering despite the thin atmosphere.

Before she could say more, the creature vanished, disappearing into the night sky as quickly as it had appeared, leaving only a faint sparkle behind.

But she had no time for distractions. She shook her head, pushing the strange sight from her mind.

"Is everything okay, Lady Prefect?" A Bloodtrooper asked through his helmet.

"It was nothing. Back to work," She stepped forward, not toward the breach but toward Joon-Seok.

"Need more Aether," Joon-Seok slumped, tired from his spellcasting. He took out a vial from his pocket, its contents shining like captured starlight—liquid blue and otherworldly. The Indra-Sprite swirled in the glass as he uncorked it and drank with slightly shaking hands.

Dilinur moved toward him, concerned but gentle. Her hand touched his waist, fingers barely pressing on his uniform, "Are you alright, Joon-Seok?"

But Joon-Seok's reaction wasn't what she expected. He shrugged off her touch, stepping away coldly.

"They would never understand," he muttered, looking away. "The Weight of Phoenix's Blood. The Price of Dragon's Lineage. A World Most Pure is a World without the Dulled."

"Was that the Blood Rain Aria you chanted, milord?" she asked, her heart sinking.

"Look at those peasants rushing into the Vault. The Dulled Ones with their crude weapons, achieving just a fraction of what we could." he said before sighing. For a moment, his words sounded strange, not quite his own. "We psions shouldn't have to share air with them. Yet somehow...we must."

"I...understand," Dilinur pulled back her hand as if burned by his coldness. Her feeling of triumph faded.

"What I meant was...I'll join you soon," Joon-Seok shook his head and rubbed his temple.

"Yes. Take your time," She took a deep breath. She turned away, her formal tone hiding her confusion.

But that could wait. The only thing that mattered was getting the Moondust Crystal, whatever it took.