“My bloodline will slaughter yours, for I am the world eater, the ruin maker, the living tempest. When the time comes, my children shall smother the world.” The recording was replayed over and over again on repeat until the tech geniuses found a way to finally silence it.

Tia listened to it for some time, studying the voice, not so much the message. It was a mans, with slick consonants and a thick accent. She had never heard its like before, and given her time in the military, having spent time in every district of the last city, that was saying something.

She crossed her arms over her chest and leaned back against the cushioning of her leather chair. Her stomach was growling, she would have to address that later. Her uniform was the dull ochre brown of the Goremount’s infantry regiments; a red scarf was her trademark, highlighting her position as chief of the mountain fortress. A dark leather corset clung to her stomach and cushioned her breasts. Black painted shoulder pauldrons were engraved with her name, and the sword she carried laid in her lap, her fingers playing with the hilt.

Tia Serrano spent her entire morning studying the voice, the tone, and the technology it was stored on. The small device had been discovered along the lip of the barrier outside the curtain wall, buried amongst the rubble, and broadcasting the message until the wall guardians finally noticed it.

It was sergeant major, a wolfkin no less, who noticed it first. It was quite the endeavor, getting a dreadnought outside the wall to retrieve the tech, before the storms grew too fierce. The device was small, well made, and surprisingly… It was new. Such technology shouldn’t come from the wastelands. Nothing should come from the wastelands. It shouldn’t exist.

For two days the device continued repeating its message, until they finally discovered how to turn it off. Now, Tia studied the hand sized device with keen interest. She half expected it to turn on all of a sudden while it sat motionless on her desk.

She could still hear the words ringing in her ears, after having listening to it for so long.

“Can I get you anything else my lady commander?” Her subordinate, Captain-Commander Cynfael Melchior, had arrived to find his boss sitting idly at her desk, barely paying attention to the world around her. There was already a small pile of reports for her to go over, they had been growing all day, but all of them were left unattended. The small device, meanwhile, remained sitting in front of her, still eerily silent. As a vampire, Cynfael looked at her with muted red eyes, and pale skin. His white hair was cropped short, and his patrician face was shaved clean.

“Melchior,” she didn’t feel the need to address him by his full title. Such protocol was unnecessary between them, at least when no one else was in the room. “Would you mind summoning the senior staff? It’s time we have a formal discussion about this.” She motioned to the device.

Melchior raised a brow. “I can do that.”

“Good, and do me a favor.” Tia adjusted her seat. “I want an update on my son, how he’s doing at the academy.”

“You could always just call him?”

Without thinking, Tia looked over to the small cabinet on the left side of her desk, where she kept several personal files. “I plan to, but I just want to be sure he’s alright. My son can be stubborn, he likes to keep things to himself.”

Cynfael Melchior sighed. “I’ll task an operative to keep a watchful eye on him, but she’s going to be pissed.”

“Who’s going to be pissed?” Tia sneered.

“Corporal Junipor Reigns.” Cynfael Melchior answered. “She’s got a… Particular temper, and need for confrontation, but she can do this. It’ll be a simple enough job for her, and we’ve been needing to send a representative anyway for military recruitment on campus.”

“If she’s got a temper, why her?”

Cynfael coughed, and then cleared his throat. “Time away from the wall will do her some good.”

Tia had a feeling she knew what he was talking about. “Was she behind that brawl between the Sraxis and Hellfire battalions.” She only skimmed through the reports the other day, and left it to her trusted adviser to settle the dispute. Apparently, he sought to send the main aggressor as far away as possible, at least temporarily.

“No, actually.” He paused. “I’ve dealt with that already. However, she was responsible for another fight.”

“What other fight?” Tia’s curiosity was peeked.

“She’s the one who punched a superior officer.”

“What?” Tia froze, and then started laughing. “When did this happen?”

“This morning my lady.”

“And you want to redeploy her to the other side of the city?” Tia wasn’t sure what to make of this. “She should be thankful you’re not court-marshaling her.”

“She’s too good of a soldier, that and…” Cynfael’s gaze drifted away, almost out of shame. “She’s… My daughter.”

Tia choked on that. “You… You cheeky dick waffle.” Tia slammed her hand on the table. “Illegitimate I presume?”

“It’s not official, but she is my blood.” A look crossed over his face, one of shame and awkward tension. “Nepotism had nothing to do with her enlistment or position… But it might have something to do with her temporary dismissal, rather than a more severe punishment. If you are displeased I will humbly accept resignation, or any punitive measure you require.”

“Why didn’t I know you had a daughter?” Tia rested her head in the palm of her hand. “You really should’ve told me. I might have paid more attention to her.”

“That wouldn’t have been necessary. She’s a model soldier… Except for… Some personality issues.”

“Ones you wish to have resolved by sending her to the academy?” Tia sat back in her seat. “Fine, I’ll do you this favor and let you take care of this. But Captain-Commander, I won’t let you hide her under the rug next time she does something grossly out of line.”

It was a threat he knew she would live up to.

“Also,” Tia leaned forward. “She better not punch my Theo.”

With that, Cynfael Melchior was dismissed, and Tia rotated her seat around to look out the massive glass paned windows that gave her such a wondrous view.

The Goremount was a solid block of granite with deep roots, its outer surface smoothed from the constant torrential blasts of wind. So grand, it was once the anchor at the center of the last city, before the city was expanded and reshaped. Ancient records claimed it was meant to be a bastion against Cubi armies in a long forgotten war. Those were dark days before the storms. Thousands were said to have died trying to scale its walls. Right now, it was the center for command and control of the entire military apparatus. Every logistical decision was orchestrated and planned here. It was the beating heart of the entire military industrial complex, and perhaps the single most important location in the entire city.

Far off into the horizon, Tia got a clear view of the curtain wall, the military plaza, and the road to lost memories which extended from the base of the bastion all the way through the Atillia district and to the curtain walls interior fortress.

She looked back to her desk, at the small piece of technology. “Just where did you come from?” She asked it.

Silence was her only answer.